Win98 re-boots for no reason

Start with installing the drivers for the motherboard / chipset, if you haven't already done so.

This may take care of everything on it's own.

If not, check the power management section of the BIOS settings for shutdown and startup events.

Also, run a windows update. There are a few updates to help W98 deal with the newer chipsets and hard drives. You want these "critical" updates at a minimum.

You may even want the W98 shutdown suplement.

Then, check for an updated video card driver.

I have also seen BIOS problems cause "strange" sysmtoms, so check with the motherboard mfg for a BIOS update.

Chas

Start with a virus checker.

Then go to Control Panel/ System/ Device Manager, and see if there any hardware conflicts. If there are any yellow exclamation marks, reinstall drivers.

Make sure all your hardware is seated properly and power cables tightly attached.

Check that the cpu fan and psu fan are spinning efficiently.

One of these should find the problem.

It's highly unlikely that Windows is causing your system to re-boot. I do, however, agree that you should first run a virus scan to exclude any possible infection-related issues.

If the scan comes clean then that leaves us with hardware issues. Spontaneous reboots are almost always caused by a momentary lack of power to the system. The system sees this power shortage as a request to restart (just as if you had pushed the reset button). This can be caused by something as simple as a card thathas been jiggled loose from it's socket and is now partially shorting to ground. First suspect is always the video card; I would definitely re-seat it at a minimum. While you're in the box I would also go ahead and spend a few minutes re-seating allthe internal connections. Think of it not as a major inconvenience but as a way to get close and personal with your computer ;)

Good luck!

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