XP reboots without apparent cause

[hotpepper251]

Sporadically my xp system reboots. 500 gb HD(new 2010), 2gb ram on MSI K9N6PGM2-2 MB(new 2011), system has inline APC 500 (about 6 years old) battery backup. System always on for security cameras. CPU temp around 90 to 96 degrees.


System shutdown today and searching eventlogs, could find no indication of shutdown cause. Shutdowns and or sporadic reboots occur infrequently, but are annoying.

Suggestions as to how to diagnose the problem better and cure it, will be appreciated.

Thank you.

[Medico]

You mention the HD was new in 2010 and the MB was new in 2011, did you replace the PS and/or RAM at either time as well? This could be a hardware failure. Either of these components or the CPU could be the cause of intermittent failures.

[JoeP517]

Have you stopped the automatic restart to try and capture error information? Right click My Computer. Select Properties | Advanced | Startup and Recovery. Make sure the "Automatically Restart" check box is clear.

Joe

[hotpepper251]

Thank you for responding! New power supply and ram when new mb obtained. Had similar issues with the old mb which was about 6years old when replaced.

Keeps me thinking the battery backup could be at fault. Rarely do we have power failure and/or surges that are noteable.

Thank you again.

[hotpepper251]

Thanks for your reply Joe! Must be asleep at the keyboard didn't think to prevent autorestart. Will study logs on next occurance.

Thank you again.

[DrWho]

UPS batteries usually won't last six years.
I'd test the UPS by starting up the PC and setting the PC to idle, with no programs running and then pull the power plug to the UPS out of the line socket and see if the UPS will keep the PC running. If not, you've found the problem.
Rather than re-battery a UPS of that age, I'd just replace the whole UPS. They are so cheap anymore, they're not worth messing with.

I have an old 600w APC brand of UPS that had bad batteries in it and the user wanted it GONE, so I took it home, attached two car batteries to it and it's been running faultlessly now for several years. The last time I checked it,,,,, it ran for seven hours before it even started beeping to tell me the batteries were starting to get low.

Or for troubleshooting purposes, you can plug your PC directly into the wall socket, bypassing the UPS all together.

There's just a bunch of BASIC stuff I do when troubleshooting an intermittent problem. The power is first, ram is second, other internal connectors are third. The ram in most computers sits right next to the CPU, where it gets very dirty. So cleaning the ram is usually one of the first things I do. It costs nothing and takes only a few minutes.
Then also check the CMOS battery with a digital volt meter. If it's low, Under 3vdc, that can cause all sorts of weird problems.
Not just boot failures, but RUN failures too.

So the title of this thread "XP reboots without cause" is kind of a misnomer, because there's obviously a CAUSE, you've just not found it yet.
That's what we have Computer Tech's for. Eh?

Good Luck,
The Doctor

[Johnny Crab]

was one bad stick of RAM. Diagnosed with a tech bootable CD that tests specific hardware of choice. A similar machine had the same issue here about 4 years ago so we knew where to look first.

Replaced both 512MB sticks with the 2x1024 PNY pack, problem solved, and it is like rocket fuel for the old machine.

[JoeP517]

Glad you got it resolved. Thanks for posting back.

Joe

[Just Plain Fred]

System shutdown today and searching eventlogs, could find no indication of shutdown cause. Shutdowns and or sporadic reboots occur infrequently, but are annoying.

Suggestions as to how to diagnose the problem better and cure it, will be appreciated.

"hp" ,
Hello...The easiest thing to do is "Tap" the case.. I had a problem with "Blue Screens" because of loose screws (not the one's in my head) I could tap on the case and when i hit the spot .... it would cause the problem . Sounds like a loose connector someplace ...Open the case and probe around... Regards Fred

[hotpepper251]

Thank you for all the responses- haven't found any loose screws(tightened the head- now bald) Ram seems to be good, but the old battery back up is the likely suspect as it sits there quietly - glib. Usually remove all internal case dust biannually. Tracking the event logs are showing no anomalies.

So I'm still looking for the Ah ha moment.

Again thank you for the input!

[bumtracks]

fwiw
fixed same thing in a xp ..finally wouldnt boot frequently.
Had some kind of rodent, mouse? that had been visiting.
Lots of sticky wet & droppings on top of hdd flowing thru the hdd cable.
Ugly to clean... but fixed it.

[paulbyr]

Johnny Crab's post reminded me to ask - what do you GURUs use to check for mem. stick problems now? I still only have the old MS Memtest on a dirty looking floppy.

[DrWho]

was one bad stick of RAM. Diagnosed with a tech bootable CD that tests specific hardware of choice. A similar machine had the same issue here about 4 years ago so we knew where to look first.
Replaced both 512MB sticks with the 2x1024 PNY pack, problem solved, and it is like rocket fuel for the old machine.

I would be more wealthy than Donald Trump, if everyone would just send me their so called "Bad" ram.

In my PC business, I find lots of ram failures, but I only toss out maybe one stick of ram a year and that's almost always SpecTek or Kingston ram. I've heard that PNY uses at least some, SpecTek chips, so they too are on my BAD list. I get all my ram directly from "Crucial.com".
Crucial, I've been told, uses only Micron, top quality ram chips.

I did a thread on some forum a few years ago, titled simply "Wash That Ram".
Because that's what I do with every stick of ram that shows BAD when tested with Memtest86+ or other memtest programs.
All programs do not give the same test results. They should always be run from a DOS boot disk, floppy, CD or flash drive.

So the condensed version of that thread:
Take questionable ram to the kitchen sink and WASH it, using a dishwashing detergent and an old toothbrush. Then rinse off the soap with warm water and follow that with another rinse with Alcohol, not the drinking kind, that has too much sugar in it.

Then put the ram in a place with good airflow to thoroughly dry. I often just set it out on the porch in the sun to dry.
Once it's good and dry, put it back in the PC and run the PC as normal.

If it's a small size like that 512meg. previously mentioned, an upgrade to 1 gig is always a good move.
I would only question the brand used in this case.

When I'm installing A NEW ram stick, (or any new card,) in a PC, I always clean off the Gold edge connector before I install the ram in the motherboard. A little alcohol on a soft, clean, cloth, does the job nicely.

Cheers Mates!
The Doctor

[DrWho]

Johnny Crab's post reminded me to ask - what do you GURUs use to check for mem. stick problems now? I still only have the old MS Memtest on a dirty looking floppy.

Dude! Why is your floppy "Dirty Looking" ???
Don't you take care of your 'floppy' ???

Like many questions you may have, a Google search will answer the question for you, much faster than asking it on a forum. Eh?

I just googled "Memtest86+" and found this web site, where, toward the bottom of the page I was able to download the latest
version in a Zipped, .ISO file. Use that to burn your self Booting Memtest86+ CD.
www.memtest.org/


Now you can retire your dirty floppy. May it RIP.

Good Luck Mate!
The Doctor

Here! You can borrow mine!


It took less time to download the ISO file, unzip it and burn it and label it, than I've spent on this forum today.

[john galloway]

i use WhoCrashed when I'm trying to discover more about spontaneous reboots, when I've not disabled automatic restarts.
an excellent diagnostic helper.
john