Computer randomly switching off and hard to reboot?

Question

My computer keeps randomly switching off. Once it has switched off, its very hard to get it to turn back on again. However, when it is fully booted it can stay on for several hours.

Is it most likely the fan/overheating, power supply, software issue, or something else?

Its a Dell 530s desktop which is 3 years old. There was a problem with these types of Dell in that they had very noisy fans and needed a BIOS update. Once I did this the fan improved but often the fan can be quite noisy. There have been times when I've noticed the PC has got hot but since I've had this problem it doesn't seem particularly hot.

When the computer turns off it says 'Auto detect, entering power save'. I went into the BIOS and switched the selection to automatically turn the computer on after a power failure to 'ON'. However, I regret this as maybe I need to let the PC cool down. Before doing this though, sometimes it would automatically try and turn itself on again a few seconds after switching off anyway.

Since I've changed the BIOS so that it automatically switches on after 'power failure', the PC is continually trying to switch on, but there seem to be breaks in doing so. Today its turned on so that you can see the Dell Sign and the 'press f2 or f12' in the bottom right hand corner and then usually switches off after this. Straight away it will turn on again and this repeats a few times. Then there's a 5 minute or so gap, then the cycle repeats. Tonight I managed to get to the Welcome screen for windows but then it switched off again.

I have my PC plugged into a multi-socket adapter. My speakers are plugged into the same adapter and they have a green on light which remains on so its not some strange problem with the electricity in my house. Having said that I'm writing this on a plugged in macbook pro laptop and the power supply feels very hot, is this normal?

I'm a bit concerned about taking my computer to a shop as they could charge me anything they like and the problem might not even get resolved.

I'd be grateful if someone could give me their opinion of what the problem most likely is and what I should do. I've never opened a computer before but I'd be willing to give it a go if it was simple enough.

Thanks.

Answer 1

It definitely sounds like your charger is dying on you. The problem indicates that the charger is no longer working because you have some sort of power related issue. Chargers tend to stop working after about a year or so of usage. They last even less if the there is some sort of manufacture defect or consumer damage. I would suggest you look into a new charger as soon as possible.Make sure you get one from a reliable source instead of a cheap knock off on like ebay or something. I would personally suggest you visit topmic charger. They are very reputable and have great service. They include free shipping, 30 days money back guarantee, and free lifetime warranty so if the charger ever stops working, they would replace it at no additional cost, for life.



If you have any more questions feel free to sen

Answer 2

Bud, i am not sure whether my information would be helpful. At this situation i suggest you to run msconfig and check the option for load system files only. And do check your scheduled task list in the system tools to see whether there's any unknown activity scheduled. Because some virus activities can do things similar to your problem. Second thing, instead of individually changing option in your bios, reset it to default settings. This is an attempt to fix things. I can't assure you that this will rectify all the problems. Or let's wait for some tech's opinion in this page. :)

Answer 3

restarting and rebooting won't harm your pc. an user-friendly sign of restarting continuously is a foul fan on your processor. it particularly is an extremely much less costly fix. you additionally can open your case and see if there is particularly some airborne dirt and dirt interior. airborne dirt and dirt would reason your followers to no longer run proper and it could overheat which reasons restarting. it particularly is the place i could examine first.