Why Does My PC Keep Turning On By Itself After a Shutdown?
Asked by
TechJunkie42
Hey everyone, I'm really struggling with a perplexing issue where my PC just turns itself back on after I've completely shut it down. I've tried everything I can think of to troubleshoot this problem, so I'm reaching out for some fresh insights.
Here's my PC build:
- CPU: AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D
- CPU Cooler: Lian Li Hydroshift II LCD-S
- Motherboard: ASUS ROG B850-F / ASUS ROG B850-A
- GPU: Astral RTX 5080 OC
- RAM: G.Skill DDR5 Trident Z5 Royal Neo 32GB @ 6000MHz
- PSU: Lian Li 1300W Edge
- Case: Lian Li O11D Mini V2
I built two identical PCs and both have started this weird behavior. They're definitely not in sleep mode since I checked using the command 'powercfg -lastwake', and it shows "Wake History Count - 0". My partner's setup began having this problem first, turning on at around 4-5 AM some mornings. It's been really frustrating, and now my PC is also turning on at the same time every day at 2:16 PM, despite me doing nothing to it in the past two days.
We've tried a number of fixes: disabling fast startup, adjusting BIOS wake settings, updating the BIOS, and turning off wake options for peripherals. We've even confirmed there are no scheduled tasks that should be waking the PC. I'm starting to wonder if something's wrong with the hardware or if it's a power issue. Any thoughts on this would be hugely appreciated!
Answers
Have you considered using tools like Chris Titus Utilities or privacy.sexy? They have options to disable many of those automatic "turn on" features that might be causing the issue. Might be worth checking out!
Reply to this answer
I used to have a similar problem too, and while I never pinpointed the exact cause, I found a workaround that helped. Holding down the Shift key while shutting down made Windows perform a complete shutdown, instead of the quick one that acts like a hibernation. You might want to give that a try!
Reply to this answer
Check your BIOS settings! There’s often an option called something like "What to do in case of power loss". Depending on the setting, it could cause your PC to power on unexpectedly. It might also be due to tiny power blips activating the power supply. Definitely worth a look.
Reply to this answer
I've been through this too. For me, the key fix was to go into Device Manager and disable the wake settings for the mouse, keyboard, and network interfaces. Sometimes even the smallest movement can trigger a wake-up, even from a full shutdown.
TechJunkie42: Thanks for the heads up! I'll look into that when I have a chance.
Reply to this answer
Also, don't forget to check the Task Scheduler. There could be something scheduled that you weren't aware of that’s contributing to this problem.
Reply to this answer
Add your answer
Answers are reviewed before publication.
TechJunkie42: Interesting tip! I’ll definitely try that. I take it you've moved on from that PC now?