who is a master computer wiz?

Anything not gaming related goes here. Not sure where something should be posted? Post it in here.

Moderator: General Discussion Moderators

Post Reply
User avatar
Phosphoric Acid
Quixotic
Posts: 138
Joined: Fri Dec 15, 2006 07:12 pm
Location: England

who is a master computer wiz?

Post by Phosphoric Acid »

Basically who can help me here, what is the problem when you shut down your computer, but your HDD still has power running through it and the HDD light stays on and your fans are still running, though the monitor turns off (showing the computer is off...though it’s not) and the only way to completely turn it off would be to unplug its power supply.

Corrupted hard drive perhaps?

This all happened during a power cut in my home, once power restored the computer power box f*** up and needed to be replaced, i also need to replace my USB hub due to a power surge and they no longer work, plus it killed my mouse so i need a new one (currently using an old one). Over £60 of damage because of one friggen power cut.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.
User avatar
RedFanatic
A More Tidy Caleb
Posts: 680
Joined: Tue Oct 12, 2004 04:56 pm
Location: Somewhere

Post by RedFanatic »

Buy a UPS (Uninterupable Power Supply) not cheap but WELL worth it,
i can't say exactly why your system would be staying on like that sounds odd,
I assume your not suspending the system? abd are actually shutting it down by hitting start, shut down (as just hitting the power button wil automatically start a suspend)
other than that it could be some kind of confused machine due to damage,
but pulling the cord out isn't the only way, try holding the power button on for over 7 seconds that should put it out.

What other problems are there? dose it run okay, dose it ask to run scandisk or complain about inproper shutdown procedure?.
User avatar
Phosphoric Acid
Quixotic
Posts: 138
Joined: Fri Dec 15, 2006 07:12 pm
Location: England

Post by Phosphoric Acid »

I would get a UPS but the trouble i have at the moment is the shortage of money, and the damage the power cut has caused to the computer is quite expensive in my view, i know £60 isn't that much, but from a small power cut it’s sudden. Yeah i'm doing the appropriate shut down procedure, not turning it off by the power button but hitting shutdown via start - turn off computer - shut down. Also if i try and hold the power button down for however many seconds it just starts up normally, it’s as if the computer just doesn't want to turn off completely, still sucking in power for whatever reason i don't know.

I know it’s not the computer power pack because that had got replaced, funny thing was when the power restored the computer tried to start its self up, which was really odd since it had never done that before, though it didn't succeed due to the damaged power pack, but even after replacement it still wants to remain on when its meant to be off.

Apart from that problem in particular, it does keep telling me over and over that there has been a power surge to the USB hub but that is getting replaced soon, but the system isn't really telling me about any other problems. Another weird thing though it seemed to have uninstalled some software, like my sound software, it once used Realtek audio codec’s but now relies on Bluetooth hands free audio, which i don't have :?

I will be doing a whole system restart, wiping it out due to the way files and such have suddenly gone missing and won't reappear with a system restore, but i can't help thinking it won't solve the strange power consumption issue after shutdown.
leileilol

o^_^o

Posts: 548
Joined: Fri Sep 10, 2004 11:33 pm

Re: who is a master computer wiz?

Post by leileilol »

Phosphoric Acid wrote:Basically who can help me here, what is the problem when you shut down your computer, but your HDD still has power running through it and the HDD light stays on and your fans are still running, though the monitor turns off (showing the computer is off...though it’s not) and the only way to completely turn it off would be to unplug its power supply.

Sounds like normal behavior, it's not really shut down. It's put into a 'rest'. You will have to turn your computer off manually if Windows does not do the 'fast shutdown'.
User avatar
Dimebog
The Enlightened Florist
Posts: 284
Joined: Tue Jul 18, 2006 02:22 pm
Location: Among The Living
Contact:

Post by Dimebog »

The problem is caused by not shutting down your computer properly, due to a crash or power-down occurring in a critical moment. To solve your problem, try putting your Windows installation CD/DVD in the drive, and boot from it. There should be a "repair" option of some sorts.

If it doesn't work, don't bother unplugging the power supply, but hold the power button for 5 or so seconds. It works for 99% of today's motherboards.
User avatar
Phosphoric Acid
Quixotic
Posts: 138
Joined: Fri Dec 15, 2006 07:12 pm
Location: England

Re: who is a master computer wiz?

Post by Phosphoric Acid »

leileilol wrote:Sounds like normal behavior, it's not really shut down. It's put into a 'rest'. You will have to turn your computer off manually if Windows does not do the 'fast shutdown'.
If you mean by the power button that doesn't seem to shut it down fully no matter how long i hold it in for. However if you mean by the plug then that’s my only option at the moment.
Dimebog wrote:The problem is caused by not shutting down your computer properly, due to a crash or power-down occurring in a critical moment. To solve your problem, try putting your Windows installation CD/DVD in the drive, and boot from it. There should be a "repair" option of some sorts.

If it doesn't work, don't bother unplugging the power supply, but hold the power button for 5 or so seconds. It works for 99% of today's motherboards.
The weird thing is my computer wasn't even on at the time this issue happened, it actually tried to turn its self on once the power got restored to the house which was really unusual. My installation discs don't contain any repair option unfortunately, so no luck there.

The power button doesn't turn it off fully either, I’d hold it in for over 5 seconds, it turns off, but there’s still power accessing the hard drive, fans and on the odd occasion the DVD rom.
Ghost

Post by Ghost »

Motherboards can accumulate a little power charge enough to keep some vents running for a short time. How long is your computer working after it "shuts down"?
Most likely your problem is software-based, you may need to reinstall the operating system. If it wont help try reassembling your whole pc.. may sound scary for someone :lol: .. or just try unplug power cables from motherboard and IDE/SATA devices and put them back after a short while. :)
User avatar
Dimebog
The Enlightened Florist
Posts: 284
Joined: Tue Jul 18, 2006 02:22 pm
Location: Among The Living
Contact:

Post by Dimebog »

I am afraid that your motherboard went south. You will have to take your computer to a technician for examination.
User avatar
Phosphoric Acid
Quixotic
Posts: 138
Joined: Fri Dec 15, 2006 07:12 pm
Location: England

Post by Phosphoric Acid »

Ghost wrote:Motherboards can accumulate a little power charge enough to keep some vents running for a short time. How long is your computer working after it "shuts down"?
Most likely your problem is software-based, you may need to reinstall the operating system. If it wont help try reassembling your whole pc.. may sound scary for someone :lol: .. or just try unplug power cables from motherboard and IDE/SATA devices and put them back after a short while. :)
My computer continuously runs after i shut it down, so it’s actually still sucking in power from the plug socket. I'm not quite sure on the software though, but i will be reinstalling windows as i'm missing some important software that only the OS reinstall disc contains. Reassembling it? Whatever for? And i'm not 100% sure unplugging the power cables then plugging them back in will affect the overall power flow.
Dimebog wrote:I am afraid that your motherboard went south. You will have to take your computer to a technician for examination.
Yeah i thought it might come to that :(

I just thought I’ll check before jumping to a technician, over here you'll get conned if you have no idea what is wrong exactly, the technician will find a small problem and then tell you it’s 'serious' just to charge extra for something that could have been fixed in seconds. But i guess i have an idea what the problem is.

Thanks for the help everyone.
User avatar
Dimebog
The Enlightened Florist
Posts: 284
Joined: Tue Jul 18, 2006 02:22 pm
Location: Among The Living
Contact:

Post by Dimebog »

The problem itself is trivial - certain jumpers were fried by the power surge, and now simply act as bad diodes that fail to switch polarization and stop conducting electricity. However, I doubt that you can fix the problem yourself, unless you can determine which jumpers have to be replaced.

The problem still might be in the power supply unit - it receives a feedback impulse from the motherboard telling it to shut off. In case of a bad resistor, the signal either does not go through, or is going through and over the edge which would manifest with your computer producing more noise than usual, and potentially causing more problems.

I just hope your technician knows what he is doing. And be sure to update us.

Good luck.
User avatar
Phosphoric Acid
Quixotic
Posts: 138
Joined: Fri Dec 15, 2006 07:12 pm
Location: England

Post by Phosphoric Acid »

Thanks for making it a bit more clear Dimebog. But if what you’re saying is correct, my new power supply unit could be faulty? If that may be the case then damn. Though saying that my old one on the day the power got restored tried to turn on a remain on, that was the first time it had ever done something such as that, so it narrows it down the motherboard.

I'll be sure to call a technician or to take it to the local pc repair shop, whichever comes first, but I’ll make sure to update on its progress.
Post Reply