DELL Dimension reboots itself. PSU replacement needed?

I have a Dell Dimension 5100 which, every so often, reboots itself. Having googled for a while I decided the most likely cause was the PSU having done a full virus scan which turned up clean and vacuumed the dust from the motherboard. I removed the graphics and modem cards thinking the power requirements would be reduced and I thought this worked as it didn't reboot for 3 days (normally it's approx once a day) but this morning it rebooted again.

The PSU I have is model number M8805 and there are some of these on Ebay.... but there are also some MM8806 which are cheaper with the same power rating (and are also listed as being okay for a 5100).

Does it sound like I am going down the right line thinking it's the PSU? If so is there any advice as to sourcing a replacement? I presume I am better getting a Dell one as I know some of the connections tend to be proprietary.

Thanks in advance.

it could be the PSU, or the RAM. Is it a bluescreen reboot?

No - not a bluescreen. It just goes black, reboots and opens up Firefox as it was previously.

I have 4 sticks of RAM so could try then in single pairs instead of 2 pairs and see how it goes.

So given that it does not bluescreen what did this tell you? Thanks!

Could be the PSU, only way to know for sure is to try your system with a working one. Anyway, there is no point getting a dell replacement PSU, it would be better to get a different one that will last longer (especially if your current one has broke!) As far as I know, there are no 'dell specific' connections

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Originally Posted by Nersha

Could be the PSU, only way to know for sure is to try your system with a working one. Anyway, there is no point getting a dell replacement PSU, it would be better to get a different one that will last longer (especially if your current one has broke!) As far as I know, there are no 'dell specific' connections

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Thanks for the reply. My PC went a week without shutting down and rebooting so I thought it was okay again - but it went again today.

I am not familiar with PSUs (as you may have gathered) but looking at the spec of a Dell M8805 here

http://www.impactcomputers.com/m8805.html

it says :

Power Supply , 305 Watt , MT L305P-00 PS-6311-2DF2 1 - 24 Pin ATX Motherboard connector 1 - 4 Pin P4 connector 1 - Floppy Drive connector 2 - SATA connectors 2 - Standard Drive connectors 1 - Proprietary connector

The "1- Proprietary connector" being the bit that makes me wonder if a standard PSU would be okay.

Should be obvious which is the "proprietary" connector - check if it is connected to anything.

You could get a different PSU than the DELL branded ones as I think CAT mentioned they use FSP PSUs.

Thanks. I am happy now I can use a standard ATX PSU as long as it has 2 SATA connectors and 2 IDE connectors. The 6 pin lead goes nowhere. Sorry for being a bit slow with this - never had to deal with PSUs before and saw several claims that using non-DELL PSUs could damage the PC or not fit. I think this was in the old days though.

I now hope it's the PSU that's causing the issue. As I removed the graphics and modem card and the issue lessened significantly I am thinking that it is the most likely cause.

Here are a couple of options if it is the PSU - both modular but you can save a few bob going non-modular:

1) http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/525W-...uard-SafeGuard

2) http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/500W-...-modular-cable

Just in case anyone else has a similar problem in the future and comes across this thread...

I almost bought a new PSU but when I examined it I noticed a fair amount of dust in it. I removed it from the PC and removed some of the outer casing screws - enough so I could get my vacuum cleaner mini hose in. I gave it a good clean out and also got my hairdryer on it on cool heat to blow out any other dust. I did the same on the fan in the PC as best I could without removing anything. Popped the PSU back in and the machine has been fine to date.