I've got a desktop PC (Athlon 32bit, 2G Ram) that no matter the OS (I've tried 7SP3, 8.1U1 as well as 10TP) the machine will run for an indefinite amount of time if in BIOS, or in the event of having booted from DVD (ie, Paragon, Hirens, even 10ISO) but as SOON as you boot to HDD or (as in the case of an OS Install) get to the part of entering USER NAME and other personal settings, the machine shuts off. ZIP. ZAP. No BSOD, no Tah Tah See ya Later, no nothin'! I'm seeing nothing in the event logs other than things I would expect (failed installation, etc--whatever it was actually DOING at the time but nothing leading to a cause. My first thought was thermal event but reseating the processor with a fresh coat of thermal paste and a nice shiny clean heatsink and fan produces nothing but a decidedly more quiet failure.
Using HD Sentinel, both HDD's are testing fine, as is just about everything else I've run diagnostics on from memory to system board to HDD's.
Any suggestions before it joins the other failed "fun restoration" projects that might or might not have been tossed into the ocean? (Kidding, of course I wouldn't do that!)
The machine isn't worth a lot of my time or effort--this is more of a last ditch attempt for someone to say have you checked _______ and I'll go, "Flick! No, I forgot about that." Otherwise, seriously, it's toast.
It might be helpful to see a Disk Management screen shot.
Disk Management - How to Post a Screenshot of
It would be very helpful to see more specific information about your machine.
Speccy - Publish Snapshot of your System Specs - Windows 7 Help blog
Thanks,
Bill
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Thanks, Bill--indeed a snapshot of the disk management console (or a few others even) would be most helpful, but I can't get it to stay on long enough to run anything under computer management. Same goes for Speccy--though a sidenote question: How/why do you choose Speccy over (my favorite) Belarc? I've not compared them really, Belarc was the first I installed, did what I needed so I stopped. Am I missing out?
As for the PC from Cupertino, as I have begun calling it, I've given up, parted it out and started testing each individual component as I remove it. So far, everything has tested good leading me more and more to believe it's the MoBo, specifically the onboard SATA controller. Once everything is off the board I'll give it a fresh PSU and HDD and see how it does as a complete barebones deal.
Belarc is great, but the output is not for public consumption (posting on a forum) as some keys are exposed. A savvy member can edit the HTML out to remove that sort of information, but not all members have the same experience level. If a member doesn't understand or forgets to edit the file, their license(s) are there for the world to see. An admin might take it down or I'll remind the member to remove the sensitive info and repost, but.... well you get the drift.
A PUBLISHED Speccy snapshot strips sensitive information out before hosting the file on Piriform servers. All a member has to do is paste the link Speccy gives them and we're golden.
Using Speccy is easiest for all involved.
Sounds as though you have the bases covered ... strip it down and build it back up to determine the point of failure.
Good luck, post what you find out.
Bill
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Thank you, Bill--I guess I'm the worst case scenario then--I'm perfectly happy editing HTML, but wouldn't have even thought about the software keys exposed in Belarc! Installing Speccy as we speak!
Try removing RAM from the computer. I've had issues like this and I was able to get around the problem due to RAM being different types and or a RAM stick is defective. I would try booting with only one stick, if it works, add another, and if it errs again, try a different stick. It has worked for me on numerous occasions. Good luck.
