pc keeps shuting down

splodger_seedswapper

hello you wonderful techie people - i hope you might be able to help me out with my pc

it has this annoying habit of shuting itself down and rebooting - mostly but not exclusively when i am running antivirus software - i'm using the free version of avira

it sometimes takes 4 or 5 attempts to get the scan to go through the full cycle - but more often than not - the pc just reboots when i try to scan

i am not at all tech minded (or able) and am worried that i have a nasty thing on the pc - is there a more reliable & free to use antivirus available that might be able to give a thorough scan (without the pc shuting itself down)
please?

Figment

Does it shutdown as if you've clicked Start > Shutdown, or crash and reboot?

Any error message or blue screen before it does this? If so, exact wording, including complete error code (long string of numbers/letters beginning 0x) if present please

Make, model and age of PC, plus details of the operating system might help diagnosis.

splodger_seedswapper

it's a crash (blue screen flashes with error codes / message - but it flicks too quick to read) pc then goes into restart

it's a compaq presario (old one) using xp

Figment

OK, we need to disable automatic restarting on system crash so the blue screen and error remains on screen until you manually restart.


Follow these easy steps to disable the automatic restart feature for system failures in Windows XP.

1. Navigate to the Control Panel in Windows XP by left-clicking on Start, followed by Settings and then choosing Control Panel.
   
2. In the Control Panel window, open System.
   (Note: Depending on how your operating system is setup, you may not see the System icon. To correct this, click on the link on the left-hand side of the Control Panel window that says Switch to Classic View.)
   
3. In the System Properties window, click on the Advanced tab.
   
4. Locate the Startup and Recovery area and click on the Settings button.
   
5. In the Startup and Recovery window, locate and uncheck the check box next to Automatically restart.
   
6. Click OK in the Startup and Recovery window.
   
7. Click OK in the System Properties window.

From now on, when a problem causes a BSOD or another major error that halts the system, the PC will not automatically reboot. Rebooting manually will be necessary.

splodger_seedswapper

thank you so much Figment - great instructions and that bit is now done

i guess now i'll have to wait for the system to crash - and write down what it says on the blue screen

i'll post those details as soon as it happens - sods law says that if i started the virus checker now - it'll run without a problem - but i'll give it a go to see if it crashes

thanks again - much appreciated :T

splodger_seedswapper

bang on cue - it crashed whilst doing a virus scan (whilst i attempted to launch firefox) - my pc does not like doing more than one task

anyway didn't copy the text - as i guess that's standard - but did copy this (hope this is what you wanted) :

IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL

tech info:

*** stop: 0x0000000A
(0x00000138 x 0x00000002, 0x000000000, 0x804E2D04)

i do hope that that means more to you than it does to me - lol

closed

Try a different antivirus, eg avast and malwarebytes, both free, run chkdsk c: /F to make sure the disk isn't corrupt.


failing that, driver problem or corrupt profile, backup and reinstall windows if you want to be sure it's cured, the machine should also run faster as a result.

splodger_seedswapper

cheers - have switched to lavasoft / adaware - free version and pc only crashed the once (as codes above)

i think it's the pc itself that is knacked - it was bought as a refurb and has had several problems over last few years - i don't have any software discs so can't backup and reload

i'll just have to try and live with it crashing - can't afford a new machine, but might try and look for a 2nd hand laptop

thanks for the replies

waddler_8

Did you run chkdsk? Post a DDS log.

Download DDS from the link below and save it to your desktop:

Link

After you've downloaded it and saved it to your desktop:

• Double click DDS to run it.
• When it's finished, DDS will open two logs:

1. DDS.txt
2. Attach.txt

Save both reports to your desktop.

Copy & paste the contents of just DDS.txt for now and post it here (you may need to split the log over separate posts)

Figment

Lavasoft AdAware is for detection/removal of malware. It is not anti-virus software.


Troubleshooting steps here for stop error: 0x0000000A

waddler_8

Figment wrote: »

Lavasoft AdAware is for detection/removal of malware. It is not anti-virus software.

It is AV now.

http://www.lavasoft.com/products/ad_aware_free.php