Spontaneous reboots

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Behodar

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#125707 16-Jul-2013 20:57

Hi everyone,

I'm having problems with my machine. I can start up from cold, load up a game, and play for an hour or two. Suddenly the computer just completely turns off (fans spin down etc) then a few seconds later starts up again. If I try a game again, it'll only last about five minutes before the problem recurs.

It seemed like a power supply issue so I replaced it today, but the problem is still happening (which is a real pain after dropping $175 on a power supply)! The issue does not occur if I remove the video card and use the Intel chip.

This all seems to point to a video card issue, but there's a twist. My current card is a GTX 560. It worked without any issues for several months, but then I swapped it for a Radeon of some sort (I've forgotten the number). That's when this issue started happening; I got the reboots with the Radeon. I've removed the Radeon and put the GeForce back in, but I'm still getting the reboot issue. That would imply that it's not a problem with the card itself (which is why I suspected the PSU).

This has got me totally confused so does anyone have any suggestions?

ubergeeknz

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#857699 16-Jul-2013 21:07

Hm. Try cleaning out all of your video drivers and reinstall the correct one - A search of google will help you remove the radeon/nvidia drivers.

May not be it but I've seen bad video drivers cause this kind of thing before, and if swapping the video card doesn't fix it then this is a likely enough cause.

Good luck!

Oh and edit: Check the event log, see if the reboot was a bugcheck or something else. Usually bugcheck means a bluescreen but in the case of video drivers, maybe not. Might give you a clue. Oh and check your CPU heatsink/cooling.

bigal_nz

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#857704 16-Jul-2013 21:18

Could be ram....test with memtest or 1 stick at a time.

Failing that could be bga joint on mobo...replace mobo if so.

Finally could be leaking caps. Google for pic.

Behodar

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#857708 16-Jul-2013 21:21

I'm actually running OS X rather than Windows and I've completely reinstalled it so there aren't any old drivers on there. Even then, it's just turning straight off and there's nothing in the console log so the OS isn't aware that anything is amiss (at least not until it gives me the "you didn't shut down properly" message when it comes back up!)

I don't know why I hadn't thought of RAM; that's a very logical thing to check so I'll have a look at that now.

Edit: Caps look fine. I've just taken half of the RAM out, now to test...

Behodar

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#857721 16-Jul-2013 21:46

Argh! If it's not one thing, it's another! I went to "sleep" the computer and instead of going to sleep, it just crashed (screen turned off but fans kept going and it wouldn't wake). So I reached around the back, flicked the PSU switch to Off... and it kept on running.

I've had enough frustration for a day, I'm going to bed and will ignore this computer until tomorrow!

toyonut

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#857730 16-Jul-2013 22:14

Behodar: I'm actually running OS X rather than Windows

That is kind of a problem right there. OSX is always going to be a temperamental thing because it is not coded to run on a variety of hardware. I know you can get it almost there by being careful with hardware and searching for kexts, but it kind of makes troubleshooting difficult, maybe you had a different version of the driver/kext before and it worked but the new one doesn't. Try grab a linux distro like Ubuntu (or Windows if you have a copy around), install it and at least you can start to rule out hardware or software so you know where to start looking. If it still reboots then check all wiring is connected correctly, clean out all card and ram slots, reassemble carefully checking for dead components as you go. If it works with a different OS, try another fresh install of OSX and whatever kexts are needed and hope the issue does not reappear.

Try Vultr using this link and get us both some credit:

http://www.vultr.com/?ref=7033587-3B

Behodar

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#857913 17-Jul-2013 09:56

I don't believe this to be a software problem since it started occurring at the same time as a video card swap and there is nothing in the log. The machine had been behaving flawlessly for about 9 months prior.

I haven't had any reboots since removing half of the RAM, but I've had to go to work and won't be able to do a "proper" test until tonight.

Behodar

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#858365 17-Jul-2013 22:12

No crashes/reboots so far with half of the memory removed :)

I'll post back if it happens again - if you don't hear anything else then that's fixed it. Thanks for all your help.

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bigal_nz

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#858375 17-Jul-2013 22:40

NP.

toyonut

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#858605 18-Jul-2013 13:29

Awesome, glad you managed to solve it.

Try Vultr using this link and get us both some credit:

http://www.vultr.com/?ref=7033587-3B

Behodar

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#861846 18-Jul-2013 20:47

Grr, it just did it again.

Power supply swapped, RAM swapped... I guess I could try moving the video card to the other slot and see what happens. If it's still problematic then I might have to get desperate and install Windows, just to make sure that it's definitely not software!