The PC remains powered on despite shutdown attempts and continues to restart.
The PC remains powered on despite shutdown attempts and continues to restart.
Background: I left my PC running for a few days to replace the CPU cooler fan and install a StarTech PCIE USB card. I also connected a new Motu M4 audio interface and installed its driver. Everything has been functioning normally so far.
Spec: Running on Windows 11, 7950x3D, 7900XTX Nitro+, Team Group T-Create 64GB 6400MHz, NZXT N7 B650E motherboard, Lian Li Edge 1000w Platinum, 2 x 1TB SN880X drives.
Problem: Whenever I shut down using the Windows menu or the front panel power button, all lights turn off except the GPU, which then clicks normally. Once the shutdown click occurs, it immediately clicks again as if I just pressed the power button, and everything boots up and starts. This happens during shutdown and hibernation too. I set it to hibernate for 1 minute, but it auto-hibernate and clicks right away. The only way to stop it is by holding the power button during shutdown or turning off the PSU switch. At this stage, I’m desperate to try something and have considered changing the motherboard or PSU.
Troubleshooting steps tried:
+Software:
- sfc /scannow and dism.exe
- powercfg –lastwake shows 0
- Power plan with shutdown button set to shutdown
- Disabled internet and USB device wake features
- Removed StarTech card driver
- Uninstalled Motu using Revo Uninstaller
- Booted in safe mode and shut down, likely not a driver issue
- BIOS: disabled USB and PCIE wake-up
- Downgraded BIOS from 3.15 to 2.08 (used for months)
- Pressed CMOS reset button
- Windows In-Place Upgrade fix
- Installed Linux Mint on the second empty drive and booted from there, still issues remain, suggesting a Windows problem
+Hardware:
- Disconnected everything including Ethernet and GPU, using only internal components.
- Removed front panel; only fans connected to the motherboard, not the upgraded CPU fans. Previous setup had those connected.
- Verified all connections and confirmed RAM is properly seated.
- Connected only one mouse and one monitor.
- Replaced CMOS battery.
- Plugged directly from power strip to wall, testing various outlets.
See if there is a setting in BIOS for power loss state where you can select to power down or boot up again. I wasn't clear if you said you did that. I would have suggested to take off the power button/front panel connector but you covered that.
Other options to consider:
- Turn off fast boot in both the BIOS and advanced settings within the Windows power plan configuration (ensuring USB power state is disabled in the BIOS). This will prevent Windows from keeping any devices powered during shutdown.
- Set up a USB bootable drive using tools such as System Rescue, then boot from it and shut down.
If these approaches fail, the issue is likely hardware-related.
Thank you for the advice, I excluded the window drive and used system rescue to boot. It stopped working properly. The USB card or the Audio Interface might have affected the Windows setup. After trying all options and still facing issues, I’ll reinstall Windows. Thank you.