[rockmilk]

You may find this link helpful http://support.microsoft.com/kb/331796

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[quotename='rockmilk']He means a new power cord [/quote]No I don't! Please do not attempt to interpret what I mean. If there is a question as to what I am saying, I will clarify, or one of my team mates will step in if I am unavailable. Note I was quite clear, I said power supply.

@ chipper - As noted, I said exactly what I meant - the power supply. Not the cord (lead). While you certainly could be having other issues, and it sounds like your are, your description of your lights behavior and having to wait 20 minutes (typically meaning you have to wait for something to cool down) are classic symptoms of heat, and/or power problems. Therefore, to eliminate the power supply as the cause, I highly recommend you verify you are supplying your computer good, clean, stable power. This is best done by swapping in a known good power supply.

If you don't have a spare, or friend you can borrow one from, then the PSU needs to be professionally tested under various realistic "loads" then analyzed for excessive ripple and other anomalies. This is done by a qualified technician using an oscilloscope or power analyzer - sophisticated (and expensive) electronic test equipment requiring special training to operate, and a basic knowledge of electronics theory to understand the results. A multimeter is not good enough, and too risky.

In a pinch, you can use a PSU Tester that has a digital readout (instead of the cheap ones that use LED indicators), but these are not conclusive because they do not provide a variety of loads and don't test for ripple. Therefore, to conclusively eliminate the power supply as the problem, you need to swap in a known good power supply, or have yours professionally tested.

When troubleshooting hardware related problems (and having to wait 20 minutes to boot IS a hardware problem) your start at the beginning and work forward. We can assume power in the wall is good (though it should be tested with and AC Outlet Tester to be sure). And I assume your power lead (the cord) is firmly attached. Next step is the power supply.

Note, connection problems could be do to a poor network connection. And a poor network connection could be due to an unstable network interface in your computer and that can be caused by the network interface being fed unstable, or insufficient power.

[Digerati]

[quotename='rockmilk']He means a new power cord [/quote]No I don't! Please do not attempt to interpret what I mean. If there is a question as to what I am saying, I will clarify, or one of my team mates will step in if I am unavailable. Note I was quite clear, I said power supply.

@ chipper - As noted, I said exactly what I meant - the power supply. Not the cord (lead). While you certainly could be having other issues, and it sounds like your are, your description of your lights behavior and having to wait 20 minutes (typically meaning you have to wait for something to cool down) are classic symptoms of heat, and/or power problems. Therefore, to eliminate the power supply as the cause, I highly recommend you verify you are supplying your computer good, clean, stable power. This is best done by swapping in a known good power supply.

If you don't have a spare, or friend you can borrow one from, then the PSU needs to be professionally tested under various realistic "loads" then analyzed for excessive ripple and other anomalies. This is done by a qualified technician using an oscilloscope or power analyzer - sophisticated (and expensive) electronic test equipment requiring special training to operate, and a basic knowledge of electronics theory to understand the results. A multimeter is not good enough, and too risky.

In a pinch, you can use a PSU Tester that has a digital readout (instead of the cheap ones that use LED indicators), but these are not conclusive because they do not provide a variety of loads and don't test for ripple. Therefore, to conclusively eliminate the power supply as the problem, you need to swap in a known good power supply, or have yours professionally tested.

When troubleshooting hardware related problems (and having to wait 20 minutes to boot IS a hardware problem) your start at the beginning and work forward. We can assume power in the wall is good (though it should be tested with and AC Outlet Tester to be sure). And I assume your power lead (the cord) is firmly attached. Next step is the power supply.

Note, connection problems could be do to a poor network connection. And a poor network connection could be due to an unstable network interface in your computer and that can be caused by the network interface being fed unstable, or insufficient power.

[chipper1]

Thanks, sorry I dont understand how to reenable Microsoft security? Where do I go to do this?

[chipper1]

Hi Diger,

a good power supply? Where can I get one from to try on my PC?

Yes the PC freezes, the light on the top of the tower goes a stable red, then the noise stops from the tower and then sometimes like 5-10mins later the red light flashes and goes away, the tower makes a whiring noise and I can use the PC again.

So my next step is to test the PC with a good power suppy, like I said, where do I get one from?

[rockmilk]

You can open ccleaner to reenable mse under the startup tab of ccleaner.Select the mse entry and enable it.

[Digerati]

a good power supply? Where can I get one from to try on my PC?

This is not something easy for most normal users. But fortunately, Acer uses standard ATX Form Factor Standard power supplies, so finding one is not hard as most any standard supply with sufficient power will have the necessary connections and will fit the case with no problems. Perhaps a friend has one, or a real trusting friend will let you pull the PSU out of his computer. Short of that, getting yours tested is the other option.

If you want specifics, you will need to provide the specifics of your Acer model number. I suspect any good supply of 300 watts or larger will suffice.

Have you added any hardware since the computer was new?

As far as Microsoft Security Essentials (MSE), you can just download the latest version and install it again to enable it - ensuring you have the latest version. It is important to make sure you only have one anti-malware solution running at the same time. You can have other anti-malware solutions installed, just not running at the same time or else conflicts may occur. Although conflicts are not as common as they were in the past, at best running more than one at the same time consumes unnecessary resources. At worse, you have conflicts, each wondering why the other is looking at the same critical object - like two dogs guarding the same bone.

[chipper1]

Thanks for that.

So with a PSU do I have to take anything out of the tower? or just plug it in?

I have found on which I might order now, this is it... would this work do you know?

http://compare.ebay....mTypes&var=sbar

Once I have it, what do I then do with it?

New hardware? I dont think so, just added logictech cam to it...whatelse could be claased as hardware?

Edited by chipper1, 06 November 2011 - 06:40 PM.

[Digerati]

Wait! You said in your opening post this was an Acer "PC". And you said above "tower", which also suggests a "PC". But you linked to a "notebook" power supply for an Acer Aspire AS5536-5883 "NoteBook".

Do you have a PC, or a notebook?

I asked above for your specific Acer model number. We need that before we can move on.

[chipper1]

Ok here is the information. It is an Acer Aspire T180, 220-240vac 3.15a, 50hz and a PC.

I have been getting a blue screen too and it is still doing the same thing, switching off on its own. It switched off again 20 mins ago and I gave the tower a little shake and it made it work again? Maybe coincidence?

[Digerati]

Okay so to be sure, this is your computer? Right? If so, then according to the specs page, it is a standard ATX power supply. That means you can connect any ATX PSU that has enough power. And since the specs page says it came with a measly 250W supply, finding one with enough power should not be a problem. You can always put in a larger (in terms of wattage) PSU. Electronics only use what they need, not what the PSU can deliver.

As far as shaking, you need to make sure all your cables are securely fastened.

[chipper1]

Yes this PC is the familys PC, my parents PC but have permission to use it etc.

I accidently knocked the tower, only slightly and it turned off and back on again. Maybe it is something inside the tower?

So basically I need one of these? http://azsurplus.com...roducts_id=4187

Where would I get one from? somewhere like an electrical store?

[Digerati]

When I asked if that was your computer, "this" is a link to a computer I think is yours. Please click on "this" above to verify. "specs page" is a link too.

The link you provided goes to a low profile PSU. If the PC I linked to is yours, you don't need a low profile PSU.

[chipper1]

Yes that is my PC exactly! What PSU do you think would be good for my PC? thanks again!

[Digerati]

As I noted above, that has a standard ATX PSU, so you can use any ATX PSU that has enough power. Even a 850W PSU if you want. The computer will only draw what it needs, not what the PSU can deliver. I always recommend getting a quality PSU from a reputable maker to ensure you are providing quality power to your computer devices. Corsair and Antec are popular brands.

If you might be replacing this computer with something new in the near future, you may want to buy a PSU that will support you into the future. A 650W PSU is a pretty good general purpose size for most users.

[chipper1]

Thanks, very very helpful! Do I need to open the tower up to put this in? If it is the PSU, why do you think that it has started to have these problems?