Help! My Desktop Computer Keeps Shutting Down
 

My Wife has a Compaq Presario 6000 and it wont stay on. I unplugged it and then plugged it back in, turned it on and it sounded like it was booting up then after 2 to 3 seconds it shuts down. The green power light in the back is still on. I figuered that maybe an internal fuse went or the cooling fan has shorted out and as a predcaution the CPU powers down if their is a chance of over heating. We have had it for 4 years now.

Any ideas?

Sounds like the power supply might have failed. Easy to replace. Does the exhaust fan start up with the computer?

At 4 years, it's time to think about upgrading before spending money on a relic.

+1

I wouldn't invest more than the cost of a cheap power supply, and keep your receipt to take it back if it doesn't work. You can get the data off the drive by mounting it in a new machine, or putting it in an external drive enclosure.

Nope, fan doesn't start.

Check all the fans and blow out any dirt that may be blocking air flow. Like you said a lot of computers have a thermal safety shut down feature. Check any internal fans, many computers have a separate fan on the processor. I even had a computer here that was shutting down because the fan on the video card was clogged with dust.

Sound like power supply, do you know anyone with an old computer kicking around the garage you could grab the PS out of?

Test the power supply. Plug it in and use a volt meter to see if it is working.

Dave