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Help: PC shutting down when idle Regardless of config settings

Joined
Dec 30, 2010
Messages
1,221 (0.23/day)
Location
Canada
System Name Brutus
Processor i5 4690k @4.7Ghz (Watercooled)
Motherboard z97 MSI Gaming 5
Cooling NZXT Kraken x61 AIO watercooler
Memory Gskill Ripjaws 8gb (2x4gb) 1600mhz 7-8-7-24
Video Card(s) MSI Gaming GTX 980ti x2 (sli)
Storage 1 SSD 64GB (OS) + 2x500GB WesternDigital RAID 0
Display(s) YAMAKASI Catleap q270 SE 27inch Glossy 2560x1440
Case NZXT Phantom
Audio Device(s) ASUS Xonar DX
Power Supply Antec TPQ 1200w
Software Windows 7 (64 bit)
For some reason, my computer has started shutting down when left idle for about an hour...

All my power options are configured to avoid this. Hibernation settings are all set to off for every single piece of hardware. no screensavers on... no "automatically shut down computer after updates" for windows update...
No "power savings" plan active... I'm on the the "High performance power plan" which has the same settings this computer always had.

I'm trying to figure out what I might have done recently that might have caused my computer to start shutting down when idling... I installed Team Speak recently... althought I don't know how TS could affect shutdowns...

When I look at my even viewer... There are no critical errors or errors that match the time that the PC shut down.

But there is (in the information logs) an event that matches the time the PC shut down last night.

It says "The kernel power manager has initiated a shutdown transition."

- System
-
Provider
[ Name] Microsoft-Windows-Kernel-Power
[ Guid] {331C3B3A-2005-44C2-AC5E-77220C37D6B4}
EventID 109
Version 0
Level 4
Task 103
Opcode 0
Keywords 0x8000000000000004
- TimeCreated
[ SystemTime] 2014-06-07T05:28:57.866455700Z
EventRecordID 336147
Correlation
-
Execution
[ ProcessID] 524
[ ThreadID] 528
Channel System
Computer Jonathan-PC
Security
-
EventData
ShutdownActionType
4
ShutdownEventCode 0
ShutdownReason 0


So yeah, any help in finding what is causing this would be GREATLY appreciated... as I often leave my computer to run some background programs at night (like utorrent) and don't like coming back to a shutdown computer rather than a computer that has finished its task
 
Try removing the overclock first
 
Alright I'll give it a shot.

I also noticed that in the logs there was a mention of the "windows/system32/shutdown.exe" use...

As if something triggered that exe (which shuts down the pc)
 
I've tried many things. still have the problem... only lately it goes to hibernation instead...

even though ALL my power settings (in windows 7) are set for it to NEVER hibernate...

could it be the bios?
 
Could it be malware? There were tutorials on the net how to create a shortcut to shutdown a pc after a period of time. There might be prank exploits making use of this.
 
Could it be malware? There were tutorials on the net how to create a shortcut to shutdown a pc after a period of time. There might be prank exploits making use of this.

Really, as he uses utorrent the chances are much higher or some type of virus.
 
it could be a power supply issue. if you know someone or if you have a spare one give that a shot. also check all connections, make sure all fans are working. check your drivers to make sure there are no conflicts. i know that the psu you have is a good brand but not all are built even (some just fall apart earlier than others). also try taking out your harddrives and putting in an old one and seeing if a new installation of windows does anything. try running memtest on the pc, just press F8 during win 7 boot (before splash screen) and it should be on the list toward the bottom.

also it could be malware. do you have virus protection? if not i recommend getting that. if you dont want to spend cash on virus protection try avg free or avast. those are the only two free ones i recommend. clam av can have compatibility issues with your pc. (it did for me the last time i used it 9months ago). another that would be good to do is clean out your case if you havent already. i cant think of any applications to check your harddrives but if you do a quick google you should be able to find one and go ahead and do that. hard drives not powering down right can cause random shutdowns.


edit: make sure utorrent isnt set to automatic shutdown after completion
 
Last edited:
you could always set utorrent to not let windows shutdown while it is active, maybe force a file to start so it does not "finish".
 
Does it just go poof? If it does check your temps and power supply and power outlet. Make sure when you flip a switch in your room it doesnt shut it down
 
Do you have a UPS?
 
Look at your scheduled events, in task scheduler, to see if any programs are being run that could be set to shutdown after completion.

Check any software (such as, a/v, anti-malware, cleaning/tweaking/maintenance, etc.) that might an option to shutdown after completing a task.
Some anti-virus and anti-malware have an option to shutdown or restart when certain infections are found.
Have you noticed if any are running at the time of the shutdown?

And, like stated in a previous post... check for malware.

Also, if you can remember, or look in the event viewer, to figure out exactly when it started; then, go to the add/remove programs and windows update history to see if any those programs correlate with the beginning of the problem.

Have you changed or added and hardware; or even updated a driver... has Windows update added/updated any drivers?

Try using "MSConfig" (MS System Configuration) tool or Autoruns to trouble shoot... try a diagnostic or selective startup to see if it still happens; then enable a couple of the startups each reboot until it happens again. Maybe you can narrow down the culprit, if it is software related.
And, if it is happening about every hour or after a certain amount of time, on idle, I believe it may be software related.
 
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