PC randomly shuts down when its cold in the room

[dougthegoat]

Hi all,
I have a very odd problem. I have a new CyberPower PC that I purchased about 6 months ago. It has ran perfect every since the day I got it until yesterday. It appears to be shutting down randomly now that the room is cold.

My PC randomly shut off as if the power was cut yesterday. I checked the event logs and seen nothing. I didn't think much of it because there was a Windows update scheduled and I thought maybe I just entered the wrong date/time. But it just happened again. The PC stays on pretty much 24/7 and has never had this issue. The only thing that has changed recently is the temperature. Both shutdowns happened after the PC had been on many hours, so the system itself shouldn't be "cold".

Our furnace just went out and this time of year its almost impossible to get someone out to replace it. So in the mean time the room where my PC is located gets cold, probably 4C-10C (Its normally 21C with furnace working). The PC is showing at idle its 25C and seems to get up to 35C with light load like web surfing.

Given the temperature is the only thing that has changed I am assuming this is the cause. No software, updates, drivers or anything else had been installed since the previous Windows update (not sure how long ago, but nothing recent). So I think its safe to eliminate a faulty driver or software. The processor is water cooled if that might matter, but its not cold enough in here to freeze water, especially since the system has been on the entire time.

Is there anything I should be checking? Is there anything I can install to get a better idea of what might be going on?

One final bit of information that might help. The first time it shut off I immediately rebooted it. It boots to the screen where its updating Windows. I heard some grinding noise come from the PC. So I assume a fan. Once Windows updated it rebooted itself and the noise went away and hasn't returned. Given this my first thought was if it was the processor fan maybe the system shuts off to protect itself.

Is there a tool that logs the temps in the PC so I can see if maybe there was a temperature spike before shutdown?

Is there a tool to test for a fans?

Thanks for any information.

 

[brickdem]

Are you sure it was grinding? A bad power supply will make crunchy arcing noises that sound like grinding, that would explain randomly turning off. Even if its not cold enough to freeze condensation will gather on metal surfaces like the outside of a power supply. If the temperature of the air in the case is much lower than inside the power supply, condensation will form on the inside surface potentially dripping on the components. As a power supply fan is uncontrollable (under most circumstances) it is constantly pushing air through itself, bringing new moisture with it. The only real option is to let the ambient air warm back up before powering on your system. If the shut-downs and grinding/crunchy noises persist, you probably need a new power supply.