whats wrong with my computer? (random restarts)?

Question

Hey guys, first off, heres my system info (let me know if i missed any)

operating system: Windows vista home premium (64x) - yea i know vista sucks but cant afford an upgrade to windows 7.

processor: Intel core 2 quad CPU Q9300 @ 2.50GHz (4cpus), ~2.5GHz

memory: 4094MB ram

page file: 1423MB used, 6938 available

Directx version: directx 11

Also running a 700W psu and my graphics card is a nvidia Geforce GTX550Ti 1024MB GDDR5


Right, for the last month or so its been restarting really randomly. Can be online for 5 - 6 hours with no issue or restart constantly before the log on screen. I recently installed a new graphics card *the one in there now) as well as a new powersupply. All into a new case (old one was too small for the PSU and graphics card) All was good for about a month then the restarting started. Took it in to the repair shop who installed it all to the new case and they ran tests which brought no issues back, they put it down the the CPU fan shorting out so replaced that, All was well again for about another month and the restarting started again. So I took it back in and he said he'll put it on 48 hour test to find out whats up. Got it back yesterday and he said it was on constantly for 72 hours with no issues what so ever. he said there is nothing wrong with any hardware according to the tests and no issues with operating system or anything he can find at all. and it didnt restart once while it was there. Got it home and it restarted twice before even getting to the log on screen. I switched plug sockets, worked fine all afternoon, put it on today and it worked for for about 20 mins and its just restarted 6 times in a row (pain in the *** trying to write this with it restarting now and then)

What is wrong with my comp? how can it be fine for 72 hours in the guys shop but barly manage 20 mins at home? any suggestions?


When i say restart its as if the power cable is pulled out and put back in. I've trying turning off the 'restart when windows encounters and error' and it still does it. I've even turned off an option that reboots the comp after a power failure, so when i physically pull out the power and put it back in it doesnt even reboot, and yet and random points it will still do the restarts, it doesnt just turn off.

I recently enabled the 'boot logging' and after reading the NTBTLOG I get started noticing a pattern:

Did not load driver \SystemRoot\System32\DRIVERS\srv.sys
Loaded driver \SystemRoot\system32\drivers\peauth.sys
Loaded driver \SystemRoot\System32\Drivers\secdrv.SYS
Loaded driver \SystemRoot\System32\drivers\tcpipreg.sy…
Loaded driver \SystemRoot\system32\DRIVERS\cdfs.sys
Loaded driver \??\c:\Program Files (x86)\Hewlett-Packard\Media\DVD\000.fcl
Loaded driver \SystemRoot\system32\DRIVERS\NisDrvWFP.s…
Service Pack 2 4 19 2012 21:01:33.125

another restart:

Loaded driver \SystemRoot\System32\DRIVERS\srv.sys
Did not load driver \SystemRoot\System32\DRIVERS\srv.sys
Loaded driver \SystemRoot\system32\DRIVERS\cdfs.sys
Loaded driver \SystemRoot\system32\drivers\peauth.sys
Loaded driver \SystemRoot\System32\Drivers\secdrv.SYS
Loaded driver \SystemRoot\System32\drivers\tcpipreg.sy…
Did not load driver \??\c:\Program Files (x86)\Hewlett-Packard\Media\DVD\000.fcl
Loaded driver \SystemRoot\system32\DRIVERS\NisDrvWFP.s…
Service Pack 2 4 20 2012 12:46:42.125


Theres a bunch (looks like 50 - 60 but havent counted) of other 'loaded drivers' as well as a few 'failed to load drivers' on a bit list each time the comp boots up. Not sure if this is even relevant just thought id add it on.


Please help me. its driving me crazy having something so random effect my computer in such a frustrating way. Thanks in advance.

Answer 1

Hi,



The first thing to do is to look in the control panel, problem log and in the administrative tools, event viewer to see what is reported there.



Then check system, advanced, startup and recovery, in there make sure the re-start on error box is not ticked.



That way when the pc gets an error it should stop with an error code which will allow you to google the code and see what is going wrong.



Just mail me if you need more help.



Arnak

Answer 2

I know it sounds like a silly suggestion, but have you tried it in a different plug socket with different power cables / adapters? It sounds like a dodgy connection, which would explain why the repair shop failed to notice any problems.



"I've even turned off an option that reboots the comp after a power failure, so when i physically pull out the power and put it back in it doesnt even reboot, and yet and random points it will still do the restarts, it doesnt just turn off."



I don't know how this mechanism works, but potentially if the power flickering is fast enough, it might be enough to reboot the machine without the motherboard realising that the power is gone.



Another thing to consider is position. Did the repair shop lie the tower down? Do you have the machine at an odd incline? Does the machine vibrate? You may find that your reset switch has a fault, and is accidentally connecting, yet due to the surface / position in the repair shop, it seemed to work fine. Try disconnecting your reset cable from the motherboard, or try using the unit in different positions.



(Note: I did consider overheating may be a problem, but most machines simply shut off rather than rebooting. Something to check though - next time it reboots, go into the bios. Often there is a page that will tell you the temperature and thresholds.)

Answer 3

This kind of problem usually requires a lot of detective work and paying attention to a lot of details

.

1. I would start with getting more info from the log files about WMI. The first link is about a problem in Vista with WMI.

If that doesn't fix the problem google for vista WMI and see if anything comes up.



2. Have you checked the device manager to be sure that vista is happy with all your drivers?



3. I assume you have all the vista updates.



4. It would be interesting to compare the logs when you do NOT have any reboots to the log after the reboots. Does something stand out?



5.Just as a wild idea; have you tried a different anti-virus? Temporarily stop/change other anti malware/trojan checker etc.



6. Have you run a memory tester like memtest? You have to let it run for a few complete tests with absolutely zero errors. Even 1 error could be a problem.



7. Check your motherboard visually for bad capacitors; bulging, leaking, cracked. See the third link.



I know that I have thrown out a lot of suggestions but there are a lot of things that can cause frequent reboots.

Hope this helps.

Answer 4

There are several things which could cause a restart: 1. power source: even if the power says 550W, this is -peak- power. It's not constant. You should take it to an electrician or electronics specialist to measure the average power output. Usually the average power is about 100-150 W lower than what it says on the box. Rarely, this can go down even further, causing restarts in times of computer load. 2. CPU Cooler Malfunction: it happens sometimes that a dirty cooler just stops, temperature spikes for just an instant causing restart without warning (and goes back to normal after restart). 3. RAM malfunction: dirty or improperly inserted RAM modules can (at times of load) act as if they were disconnected resulting in restart (with or without memory dump). 4. Virus: some viruses can cause computer shutdown or restart. Since this is a software issue, you will see the normal Windows shutdown: programs closing, etc (maybe a timer counting down until restart). Some viruses keep your computer in a restart loop, restarting just seconds after login.

Answer 5

I had a similar issue that I put down to a dodgy RAM chip - restarts all the time, when idling, when in use, when booting, sometimes the power button would do nothing at all.



I ran a program called HDD Regenerator - its about $70 so see if a friend has made a disk of it already - and it identified one single bad sector in the master HDD which it fixed - 100% stable from here on in.

Answer 6

This answer may be silly but is the place your tower is sitting on well ventilated? I asked this because the shop may be cooler than your area so it is possible that the graphics card is overheating when it is used in your place.