So here’s the issue… I can game for hours without a problem, but as soon as I leave my PC running without any games, it just shuts off randomly after some time. It doesn’t give any warning. I can turn it back on after the shutdown, no problem, but I always have to rush to load a game to avoid the shutdown right after startup (it happens sometimes). Any thoughts on why this happens?
Do you mean it just goes to sleep when idle?
Clove said:
Do you mean it just goes to sleep when idle?
Nah, not sleep mode. It completely shuts down if no game is started, even if I’m using it.
Clove said:
Do you mean it just goes to sleep when idle?
Nah, not sleep mode. It completely shuts down if no game is started, even if I’m using it.
What CPU are you using? This sounds like an issue with C-states, like the CPU cores getting stuck in low power mode. If you can, try turning off thermal throttling and SpeedStep (if Intel). You could also try setting your CPU clock speeds lower to see if it works better. If it does, then something’s wrong with your Windows settings. There’s a setting related to hardware or software control for power changes—try setting it to hardware only and see if that fixes it.
@Cade
I have a Ryzen 7 3700x, no Intel here.
Does the PC go through the usual shutdown process, or does it just shut off suddenly? That’s a key difference here.
frank said:
Does the PC go through the usual shutdown process, or does it just shut off suddenly? That’s a key difference here.
Oh yeah, sorry, I should’ve clarified—it’s an abrupt power off, no shutdown process.
@Alva
That sounds like there’s something physically wrong. It could be overheating or a PSU issue. It might be tough to figure out.
@Alva
I’d lean towards PSU too. It’s definitely not overheating, since it works fine during games. This looks like a hardware issue.
I’ve seen something similar when using the curve optimiser on Ryzen 9000 series. If it’s unstable at idle or low load, it sounds very similar to your issue. What’s your CPU and motherboard setup? I’d say it’s not the PSU, and memory issues would typically lead to a BSOD. I don’t think cables being unplugged are the cause either since everything works fine during gaming. My first guess would be CPU instability.
@BrianDaniel1
I’ve got an HP Omen with a Ryzen 7 3700x and a pretty basic HP 87C3 board. It’s been working fine up until now, which is strange.
Check if you have a setting called ‘power supply idle control.’ You should see options like ‘low current idle’ and ‘typical current idle.’ Try changing it to ‘typical current idle.’
Check the event viewer for any errors.
Brier said:
Check the event viewer for any errors.
It’ll probably just show a kernel power 41 error since the power cuts off suddenly.
Obviously, just keep gaming! Seems like your PC only shuts off when it’s upset that you’re not playing. 
Could it be overheating? Also, check the event logs.
Myles said:
Could it be overheating? Also, check the event logs.
If it’s not overheating during gaming, it’s unlikely to be overheating when idle. But yeah, checking the event logs could help.
@Chris
I found a ‘critical’ event that says the system rebooted without shutting down properly, and before that, there’s an error about an unexpected shutdown. Sorry, I’m not too familiar with this.
Alva said:
@Chris
I found a ‘critical’ event that says the system rebooted without shutting down properly, and before that, there’s an error about an unexpected shutdown. Sorry, I’m not too familiar with this.
Is it not showing any error codes or more details? Just ‘unexpected shutdown’?
@Chris
I don’t understand why some people are blaming overheating. It doesn’t shut down during gaming, so that’s not it.