Resolved Okay - a final on my random reboot issue

Months back (April last year) I posted about an issue that was occurring on my wife's computer. Several of you responded and I tried those steps. Unfortunately, I am past the limit for replying with the conclusion to the issue. So I've linked the original discussion just below, and posted the final on the resolution below the link.

https://www.windowsbbs.com/threads/computer-is-randomly-rebooting.112987/

Okay. We finally got to the bottom of the random reboot issue, albeit somewhat by accident.

The FYI part of the issue: my wife is a CPA that entered private practice in 1989, the same year we bought our first IBM computer. Her accumulated data files would qualify her as a digital hoarder by any stretch of imagination. I'm serious. In February 1997 we experienced a house fire. Arriving home to smoke coming from the attic vents, I yelled for her to call 9-11 while I ran inside. As I opened the door she yelled "Please get my computer. All of my individual and corporate tax returns are on it!" Moments later I ran back out of the door with the unit, then I went back in for our fireproof box and her jewelry box.

A man knows times have changed when the first thing he grabs to carry out of a burning house is his wife's computer, instead of his Sunday suit and her jewelry.

Much of her data is stored by year in folders related to the tax prep software she uses, but her Outlook files are cumulative. And the pst file with contacts, emails, calendars, task lists, and other information is massive.

Earlier I had done the dust bunnies check, and the other recommended checks. Using auto-save options with her daily tools she had figured work-arounds on the reboot issue. Because of the pandemic her work from home options had made the home office essential, so I with her work-arounds considered, I was holding off on the power supply, and actually plotting to obtain another unit for her. Then Outlook locked up and would not let her send, receive, read or delete emails.

So we asked a local friend who is a systems manager at a nearby university to look at it. He immediately spotted the Outlook issue. From there we worked out the fix.

Three days and no more rebooting. The unit is performing faster, and in our part of the world that's a good thing because it's tax season.

Thanks again to all for the feedback and suggestions.

PS: We were fortunate and did not lose the house or significant personal stuff to the fire due to a quick response and impeccable work by the local fire department.

 

The pst file had reached the max allowed in the settings.

Rather than fiddle with the registry they migrated her largest client to the online version of Outlook. That freed up space in the local file for the older software to work.

 

LOL. Roger that. Your boss and my wife may be candidates for a digital hoarders support group. I'll let you tell them...

I'm going to close this one as well.

Best to all -