My PC keeps shutting down after sitting idle for roughly an hour or two, even though it is stable during gaming and stress tests. The system has a Ryzen 7 7800X3D, 32 GB of DDR5-6000 CL38 memory, a Sapphire Pulse 7900 XTX, an MSI B850 Gaming Plus WiFi motherboard, a Lian Li RS1000G power supply, and a DeepCool 360 mm AIO. The problems began after replacing my motherboard, RAM, and PSU in June.
I monitored temperatures and voltages with HWiNFO64, ran memory tests, FurMark, and other stability benchmarks, and everything looked normal. Disabling C-states and changing power-related BIOS settings did not help. The shutdowns happen more quickly when the room is warmer or the air conditioning is off.
When I temporarily installed a friend's Cougar GEX 1050W PSU, the shutdowns stopped during the five days I tested it. The Cougar is not ideal for my system because I noticed gray microstutters during power spikes, so I returned to the Lian Li unit. The store tested the PSU and said it was functioning normally, including leaving it idle in my PC, but the problem eventually returned after about two weeks. Windows logs only show Kernel-Power event 41.
I am planning to reinstall the Cougar PSU for several weeks to see whether the shutdowns return. What else should I check, and how can I demonstrate to the shop that the original PSU may be intermittently failing even though it passes a short test?
4 Answers
Since the replacement PSU stopped the issue, run a controlled A/B test. Use the Cougar for a few weeks with the exact same hardware, cables, BIOS settings, peripherals, and idle conditions, then reinstall the Lian Li unit and record the time and circumstances of each shutdown. A repeatable difference between the two supplies is much stronger evidence than a short shop test.
Kernel-Power 41 only means Windows detected that the previous shutdown was unexpected; it does not identify the failed component. Check Event Viewer immediately before the event, and disable Windows' automatic restart option so an actual stop error can remain visible instead of looking like a sudden power loss.
Do not overlook USB devices and their control software. Faulty AIO controllers, monitoring utilities, RGB programs, or a damaged USB cable can trigger crashes or resets while the machine is idle. Temporarily uninstall those utilities and disconnect nonessential USB devices, including internal USB headers, then test again.
Stress tests do not always reproduce low-load power-state problems. Keep checking the Windows System log and BIOS defaults, and test without EXPO, undervolting, or other tuning. If the system is completely losing power with no bugcheck and only the Lian Li supply causes it, ask the shop to perform a long-duration idle test in your complete system rather than only testing the PSU by itself.
I have already seen Kernel-Power 41 and will disable automatic restarts. I am also going to remove the monitoring software and disconnect unnecessary USB devices while running the longer PSU comparison.