Computer totally locks up occasionally while Playing WoW.

[JRMaurer]

Hi guys,
I have had this problem ever since I built my new computer about a month ago.
When I play WoW my computer will entirely freeze up keeping one frame on my computer, making me unable to use my computer anymore or even move my mouse. The sound also stays in a neverending loop. The only thing I can do to fix it is a hard restart.
Sometimes when I reboot my computer it will say that my computer was shut down due to a power surge, but then other times it wont.

This is almost making WoW unbearable to play, even though it only happens maybe once a day because it can happen at any moment.

Thanks in advance

[Deleted]

A total system freeze is often quite hard to diagnose. Without any indication of what is causing the system failure it's often down to guesswork to determine what is the cause.

There's a good possibility it's a hardware issue, although it could also be a problem with a driver or faulty software. As far as hardware goes it could really be anything causing this, although if it's only happening in WoW then it suggests this problem only manifests itself when the system is under moderate/high load. Possibly there is an overheating issue or something wrong with any of the major system components - CPU/Memory/GPU/Motherboard/PSU.

Have you overclocked anything? What are the temperatures for your hardware while playing WoW. How often is this happening?

Consider using a load testing tool such as OCCT (http://www.ocbase.com/) and test individual components to see if one causes a problem.

Have a look through the logs in Computer Management -> Event Viewer -> System. Is there any hint of hardware problems? Multiple serious events for a specific device?

Might be a faulty power supply, or underspecced. Again it's only guesswork!

[JRMaurer]

I havent overclocked anything, Temperatures are fine when i run WoW. sometimes it happens a couple times a day, and then sometimes it wont hapoen for a few days. But the fact that i feel like it could happen anytime is very unnerving.

[Targaryen]

I feel your pain mate. If it is just shutting down it really sounds like a PSU issue. Does it reboot on its own or just turn off completely?

If it reboots then it could be a heat issue/hdd issue. But for a complete shut down without a restart sounds too much like a PSU with a bad rail on it.

As Zatie mentioned we can only theorize so the best thing to do is to start swapping out parts...it isn't the most efficient but often the most effective. I often go to a big box store with a nice return policy so if that wasn't the fix I just take it back.

[westom]

Sometimes when I reboot my computer it will say that my computer was shut down due to a power surge, but then other times it wont.

That message is suggesting what data will identify a defect without any doubt or speculation. Buy or borrow a multimeter. Directions and about one minute of labor will provide numbers so that others can say (without speculation) where a defect lies.

Your error message suggests other speculations (ie heat) are irrelevant. Your symptoms also suggest the problem has always existed. But is only just starting to cause failures. Numbers from one minute of labor will say more.