PC Restarting by itself?

[EngineerFred]

I just built a new gaming PC, stats as follows:

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/Wysb7P

The R9 290 and case were used. Every other component was new.

This computer, once to a few times a day, will spontaneously shut down and restart. It has never happened while I was using it, so I doubt strain on the 650W PSU is not the cause.

To me the likely culprits seem to be:
1. The PSU. Since it was an EVGA G2, supposedly very high quality, this had better not be the case... but how do I test to make sure?

2. The RAM. I'm using 2133Mhz RAM on a 4690k processor and Fatality mobo.
http://www.asrock.com/mb/Intel/Fatal1ty%20Z97%20Killer/?cat=Memory (mobo compatibility list)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231689

This particular RAM isn't listed as compatible with either the processor or the mobo. Possible cause?

I intend to test this first by removing one stick, waiting a while to see if it restarts, then swapping it out and testing the other one.

Is it safe to just shut down, pull 4 GB of RAM from my system, and start up again? I don't see why it wouldn't be.

3. The motherboard. I don't know how to test for this either.

 

[R_1]

1. Quality control is never perfect.
2. possible cause. yes sir. I suggest running memtest86 for a pass or two. yes it is safe to shut down and yank a stick
3. unless you have a spare CPU, RAM, and PSU to replace everything but mobo. stress testing may be the best idea.


Does the reboot manifest in safe mode?
Have you tried another environment to test the hardware? linux on thumb drive for example.

 

[EngineerFred]

1. Quality control is never perfect.
2. possible cause. yes sir. I suggest running memtest86 for a pass or two. yes it is safe to shut down and yank a stick
3. unless you have a spare CPU, RAM, and PSU to replace everything but mobo. stress testing may be the best idea.


Does the reboot manifest in safe mode?
Have you tried another environment to test the hardware? linux on thumb drive for example.

No, that's a good idea. I'll put it in safe mode and do work next to it tonight... see if anything happens.
If that fails, I'll get Linux Mint and check that... although I hate to leave that up indefinitely.

I'll run memtest86 before anything else, I don't trust the memory/cpu combination. If I run memtest, can I skip the RAM removal test?

Also... my 2133Mhz RAM, automatically clocked to 2133 in BIOS, is listed as operating at 1066 Mhz in HDWinfo, which makes sense as 2133 = 2 * 1066. But when I'm gaming, the memory speed goes up to 1250. Huh? One memory stick is listed in BIOS as operating(automatically selected) at 1.60V while the other is at 1.65, both at 2133Mhz configuration. Just more odd facts that might affect the problem?

 

[R_1]

if you run memtest86 you can test the lot.
the mother board may not like the different voltages.
I would remove a stick and wait for reboot, then try the other stick. look for if the problem is them together, or just one of them.
if one causes reboot I would run the test on that stick first.

 

[EngineerFred]

if you run memtest86 you can test the lot.
the mother board may not like the different voltages.
I would remove a stick and wait for reboot, then try the other stick. look for if the problem is them together, or just one of them.
if one causes reboot I would run the test on that stick first.

Alright, another datapoint: I used the computer for a few hours tonight hoping to see it shut down or restart by itself. As usual, while I'm using it, it doesn't shut down.
I played a game and watched the RAM speed cycle between 1250 Mhz in game and 150 Mhz on desktop, even with the game minimized.

Is this fluctuation normal?


The maximum of 1250Mhz is also confusing. HDwinfo system screen displays the RAM at 2133 Mhz, as does the BIOS. However, the live HDwinfo/rivatuner/MSI afterburner setup shows the RAM as getting up to 1250 Mhz max.
I'm expecting to see either 1066(halved clock speed since 2x4GB 2133 sticks) or 2133(because HDwinfo is smart and automatically doubles it) but... 1250? Is either too high(2500 Mhz speed out of 2133 RAM set to 2133 in BIOS) or too low(because it is already doubled in hdwinfo, and it's actually running at 1250)

 

[naturesninja]

That's likely your GPU's clocks you're seeing, not your system memory.

 

[EngineerFred]

That's likely your GPU's clocks you're seeing, not your system memory.

That does appear to be the cause of the memory "issues". Apparently organization in list of displayable stats in the software I'm using is:

GPU stats(GPU temp, GPU freq, GPU clock speed, GPU usage, etc, with GPU in their names)
CPU stats(temp, freq, clock speed, usage, etc)
"memory clock"
RAM usage
pagefile usage

I have learned not to assume that something titled "memory clock" next to the RAM stats, is actually RAM memory clock - it's GPU memory clock. No RAM clock is actually available.

So that just leaves the restarting issues. Thanks.

 

[naturesninja]

It sounds like what you're saying is that it does this when you're not using it, I take it? Like sleep mode, screen saver, etc? Have you checked your power settings? Also, you may want to try disabling your Antivirus and see if it still happens.

 

[Paul NZ]

If there are error 41 errors in event viewer, it can mean a faulty PSU

 

[R_1]

do you have a multimeter/voltmeter available to you?
you can use that to test the voltages on your power supply.
http://pcsupport.about.com/od/toolsofthetrade/ht/power-supply-test-multimeter.htm
http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/330578-28-testing-multimeter

 

[ashee1092]

My computer is doing the same thing. While I am using it is fine but when I first boot it it gets to the sign in screen and shuts down and then when it comes out of sleep mode it gets to the sign in screen and does the same. It just started doing it today so I am still searching for a cause.

 

[EngineerFred]

My computer is doing the same thing. While I am using it is fine but when I first boot it it gets to the sign in screen and shuts down and then when it comes out of sleep mode it gets to the sign in screen and does the same. It just started doing it today so I am still searching for a cause.

That's not the same issue at all, actually. My computer behaves normally on boot and coming out of sleep, however, when sleeping, it will occasionally boot/wake up for no reason at all that I can find.

 

[EngineerFred]

I'm at this point trying to find the eventviewer logs of a few known events to post here. It's a gaming PC that I'm not nearby often, so I'll post the log of an event when I can.