Random Freezing Problem...

[andrewy3k]

I have been searching for the answer to this question for quite some time now. A little over 3 weeks ago I built my computer and to aid people into helping me with the problem I am about to explaine here are my specs:

Intel Prescott 3.2 GHZ w/ HT - 800 FSB
ASRock P4VT8+ Mobo
512 DDR 266 (2X 256 MB)
ATI Radeon 9600 Pro 256 MB

Now basically my problem is that when im on my computer no matter what is being done my computer will randomly freeze and I will require a hard boot.. now before I had my 3.2 GHZ I had a 2.0GHZ - 433 FSB .. and I wanna note that I did not have the constant freezing problems with that CPU rather another problem where I would get a blue screen with a loop error to do with my video card.. but I dont want to get into that.. Now basically when I put my 3.2 in the loop error stopped and now it has constant freeze problems where it can freeze within 2 mins or 2 hours .. its very random but always requires a hard boot.. Now because I am replacing my 512 DDR 266 Ram with a 1 GB strip of ddr400 ram I wanna the ultimate question first, **Could this be a symptom of bad ram or somthing similar?**

Well to figure this out futher did tests with "Memtest86 V1.27" it did not find any errors but the Tests froze at 73%.. so i figured somethign was wrong.. then I got a program called "Prime95" and used that.. that also froze after 11 mins running...

Now because I never had problems with this 512 DDR 266 ram before I stuck it in with my 3.2 ghz..... I wanna know...., when I installed the ram with the new cpu .. I changed the Ram voltage to "High" from "Normal" (since my mobo has only 2 settings for the ram voltage)..

**Could this ram voltage change could have made my ram go bad or w/e..?? **

Now this is my big question.. since obviously this happened after I installed my 3.2 HT CPU.. could it be a frequency problem or clock problem.. where the ram dosent work well with the CPU or somthing?

Also since this is a prescott CPU.. it gets very hot... according to my bios (which i assume is correct over any 3rd party software,) my cpu is 55C MAX when it is idle .. but in windows with MBM 5 (3rd party software) it shows my cpu as like 37 Idle.. and then 48 MAX when doing stuff.. so Im thinking maybe its 60+ C in my bios from that observation.. So basically sould it be a cpu overheat issue with teh cpu gettting too hot?.. BTW my chasis max temp is 32C and with a stock cpu heatsink and fan that came with the 3.2 I am getting these temops but I plan on getting a thermaltake spark 7..

Sorry for this lonnnnnnnnnnngggggg story and explination, but I wanna save time for quetions and want someone to be able to help me wiht this problem and be able to pin point it for me since I am not an expert...

thanks

- andrew

[daveyp225]

It is positively caused by your RAM. You need 400mhz modules for an 800mhzFSB processor. Look for pc3200, or if you want to overclock, anythintg greater than pc3200.

EDIT- Also, your cpu should not overheat as long as the HSF is on correctly. Occasionally another problem may cause it to overheat, such as an abnormally high room temperature, but it is unlikely because you are not overclocking. The 37c seems like the acurate temperature for your setup. Some motherboards read the temperature incorrectly also.

Dave

[pam123]

Agree with dave completely.
Get the 3200 ram.

[andrewy3k]

wow you guys thanks.. I have been searching for answers for the longest time.. I suspected it was the ram but was not sure.. so its just a mhz problem huh?

wow thanks again guys.. yea my 1 GIG of pc3200 ram is coming this week so only a little bit longer of a wait..

my computer is about to freeze again so I better go .. lmao.. later and thanks again

[andrewy3k]

Can I follow up on this thread.. I have been also experiencing crashes, one after another with "Explorer.exe" and "Internet Explorer" .. this is also becuase of the ram I assum right?

thanks

[pam123]

Yes.
If you're still haiving crashes after you install the new ram we can look for other problems but till then just assume it's the memory.

[andrewy3k]

Okay well I have not recieved my new 1 GIG strip of ram yet (still running on the 512 ddr 266, but only temporary) but I am kinda having doubts of this problem which one of you has anwsered for me..."that the ram is not sync with the cpu" or w/e... becuase I installed a brand new "thermaltake silenttower heatpipe" which I bought from ebay.. I had a stock heatsink and fan before yesterday but installed this the other day and my computer has been running almost a whole day straightn without freezes....

So basically what I am asking is "Could this have really not been a ram problem and been diagnosted incorrectly?, or is just a fluke that my computer has been stable?.. or has the new thermaltake cpu /heatsink/fan/heatpipe (which has cooled my cpu by over 15 degrees C) stopped these problems for whatever reason?

thanks again in advance,

[daveyp225]

The RAM, if it is not currently the problem will probably cause problems down the line. You have an 800mhz FSB processor and your RAM ONLY supports up to a 533mhz FSB. The porocessor is TOO FAST for that RAM.

It is my opinion that the RAM is the problem in this case, and although the heatsink may have reduced some temperatures, it probably was not due to the processor in the first place. Your original temperatures of ~60 were not too awful as you have a prescott, and it is normal for prescotts to get hot.

Dave

[pam123]

If you dropped the cpu temp by 15 degrees C then yes it could have.
I have another question for you in reply though: Do you really expect to get decent performance out of your rig running 266 ram instead of the 400 ram your processor is intended for ?

[andrewy3k]

No I dont.. my new ddr 400 is taking its sweet ass time to get delivered here so in the meantime I have this crap 266..

[pam123]

Endure and prevail!

[andrewy3k]

Well I got my 1 GIG ddr 400 and I am still getting windows explorer and internet explorer errors.. its gettings annoying too.. everytime the windows explorer error happens the explorer.exe process gets reset and my screen will go blank with just the background then come back ..

anyways I havent exprienced any freezing though playing games or anything (so far) *crossing fingers*

so its just down to fixing these errors I guess.. should i try to format and fresh install?

I dunno what to do anymore..

thanks in advance again...

[pam123]

Do scans for viruses and spyware, just in case, and then do a repair install of XP.
That should save you from having to "nuke and pave".

[andrewy3k]

actually I scanned for spyware first and im scanning my computer for viruses now..

I really doubt thats the problem since I keep my computer very safe from these threats all the time.. I have McAfee security ceneter so If i did have a virus it would detect it...

Could virus or spyware really be causing the problem? Is a repair of XP gunna even help?

I installed SP2 to see if it would fix the problem but it has not..

If anyone can help me to really pin point and fix this problem I will paypal them 5/USD..

thanks in advance again...

[pam123]

Since your other option is a reformat try the repair first.

[Hags]

And also looking at the fact that it is only IE thats freezing not games that leads me to the conclusion of a virus also, remember your virus soft ware is only as good as its updates so make sure you update frequently

[andrewy3k]

Actually my computer froze this week on 3 occasions.. a lot less then before but still its happening.. so Then I wondered and checked my BIOS to see what my bios showed my ram as...

and what you have it.. it was showing my ram as ddr 333 not 400 .. Now I paid a lot to get a 1 GIG strip of ddr 400 so I was mad when I saw that.. I emailed the people I bought it from but they have not responded yet.. whats weird is that the sticker on the ram says ddr 400 .. but now I am remebering somthing my Mobo manufacture ASRock told me.. that if there was more then 1 GIG of ram in the motehrbaord it would lower the speed automatically to ddr 333 since It can only support a max of 1 strip/1 GIG of ddr 400 .. so I am thinking now could the ram be a little over 1024MB(1 GIG) like maybe 1025 or somthing .. which is casuing my mobo to lower the speed to ddr 333??? Could it be that this company gave me ddr 333 ram instead of ddr 400????

Also because my mobo is on autodetect for the ram speed.. what if I turned automatic off for detecting the ram and set it myself as ddr 400 which is what its suppose to be.. would this screw up my ram even if it was lets say ddr 333??

thanks in advance again... 5 /USD to a person who can help me solve this..

[pam123]

No, a 1 gig stick of ram is always 1024.
Go through the manual and see if it requires you to set the correct fsb for your ram.
If the cpu external frequency is still set at 166 instead of 200 that could be your problem.
You should find the cpu external frequency in the Advanced Chipset Features section of the bios.
I don't have your board but many will detect the correct amount of ram but will not deect the correct speed unless it's already set .
Also check to see if you have any jumpers for fsb speed that will have to be changed.
Last but not least, mistakes happen and it is possible that you were sent the wrong ram.

[andrewy3k]

Well I know my cpu says 200 for frequency.. so i will try now and set the ram to ddr 400..

thanks

[andrewy3k]

Okay right now its set to ddr 400 (200mhz) which exactly matches my cpu.. I will post if my system still freezes..

if the ram was really ddr 333 could this setting to ddr 400 be bad for the ram?.. also I have a thermaltake memory cooling kit I installed on this strip..

one thing I know for sure is on the sticker it said ddr 400 but it said CL 3 when they were suppose to give me cl 2.5 .. since I have a cooling heatspreader on my strip could I like set it to 2.5 in my bios without ruining the ram?

thanks, if my system is stable this week 5/USd is coming your way pam

[pam123]

Money not required, so enjoy some pizza while gaming.
Don't do anything till you're sure it's stable.
As a rule, for value ram, 2.5 is the 2700 stuff and 3 is 3200.
There are faster modules with lower latencies so you'd have to tell me exactly what you bought.

[andrewy3k]

its hynix ram.. could i go to cl 2.5?

and I was gaming and it froze.. what do i do now!!!! so basically somethign is wrong..

[pam123]

Go into Event Viewer and read the error message and post it back here.

[andrewy3k]

where is event viewer?

[andrewy3k]

this is all the tech stuff that comes up when explorer.exe crashes.. its getting very annoying now.. I cant figure this out..

[pam123]

Your freezing is being caused by XP and I think it's time to do the repair install that was mentioned earlier.
Set the bios to boot from the cd and put XP in the drive. Continue to till you get to the screen that ask if you want to install XP or repair it ( the earlier repair screen is the repair console ).
Hit R for repair and let XP fix explorer .
You don't have to worry about your files as this will not harm them.

[andrewy3k]

So you can see from the error message that this is what I need to do to my rig? just repair install? this will also fix my freezing problems in games and stuff?


if not i can just come back here I guess

[pam123]

Windows Explorer is what manages all your files.
If it's been corrupted, and it sounds like it has, then none of your programs are going to work right.
The error message you posted points straight at that problem now that you've got the hardware problelms solved ( and yes that could have been what caused it ) and you know you're free of malware.
You may have to reinstall your games but we won't know that till you've done the repair.

[andrewy3k]

nope I did a repair install and its still happening.. but its not just windows explorer.. its internet explorer.. and sometimes AIM that does it and several other apps..

here is the error message that I get for internet explorer..

What now??? full re-install???

and you never answered my question can I set a hynix 1 gig strip to cl 2.5 if its only 3??

thanks again in advance..

[pam123]

Originally Posted by andrewy3k nope I did a repair install and its still happening.. but its not just windows explorer.. its internet explorer.. and sometimes AIM that does it and several other apps.. here is the error message that I get for internet explorer.. What now??? full re-install??? and you never answered my question can I set a hynix 1 gig strip to cl 2.5 if its only 3?? thanks again in advance..

No you cn't set the cl to 2.5. What you can do is up the voltage for the ram, cautiously, and try OC'ing it past the 200 mark. Read Tin Canary's How-to post.
Go over to housecall here : http://housecall.trendmicro.com/
and do a full scan.
If that comes up clean then it's reformat time.
After you reformat, if you don't have a firewall on cd, enable the XP firewall before you go online to get all the updates.
You can always disable it when you install another firewall, Sygate or ZoneAlarm, and in the meantime you won't set any records for speed of reinfection.