Random Reboots, where to look?

[Predator314]

Just built a new PC. Here are the specs:

Asus P5LD2 Deluxe MB
Pentium D 930 CPU
2 GIG OCZ RAM
2 x 250GB SATA Drives (no RAID array yet)
PNY Nvidia GeForce 7600GT video card
Hauppauge WinTV-PVR-150 MCE TV Tuner Card
Lite ON DVD+/-RW
Lite ON DVD-ROM
Aspire 520W ATX PSU
Windows Media Center

The PC just randomly reboots at times. I don't really have to be doing anything special. It could do it while listening to music, browsing the web, etc. It doesn't seem to ever reboot if the thing is just sitting idle though.

I've upgraded to the latest chipset drivers for my Mobo, the latest Nvidia reference drivers, the latest sound drivers (sound on mobo), and the latest TV Tuner drivers.

I haven't tried upgrading my BIOS yet because I don't have a floppy drive. That's my last hope.

The CPU runs at around 48 degrees celsius, but got as high as 51 degrees yesterday during the heat of the day. I'm not sure if that's too hot or not.

I'm just looking for some clues on where to go from here.

Thanks in advance,
Wes

 

[KGB]

Are you getting anything logged into Event Viewer.
Turn off the auto-restart in the startup & recovery options.
This will get you a BSOD which will contain some clues.

 

[Predator314]

Originally posted by: KGBMAN
Are you getting anything logged into Event Viewer.
Turn off the auto-restart in the startup & recovery options.
This will get you a BSOD which will contain some clues.

To be honest, I haven't checked the Event Viewer. I will check that this evening when I get home. I'll also turn off the auto-restart.

 

[River Side]

hmm mine only does that when i'm overclocking and testing a certain setting.. most probably due to too high FSB.. make sure all your settings jive in bios..

if all else is ok.. i'll have to blame the Powersupply.. the PD's are power hungry and u've got a loaded system.. and there are similar problems reported for this Power Supply in newegg reviews..

 

[Predator314]

Originally posted by: River Side
hmm mine only does that when i'm overclocking and testing a certain setting.. most probably due to too high FSB.. make sure all your settings jive in bios..

if all else is ok.. i'll have to blame the Powersupply.. the PD's are power hungry and u've got a loaded system..

I've poked around the BIOS to see if there was anything in it that might cause the problem. I couldn't find anything. Do you think my power supply is insufficient (520W ASPIRE ATX) or just possibly bad?

 

[Carl Uman]

1) make sure your CPU and video card are not overheating
2) check the voltages in your bios to be sure they are close to the correct voltage
3) get memtest and check your memory
4) check for newer drivers on all your devices (included built-in stuff on mobo)
5) remove one device at a time from your computer to eliminate those posibilities (start with non-critical stuff first like printer, scanner, webcam, and card readers).
6) if you have cards in the pci slots you may need to move them to a different slot.

That will cover a lot of problems. If you still can't find it then you may need to swap parts until you find the piece causing the problem.

EDIT:
Guess I should have read your post and not just the title.
I'd start with the memtest86 program.

 

[Predator314]

Originally posted by: Carl Uman
1) make sure your CPU and video card are not overheating
2) check the voltages in your bios to be sure they are close to the correct voltage
3) get memtest and check your memory
4) check for newer drivers on all your devices (included built-in stuff on mobo)
5) remove one device at a time from your computer to eliminate those posibilities (start with non-critical stuff first like printer, scanner, webcam, and card readers).
6) if you have cards in the pci slots you may need to move them to a different slot.

That will cover a lot of problems. If you still can't find it then you may need to swap parts until you find the piece causing the problem.

1.) CPU Runs around 48 deg celsius. I'm not sure how to check the video card temp. Any clues here?
2.) voltages in the bios are correct
3.) I will try the memtest thing
4.) I've updated all mobo drivers with the exception of onboard LAN driver. I'll try that this evening
5.) I don't really have any external devices hooked up to it right now other than my USB mouse. However, I'll play around without the TV Tuner card and see if the problem persists.
6.) I'll also try moving the PC Card to a different slot.

 

[River Side]

Originally posted by: Predator314

Originally posted by: River Side
I've poked around the BIOS to see if there was anything in it that might cause the problem. I couldn't find anything. Do you think my power supply is insufficient (520W ASPIRE ATX) or just possibly bad?

it could be bad or it just is underpowered.. (not the ratings but the Power Supply)..

you have such a nice rig.. why don't u swap the PS with something that matches your config? like something from Enermax, OCZ, Seasonic or Fortron?

 

[winterlude]

Other posibilities: Virus/adware in the boot sector or system files, UPS over-sensitivity, uneven power from the socket (in which case you should get a UPS).
Put your system under heavy load and see if the shut off happens. Then you know it is definitely a hardware problem, and either heat or a power supply problem.
Try the same thing with the case off and a room fan blowing on the inside of your computer (which will cool it off significantly) and see if you still have the restart.
If heat turns out to be your problem, you could also underclock your chip until you get some more case fans or better CPU cooling on your chip.

 

[T9D]

My bet is bad powersupply. Had the exact same thing happen to me. Replaced powersupply and it was all fixed.

 

[Predator314]

would this be a good Power Supply choice for my system (assuming that's the problem)?

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16817711001

OCZ OCZ600ADJSLI ATX12V 2.01, ATX, BTX, SATA, P4, and EPS12V 700 Watts Power Supply - Retail

 

[AMCRambler]

I'm thinking you got a bad stick of memory. I had this problem and after running memtest found one of the sticks throqing up errors. As soon as I took it out, the problem went away.

 

[Predator314]

When you guys say to use memtest.... I did a google search and found 2 programs called memtest. One seems to be a GNU licensed product that can make a bootable cd-rom and then test the memory from that. There is another one that runs under windows from HCI Design. Are either of these the program you are referring to?

 

[winterlude]

The first one

 

[winterlude]

You've got to run a few loops to be sure e.g. let it run for a few hours. If it's error free, the RAM is good.

 

[River Side]

Originally posted by: Predator314
would this be a good Power Supply choice for my system (assuming that's the problem)?

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16817711001

OCZ OCZ600ADJSLI ATX12V 2.01, ATX, BTX, SATA, P4, and EPS12V 700 Watts Power Supply - Retail

that's overkill

I'd recommend This one from Antec

 

[Predator314]

I tried the memtest program last night and it ran all tests and had zero errors. So I'm assuming the RAM is not the problem. I just ordered a new PowerSupply, so maybe that will fix my problem.

In the meantime, can someone tell me what the normal temperature for my Pentium D 930 CPU to be running? From the google searches I've done, around 50 degress C seems to be normal. Does this sound correct to you all?

Also, how can I check the temps on my video card?