Through my years of working with computers I have encountered many issues. Some related to hardware, but most seem to be associated with software. When I do encounter an error, I like to find the root of the problem, so I can add it to my knowledgebase.
Recently, I ran into a problem where my computer would just shut off by itself. At first it was rather annoying, but then it got to the point where I couldn’t turn my computer back on. After some time, I did manage to get my computer up and running again.
Shutdown
I don’t have a new computer by any stretch of the imagination. It is roughly 7 years old (Pentium 4 – 1.7Ghz), but does allow me to surf, check my e-mail, and blog. I am also able to play some of my older games, but anything new I can forget it.
The computer has been serving me well, up until recently. While using various applications, or playing games, my computer would suddenly shut itself off. Thinking nothing about it the first few times, I continued to use it.
Then one time it shut itself off, but wouldn’t turn back on. Thinking it may have overheated, I left it alone for an hour. When I came back and pressed the power button, it came back to life. Problem solved, at least that’s what I thought.Finally, it decided to shut itself off once again. Thinking it had overheated again, I left it alone for an hour. When I came back, and attempted to turn it on, nothing happened. My computer was dead.Solving the Problem
Up until the point of the shutdown, my everything in my computer had been working normally. I had no processor issue, and no problems with any of the peripherals. This lead me to the power supply.
For those that don’t know, each desktop computer includes a metal box at the back of your case that is the power supply. It is easy to locate, by simply looking for the power button at the back. This button controls the power to the power supply, while the power button you usually use controls the actual computer.
From my experience, power supplies are one of the components in your computer that will fail before any other component in your computer. This is why I decided to look at the power supply as the issue of my shutdown.
After opening my case I checked the wattage of the power supply, which was written on the side. The power supply wattage was 300W (I told you it was an old computer). Most computers today include power supplies that are 500W to 1000W.Now that I knew the size of my power supply, I ordered a new replacement (Ultra LS350 Lifetime Series 350W Power Supply). The power supply I ordered was 350W, so it provided a bit more power than the previous one. When ordering a power supply, ensure you get one that includes all the connections you need.
For me, I had to ensure that the power supply included the 20-pin connector for the motherboard. Power supplies sold today may include a 20/24-pin connector, which allows you to use either configuration. For the 20-pin connections, just ignore the remaining 4 connectors.
Once I received my power supply, I then removed the older one, connected the newer one, and then turned on my computer. Instantly, the computer came back to life, and since then I haven’t had any issues with it. The old power supply had just worn out.
Summary
Recently I ran into an issue with my computer where it would just suddenly shut itself off. After some thought I realized that it was the power supply, and it needed to be replaced.
After replacing the power supply, my computer immediately came back to life.