Haunted Computer

[WandaJean]

My computer keeps restarting all by itsself, numerous times a day, I did a virus scan and found nothing wrong with it. I used AVG.Anyone have any ideas why it might be doing that? Also when I am use IE it keeps closing on me, that happens numerous times a day as well.

[puddin57]

No idea....check the union papers for the pc....maybe it's on strike!!! Lol j/j

[WandaJean]

lol..oh your a big help

[Scooter]

Do you see a brief blue screen before this happens?
If you do, the operating system kernel is encountering a fatal error and has to reboot.

If you're using XP, go Start -> Control Panel -> System -> Advanced -> Startup and Recovery, and uncheck the box that says "Automatically restart". This will force Windows to display the "Blue Screen of Death" with error codes long enough for you to write them down.

If you do get them, write down as much of the information as you can, exactly as it appears, and post it here.

If you don't get the blue screen, your system may be overheating. Make sure that your computer has plenty of space around it and gets good airflow. Also, open it up (unplug it first) and use a vacuum to clean out any dust - but be careful to do 2 things - first, use a brush attachment and not a hard nozzle - second, keep one hand on the metal frame of your computer at all times while vacuuming it to ground any static charge, or you can blow your motherboard/RAM.

Look for a block-shaped component with a fan on top of it - this is your CPU. if the heatsink underneath it is clogged with dust, your system will overheat quickly.

Another possible cause is a failing power supply. The only real way to test for this is to have it replaced with another of equal or higher wattage.

Yet another cause could be bad RAM modules.

If this continues to give you issues, you may have a corrupted filesystem. In this case, try going Start -> Run and type "chkdsk C: /r". This will run Checkdisk on your WIndows drive and repair errors, locate bad sectors, and recover readable information. Odds are you'll get the prompt that Checkdisk has to run at the next boot (because files it will check are currently is use). Select Yes, check at next restart, and then reboot. This will take quite a while, so be patient - like, sometimes an hour or more.

If your system shuts down during chkdsk, you almost certainly have a power supply, overheating, RAM or motherboard problem.

Try these suggestions and let me know if it improves anything.

[WandaJean]

I do not get the blue screen, I will try your other tips and see if there is an improvement, thanks very much