Computer Automatically Shuts Off

[Ishakir]

Hello guys!

I'm currently working on a friend's computer and I'd like to get some ideas about what may be causing what seems to be random shutdowns after about 10 minutes of computer use. I asked him to read off the voltages displayed in the BIOS and here's what I got for each rail:

12V - 11.68V
5.5V - 4.95V
-12V - (-11.87V)
-5V - (-5.15)

I'm unsure if this is a PSU related issue or if it's a temperature related issue. I also asked him to watch the temperature of the CPU while sitting in BIOS and it seemed to be pretty high for no CPU load. The CPU temp originally started at 40C and it steadily went up to 48C before I hung up the phone. The CPU temperature auto-shutdown feature is disabled and I'm wondering if there's some onchip-builtin feature that may be shutting the computer down IF it is a heat related issue.

I'm not completely sure of the build specifics but I do know it has the following:

Abit NF7 Rev 2 motherboard
AMD Athlon XP Barton 2500+
I'll get the rest of the specs as soon as the computer gets dropped off at my house.

Thanks guys!
-Ish-

 

[BinaryPirate]

If it's consistantly shutting off around 10 minutes, I'd say heat issue. You're temp probes might not be accurate. 48C is high, but not too high. Temp probes may be reading lower than true values. If comp shuts off, turn it immediately back on before it has a chance to cool. Does it shut off sooner?

 

[Ishakir]

Oh that reminds me, there's one thing I forgot to mention.

After shutdown, the computer will not start unless the powercord is unplugged from the computer and even then, only after it is allowed to sit for about 5-10mins.

I'm not sure if both are required for the computer to start up again, but that's what he has been doing.

 

[Aphex_Tom_9]

that kinda problem sounds like a PSU issue...

 

[JimmyG]

I vote for a heat issue in the PSU. Try opening the case and blowing a house fan into the case. If the problem goes away, then you know it is a heat issue.

How dusty is the inside of the case? Has it ever been cleaned? Try doing a good cleaning before trying to change hardware.