Re: computer question

On Thu, 12 Mar 2009 15:56:05 GMT, Jim10293@xxxxxxxxx wrote:

On Thu, 12 Mar 2009 09:53:34 -0600, Jim E <noyb@xxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:

On Thu, 12 Mar 2009 15:35:53 GMT, Jim10293@xxxxxxxxx wrote:

On Thu, 12 Mar 2009 08:08:33 -0500, "M'Balz Es-Hari"
<texan767@xxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:

"Emily" <emily2@xxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:ab0ir4l6oeublhndsk7url0hl95cqt6q9c@xxxxxxxxxx
What can cause a computer to reboot on its own? I leave my computer
on all the time except for a rare rest or if I'm going out of town.
Twice recently, the thing has apparently rebooted itself in the middle
of the night. Either it's rebooted or decided to just close the four
or five programs that I keep open most of the time.

It's not related to a power outage. The computer is plugged into a
UPS and all the clocks and things have maintained their settings (some
of them start blinking after a couple of seconds of being deprived of
electricity).



Sometimes your automatic update settings can cause a reboot.
You can go to Event Viewer>System & look for something in the source column
called windows update agent.


Never heard of Event Viewer. Did a google on it and sposed to have
something called Performance and Maintenance under Control Panel. Not
there on my XP????
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/308427

Never heard of it before and sounds like something I should have
checked on once in a while.

I did notice I have Automatic Updates as the first option on Control
Panel though.
Performance and Maintenance under Control Panel is in Vista

I dunno. Microsoft says:

Event Viewer
In Windows XP, an event is any significant occurrence in the system or
in a program that requires users to be notified, or an entry added to
a log. The Event Log Service records application, security, and system
events in Event Viewer. With the event logs in Event Viewer, you can
obtain information about your hardware, software, and system
components, and monitor security events on a local or remote computer.
Event logs can help you identify and diagnose the source of current
system problems, or help you predict potential system problems.
Event Log Types
A Windows XP-based computer records events in the following three
logs:

* Application log

The application log contains events logged by programs. For
example, a database program may record a file error in the application
log. Events that are written to the application log are determined by
the developers of the software program.
* Security log

The security log records events such as valid and invalid logon
attempts, as well as events related to resource use, such as the
creating, opening, or deleting of files. For example, when logon
auditing is enabled, an event is recorded in the security log each
time a user attempts to log on to the computer. You must be logged on
as Administrator or as a member of the Administrators group in order
to turn on, use, and specify which events are recorded in the security
log.
* System log

The system log contains events logged by Windows XP system
components. For example, if a driver fails to load during startup, an
event is recorded in the system log. Windows XP predetermines the
events that are logged by system components.

Back to the top
How to View Event Logs
To open Event Viewer, follow these steps:

1. Click Start, and then click Control Panel. Click Performance and
Maintenance, then click Administrative Tools, and then double-click
Computer Management. Or, open the MMC containing the Event Viewer
snap-in.
2. In the console tree, click Event Viewer.

The Application, Security, and System logs are displayed in the
Event Viewer window.

Back to the top
How to View Event Details
To view the details of an event, follow these steps:

1. Click Start, and then click Control Panel. Click Performance and
Maintenance, then click Administrative Tools, and then double-click
Computer Management. Or, open the MMC containing the Event Viewer
snap-in.
2. In the console tree, expand Event Viewer, and then click the log
that contains the event that you want to view.
3. In the details pane, double-click the event that you want to
view.

The Event Properties dialog box containing header information
and a description of the event is displayed.

To copy the details of the event, click the Copy button, then
open a new document in the program in which you want to paste the
event (for example, Microsoft Word), and then click Paste on the Edit
menu.

To view the description of the previous or next event, click the
UP ARROW or DOWN ARROW.

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How to Interpret an Event
Each log entry is classified by type, and contains header information,
and a description of the event.
Event Header
The event header contains the following information about the event:

* Date

The date the event occurred.
* Time

The time the event occurred.
* User

The user name of the user that was logged on when the event
occurred.
* Computer

The name of the computer where the event occurred.
* Event ID

An event number that identifies the event type. The Event ID can
be used by product support representatives to help understand what
occurred in the system.
* Source

The source of the event. This can be the name of a program, a
system component, or an individual component of a large program.
* Type

The type of event. This can be one of the following five types:
Error, Warning, Information, Success Audit, or Failure Audit.
* Category

A classification of the event by the event source. This is
primarily used in the security log.

Event Types
The description of each event that is logged depends on the type of
event. Each event in a log can be classified into one of the following
types:

* Information

An event that describes the successful operation of a task, such
as an application, driver, or service. For example, an Information
event is logged when a network driver loads successfully.
* Warning

An event that is not necessarily significant, however, may
indicate the possible occurrence of a future problem. For example, a
Warning message is logged when disk space starts to run low.
* Error

An event that describes a significant problem, such as the
failure of a critical task. Error events may involve data loss or loss
of functionality. For example, an Error event is logged if a service
fails to load during startup.
* Success Audit (Security log)

An event that describes the successful completion of an audited
security event. For example, a Success Audit event is logged when a
user logs on to the computer.
* Failure Audit (Security log)

An event that describes an audited security event that did not
complete successfully. For example, a Failure Audit may be logged when
a user cannot access a network drive.

Back to the top
How to Find Events in a Log
The default view of event logs is to list all its entries. If you want
to find a specific event, or view a subset of events, you can either
search the log, or you can apply a filter to the log data.
How to Search for a Specific Log Event
To search for a specific log event, follow these steps:

1. Click Start, and then click Control Panel. Click Performance and
Maintenance, then click Administrative Tools, and then double-click
Computer Management. Or, open the MMC containing the Event Viewer
snap-in.
2. In the console tree, expand Event Viewer, and then click the log
that contains the event that you want to view.
3. On the View menu, click Find.
4. Specify the options for the event that you want to view in the
Find dialog box, and then click Find Next.

The event that matches your search criteria is highlighted in the
details pane. Click Find Next to locate the next occurrence of an
event as defined by your search criteria.
How to Filter Log Events
To filter log events, follow these steps:

1. Click Start, and then click Control Panel. Click Performance and
Maintenance, then click Administrative Tools, and then double-click
Computer Management. Or, open the MMC containing the Event Viewer
snap-in.
2. In the console tree, expand Event Viewer, and then click the log
that contains the event that you want to view.
3. On the View menu, click Filter.
4. Click the Filter tab (if it is not already selected).
5. Specify the filter options that you want, and then click OK.

Only events that match your filter criteria are displayed in the
details pane.

To return the view to display all log entries, click Filter on the
View menu, and then click Restore Defaults.
Back to the top
How to Manage Log Contents
By default, the initial maximum of size of a log is set to 512 KB, and
when this size is reached, new events overwrite older events as
needed. Depending on your requirements, you can change these settings,
or clear a log of its contents.
How to Set Log Size and Overwrite Options
To specify log size and overwrite options, follow these steps:

1. Click Start, and then click Control Panel. Click Performance and
Maintenance, then click Administrative Tools, and then double-click
Computer Management. Or, open the MMC containing the Event Viewer
snap-in.
2. In the console tree, expand Event Viewer, and then right-click
the log in which you want to set size and overwrite options.
3. Under Log size, type the size that you want in the Maximum log
size box.
4. Under When maximum log size is reached, click the overwrite
option that you want.
5. If you want to clear the log contents, click Clear Log.
6. Click OK.

How to Archive a Log
If you want to save your log data, you can archive event logs in any
of the following formats:

* Log-file format (.evt)
* Text-file format (.txt)
* Comma-delimited text-file format (.csv)

To archive a log, follow these steps:

1. Click Start, and then click Control Panel. Click Performance and
Maintenance, then click Administrative Tools, and then double-click
Computer Management. Or, open the MMC containing the Event Viewer
snap-in.
2. In the console tree, expand Event Viewer, and then right-click
the log in which you want to archive, and then click Save Log File As.
3. Specify a file name and location where you want to save the
file. In the Save as type box, click the format that you want, and
then click Save.

The log file is saved in the format that you specified.

Sorry about that. That is under Adminstrative tools in the contol
panel.
.