HP Elitebook turns off randomly

[EY_Cupertino]

My HP Elitebook 840 G5 keeps turning off randomly when I'm plugged in and online for work.  I thought it was overheating so I bought those fans to go underneath but both fans are running and it still keeps turning off for no reason - right in the middle of a call or when I'm doing something.  WHY???

[Jupitero]

Hello.

Computer turning off randomly is likely related to CPU overheating, or power delivery failure.

You can monitor CPU temp with e.g. Core Temp utility while computer is idle or under load. If the CPU temperature goes up to 90°C or higher, and the computer turns off at certain temperatures (usually ≥100°C) then it's due to overheating.

In this case your laptop vents may be blocked with dust. Follow the procedures in this HP Support video. states that a BIOS update may fix hardware problems - this is true and recommended as well. It may be necessary to go beyond those instructions to really clean the dust off, and opening the bottom cover may be necessary.

Your laptop cooling solution also includes thermal pad or thermal paste between the CPU and the heat sink assembly. This may have deteriorated and may require replacement, but this requires some disassembly and know-how.

If CPU temperature is not critically high, the reason for sudden power loss is probably in the system board if your battery still holds power. A fault may have manifested somewhere in the system board and only way to fix it is to replace it, and this requires disassembling the laptop rather completely and is not recommended unless you know your way around laptop innards. The system board is also rather expensive part and it can be uneconomical.

If the cleaning or any other troubleshooting here does not help, you can have the laptop serviced by HP, or an HP affiliated service even if you don't have warranty. They can find the root cause and fix it for you.

[EY_Cupertino]

Thank you - though I do have one of those fan pads running under my laptop and it turned off while the fans were running.  Do you recommend me bringing it in to get checked through my IT support?

Thank you!

Elaine

[Jupitero]

Hi,

If you really have IT support, then yes, have them take a look.