PC completely dead but is fine again. Why?

[Garawa]

I think I have 2 issues that may or may not be connected so I have both below.

I have had the laptop for 23 months. After about 11 months, the battery last lasted for over 9 hours now lasted just 4. The PC is lean with only the same MS Office software and antivirus from the day I set it up. The battery now lasts about 2.5 hours.

Yesterday I was using the PC (which was quick and responsive) whilst plugged in with the original charger (which felt hotter than usual). The screen turned off (not on with no picture), the PC appeared to be in standby and the fans were on full (never heard them that loud before), intermittently going fast and slow. I had to power off the PC. When I powered it back on, this happened:

* Screen did not come on at all.

* The power light blinked in an irregular pattern.

* The Caps Lock light flashed in an irregular pattern.

* The fans were working so hard, the laptop sounded as if it would take off like a helicopter.

* I removed the power cord but it made no difference to the sequence above.

* It was hard to tell if was powering up and then losing power or switching constantly between off and standby.

Ready to call HP support, I tried this morning and it booted up as if nothing had happened and fans were silent! Was it likely to be a rare crash? Did it get really hot and shut down, if so why? Did it lose power from the battery which clearly needs replacing even though it was plugged in? Is it a failing power supply problem and not the battery at all? The BIOS is all up to date along with all Windows 10 updates so any advice as to why this may have happened will be gratefully received. I need the laptop working and the battery sorted before uni starts in September and don't want it cutting out later. Many thanks.

[Lil_Boy_Blue]

Hi

If the Anti-Virus was a time limited trial, then you may want to replace it, perhaps supplement it with MalwareBytes and a RootKit finder.

Then work from there.

[Garawa]

I have had Norton Internet Security fully paid for many years without any problems and I doubt it would stop the PC from booting? It booted fine today without any issues and the same antivirus software that has been on it for 2 years.

[Lil_Boy_Blue]

Hi
First:- Turn off the computer, press and hold the PWR button for 4 seconds.

Then - Leave only keyboard and mouse connected, disconnect all externally connected
devices such as Docking Station, USB storage devices, displays, and printers.
Unplug the AC adapter from the computer.

Next - Press and Hold the Power button for 15 seconds to Hard Reset.
Rinse and Repeat

AND/OR - Power on your PC, press Esc (repeatedly), then F2 at the prompt.
Choose System Tests (Fast Test does a 4 minute hardware check).
AND/OR
HOW DO I USE DIAGNOSTICS?

HP PC Hardware Diagnostics Windows is a Windows-based utility that allows you to run diagnostic tests to determine if the computer hardware is functioning properly. The tool runs within the Windows operating system in order to diagnose hardware failures. HP PC Hardware Diagnostics Windows comes pre-installed on new HP computers, but if not on yours, download here:- http://ftp.hp.com/pub/softpaq/sp93001-93500/sp93457.exe

[Garawa]

Thank you, I will try that later. Will this find errors with the battery if that is the problem? Do you have an feeling as to what the issue was given that the PC seems normal again (he says was everything crossed and gritted teeth)?

[Lil_Boy_Blue]

Hi

The power light blinked in an irregular pattern.

The Caps Lock light flashed in an irregular pattern.

Had there been a pattern, then...

BIOS Beep & LED error codes for Post April 2015 PC's	https://support.hp.com/us-en/document/bph07107
You get a LONG (MAJOR) signal category, RED LED & then a SHORT (MINOR) signal category, WHITE LED. Major – the category of the error; Minor – specific error in that category The AUDIBLE repeats 5 times, and the VISUAL until power is removed.	LONG Beeps / Blinks	Error category (Single beeps / blinks are NOT used)
2	BIOS
3	Hardware
4	Thermal
5	Main-Board

[Garawa]

OK. Turned the PC on and it was still super responsive! So fast, I couldn't get the diagnostics to come up so downloaded from the link you provided. Ran all tests and all came back clear with no issues. Tested the adapter and battery which came back as OK even though it lasts for just a third of what it once did. I even ran the battery utility to see if it was included in the recall but it wasn't.

I have noticed the laptop getting very hot recently and uncomfortable to sit on my lap when before it was always cool and the fans were silent. Now the fans are working very hard. I sat the laptop on a couple of ice blocks and completed any Windows updates. When I last checked there were no HP updates but a BIOS update was showing so completed that.

This confuses things now. I doubt it was BIOS related but may have been? I won't know unless I use it extensively. However I still have the overheating and heavy fan use. I believe this was the reason it shut down and refused to boot up correctly. I think the power supply might need replacing. Is there any way of checking this as I couldn't see it on the stress tests and is there any way of seeing a log of why the PC shut off?

[Lil_Boy_Blue]

I still would run, and I do, A/V, MalwareBytes and TDSSkiller.

No more ideas.

Bye.

[Garawa]

Norton Internet Security and Malwarebytes scans have been run with instant protection turned on as I always do. Thanks.