PC Boots to Windows 7 Logot Animation Then Shuts Off

[pistolsnipe16]

Hi,

My pc has been working fine until yesterday when I tried to turn it on and it passes BIOS fine and the comes up with the screen where you choose to either "Start Windows Normally" or "Start Up Repair".

I can sit there as long as I want and nothing happens (I could hit up and down to switch between the choices for all eternity). When I select one or the other the pc does what it should and begins that process but then shuts down. On the "Start Windows Normally" choice this means it shuts down during the Windows 7 animation. Same spot in the animation every time.

Thanks for any help.

[Rik from RCE]

Restart it and keep pressing F8 until you get a different screen then select safe mode and see if it will start!

[pistolsnipe16]

Wow, I'm actually shocked I didn't think about that. I feel a little dumb. I will be upset yet excited if that works.

[pistolsnipe16]

Ok, just tried that and it didn't work. Showed all the text where it says "Loaded" all the different OS parts and then just turned off.

I'm going to see what happens when I try to boot from a Live CD or USB of Ubuntu.

Any other ideas or tips would be appreciated too.

[Rik from RCE]

So, were you able to choose safe mode from the menu or not?

[pistolsnipe16]

Edit: So, were you able to choose safe mode from the menu or not?
Yes I was able to choose safe mode but it did not get into safe mode. It started loading safe mode then just shut off like it does with everything else I've tried. I'm going to check some obvious things like if the ram is set correctly and stuff because I have no idea now.

There is also a new noise that I didn't notice before but that might just be one of the fans making it.

Alright, it does the same thing with Ubuntu off a Live USB as well. Loads some of the OS stuff (text shows up saying loading the different parts) and then everything just shuts off.

[Rik from RCE]

You have a hardware fault then! Try removing and refitting the ram. If you have more than 1 stick, try them individually.

[pistolsnipe16]

Yeah, that's what I was worried about. Hopefully it's just the RAM. At least that's somewhat inexpensive.

I'll go re-seat them both first to try that and then if that doesn't fix it (probably won't) I'll try them individually and report back.

I really do appreciate the help.

[Rik from RCE]

It could just as easily be your PSU and they are quite cheap these days!

[pistolsnipe16]

It's not the Ram. Just tried reseating it, changing the slots, and tried removing one stick (it has two) and using the other (even tried all the combos of slots. I did find the source of the noise though and I'm fairly certain it's the PSU.

I'll have to check the energy requirements of my stuff because I have an extra 250w or around that wattage PSU laying around here. (The pc has an AMD 4200+, 7600gt, 2x 512mb Ram, and is running two HDDs)

Should I try it with the lesser PSU to see if it works? I guess what I'm asking is if the load is too high for the different PSU will it damage the components (don't really care about the PSU being damaged as it isn't used for anything).

[pistolsnipe16]

Ok, can't use the 250w one as it is only a 20 pin connector and I need 24.

So any suggestions on a PSU (preferably cheap)? The current (and broken it appears) one is a 500w one. I kinda want to get a modular one because neatness is always nice so I looked at this .

[Rik from RCE]

It could damage the PSU which in turn could damage other components if it's a cheapie one with little or no over voltage and short curcuit protection. A good 450watt PSU shouldn't cost a great deal these days!

[pistolsnipe16]

Ok, I got a new power supply (and another stick of RAM) and hooked it up and it did the same exact thing.

[pistolsnipe16]

Fixed it, bad mobo. Got a new one and all is well. Thanks for the help guys.

I'm even gonna keep the new PSU because I like the cables on it better.