My computer shuts down a few seconds after it starts.

If it is doing it within seconds of the computer being booted from cold, suspect overheating.

If a laptop, get it checked out at a service centre.

If a desktop, remove the side service panel and check that the power supply, cpu and any case fans are working. Use compressed air (carefully) to remove dust buildup.

Hi,

To add some to Andre and Mike's good tips :

Could be heat related - try using a small fan to blow into the air intakes to see if that helps.

Does it just act like it loses power or does it shutdown in a normal manner?

Remove ALL power and reseat all cards, memory, and cables (both ends when possible) -

actually remove and replace - do not just snug. Remove the dust bunnies and clean the

vents. Check that the fans work (before and after opening the case). If a laptop about all

you can do is reseat the memory and clean the vents (still can try adding a small fan as a

test).

This sounds like hardware so if the above does not help then you probably need the help

of a real computer shop (not leeks and peeks at a Best Buy or other Big Box Stores) or the

System Maker's Support.

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Check with these utilities to see if any information can be gathered : Run BlueScreenView

to see if there have been BlueScreens, and check in MyEventViewer at the time of the shutdown

(or a few seconds before) to see it the Event Log contains any useful information.

This is an excellent tool for posting Blue Screen Error Information

BlueScreenView - Free - scans all your minidump files created during 'blue screen of death' crashes,

and displays the information about all crashes in one table.

http://www.nirsoft.net/utils/blue\_screen\_view.html

MyEventViewer can be checked at the time of the BlueScreen (BSOD) or Event to within a second

or so of the time of the BSOD or Event to provide more information as to possible cause - see TIP.

MyEventViewer - Free - a simple alternative to the standard event viewer of Windows.

TIP - Options - Advanced Filter allows you to see a time frame instead of the whole file -

set it to a bit before and after the time of the BSOD or Event.

http://www.nirsoft.net/utils/my\_event\_viewer.html

AppCrashView - Free - a small utility for Windows Vista and Windows 7 that displays the details

of all application crashes occurred in your system. The crashes information is extracted from the

.wer files created by the Windows Error Reporting (WER) component of the operating system every

time that a crash is occurred. AppCrashView also allows you to easily save the crashes list to

text/csv/html/xml file.

http://www.nirsoft.net/utils/app\_crash\_view.html

Also do this so you can see the likely bluescreens. (You may or may not be able to see

them if they occur even after doing this depending on the cause.)

Windows Vista automatically restarts if your PC encounters an error that causes it to crash.

(also Windows 7)

http://www.winvistatips.com/disable-automatic-restart-t84.html

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What antivirus/antispyware/security products do you have on machine? Include any you have EVER

had on this machine including those you uninstalled (they leave remnants behind which can cause

strange issues).

Hope this helps.

Could be a combination loose or faulty hardware.

If you have any non-essential external devices connected to the computer on startup, try disconnecting them and see if you are able to boot successfully to the desktop.

I would make sure all the following components are updated such as your Network adapter, video card, audio etc. You can try booting into Safe Mode and do a clean boot in Normal Mode then check for the appropriate updates.

If the problem persist, try booting into Safe Mode, boot your PC, just before the system loads the Windows operating system; hit the [F8] Function 8 key on your keyboard which will launch the Advanced Boot Options menu. Select Safe Mode.

    1. Click Start, type msconfig in the Start Search box, and then press ENTER.

       User Account Control permission

       If you are prompted for an administrator password or for a confirmation, type the password, or click Continue.

   2. On the General tab, click Selective Startup.

   3. Under Selective Startup, click to clear the Load Startup Items check box.

   4. Click the Services tab, click to select the Hide All Microsoft Services check box, and then click Disable All.

   5. Click OK.

   6. When you are prompted, click Restart.

7. reboot in Normal mode and update.