Toshiba Laptop--Random shutdowns when unlevel

aeh2016

Estimable
Jan 28, 2016
2
0
4,510
Hello all--

The problem: My laptop shuts down, with no provocation or warning, at random times. There is no blue screen, it doesn't freeze first--it just shuts off. It seems to only occur when it's un-level in some way (in my lap, on a slanted lapdesk, etc). It occurs whether or not the power cord is plugged in, whether or not the battery is in the machine. If I leave it on a flat desk and don't move it, it lives indefinitely.

Solutions attempted so far:


  • --I suspected an overheating issue, but the laptop is cold to the touch (it has an extended battery, too, so it's never sitting flat on a surface). The shut downs also happen randomly--sometimes 30 seconds after it's turned on, sometimes 4 hours, regardless of the workload I'm putting on it. I also blew out the vents with compressed air, just in case. No effect.

    --I figured it was hard drive related, because it's old and I carry it around a lot and sometimes it freezes/makes a sad clicky sound. I replaced the hard drive with a new one last night, and did a clean install of Windows 10. It still shut down when I used it in my lap instead of on the desk.

    --Cried for a while.
Now I'm worried it's a motherboard-related issue? Any ideas about diagnosing problems, intelligent next steps, or anything? (Note that buying a new laptop would be a great idea; I'm obviously poor).

Laptop info: 2010 Toshiba Satellite, a665 s6086; 4g ram; 1tb hard drive; Windows 10
 

himynameisraz

Estimable
Jan 15, 2016
39
0
4,610
Most laptops have vibration control for the safety of your hard drive so moving it around or it being on a tilt will not cause the laptop to shut down. You might have a short somewhere in the wiring. Also make sure your ram is seated in correctly as is your hard drive (should be screwed down anyway). Where are the fans located? Some laptops are stupid enough to put the ventilation at the bottom so putting it on a bed or lap is going to block circulation. Does the issue also happen when you're only plugged into battery? What about only plugged in and no battery?
 

aeh2016

Estimable
Jan 28, 2016
2
0
4,510
--I will check the ram and hard drive today (did just replace the hard drive, which I'm pretty sure I did right?), good idea.

--The fans are on the left edge, rather than the bottom, and the issue occurs even if I'm using a lap desk or something flat.

--I've tried pretty much every power combination I can think of, with no difference: plugged in/not plugged in, plugged in with the battery/plugged in without the battery. All of those arrangements work fine if the laptop is sitting quietly on a desk.

--I don't know if it's relevant, but here's another thing: When it does its shutdown trick, if I just stay in the same position and try to restart the computer, it will often shut down again within seconds or minutes. If I move it to the desk/floor and restart, everything's fine.

Thanks very much for the suggestions :)