I'm having a frustrating issue with my PC randomly shutting down. Whenever this happens, the screen goes black and the system restarts immediately—no need for me to click anything. The fans keep spinning, so it seems like a power-related issue. Checking the event viewer, I found a log that mentions Event 41 Kernel-Power, along with some bugcheck codes. The most recent one was BugcheckCode 426, and I had another shutdown with BugcheckCode 80 just yesterday. I tried running HWInfo combined with Prime95 and FurMark to stress test the system, but it froze and gave me a BSOD with a machine exception error. I've disabled the auto-restart feature now to catch any future errors. I'm not sure if it's the power supply or what. I even tried reducing power limits on my GPU as a temporary fix because I need to use my PC today, but I'm looking for solid advice on what to do next.
3 Answers
It sounds like your power supply might be failing. How old is your system? If it's around 2019, it's possible that the PSU has degraded over time. As a temporary solution, you could try undervolting your GPU using MSI Afterburner to limit power consumption, but keep in mind that this is just a short-term fix. Make sure to plan for a replacement soon!
The last dump file you mentioned was corrupted, which makes things tricky, but the good news is the other one suggested a hardware error with the CPU. If you've done any overclocking or undervolting, try reverting those changes. Also, keep an eye on your CPU temperatures. If the crashes continue, a failing CPU could be the culprit, so be prepared for that possibility.
To get a better handle on the crashing issue, you should gather dump files from your system. These files can provide valuable insights into what's causing the BSODs. If you can boot into Windows—either normally or in Safe Mode—check the C:WindowsMinidump directory and see if there are any files there. If you find some, zip them up and share them on a file hosting site. Having multiple dump files can really help diagnose the problem!
Got it, I'll check for any dump files and upload them. Thanks for the tip!
Thanks for the heads-up! I've had some issues with overheating, so I'll definitely monitor that while I troubleshoot.