18 R1, shuts off on Windows loading screen

Question

Hi guys. I'm having trouble booting into Windows on my 2013 Alienware 18 R1 and was wondering if anyone in the community has seen this issue before?

When I turn on my laptop, I make it past POST and get to the loading screen with the blue Windows logo. My laptop always shuts itself off on this screen.

Video showing the problem: https://youtu.be/EqT2WviKTgU

There is one way I have found to boot up successfully - run the Alienware pre-boot diagnostics tool, let it finish, exit the tool, and then the PC will reach the desktop successfully after it restarts. From this point, I can use the PC as I normally would installing software, playing games, restarting, shutting down the PC and turning it back on - no problems at all. However, if I shut down the PC overnight and try to turn it back on the next day, the problem recurs and I'm back to square one.

Other clues:

Sometimes it takes up to 3 tries pressing the power button to get the pc to power on
Alienware pre-boot diagnostics gives a clean bill of health: all hardware tests passed.
Have tried resetting and reformatting my Windows installation, problem persists.
I hear no beeps or anything like that...laptop just seems to lose power all of the sudden.

Wondering if anyone knows what might be wrong with my machine. Is there anything I can do to fix it? Just trying to figure out my options really.

Thank you.

mattyb3 · Accepted Answer

It's hard to know for sure. Some 18's did have an issue with poor VRMS on the motherboard so hopefully it's not a sign of these failing.

The diagnostic is a good way of testing hardware but it doesn't always find every hidden issue.

You can try some easy things like trying one memory stick at a time or swapping out your SSD/HDD for a new one. Also try a different power plan and sleep/hibernate settings.

If you can get your hands on another power supply then give that a try (even a 240W adapter will work for testing) or even try removing the battery and see how it performs with only the power adapter.

Make sure the BIOS is up to date (upgrade one BIOS version at a time if it is out of date)

If all else fails you could try testing without your GPU's installed.

Raijin · Accepted Answer

Hi there! It's been almost a year since I posted here, but I did eventually find a solution.

The problem was my power brick/adapter. After trying everything else, I caved and bought a new power supply (not cheap). Luckily, that fixed the issue and she's up and running flawlessly! I didn't want to give up...she's my baby - going on 10 years now. Got me through college, first job, and much more.

Thanks for replying and reminding me about this thread. I'm surprised this issue and its solution aren't well known by now. Hope this helps you and any others who encounter the same problem in the future.

DELL-Cares · Answer

We tried reaching you on a private message asking for the Service Tag number to ascertain the warranty but did not receive a response. Please feel free to reply to the private message whenever you are available.

chewbakaats58 · Answer

Hey OP..did you ever figure this out? Having same exact issue...

crimsom · Answer

Hi @Raijin  thank you for sharing update and adopting 'If you can get your hands on another power supply then give that a try (even a 240W adapter will work for testing)'.  User mattyb3 posted this fix on 10-06-2021 at 12:49 PM, almost a year ago.

Alienware

18 R1, shuts off on Windows loading screen

Was this post helpful?