Computer Turns On By Itself Problem

Is your computer turning on by itself, suddenly and without warning? Sometimes in the middle of the night, your computer turns on it by itself and when it happens quite often you may be wondering what is causing this random start-up.

If you have this problem on your laptop, you may get particularly frustrated once you realize that it started up automatically and all your battery was wasted and drained without you knowing.

Not to worry, it's likely not a haunting or poltergeist acting up… just a simple technical mishap. There can be several reasons as to why your computer is turning on by itself; this article will run you through the most common causes and show you the simplest solutions.

Here are some ideas of things you should check to find out what is causing your computer to boot up by itself:

Wake-On LAN

The latest computers that are available out there on the market have enhanced BIOS when compared to older computers. The newer BIOS have a feature that can make the computer start up remotely; a really useful feature that not many users know about!

Wake-On LAN can turn a computer on when its modem receives a certain number of data packets. This is a good feature that will start up a computer when it is about to receive a fax or when an administrator is about to access the files. But when it's not properly configured, its effects look rather puzzling.

Even though it is a really useful feature, it can sometimes cause your computer to start without warning at any time. You can easily disable this feature by disabling the Wake-On LAN feature or you can simply disconnect the internet cable from your computer if you've no time to lose.

Faulty BIOS

If the computer BIOS is faulty, it can cause your computer to start randomly. To solve this problem, you need to flash your BIOS to install the most recent version. If you're not familiar with this procedure, it may be a good idea to get a computer technician to do it (it takes just 10-20 minutes), since an error while updating the BIOS could permanently damage your computer.

Resume After Power Interrupt

If you carefully look through the available options in your current BIOS version, you will see a 'Resume After Power Interrupt' option. When the computer fails to start, this feature can make the computer boot-up seemingly on its own volition. This feature can be disabled in BIOS so that it does not make your computer come back to life when there is a boot-up failure. When activated, this feature will sometimes resume power even after you deliberately turn it off.

Task Scheduler

You should also check the Task Scheduler to see whether there is task created to automatically turn on the computer. If you see any task that is causing the computer turn on by itself, you just have to delete such tasks, or otherwise chance their configurations/timings to meet your specifications.

Sleep Mode

Another reason why your computer is turning on by itself is because you may not be turning off your computer at all, but just activating the 'Sleep' mode. When your computer is in 'Sleep' mode, it may appear as if it has shut down, but it's just suspended and will resume activity after getting any input (such as keystrokes or mouse activity).

This type of confusion can happen if you are directly pressing the power button on your computer system to turn it off. Some machines are configured by default in such a way as not to shut down when you press the power, but to rather go into the Sleep mode.

In that case, your computer may keep coming out Sleep mode (turn on by itself) because of any software activity, or physical signals such as someone bumping into the desk, moving the mouse, pressing any key on the keyboard, and so on. To avoid this mix-up, just turn off your computer from the Start Menu and you'll know for sure it has been shut down.

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-By Dominic

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