Your computer shuts down on its own, all of a sudden, as if you had given it the order, but it doesn’t, and you don’t know why. The truth is that if this situation is repeated it is quite uncomfortable to have to wait for it to turn off and turn it on again. We must also worry about the causes of the sudden shutdown , since it can be an easy-to-solve nonsense or a serious problem that indicates that the computer is on the last legs.
That computers do strange and unexpected things is not new. One of those things is that, suddenly, it turns off as if it were a programmed action, not by you of course, that is what is most puzzling. Other times it happens like when the house light goes out and turns off in a tenth of a second, this may already indicate something more serious. In short, the cause of the shutdown problem may be in the software or in the hardware .
Configuration issues in Windows 10
Problems with the operating system configuration or incompatibility with some programs can cause unexpected shutdowns that are often preceded by the subsequent error screen.
Drivers or Controllers
You probably have the most current drivers installed for your devices (monitor, graphics card, printer, etc.) since they are downloaded and installed automatically with Windows Update. However, an error in the update process or in the initial installation may be generating an error that causes the computer to shut down.
To solve this problem, the best solution is to manually update the drivers or reinstall them. The normal thing is that the error has started from some change in the devices of your computer, such as the connection of a new device or a recent driver update, so you should try to act on them first. To manually update the drivers in Windows 10 we have to do the following:
- In the search box on the taskbar we enter Device Manager and select it.
- Go selecting the categories of the drivers you want to update and click with the right mouse button on them .
- Click Update driver.
- Windows will search for it and update it. If you can’t find it, you will have to search for it manually from the manufacturer’s website.
If the problem persists you can reinstall the drivers in this way:
- Search for Device Manager in the search box on the taskbar.
- Select category first, device second, and right-click .
- Click on uninstall .
- Restart your computer.
- Windows will take care of installing the driver again when it detects the device when the computer starts up.
Power settings
Windows default power profiles are sometimes misconfigured, causing sudden shutdowns and restarts. If the shutdown problem comes from here it is advisable to create a new default power configuration, we will do it by following these steps:
- Press Windows key + x .
- We choose Control Panel.
- We click on Hardware and Sound.
- Click on Power Options.
- In the Preferred plans section we activate Balanced (recommended).
- We click on Choose the behavior of the start / stop buttons in the left sidebar.
- Click on Change the configuration currently not available .
- We disable Enable fast startup (recommended).
- We save the changes.
- We restart the computer waiting for the problem to be solved.
Scheduled updates
It may be the case that we do not have the notifications activated and we do not know or do not remember that we have a scheduled restart pending, it usually happens after a Windows 10 update. These types of actions are usually executed outside of working hours, that is, schedule that we mark as active.
To solve this type of inopportune restarts we can go to Start / Settings / Updates and security , there we can temporarily pause the updates for 7 days and also resume them.
Serious errors
The first thing is to know that Windows 10, if it detects a serious error, will automatically restart the computer after a blue screen. It is an action that is activated by default. We can deactivate it, but taking into account that we are talking about serious errors, it is rather a temporary solution in the very short term. In the event that your computer is in the last stages and you are going to get rid of it, or if you decide to risk continuing to use it with the serious error, this is what you can do to deactivate the automatic restart (we remember that it is not a recommended option) :
- We go to This team and we click with the right mouse button and click on Properties .
- We go to Advanced system configuration and to the Advanced Options section.
- We select Start and recovery and then Settings .
- We deactivate the option Restart automatically.
Malware or virus
Another reason to take into account is that we have been infected by a virus on our computer or that we have the presence of any other type of malware or remote accesses . In case you have Windows Defender and Windows Firewall deactivated, activate them, if you have already done it, it is better that you resort to other external programs. For this we will have to use an antivirus, such as Avast for example that has a free plan, and a firewall such as ZoneAlarm for example.
It is very possible that any of the malicious activities mentioned is generating some kind of problem in the system that causes unexpected shutdowns, so cleaning up is a priority.
Hardware problems
Things start to get complicated when our computer gives us problems such as unexpected shutdowns and the cause is in the hardware, because the solutions are not usually simple. A specific hardware failure may be logged in Windows Device Manager marked with the exclamation mark.
Overheating
This is one of the most common causes when we experience unexpected power outages. As with all types of electronic devices, when they reach too high a temperature they are blocked or turned off to avoid greater evils. You can install a monitoring application that controls the temperature of the processors and other components, but it is usually easily perceived when a computer is too hot, just touch the fan grills, if they really burn, the computer is overheating, if we only notice that they are hot, we would consider that something within the norm.
The solution is very simple, you can place a cooling base that will help the equipment not reach such high temperatures. For the more handyman, those who dare to put their hands on the CPU, it is advisable to install more powerful fans that help dissipate the hot air.
Bad RAM
Any physical failure in the RAM memory modules or a bad configuration of the RAM in the BIOS can cause unexpected shutdowns and other types of errors. To do some checks we would have to enter the BIOS configuration panel and for this, some experience is recommended, otherwise it is better to take it to a repair service.
Ideally, configure the BIOS to restore the default options and see if this solves our problem.
Outdated BIOS
Continuing with the BIOS, installing a new device may cause problems because the first one is out of date. As we have commented previously, it is advisable to be familiar with the BIOS settings.
Generally, the manufacturer itself offers a BIOS update and configuration menu that is usually easy to use. But what we are repeating, always very carefully, and if we have any questions we take it to a professional.
Power supply
If there are problems with the power supply this directly affects the operation of the equipment, especially if it is a desktop computer or if we have problems with the laptop battery and it cannot replace the power supply when it fails.
In fact, a connection problem or a spark from a bad connection can cause the device to shut down.
HDD
When the hard drive on which you have the operating system installed, in this case Windows 10, presents physical writing or reading problems, it is probably crying out for a replacement.
When there are problems reading files that are important to the operation of the computer, different types of rare errors can occur, including system shutdowns. If the hard drive is of the SSD type, the errors are almost instantaneous . Doing a surface scan of the unit can reveal the presence of these types of problems.
