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PC restarting randomly

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by srippey Jan 9, 2002 last reply Jan 10, 2002

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I have a Dell Dimension(maybe 2 years old) on my network that will periodically restart randomly. It does this even when disconnected from the network. It is running windows98. Every time it reboots, I get lost clusters. I have used Norton Utilities 2000 on it and ran a full disk doctor and speed disk. No damaged areas on the hard drive were found, so I do not think it is a bad hard drive. It will reboot even if it is just sitting there, does not matter if I am in any programs. I have already formatted the hard drive completely and reinstalled everything, and it still does this. This started a couple of months ago, but has been more frequent lately. Does anybody have any suggestions? I'm wondering if it is hardware?

15 replies

by grumpy Jan 9, 2002

I have found a few systems that did the same thing. One had a bad ribbon cable - replaced it and the problem went away. The other had a flakey power supply. The voltages were off just enough - changed the power supply and no more surprise reboots.

by srippey Jan 10, 2002

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by timthetoolman Jan 9, 2002

Hi,

To check whether its hardware related, it would be worthwhile downloading PC stressing tools and giving them a good run on it.

I think there are some free ones offered at www.tucows.com

If something's flakey in it, you'll flush it out by heavily stressing the machine!

Then start replacing bits as per the above suggestion...

Cheers,
Tim.

by srippey Jan 10, 2002

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by dmiles Jan 9, 2002

Check the CPU and Power Supply fans to make sure they are operating properly and the system is not overheating,also chek for dust buildup that will cause the air flow circulation problems.
Check to make sure that Memory is seated properly

by srippey Jan 10, 2002

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by dwilliamson Jan 10, 2002

Another thing to check out is the CPU temp. If the CPU fan isn't working properly or is real dirty the cooling of the CPU will fail and your system will then reboot. Happened to me on an intel chip, replaced the power supply, ribbons, then spent a measly $3.00 on a new fan all was well.

by srippey Jan 10, 2002

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by ann777 Jan 10, 2002

Actually I experienced this on my Dell Dimension XPS T550. The problem in my case was resolved by thouroughly blowing out the computer and power supply with a can of air. And making sure that all the power cables and ribbons were sucure to my cd-rom drives and hdd's. And also reseating daughterboards into their slots (modem, video, etc)

Usually a rebooting issue is a heat-related issue. Whether the constant heating cooling has slowly moved the adapters such that they no longer make a good connection, or the power connection has come loose, or the fan is clogged.

by srippey Jan 10, 2002

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by mafiaboss21 Jan 10, 2002

i had the same problem. It was actually norton antivirus that was causing the system to re boot.
If you have antivirus software, un-install and then re-install. It could also be a result of powr surges, some areas are prone to this, and that will cause your computer to reboot. Buy a surge supressor if the above dont work. They cost about 10 quid. Hope this helps ya....