Alienware R2 15 (2016) shutting down randomly when plugged in

Question

Hi i bought this laptop this year in august with these specs 6th gen i5 6300hq 8gb ram 1tb 7200rpm gtx965m anytime i plug-in laptop to mains it randomly goes off during 30 mins to 2 hours of use. Mind you not gaming use but just ordinary browsing typing word docs etc during gaming it goes off also.

I have come to realize it goes off when battery is fully charged and plugged in

it doesnt go off when using battery power only

It doesnt go off when battery is low and plugged in (charging)

the moment battery gets to 100% it can go off randomly when its connected to mains

Please help me sort out this issue thanks

Tesla1856 · Answer

1. Is any thing written to Event Viewer log when it happens? 2. In the BIOS (also check UEFI Diags) is there a battery health test ? (showing individual cells is a bonus)

cainwireshark · Answer

yes when i check event viewer i get an error stating kernel power source under it, it further explains that the system was shutdown suddenly will check bios battery health today and give more info thanks

hindesite · Answer

Good job spotting the possible correlation with battery state.

If you have desktop mode battery charge enabled, does this reduce how often it happens? I have a similar but infrequent problem with my 17r3 - randomly shuts down with no warning, dumps or logs.

Tesla1856 · Answer

yes when i check event viewer i get an error stating kernel power source under it, it further explains that the system was shutdown suddenly will check bios battery health today and give more info thanks

So, these days ... all lithium laptop batteries monitor themselves for health, over charging, and explosion risk. That we know.

Seems like an "over-charging event" (whether real or perceived) would only happen when battery is charging, and also likely as it approaches 100% full.

I would think an immediate shut-down would be an appropriate and expected action taken by the system.

cainwireshark · Answer

i checked the UEFI Diags for a battery test and it passed with no issues at all as for desktop battery mode its something new to me havent seen or heard it before but will give it a shot and post findings AND yes i was leaving my machine plugged in during the early months i bought it so you guys are saying its a safety mechanism to prevent overcharging ?

hindesite · Answer

i checked the UEFI Diags for a battery test and it passed with no issues at all as for desktop battery mode its something new to me havent seen or heard it before but will give it a shot and post findings AND yes i was leaving my machine plugged in during the early months i bought it so you guys are saying its a safety mechanism to prevent overcharging ?

Not really a safety mechanism, because the battery has protection built in; desktop charge mode is intended to prolong battery life if you leave it plugged in for long periods.

Don't know why Dell don't enable it by default.

Tesla1856 · Answer

1. i checked the UEFI Diags for a battery test and it passed with no issues at all

2. so you guys are saying its a safety mechanism to prevent overcharging ?

1. Well, that's good. Although, I'm not sure it checks for over-charging or heat.

2. No, just an educated guess. For instance, I know the Lithium battery in my Lenovo X1-Carbon has an on-board controller. From the laptop's BIOS, you can turn the battery completely off internally (forever if you wish). This way, when you disconnect or re-connect it during servicing ... you get no sparks or surges. Surely, the on-board protection also works at this core-level. If it senses that it is being over-charged, over-heated, or possibly over-amp-drawn ...what else would it do other than turn itself off.

I don't know how Dell/Alienware is doing it, but it's likely similar.

Luckily, sounds like this machine is still under warranty.

cainwireshark · Answer

ok i saw desktop mode surprised it was there since anyway before i enabled it my battery was at 18% so i plugged it, then enabled desktop mode and selected charge to 100% one time only.

well since the battery was being charged and plugged in it didn't go off.

Now that its at 100% with desktop mode enabled i will continue to use it in that mode and monitor it ,also report any issue or somewhat of a fix if my machine doesn't shut down after 30mins to 2hrs

Thanks for assistance

cainwireshark · Answer

ok i have been using desktop mode for 2 days now for about 3hrs each day hasn't shut down randomly so far

Tesla1856 · Answer

ok i have been using desktop mode for 2 days now for about 3hrs each day hasn't shut down randomly so far

Good. Sounds like "exercising" the battery is helping. Likely keeping it from getting too hot or over-charged.

hindesite · Answer

I don't think this is anything about 'exercising' the battery (is there such a thing?) but all about avoiding the part at the end - or just past the end - of the charge cycle that is suspected of causing the problem.

Tesla1856 · Answer

I don't think this is anything about 'exercising' the battery (is there such a thing?) https://www.google.com/#q=exercising%20laptop%20battery

Locked Topics – Alienware General

Alienware R2 15 (2016) shutting down randomly when plugged in

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