Inspiron 4150 random shutdown

johns13193 · January 28th, 2008, 04:46 AM

Ok, I have an Inspiron 4150, that I got from someone I know because it was having this problem. What happens is I press the power button, and (depending on how long it has been since my last attempt at booting it) it tries to boot, but shuts down in the middle of the process. No warning at all. I've tried reformatting the HDD (partly since I hoped it'd fix it, and partly b/c i needed to since the person's stuff was on there) to no avail. I talked to Dell, and they say that it isn't software related, and I should send it in for repairs. Being that I don't want to do that, does anyone have any ideas?

Zuhaib · January 28th, 2008, 05:11 AM

4150, so i assume its out of warranty, now what part of the startup does it fail? Loading windows? During POST?
If its POST, check battery and power. Also see what the BIOS says. If battery and power seems good, check ram. Does things tend to stop a computer cold.

Mischief007 · January 28th, 2008, 05:45 AM

Does it get exceptionally hot near the out fans?

petarkb · January 28th, 2008, 09:33 AM

Sounds like a thermoconductance issue, but it could also be a capacitor made of FAIL. Are there any swollen capacitors on the mainboard? Have you tried taking off the CPU's heatsink? Is there a funny gel underneath? Also, try it with another power supply. Sometimes electrical spikes can fry the things and they act all funny.

jensked · January 28th, 2008, 10:12 AM

I would think it's a fail powersupply.

johns13193 · January 28th, 2008, 08:57 PM

It shuts down whenever it feels like, depending on how long it has been on. The farthest I got was into windows, for like 3 mins. I tried right after it died, and it only lasted a couple of seconds. During this, it doesn't get exceptionally hot, no more than my other laptop. I have taken off the CPU heatsink (and most of the stuff on top of the mobo for that matter) and I didn't find any odd gels, only the stock paste. I don't have any extra power supplies, and the battery also hates me (when i press the power level indicator, the lights come on like this: o x o x o, o being on x being off). I checked dell's site, and they don't seem to want me to buy one (can't find out how much it costs). A genuine (fingers crossed) one on ebay would run me about $25.

Mischief007 · January 28th, 2008, 09:59 PM

It sounds like an overheating issue. Can you get into the BIOS and see if it has a hardware monitor. It might tell you the CPU temperature there.

johns13193 · January 28th, 2008, 10:09 PM

Nope, it's the standard crap Dell bios. Would adding some thermal grease to the cooler help at all?

Mischief007 · January 28th, 2008, 11:35 PM

Might as well try and see if it stays booted longer before shutting down.

johns13193 · January 29th, 2008, 04:31 AM

Being that a desktop processor requires about a rice-grain-sized thing of grease, how much should i use for this?

Quiky · January 29th, 2008, 03:56 PM

Have you tried cleaning out the fan? No airflow = death.

Also take the ram out, check the contacts, and reseat it.

Mischief007 · January 29th, 2008, 07:21 PM

You need just enough to cover the chip slightly. No gobs of that but a thin layer.

jensked · January 30th, 2008, 07:49 AM

Right after it shuts down, restart it and try to watch the temperatures in the bios...

johns13193 · February 1st, 2008, 05:58 AM

No temp options in the shit dell bios, sadly.

gtrietsc · February 1st, 2008, 06:33 AM

So if you boot into the BIOS, will it shut down there too?

johns13193 · February 3rd, 2008, 01:24 AM

Yep. Even if i let it sit there, it'll still happen.

January 28th, 2008, 04:46 AM	#1
johns13193 Joined: Aug 15th, 2007 Last Online: Yesterday Location: Well, it's near Philadelphia, PA Age: 15 Posts: 209 Car: Dad's '06 Civic EX (in about 2 months...) Rep Power: 6	Inspiron 4150 random shutdown Ok, I have an Inspiron 4150, that I got from someone I know because it was having this problem. What happens is I press the power button, and (depending on how long it has been since my last attempt at booting it) it tries to boot, but shuts down in the middle of the process. No warning at all. I've tried reformatting the HDD (partly since I hoped it'd fix it, and partly b/c i needed to since the person's stuff was on there) to no avail. I talked to Dell, and they say that it isn't software related, and I should send it in for repairs. Being that I don't want to do that, does anyone have any ideas? __________________ my rig: e6750 @ 3ghz, GA-P35-DS3R, 3gb DDR2-800, 8600GT (702/1800 mem), 1tb storage (500gb 7200.11, 500gb Hitachi external)

January 28th, 2008, 05:11 AM	#2
Zuhaib Joined: Dec 11th, 2003 Last Online: January 5th, 2009 Location: San Francisco, CA Posts: 625 Car: 07 VW GTI, 06 S500, 05 HD Softail Rep Power: 25	4150, so i assume its out of warranty, now what part of the startup does it fail? Loading windows? During POST? If its POST, check battery and power. Also see what the BIOS says. If battery and power seems good, check ram. Does things tend to stop a computer cold. __________________ I am Pakistani And No! I do not own a 7/11! And my NAME is not Apu! Half the wheels, but twice as much fun =D "MPG describes riding like biology describes Sex" -- Harley Davidson Ad

January 28th, 2008, 05:45 AM	#3
Mischief007 Joined: Dec 3rd, 2004 Last Online: January 6th, 2009 Location: London, Ontario, Canada Age: 27 Posts: 4,393 Car: 2004 GP GTP CompG LFS Status: Rep Power: 24	Does it get exceptionally hot near the out fans? __________________ 2004 Pontiac Grand Prix GTP CompG 66,750 km - 41,477 miles

January 28th, 2008, 09:33 AM	#4
petarkb Joined: Feb 12th, 2007 Last Online: Yesterday Location: Sofia, Bulgaria Posts: 1,140 Rep Power: 24	Sounds like a thermoconductance issue, but it could also be a capacitor made of FAIL. Are there any swollen capacitors on the mainboard? Have you tried taking off the CPU's heatsink? Is there a funny gel underneath? Also, try it with another power supply. Sometimes electrical spikes can fry the things and they act all funny. __________________ Those who do learn from history go mad while watching the same shit happen over and over again.

January 28th, 2008, 10:12 AM	#5
jensked Joined: Mar 31st, 2005 Last Online: January 6th, 2009 Location: Flanders, Belgium Age: 25 Posts: 4,007 Car: RIP Opel Astra -> 2006 Toyota Corolla Wagon Rep Power: 43	I would think it's a fail powersupply. __________________

January 28th, 2008, 08:57 PM	#6
johns13193 Joined: Aug 15th, 2007 Last Online: Yesterday Location: Well, it's near Philadelphia, PA Age: 15 Posts: 209 Car: Dad's '06 Civic EX (in about 2 months...) Rep Power: 6	It shuts down whenever it feels like, depending on how long it has been on. The farthest I got was into windows, for like 3 mins. I tried right after it died, and it only lasted a couple of seconds. During this, it doesn't get exceptionally hot, no more than my other laptop. I have taken off the CPU heatsink (and most of the stuff on top of the mobo for that matter) and I didn't find any odd gels, only the stock paste. I don't have any extra power supplies, and the battery also hates me (when i press the power level indicator, the lights come on like this: o x o x o, o being on x being off). I checked dell's site, and they don't seem to want me to buy one (can't find out how much it costs). A genuine (fingers crossed) one on ebay would run me about $25. __________________ my rig: e6750 @ 3ghz, GA-P35-DS3R, 3gb DDR2-800, 8600GT (702/1800 mem), 1tb storage (500gb 7200.11, 500gb Hitachi external)

January 28th, 2008, 09:59 PM	#7
Mischief007 Joined: Dec 3rd, 2004 Last Online: January 6th, 2009 Location: London, Ontario, Canada Age: 27 Posts: 4,393 Car: 2004 GP GTP CompG LFS Status: Rep Power: 24	It sounds like an overheating issue. Can you get into the BIOS and see if it has a hardware monitor. It might tell you the CPU temperature there. __________________ 2004 Pontiac Grand Prix GTP CompG 66,750 km - 41,477 miles

January 28th, 2008, 10:09 PM	#8
johns13193 Joined: Aug 15th, 2007 Last Online: Yesterday Location: Well, it's near Philadelphia, PA Age: 15 Posts: 209 Car: Dad's '06 Civic EX (in about 2 months...) Rep Power: 6	Nope, it's the standard crap Dell bios. Would adding some thermal grease to the cooler help at all? __________________ my rig: e6750 @ 3ghz, GA-P35-DS3R, 3gb DDR2-800, 8600GT (702/1800 mem), 1tb storage (500gb 7200.11, 500gb Hitachi external)

January 28th, 2008, 11:35 PM	#9
Mischief007 Joined: Dec 3rd, 2004 Last Online: January 6th, 2009 Location: London, Ontario, Canada Age: 27 Posts: 4,393 Car: 2004 GP GTP CompG LFS Status: Rep Power: 24	Might as well try and see if it stays booted longer before shutting down. __________________ 2004 Pontiac Grand Prix GTP CompG 66,750 km - 41,477 miles

January 29th, 2008, 04:31 AM	#10
johns13193 Joined: Aug 15th, 2007 Last Online: Yesterday Location: Well, it's near Philadelphia, PA Age: 15 Posts: 209 Car: Dad's '06 Civic EX (in about 2 months...) Rep Power: 6	Being that a desktop processor requires about a rice-grain-sized thing of grease, how much should i use for this? __________________ my rig: e6750 @ 3ghz, GA-P35-DS3R, 3gb DDR2-800, 8600GT (702/1800 mem), 1tb storage (500gb 7200.11, 500gb Hitachi external)

January 29th, 2008, 03:56 PM	#11
Quiky You know you want me.. Joined: Aug 21st, 2005 Last Online: Yesterday Posts: 2,295 LFS Status: Rep Power: 169	Have you tried cleaning out the fan? No airflow = death. Also take the ram out, check the contacts, and reseat it. __________________ + Rep me, and fight the lazy Viper007Bond!

January 29th, 2008, 07:21 PM	#12
Mischief007 Joined: Dec 3rd, 2004 Last Online: January 6th, 2009 Location: London, Ontario, Canada Age: 27 Posts: 4,393 Car: 2004 GP GTP CompG LFS Status: Rep Power: 24	You need just enough to cover the chip slightly. No gobs of that but a thin layer. __________________ 2004 Pontiac Grand Prix GTP CompG 66,750 km - 41,477 miles

January 30th, 2008, 07:49 AM	#13
jensked Joined: Mar 31st, 2005 Last Online: January 6th, 2009 Location: Flanders, Belgium Age: 25 Posts: 4,007 Car: RIP Opel Astra -> 2006 Toyota Corolla Wagon Rep Power: 43	Right after it shuts down, restart it and try to watch the temperatures in the bios... __________________

February 1st, 2008, 05:58 AM	#14
johns13193 Joined: Aug 15th, 2007 Last Online: Yesterday Location: Well, it's near Philadelphia, PA Age: 15 Posts: 209 Car: Dad's '06 Civic EX (in about 2 months...) Rep Power: 6	No temp options in the shit dell bios, sadly. __________________ my rig: e6750 @ 3ghz, GA-P35-DS3R, 3gb DDR2-800, 8600GT (702/1800 mem), 1tb storage (500gb 7200.11, 500gb Hitachi external)

February 1st, 2008, 06:33 AM	#15
gtrietsc Joined: Dec 14th, 2004 Last Online: Yesterday Location: Lewisville, TX USA Age: 31 Posts: 941 Car: '06 Suzuki Katana, '02 Lexus IS300, '07 Ford F-150 Rep Power: 18	So if you boot into the BIOS, will it shut down there too? __________________

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February 3rd, 2008, 01:24 AM	#16
johns13193 Joined: Aug 15th, 2007 Last Online: Yesterday Location: Well, it's near Philadelphia, PA Age: 15 Posts: 209 Car: Dad's '06 Civic EX (in about 2 months...) Rep Power: 6	Yep. Even if i let it sit there, it'll still happen. __________________ my rig: e6750 @ 3ghz, GA-P35-DS3R, 3gb DDR2-800, 8600GT (702/1800 mem), 1tb storage (500gb 7200.11, 500gb Hitachi external)