FIX: Laptop Won’t Start if The Charger is not Connected

Radu Tyrsina
by Radu Tyrsina
Founder & Editor-in-Chief
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laptop won't turn on without being plugged in

Laptop won’t turn on without being plugged in?

  1. Remove all peripherals
  2. Uninstall Microsoft ACPI  battery
  3. Run the Power troubleshooter and disable Fast Startup
  4. Replace your battery

Many have upgraded to Windows 10 ro Windows 8.1 thinking that this will solve many previous troubles linked to Windows 8. While that is partially true, there are still many problems out there with various features.
windows 8.1 laptop charger
Today we’re putting under the highlight a pretty weird problem that I found it hard to be linked to the software. Nonetheless, I’ve seen this problem reported elsewhere, so have decided to talk about this subject. Some Windows 10 and Windows 8.1 users have complained that their laptop won’t start if the charger is not connected and it often turns off whether the charger is connected or not.

SOLVED: Laptop charger issues on Windows 10, 8.1

Here’s how the entire complaint of the above-mentioned user sounds like:

I upgraded from win 7 to win 8.1 but my problem started even before upgrading. the problem is that my laptop turns off (not shut down) suddenly with or without the charger being connected. it also turns off sometimes if I unplugged the charger while working even at 100% charge. In addition, the laptop turns off just before reaching the user-selection screen if the charger was not connected, but it starts normally if the charger was connected.

I don’t receive any error messages and i can start the laptop normally again. I don’t think that the problem is caused by over heating as this problem occurs even while the laptop is cool, and it doesn’t matter if i’m performing heavy duty tasks like gaming or simple tasks like browsing.

This is a really weird issue and most likely, I think it has to do with the hardware and not the software. Still, I recommend to check out the power plans and see if there isn’t a faulty setting turned on there. Also, check whether the charging cable is clean. I will keep updating this article once I get an official fix confirmed from a Microsoft representative.

Fixes laptop chargers problems in Windows 10, 8.1

Solution 1: Remove all peripherals

Remove all the external devices connected to the computer and unplug/remove the batteries off the laptop. After that, keep the laptop idle for 5-10 minutes and then re-insert all the components. If this doesn’t work,  run the hardware troubleshooter :

  1. Press the ‘Windows + W’ and type ‘troubleshooting’ in the search and press enter
  2. Click on ‘Hardware and Sound’ and select ‘Hardware and Devices’ and click on ‘next’ to run the troubleshooter

Solution 2: Uninstall Microsoft ACPI  battery

  1. Press Windows key + R. Type ‘devmgmt.msc’ and hit ENTER
  2. Expand the Batteries category
  3. Under the Batteries category, right-click the Microsoft ACPI Compliant Control Method Battery listing, and select Uninstall. Be careful, do not remove the Microsoft AC Adapter driver or any other ACPI compliant driver
  4. On the Device Manager, click on Action and then click on Scan for hardware changes.

device manager scan for hardware changes

Solution 3: Run the Power troubleshooter and disable Fast Startup

Since this is a power-related issue, you can also run the built-in power troubleshooter to see if this solved your problem. Also, don’t forget to disable Fast Startup as well from Control Panel by following these steps:

  1. Open Control Panel > type ‘power’ in the search bar
  2. Select ‘Choose what the power buttons do’Choose what the power buttons do
  3. Click on the option that allows you to change the settings that are currently unavailablechange the settings that are currently unavailable
  4. Uncheck the option ‘Turn on Fast Startup’ to disable the feature

turn off fast startup

 

Solution 4: Replace your battery

If nothing fixed the problem, this indicates that your laptop‘s battery is faulty and you need to replace it as soon as possible. Let us know if this solved the problem for you.

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Editor’s Note: This post was originally published in September 2014 and has been since updated for freshness, and accuracy.