Computer not shutting down

[Yepi69]

I have Windows XP SP3 and some days ago was shutting off fine by either the computer's power button or the tradicional Shut down from the Start menu.

However now it doesn't do anything, neither from the power button neither from the shut down button.
Its like the computer didn't even got the command, the only way I could get it to shut off was to press and hold the power button until it turns off or just end svchost process to force it to shut down, however instead of shutting it reboots back on.

This is getting really annoying, any tips?

 

[Rydian]

Does it shut down properly if it's in safe mode?

Is the power button stuck internally?

 

[Maxternal]

does it shutdown if you type
shutdown -s
in "run" on the start menu?
if not, try it with the -f option and see what happens.

If either of those work you could always just put a shortcut or a batch file on your desktop so you can have that command readily available.

 

[Yepi69]

Both don't work, the -s one just closes my applications and appears a message saying its gonna shut down in 30 seconds, after that it doesn't do anything.

the -f one doesn't do anything also.

 

[Originality]

Sounds like its having trouble killing one of the background processes.

 

[Deleted-236924]

When in doubt, run scans with Malwarebytes and/or other scanners, maybe there's something messing with your computer.

 

[Wizerzak]

Problem solved.

 

[Rydian]

Problem solved.

Most operating systems cache write data. That is, they store pending writes to disk in memory and flush it to disk in batches. This improves read performance in certain cases. And, in certain cases, write cache will sometimes remain for long periods of time without being flushed.

The consequence of that is threefold:

• When power is cut during a write cache flush, not all of the data is written. Files will remain incomplete, data will be missing, and filesystem metadata will be corrupt or incomplete. This is why filesystem journaling was introduced. Recovery requires a careful analysis of the hard drive to locate and correct corrupted and missing data. This nearly always results in lost files.
• When power is cut before a cache flush, all of that data is simply lost. Files will not be created, they will remain incomplete, and the filesystem will likely be inconsistent. This results in loss of "unsaved" data.
• If power is lost during any kind of read or write operation on a hard drive, there is a small likelihood that there will be physical damage to the hard drive, which, in certain cases, will result in not only loss of data but unrecoverable damage to the physical drive. Hard drive manufacturers work very hard to make sure that doesn't happen, but the risk is still there.

There are other problems, such as inconsistent hardware state (such as a BIOS flash gone wrong) and thermal shock (such as a hot capacitor suddenly getting very cold) that can result in dead hardware.

So, yeah, unplug it all you want if you don't mind losing data or breaking your computer.

</buzzkill>

 

[Wizerzak]

</buzzkill>

Well to be honest under the circumstances I'd rather that than 200W of power being consumed 24/7.

 

[Yepi69]

Problem solved.

That is what I'm trying to avoid, system corruption due to forced shutdown.

When in doubt, run scans with Malwarebytes and/or other scanners, maybe there's something messing with your computer.

I did a complete scan and it found 33 viruses (including adware, malware, trojans and win32 viruses).

All viruses were removed and the computer is now virus free, however that didn't fixed the shut down problem.

Fun fact: The computer DOES shut down normally if in safe mode.

EDIT: Even funnier fact: Windows XP only closes the web browser if I try to shut down the Windows XP.

 

[Rydian]

Malwarebytes isn't a virus scanner, it's a malware scanner. Do a scan with your anti-virus too.

 

[Yepi69]

Malwarebytes isn't a virus scanner, it's a malware scanner. Do a scan with your anti-virus too.

Actually I did the scan with AVG, not malwarebytes.

 

[Rydian]

In the start menu go to "run", type "msconfig" with no quotes and hit enter, in the new window go to the "startup" tab and uncheck everything that's there, then OK the changes and restart, then once it's done reloading try to shut down.

 

[Yepi69]

In the start menu go to "run", type "msconfig" with no quotes and hit enter, in the new window go to the "startup" tab and uncheck everything that's there, then OK the changes and restart, then once it's done reloading try to shut down.

Problem is it doesn't restart either.

 

[Rydian]

Like, power it off so you can test it.

 

[ouch123]

You could also try using End It All to force all non-essential processes to exit. This would probably be a good clue as to whether or not it's a background process causing the issue. Also, if that doesn't work then maybe your kernel has been altered somehow. Though I haven't had to use it myself, I've heard TDSSKiller does a fairly good job with rootkits, so it's something you could consider.