I thought I had this problem licked, but it's come back in spades. My Powermac G5 DP 1.8 (June 2004) keeps shutting down at random, sometimes at boot. The system log usually reveals "PMU forced shutdown, reason code -122" or sometimes reason code -88. Moving the G5 to a different circuit seemed to help for a couple of weeks, but then the problem came back. Additional Googling brought me to this page: http://www.xlr8yourmac.com/systems/Dual_Core_G5_Shutdowns.html#reports. Some of the tricks I've tried are replacing the video card, resetting the PMU, resetting the PRAM, reinstalling the OS, installing Linux, and setting Energy Preferences to Reduced Performance. All seem to work for a couple of days, but then the system begins rebooting again, or not fully booting until a PMU reset is performed (I eventually yanked the PRAM battery so I don't have to do that every time it gets hosed up.) My latest attempt at fixing it is to reseat the logic board power connector (suggested on the page above.) So far the system has been up for a day and a half, but I'm fully expecting it to die again. Oh, the system is not on a UPS or power strip - it's currently plugged directly into the wall.
Which brings me to the question, what is the likely cause of all this grief? Do I need to replace the logic board, the PSU or some other component? Or would I be better of giving up and selling it for parts? I've also had another problem with this G5. Since it originally contracted this sickness, it's killed two hard drives (though one of them was already marginal.) I've noticed that when the G5 goes to sleep, every 2-3 minutes I can hear the drive spin up and go 'ka-thunk'. That's with a vanilla Leopard install and no additional apps installed on a known good drive. I also heard the problem on the previous drives, but didn't do anything about it. Any help would be appreciated before I take this thing on a long ride up a tall building... Eric -- You received this message because you are a member of G-Group, a group for those using G3, G4, and G5 desktop Macs - with a particular focus on Power Macs. The list FAQ is at http://lowendmac.com/lists/g-list.shtml and our netiquette guide is at http://www.lowendmac.com/lists/netiquette.shtml To post to this group, send email to [email protected] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/g3-5-list
