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Say i am using my computer for the last hour or so and decide to restart or (turn off and start again) 95% of the time the computer restart and ask me for my user name to log in, when I try to log in , it takes a while (say 10-20 sec ) before I see my desk top and while still in the process of completing the start up , the computer shuts off unexpectedly.(still power is on). I briefly saw an error message says " cannot load power (something)" before it shuts down and cannot clearly see what is that (something) possibly some file extension like .dll,but not sure. 5% of the time it will not even restart ,just shuts down on its first attempt to restart not even giving me the log in window.No matter how many times I try restarting this pattern persists, but if I LET THE COMPUTER " COOL DOWN" FOR SAY HALF AN HOUR THEN I have no problem logging in. I recently had a " about blank " hijacker and removed it using CWShredder. In my computer MS service pack 2, Spybot S& D, CWShredder,Mozilla and IE are all installed. Please help me to solve this problem, Thanks (is this due to overheating? but I never had this prob before the home page hijack)

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Short, focused checklist that builds on 's points with steps that help capture the fault and isolate hardware vs Windows corruption.

First, capture the error so you can diagnose it. Disable automatic restart on system failure (My Computer -> Properties -> Advanced -> Startup and Recovery -> uncheck "Automatically restart") so any Blue Screen or driver message remains visible. Check the System and Application logs with Event Viewer (eventvwr.msc) immediately after a failure and note any errors that line up with the shutdown time.

Run targeted tests that were not listed above:

  • File/system integrity: from an elevated command prompt run 
    sfc /scannow
chkdsk C: /F /R

    (Windows XP may ask for the install CD for sfc.)

  • Memory: boot a MemTest86+ ISO and run several full passes to rule out RAM errors.
  • Power supply / caps: monitor voltages in Windows with HWMonitor/SpeedFan and visually inspect the motherboard/PSU for bulging or leaking capacitors. If possible, swap in a known-good PSU to test.
  • Driver/profile isolation: perform a clean boot with msconfig (disable non-Microsoft services/startup), create a fresh local user account and test, and reinstall/update chipset/ACPI-related drivers if Event Viewer or the captured stop message points to a power-management driver.

Other practical checks: try a Linux live CD/USB and leave the machine running through the period that usually fails — if it stays up, the issue is likely Windows/software. Back up important data before invasive tests or a repair install. Avoid flashing the BIOS unless you have a confirmed vendor fix and follow vendor instructions exactly.

If none of these produce a clear result, preservation of logs/screenshots and the Event Viewer entries will make it far easier for a technician to pinpoint whether the root cause is failing hardware (PSU/motherboard/caps) or corrupted Windows components/drivers.

Member Avatar for DMR

is this due to overheating? but I never had this prob before the home page hijack

Coincidences do happen, so it's best not to rule out possibilities too early in the game. Some of what you've described could indicate overheating, especially since you said that leaving the machine off for a bit seems to stabilize things.

Some basic things to check in terms of thermal/hardware problems:


- Make sure there's no dust buildup on the circuit boards or in the fans and air vents. If there is, buy a can of compressed air and blow the dust out.

- Make sure that all of the computer's fans are running smoothly. Check fans on the CPU, in the power supply, and possibly on the video card. If a fan has failed entirely or doesn't seem to be rotating freely, it should be replaced ASAP.

- Check the heat-sink on the CPU and make sure it is seated properly and securely.

- Check that all circuit boards and cables are firmly seated into their connectors.


If it's a software problem, here are some things to try:

By hitting the F8 key as your system is booting (right at the point where Windows first starts to load) you can bring up the startup menu, which has a few boot options which can be helpful in diagnosing boot/shutdown problems. From the menu:

- Boot the computer into Safe Mode. Does it operate correctly in Safe Mode, or does the problem still occur?

- Boot using the "Last Known Good Configuration" option. Does the problem still occur?

- Boot using the "Enable Boot Logging" option. This will create a log file named "ntbtlog.txt" which will contain entries listing what drivers Windows attempted to load at bootup. By looking through that log (open it with Windows Notepad) you may be able to determine where in the boot process something fails.

- You may not have gotten all of the "spyware" off your system, and malicious programs definitely can cause random shutdowns/reboots/freezes.

*Run a full virus scan, making sure that you've installed the most current virus definition updates to your AV program.

*Download and Run Ad Aware in addition to SpyBot (use the "check for updates" options to make sure Ad Aware has its current definitions). If Ad Aware finds things that SpyBot does not, have Ad Aware fix whatever it finds.

*Read through the threads in our Security forum for more information about detecting and removing malicious infections.

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