TheVille

I've had a problem recently while playing TF2. I get about 10 minutes in and my computer shuts down entirely. No BSOD, it just shuts down like the power was turned off. I tried it on a few other games tonight and found out that it did the same thing for Chivalry and Portal2 didn't even load.

I'm wondering if this has anything to do with t hat last big update/install for steam. I have opened up my computer and blown out the dust (which was scant) and done a few virus checks. Nothing has seemed to bring anything up that would give me a reason to suspect but I don't know a whole lot.

What should I check? What should I DOOOOOOO??

Hmmm.....

Check all the connections for the PSU then check the PSU itself. Theres some guildes online for checking voltage. It sounds like that could be the culperate.

Ive had one blow up on me before.

How about processor and GPU temperatures? There are some utilities out there that will check for such as well as volts.

I agree with Tilgasse. Sounds like a power supply problem.
They do have a finite life.

I would check temperatures first. Make sure your heat sinks are all fully secured, and fans are working. All PCs will automatically and immediately shut themselves off if they overheat.

The overheating issue was my first thought. I know that there is a way to check that in BIOS but I can't for the life of me remember what exactly I'm looking for and sure as heck don't want to go in BIOS without a plan. I will see what I can find as far as that goes and get back with some info.

In the meantime, what exactly should I look for as far at the power supply goes? It's a fairly new unit (~3 years old) so I hope that's not the case.

I appreciate the ideas.

A bad PSU will generally smell a bit like electrical smoke. If the whole thing were going bad, the system would likely not boot up well, and would have problems in places other than games, but check the wires, swap out which cables are used on your GPU if you have others available, and clear dust out of everywhere that you can.

Re: the overheating, in this particular case it's a matter of looking if stuff works, rather than watching the actual temp. Watch the fans on your GPU in particular, but also your case, to make sure they're actually spinning. With the case open (and the system off long enough to cool down) lightly finger-test all the heat sinks to make sure they do not wiggle. If it's wiggling, it isn't connected properly and isn't pulling off heat the way it's meant to. Also, make sure the fans are blowing the right direction to create a cooling breeze over equipment, and that airflow isn't blocked by wires, dust bunnies, or other components.