Computer reboots by itself

[kerid]

** PLEASE NOTE THAT THIS IS NOT A CRASH-TO-DESKTOP THREAD **

** PLEASE NOTE THAT THIS IS NOT A BLACK SCREEN THREAD **

 

Hello everybody

After weeks spent reading the more-than-90-pages thread related to full PC crashes, I noticed that we seem to encounter TWO different behaviors. They may be related, or not:

1. Some users are facing a computer freeze, which appears to be random, where screen goes black and computer stops responding. These users have to manually press the power switch to reboot their computers.
   
2. Some users see randomly their computer rebooting by itself: there is no freeze, and nobody has to push the power button.
   

In order to clarify this (or not ^^), I would like users who see "bug #2" to report their config here.

Please do not post in this thread if you encounter only CTDs or black screens.

Maybe we can get a clue with this..

Thanks to all !

 

So I go first:

Windows 7 32bits

4 Go RAM (2x2048)

Intel Core 2 Duo @ 3GHz (no o/c)

NVidia GeForce GTX 260 896Mo

Asus P5Q motherboard with Intel chipset

Onboard RealTek sound chip

Crashes totally random, game unplayable, looks like a crashing savegame will crash again when reloaded.

This PC runs fine GTA4, ACR, SR3, CODMW3, etc. so this is obviously not a performance problem.

[maboru]

Computer reboots are generally due to virus/malware, CPU/GPU overheating (usually dust or failed cooling fans), PSU going south, GPU going south or corrupted driver or failed system memory. If your other games don't reboot with extended playtime then the only thing I can think of is you periodically exceed your VRAM capacity and the shared system RAM function fails (back to failed system RAM.) [Different game engines result in different computer loads and Beth's are in a class by themselves!]

 

I'd open my box and clean it up, run a deep scan with your AV software and run system diagnostic tests, either those included with Windows or free third party downloads.

[kerid]

[...] If your other games don't reboot with extended playtime then the only thing I can think of is you periodically exceed your VRAM capacity and the shared system RAM function fails (back to failed system RAM.) [Different game engines result in different computer loads and Beth's are in a class by themselves!]

 

I'd open my box and clean it up, run a deep scan with your AV software and run system diagnostic tests, either those included with Windows or free third party downloads.

Thanks for your contribution. It seems like other users also reported such reboots whith Skyrim, and it is true that I did not encounter this behavior with other games (I confirm the extended playtime !). This is why I'm suspecting my computer isn't the cause of the problem...

I ran memtests and found no problem so far. The VRAM / shared RAM thing maybe a good clue, I'll have a look at this and see if I find a way to test it.

At this time I would like to know if this is a wide issue, or if only a few users are facing it. My fear is that is may not be related to black screen issue, and so it may be out of current Bethesda focus for future patch.

[geekpryde]

Sounds like overheating to me. You want a getto fix that is cheap and works, and can disprove/prove heat is the cause? Take off a sidepannel and put some cheap house fan ($10.00-$15.00) blowing directly at the MB/CPU on a low setting, so the noise doesnt bother you. Play the game for a few hours. No crash = heat was your problem = problem solved.

 

OLD crappy XP machines here at work need to operate in nasty, dusty, hot environment as a front end of some large machines in production, and this fan trick always fixes the unknown and weird lock/crash on these machines, at least until we get a permanant fix in place. Heat causes all kinds of issues to crop up when you are running the PC at it's limit. Hope this helps.

Edited December 7, 2011 by geekpryde

[elvinkun]

Almost all reboots while gaming (if you do not get reboots doing anything else) are caused by overheating, usually of GPU, or maybe CPU if you had stutter before. You can test that by touching the parts right after the reboot happens.

 

But there sure is some weird ...script in Skyrim.

I always get reboots in Labyrianthian (well... erm, that Collage dungeon) on the third floor. Happened on three characters, always at the same spot... Once I step into a doorway, bing, computer reboots, but if I walk trough the door backwards, nothing happens. Tested about 5 times. Someone could explain that? :biggrin:

[kerid]

Thanks to all for your answers. I just found something maybe useful: I decided to run a stress test with MSI Kombustor, and faced the same reboots with the "GPU burn-in" test. So, while I find very strange that Skyrim is the only game who 'finds' this bug on my config, this particular problem is probably on my side and not on Skyrim's. I'll report here where I'll find more information.

[kokdeblade]

Thanks to all for your answers. I just found something maybe useful: I decided to run a stress test with MSI Kombustor, and faced the same reboots with the "GPU burn-in" test. So, while I find very strange that Skyrim is the only game who 'finds' this bug on my config, this particular problem is probably on my side and not on Skyrim's. I'll report here where I'll find more information.

 

sounds like its a power issue i get crashes like yourself whilst overclocking my cards before finding the sweet spot. it could also be a driver issue of somekind.

[bben46]

Anything that pulls the +5 volts supply down will cause a hard reboot. The reset button uses this to reset the computer. (Reset shorts the +5 volts to ground to force a reboot) Most likely source is a weak power supply. But I have seen it caused by many other things as well. Dirty cooling vents, stuck fan, Video card, bad ram, bad hard drive, almost everything in the computer uses the +5 volts.

 

Start by checking to see if there is a build up of dust anywhere, especially on your CPU heat sink, in the power supply or around the video card fans.

[kerid]

I'm afraid there was much dust in the computer, I just cleaned all. Unfortunately I still get a reboot when lauching the GPU burn-in test. I am looking for someone in my area with a better PSU for testing. The fact Skyrim is the only game crashing on my computer remains a mystery if this is hardware-related...

By the way, I found some specifications for GTX 260 electrical consumption and for the PSU I'm using (Raptoxx 600psp): the GPU needs up to 36 A, the PSU gives 22 A on the 5 V line and 17 A on each 12 V line. If I understand this well, my PSU is not powerful enough, but the question is still there: other games just run fine ! Of course, I did not make any change in my hardware for a year at least (no new hard drive or other thing).

[kerid]

Problem solved !

I just installed a Corsair 650w PSU, and now Kombustor doesn't reboots my computer. I launched Skyrim and was able to load my savegame without trouble. It has to be confirmed by some gaming hours, of course, but it looks like it was a PSU power problem.

It may also proove something: Skyrim does stress the GPU more than it should in my opinion, even with the lowest settings at the lowest resolution, as I was able to play any other game I tried with the old PSU. I mean 3D games like Assassin's Creed Revelations or Witcher 2 for example.

Thanks everybody for your advices :thumbsup: