Okay, I'm pretty stumped on this one. I've built several PCs and have never run into this type of problem. I have recently built myself a HTPC that is dedicated to my TV for PVR, movies, music, pictures, etc. It works great for the most part. Here's the problem: If I have any static electricty on me and just touch the metal ATX case (on the outside), the PC will reboot, everytime. It's not a software issue with XP because I have my system set up to display an error message with a blue screen if needed. It's just that if anyone has any "ESD" on them when they touch the case, it reboots. Any ideas? The whole case is a new all-METAL case from Thermaltak Tsumani. Great looking case. I just can't figure out why it's doing this. Seems to me to be possibly some kind of ground problem. I checked the grounding on that outlet and my home for that matter and everything checked out okay. Could this be a bad PSU that is not grounding the PC correctly? To my knowledge the PSU is what grounds the PC in the first place. The details of my unit are as follows: Gigabyet MOBO 1 gig of DDR ram running dual channel 3200 3.2 p4 prescott with hyper-threading (800 mhz fsb) 2 hard drives (40 gig and 250 gig) 2 Hauppague tuner cards nvidia fx5200 graphics card pioneer DVD-+RW 500w PSU from ULTRA Other than this problem that only happens if I "shock it" from the outside (closed case); the system runs perfect and great.

I haven't seen such a problem since about 1989. The Bank I used to work for had Olivetti TC800 Tellers Terminals that comprised a tube steel frame supporting a control box, keyboard, large dotmatrix printer and 6 inch screen on a pole. In winter we had to remember to ground ourselves before each transaction or risk having to reboot. To answer your question, I would check the standoffs of the motherboard to be certain they are correctly positioned, and also check the wiring to switches. Put an insulating mat under the case. Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach him to fish and his wife will never forgive you.

Solder or screw a strap to the case and attach it to somthing metal nearby. You could just clip it on first to see if it helps. Jimi_l

The outlet the computer is plugged into MAY have reversed wiring. Check the polarity of the Neutral and Grounding wires. If the structure is old, there may not be a Grounding wire, which could be a problem in your setup.

There is a short between the case and the MOBO. If you don't find it, this may end up being more than just annoying.

I go with badboy,I would check the standoffs as well.

Oversized screw head to standoff maybe? try using some of the red insulatig washers that go between screw head and board surface