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What could be wrong with my brother's PC?

Quiz

Quiz

[H]ard|Gawd
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Aug 25, 2010
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He uses a PC he built in 2017 that has the following specs:

Intel Core i7-7700K
Gigabyte GA-Z270X-UD3
16 GB DDR4-3000
GTX 1060 6 GB

For the past several months, the PC would automatically restart or just power off (even when idle). I suspected the PSU so replaced it with a new Corsair RM650e. However, the issue still remains. I cleared the CMOS by removing the battery for some time. When powering it back on, it kept power cycling during POST. I removed one stick of RAM and it booted fine. Then tried booting with only the other stick of RAM and it booted fine again. Put both sticks in and now it was booting fine. Both RAM slots work as I tried booting with one stick of RAM alone in each RAM slot. XMP enabled or disabled doesn't make a difference.

There are no mini dumps after replacing the PSU. However, I noticed there are two other mini dumps from before the PSU was replaced. I will analyze them via ChatGPT but that will be during this coming weekend.

Could the motherboard be on its way out? It is already on the latest BIOS but should I try reflashing it?

Edit: Temps are fine too.
 
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did you replace the cmos battery?
reflash while its unstable? sure, if you want to brick it....
 
Could be the cpu (we do not tend to suspect them.... but they can and now that they are the memory controller it had a point of failure to them), could be the motherboard yes, could be a short with a component-pc (or even with the case) that occur from time to time, anything connected in a usb or pci lane like the gpu can short things.

Would be extremelly hard to guess what cause random restart without going one element by one element (and if those random restart / power off were frequent but in a once a week type, that make it quite long and hard to do).

If they occur frequently enough, letting the pc run as bare as you can, nothing connected to it, nothing at all and a quick visual inspection, could tell you if it is the ram stick/cpu/motherboard but from there if you do not have replacement to try, need to find some, repair shop near by if you are lucky... could be simpler to replace cpu-mobo for something more recent but still ddr4 and re-use the ram.
 
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I would reflash the BIOS ... even if you already have the latest version. I'd also open the case and inspect the capacitors and the board for any visible damage. I'd also disconnect everything that is non-essential like the GPU, drives, anything connected to the computer's ports like the USB etc, and then run the system bare.

If the shutdowns still occur with a bare system ... then the motherboard is probably the issue. I mean ... the computer is super old ... and things just start taking a crap after a while. A failing drive can also cause some of these symptoms. It might be worth trying to replace that as well.
 
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Most likely a corrupt Windows install, especially if it's Windows 11, lol.
 
DO NOT try to flash the bios while it is unstable.
a corrupted windows doesnt shut off the machine.
 
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this will sound weird but i have brought several machines "back to life" like this and its worth a try. pull the ram, cpu, power cord and cmos battery, hit the power a few times let it sit for 5min. power it up and let it sit for a few minutes, power off. put the ram and battery back in and power up for a few minutes, turn it off. put the cpu back in and 🤞 🤞
while you have the cpu out, check the bottom of it for any discoloration, and make sure there is no junk in the socket, like dust/dirt.
 
Most likely a bad motherboard or CPU if everything else is working fine.
 
pendragon1 said:
this will sound weird but i have brought several machines "back to life" like this and its worth a try. pull the ram, cpu, power cord and cmos battery, hit the power a few times let it sit for 5min. power it up and let it sit for a few minutes, power off. put the ram and battery back in and power up for a few minutes, turn it off. put the cpu back in and 🤞 🤞
while you have the cpu out, check the bottom of it for any discoloration, and make sure there is no junk in the socket, like dust/dirt.
Click to expand...
Will try that once we have the time. Thanks.
 
Can someone recommend me some thermal paste and thermal paste remover?
 
Zepher said:
I use Arctic MX-4 and 91% Isopropyl Alcohol to remove the old paste.
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Same.

giphy.gif
 
pffft, mx-4 is for peasants, move up to mx-7 ;)
oh and yeah, iso to clean it, 90%+ if you can get it....
 
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Darunion said:
no. just use IPA
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idk how good IPAs work for that though.... ;)

Quiz said:
Is this worth it for removing thermal paste?

https://www.amazon.ae/Arctic-Silver-Arcticlean-Compound-Purifier/dp/B001JYQ9TM/ref=sr_1_1_mod_primary_new?crid=2YASQMBXQXBTK&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.8BJH3bUzMGPUecHKS4K1Byh64T1Y3t7sciaViLEn1pQW1yunHv2b88ig4SlyIsNDLRHAqRr-zcgkToqzFcKAnl4btKIIgHEh_B7nrMEbKzdw8M9Lv50NSHbi44kHg96Zbbknb2os86kn0HFrWAJmZx2dzbiOisW8vYolgwQPr7tynotXu9k0C5mYsDC8dc_a2pJDJ-HV_9xeqYV7dWE1d-La0vh3QeMPCot4HsjgJYQ8koqU-InvvDeGUVclTgKc1VT09NniQFlURAy0TACLn9PDUeevIg_F156k8m2a2Dw.61lpIGfFbJJLrMct7OnGyw0YmQvAlTJ4y-b6plugWgE&dib_tag=se&keywords=artic+thermal+paste+remover&qid=1778012078&sbo=RZvfv//HxDF+O5021pAnSA==&sprefix=artic+thermal+paste+remov,aps,226&sr=8-1&th=1
Click to expand...
not at that price no. last time i bought that kit(15+ years ago) it was ~$10CAN... just get some iso.
 
Quiz said:
Is this worth it for removing thermal paste?

https://www.amazon.ae/Arctic-Silver-Arcticlean-Compound-Purifier/dp/B001JYQ9TM/ref=sr_1_1_mod_primary_new?crid=2YASQMBXQXBTK&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.8BJH3bUzMGPUecHKS4K1Byh64T1Y3t7sciaViLEn1pQW1yunHv2b88ig4SlyIsNDLRHAqRr-zcgkToqzFcKAnl4btKIIgHEh_B7nrMEbKzdw8M9Lv50NSHbi44kHg96Zbbknb2os86kn0HFrWAJmZx2dzbiOisW8vYolgwQPr7tynotXu9k0C5mYsDC8dc_a2pJDJ-HV_9xeqYV7dWE1d-La0vh3QeMPCot4HsjgJYQ8koqU-InvvDeGUVclTgKc1VT09NniQFlURAy0TACLn9PDUeevIg_F156k8m2a2Dw.61lpIGfFbJJLrMct7OnGyw0YmQvAlTJ4y-b6plugWgE&dib_tag=se&keywords=artic+thermal+paste+remover&qid=1778012078&sbo=RZvfv//HxDF+O5021pAnSA==&sprefix=artic+thermal+paste+remov,aps,226&sr=8-1&th=1
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Note that your link is priced in AED--that is about 32$ US. Can find same product for around $15 US. Here is another option from Noctua; Arctic Silver also makes another type.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07MZ4K67Y?tag=journeymanhq-20

Or you could just use coffee filters and 99% isopropanol. Compare prices on each.

https://www.amazon.com/Swan-Isopropyl-Alcohol-99-Pint/dp/B001B5JT8C
 
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basically one bottle is googone, the other is isopropyl alcohol. Quick trip to the store and home and done.
 
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