Computer help pleeaase

[PyRo]

This is annoying the heck out of me. I turn my computer on, its gets the the windows XP screen with the logo, and the green bar then restarts itself. I got angry at it last night and just reformatted the thing, it worked fine for a couple hours, then everything froze up, I restarted it, and it went back to doing it again.
My reasoning, please correct me
It cannot be a virus since I reformatted it right?
It cannot be hardware since the reformat fixed it?
It cannot be software since the reformat fixed it for a while?

[sps16]

Did you change any hardware previous to that happening?

[e mag]

If you reformatted then its probably a hardware problem. Reformatting doesnt fix hardware errors.

[Ironmag]

It seems like it's a hardware problem. Try getting the latest drivers for all your hardware and hope that helps fix the problem.

[PyRo]

Well I reformatted it again, but this time I got rid of everything on the drive and didn't just reinstall windows so I guess ill see what that does. I got all the windows updates and such. If it was a hardware problem then how would reformatting affect it, thats whats getting me?

[PyRo]

Oh, and I had previously reformatted about a day and a half before this happend because I got sick of the mess I called a hard drive and didn't feel like cleaning it up, don't know if that could have screwed anything?

[Dryden]

The reformat could be a factor, but I'd expect it's just a coincidence. The reboot problem is 99% of the time attributable to either a heat or electrical problem.

First thing is to pull everything out to an open area where you can work and poke around the front and back of the case. Make certain that all connections are secure, and check all the plugs for your mouse, keyboard, and monitor to ensure that none of the pins are bent or broken.

Try pluging the computer and monitor into a different power strip/UPS and an outlet that is on a different circuit before you start tracking down computer parts.

Open the PC case and verify that all fans are working correctly. There may be an intake fan at the front of the case, and in the power supply. You may also have a fan on a high end video card. There should certainly be a fan on the processor and as an exhaust from the power supply.

If all fans are working correctly, then you might need to check mounting cages next. P4 mounting cages are known to break from the tension (happened to me once), so check that the processor heatsink/fan is firmly secured against the processor/motherboard.

If you've done any recent upgrades, or have a 'high end' system to play games, you might be experiencing a problem with load from the video card or a failing power supply. You should not be running anything lower than a 300W PS with modern AGP boards and two or more hard drives. Disconnect power from the non-essential components (CD-ROM, extra hard drives, etc) and remove non-essentail boards (network card, etc). See if you can get the PC to run with just the bare minimum: processor, memory, video, primary hard drive. This will reduce load on the PS to help pinpoint or eliminate that, then work from there.

You may also try pulling the video card and inspecting it. Capacitors on video cards have the shortest life span of any component in your PC. They will literally explode like alkaline batteries after several hundred hours of intense use (that's what capacitors are). I've blown two GeForce 4 Ti 4200s myself, and learned recently that this is 'acceptable' in the industry and is not part of warranty service. Inspect the tops of the capacitors on the board and see if they're warped, bulged, or have a rust colored film on them.

[devildog]

you said the restarting problem started after you reformatted right? maybe youre installing something wrong, putting in bad drivers, or missing some totally? if you have a via chipset make sure you remember to put in the 4 in 1 drivers, etc.

[BobTheCow]

Dryden, I love your sig.

[PyRo]

New problem, that box that says your system must restart becaue of a remote procedure call pops up after the computer runs for a minute

[PyRo]

Shutdown initiated by NT AUTHORITY SYSTEM, I get like a minute before that pops up


One more thing its doing now, every time a box pops up like are you sure you want to exit or somthing, I get that stupid little beep from the case.

Can anyone say msblast? I guess thats what I get for ignoring the windows updates. Lets see how it works now. *kicks the computer

And I did open it up, and everything looks just fine, except for a bunch of dust whick I got out.