Computer shutting down

[arun_7]

Hello,
I have a ~10 month old nvidia gts 450 card.
My psu is 450w and around 3 years old.
I had no issues with my previous graphic card. First 6 months with the gts 450 was fine. But for a couple of months now, whenever i play a game, the computer just restarts after about 15~20 mins? I'm not sure if the problem is with my GPU or PSU.
Please help. Thanks

My specs are:
intel core2duo e7500 at 2.93Ghz
intel dg41rq mobo
2 1 gb ddr2 ram
Nvidia gts 450 card
Zebronics PSU 450W

 

[ronintexas]

Does is restart or shut down? If it is shutting down, this usually indicates a head issue and/or power issue. If it is restarting, it could be either drivers, software or hardware issues.

Assuming it is a restart, the first thing to check is that all of your drivers are up to date, all updates have been installed and perform a virus/malware check.

Next, check your event viewer (click start, then type "event viewer" in the search box). Read through the log files to see if any critical issues, errors or warnings have occurred recently.

 

[wanderer11]

Sound like either a psu or temperature problem. Run hwmonitor in game to see the temps of your cpu and gpu. That is not a good psu either. I would repace that with a corsair, seasonic, antec, xfx, of pcp&c regardless.

 

[Hashwagon]

Hit the Windows key and type in 'View Reliability History' and review the red X's. Or go to computer management and you can view error logs: Computer Management > System Tools > Windows Logs. Look in System Logs and Application logs. You may get a good idea from there.

If your system has the latest drivers installed than I'm betting it's the PSU.

 

[arun_7]

Does is restart or shut down?

It restarts.

the first thing to check is that all of your drivers are up to date, all updates have been installed and perform a virus/malware check.

I updated my graphics drivers about 15 days ago. The problem occurred before and is occurring also after the update. Scanned for viruses, it is clean.

check your event viewer

There are about a dozen critical events. nearly all of them are Event ID 41, kernal power

 

[arun_7]

Sound like either a psu or temperature problem. Run hwmonitor in game to see the temps of your cpu and gpu. That is not a good psu either. I would repace that with a corsair, seasonic, antec, xfx, of pcp&c regardless.

CPU temp levels are in mid 40s or low 50Cs. GPU reaches high 70Cs. But nvidia says the GPU temp limit is 100C. This temps should not be a problem, right? I'm also looking for a new PSU. Before that, i want to be sure the problem is with PSU and not anything else.

 

[wanderer11]

If it is restarting it shouldn't be heat. Look through device manager for any exclamation points and update those drivers. I still think it is the psu. Do you have another one to try?

 

[arun_7]

Hit the Windows key and type in 'View Reliability History' and review the red X's. Or go to computer management and you can view error logs: Computer Management > System Tools > Windows Logs. Look in System Logs and Application logs. You may get a good idea from there.

If your system has the latest drivers installed than I'm betting it's the PSU.

The error that i get is "Kernal Power. Event 41."
By drivers you mean GPU drivers, right? I downloaded them from nVidia site.

 

[ronintexas]

Event ID 41 is related to events such as a 100% power failure causing restart. Usually, if you have other hardware issues, you will get Windows failures with details indicating what happened (codes like 0x00000050, 0x00000024, etc)

This could be the result of the power supply not providing enough power, resetting, etc., and the result is the computer is restarted. If you have a spare PSU, try testing with that....

 

[arun_7]

If it is restarting it shouldn't be heat. Look through device manager for any exclamation points and update those drivers. I still think it is the psu. Do you have another one to try?

I opened device manager. right clicked "NVIDIA GeForce GTS 450" and selected "update driver software". They were up-to-date.
I don't have another PSU to try. But i don't mind buying one if it is clear that it is the problem.

 

[arun_7]

Event ID 41 is related to events such as a 100% power failure causing restart. Usually, if you have other hardware issues, you will get Windows failures with details indicating what happened (codes like 0x00000050, 0x00000024, etc)

This could be the result of the power supply not providing enough power, resetting, etc., and the result is the computer is restarted. If you have a spare PSU, try testing with that....

I dont have a spare PSU. I'm thinking of buying one now. In case you want to know, i actually use an UPS for backup. Any chance that the UPS could be under-supplying? I think this is silly, but just wanted to rule out the possibility.

 

[ronintexas]

Try removing the UPS and running without it. If the battery in the UPS is failing, it can provide inconsistent power to the computer. If removing it doesn't help, I would suggest trying the PSU.

There is never a 100% way of verifying what the problem is without replacing the hardware and testing with the new hardware installed. You can make good educated "guesses" - but nothing is 100% certain. Even when smoke pours out of the power supply, it could be caused by other hardware failures within the computer (smoke pouring out is an almost 100% identifier of bad hardware....LOL).

 

[delluser1]

Hello,
I have a ~10 month old nvidia gts 450 card.
My psu is 450w and around 3 years old.
I had no issues with my previous graphic card. First 6 months with the gts 450 was fine. But for a couple of months now, whenever i play a game, the computer just restarts after about 15~20 mins? I'm not sure if the problem is with my GPU or PSU.
Please help. Thanks

My specs are:
intel core2duo e7500 at 2.93Ghz
intel dg41rq mobo
2 1 gb ddr2 ram
Nvidia gts 450 card
Zebronics PSU 450W

This is apparently thier best
http://www.zebronics.com/products/gold-series/zeb-450w-t-sata-plus
It's absolute crap, in the real world ( where systems rely on the 12v rail and psu's no longer have a -5v rail ) 16 amps is the equivalent of a 250 watt psu

 

[wanderer11]

I think a new psu would be a great idea. If you gave us a budget we could pick out a good one for you.

 

[arun_7]

This is apparently thier best
http://www.zebronics.com/products/gold-series/zeb-450w-t-sata-plus
It's absolute crap, in the real world ( where systems rely on the 12v rail and psu's no longer have a -5v rail ) 16 amps is the equivalent of a 250 watt psu

Well, i didn't know much about computer components when buying it. The cpu was assembled by a retailer. i just bought the assembled version.

 

[arun_7]

I think a new psu would be a great idea. If you gave us a budget we could pick out a good one for you.

Should i choose a PSU that supplies more than 450W? I just checked the prices for 500W psu. They are around INR4000. Do you have any cheaper options? (1USD~55INR)

 

[arun_7]

Try removing the UPS and running without it. If the battery in the UPS is failing, it can provide inconsistent power to the computer. If removing it doesn't help, I would suggest trying the PSU.

There is never a 100% way of verifying what the problem is without replacing the hardware and testing with the new hardware installed. You can make good educated "guesses" - but nothing is 100% certain. Even when smoke pours out of the power supply, it could be caused by other hardware failures within the computer (smoke pouring out is an almost 100% identifier of bad hardware....LOL).

Thanks for the suggestion, will try it and tell you.

 

[ronintexas]

Take a look at this PSU - good price and performance:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139027

 

[arun_7]

Take a look at this PSU - good price and performance:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139027

Help me choose between these:
-Cooler Master Thunder 500W
-Cooler Master Extreme II 525W
-Seasonic ECO 500W
-Corsair CMPSU 500CX 500W (this is the one you suggested)

 

[ronintexas]

The Seasonic and Corsair products are both good - I am a fan of the Corsair power supplies. Either one you choose will work great.

 

[wanderer11]

Don't get coolermaster. Get whichever is cheaper between the seasonic and corsair. Both are great units.

 

[arun_7]

Don't get coolermaster. Get whichever is cheaper between the seasonic and corsair. Both are great units.

Both seasonic and corsair have one +12v rail for motherboard. My GPU should be connected to two 4-pin molex connectors. So, i just plug them into the +5V rails? And, how to find out which wires carry which voltage?

 

[ronintexas]

Both have connectors for your GPU.

 

[arun_7]

Both have connectors for your GPU.

I've decided to go ahead with Corsair. Thanks guys!

 

[arun_7]

Best answer selected by arun_7.