Computer freezes

[joshpsdca]

My computer freezes when I access the IE and when the screen saver appears. IF anyone has any information or any suggestions I'm all ears.

[bailey]

well, what is the operating system, what are the spicifics of your system, we need this information to be able to help you solve this problem.

[GaryRouth]

Hello and Welcome to the PcMechanic forums

Do you mean a momentary freeze/pause . . . or a total system halt/hang?

And yes, like bailey mentioned, post some more information if you can: make/model of your pc, it's version of Windows, & whatever else you feel might help (cpu, memory, motherboard, etc)

Thanks and good luck: we'll be glad to help
. . . Gary

[joshpsdca]

Here is some of the system information. The OS is windows 2000, the mother board is Asus, the cpu is 550, ram is 64.

The computer locks up and the only way to start it is to restart the whole system.

[Cricket]

Hi joshpsdca,

Is this a AMD or INTEL computer?

64MB of RAM is a little skimpy for Win2000. Computer would perform much better with at least 256MB.

What kind of background programs do you have running on this computer? Which antivirus, firewall, etc...?

How are you accessing the internet? Modem? Cable? DSL?

Cricket

[GaryRouth]

Hi again

Did you build this yourself? or is this a store-bought pc? If store-bought, what make/model?

If self-built, which Asus board? The 550 cpu: is that an Amd K6-2, Cyrix, Via, Intel PII, Celeron, PIII? The RAM is probably PC66, PC100, or PC133 SDRAM?

Did you recently change anything, like upgrade the video card?

Do you have an up-to-date virus scanner?

Today's a no-school day for my kids, so I won't be checking back till later on, but I'll check back eventually - by then Cricket will probably have you up and running!
. . . Gary

[kitzmark]

I agree, more memory is probably the answer. Memory is pretty cheap and 64MB is cutting pretty close to the edge as far as reliability/usability for Windows 2000.

[joshpsdca]

I don't think it's memory. When I first got the computer it came with 128 pc-100 and I still had the freezing problems.

Also, orginially the computer came to me with OS 98. I though that it was the operating system at first, that's why I changed it to 2000.

As for the internet access. I am using dialup to surf from this computer.

The CPU is intel base with the ASUS P38-R mother board.

My brother is the one that built this computer. So, I'm not sure what changes he's done to this computer.

There is no app's working in the background. The only app I have on this computer is a Wimamp.

Thanks guys

[Cricket]

Hi joshpsdca,

Do you know what kind of modem is installed in that computer? Is it PCI or ISA? Is it an external serial or USB modem?

If it's a PCI modem, you may have to try it in another PCI slot. Although Win2000 is very good at handling resource sharing, that modem may be in PCI slot 1 (which is a no-no...shares resources with the AGP slot). If it is, move it to another PCI slot.

Cricket

[joshpsdca]

Cricket,


The modem is a PCI, which is installed in the thrid slot.

I've removed the modem card, but I the computer is still freezing when the screen save kicks in.

Any suggestions?

[cuffs007]

Disable any power management in BIOS or thru Display properties... and, sounds odd, try using a different screen saver...

good luck

[glc]

Try a different video card. I had massive lockup problems on my Asus BX board with a Radeon AGP card but a PCI card works perfectly. This MAY not have been the video card's fault, but I suspect the AGP slot and the ram.

[joshpsdca]

I did change the video card. The orginal card that came with the computer I changed to a PCI card and the computer still locksup.

Also, I did change the screen saver, which still gives me the lockup.

Does anybody have anything else I can try?

Thanks everyone

[joshpsdca]

Hey Everyone,

I disabled the Power management in the Bios, which didn't work, but thanks away. However, I did change the refresh rate from 60 to 75 and now the srceen saver works with locking up.

Can anyone explain this to me?

[joshpsdca]

Just after I wrote my reply the screen saver decided to lock up again.

NO need for the explaination.

[Cricket]

Hi joshpsdca,

Try running your computer with the case open or sides removed. The freezing could be heat related.

If the interior of your computer is really dusty, you'll need to clean it out really good. Check and see if the heatsinks on the CPU and video card are clogged with dust.

What video card are you using?

Cricket

[joshpsdca]

Cricket,

I cleaned and the power supply, heat sink and ran the computer without the sides. But the problem is still occuring.

My monitor card is a S3 trio64+.

If anyone has anymore suggestions I will listen.

[Cricket]

Hi joshpsdca,

Have you scanned for viruses, spyware and trojans?

What about cleaning out the Windows Temp and Temporary Internet files folders?

When you switched operating systems, did you do a upgrade over Win98 or did you do a clean installation of Win2000?

Cricket

[eldon]

On my first cpu a few years ago I had some of the same problems,turned out I added extra ram and away went the freezeups.

[joshpsdca]

Cricket,

When I changed OS's I did a clean installion.

[mike breck]

Screensavers can be a cause of lockups in themselves.

Are you using a standard Windows screensaver or a third-party one.

Try disabling the screensaver and see if the IE lockup still happens.

Modern monitors don't have the burn-in problem that older monitors had, so screensavers are mostly decorative thesedays.

I very seldom use a screensaver.

[joshpsdca]

Your Right,

When I do disable the screen saver my computer does not lock up, however, when I do use my modem the computer will still lock up.

[GaryRouth]

Hi josh

256mb of PC100/PC133 Micron major brand can be had around most major cities computer stores (sometimes with the rebate game) for $25, because dealers are dumping inventory while they can. (All the new boards are using DDR or Rambus, mostly DDR). Seems like a nice treat for that system, whether it helps the lockups or not. Win2000 will love it. Get the known brand, one-year or lifetime warranty variety of memory, not the OEM. Upgrade brands such as PNY,& Kingston are currently on sale at such stores as CompUSA, BestBuy, Circuit City, Office Depot, etc. . . here in the states.

...and put the newer, larger stick of memory in the first DIMM slot, with the older, smaller next to it.

If you still have lockup problems after that, it's time to check your modem drivers, and your communication software (perhaps a Service Pack for your IE) . . . and so on.

. . . Gary

[joshpsdca]

Gary,


I'm on a tight budget right now. So, I would love to try to upgrade my memory, but I can right at this moment. When I do have the money I will buy at least 256

As for the modem drivers, I've tried updating the drivers for the US Robotic site. I did install the driver but I still had the same problem.

[GaryRouth]

Hi again

Let's give you something to try while you save up some money.

You said you changed video cards a while back, it's possible that some of the older drivers are hanging around & causing some havoc. So, you can boot into Safe Mode and look in Device Manager: remove any video cards, modems, or sound cards that are listed that you don't have installed anyore. Look in Add/Remove Programs (in your Control Panel) for any drivers that might belong to absent hardware, and uninstall them [actually, you should probably do this 1st, before going into Safe Mode and removing any old devices]

Not sure if there's a version of RegClean for Win2000, but you can check on the Microsoft site to see. That would help clean any old entries for stuff you're not using anymore.

You can also run sfc/scannow from a Command Prompt (look in Accessories for an easy way to get a Command Prompt, there's a shortcut for it). You'll want your Win2000 installation disk handy if you didn't copy the installation files to your hard disk.

And just to cover as many bases as possible, enter your Bios Setup screens (when you startup a message usually displays telling you what key to press. . . if the message goes by too quickly to read, press the Pause key to freeze the Bios hardware detect screen - which has the "press xxx to enter Bios Setup" message on it). Once in Setup, look for a menu such as "Hardware Monitor" or "PC Health": these will give you a reading of current case/cpu temperatures. You'll want temps under 50 degrees Celsius, in general - especially when idle.

Good luck
. . . Gary

[oops. . . almost forgot: if your browser is IE6, there is a Service Pack available which has been resolving some mysterious issues from some of our members, might help you too - but I'm not sure how you're going to download it if you keep locking up (you can also call MS to send a CD, but I think that's 5 or 10 dollars).]

[...hmm..one more: there might be a motherboard bios update available that would help that old board with your fairly new processor. But I think you might not have the exact model number? . . . There is no P38-R on the Asus site's motherboard archive. Perhaps it's the P3B-F . . .? . . . take another look at the model silkscreened onto the motherboard, usually between the PCI slots....seems like a Slot 1 board . . . And to search that Asus site, go to http://www.asus.com.tw

[GaryRouth]

[can you tell I'm avoiding some very boring work here at the lab by looking up fixes for your computer?. . . ]

A couple more things: Looks like there's a 32-bit version of RegMaid for Win2000 that you can use. RegClean might only go on Win9x. Here's a link for RegMaid:

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;[LN];Q156078

And if you Are using a P3B-F board, you may have been accidentally overclocking all this time (your brother may have missed a jumper setting), so it might be a good idea to get the manual out (download it if you don't have it) and double-check All the Bios and jumper settings. If you have a PIII-550 in there, here's a quick check for you: you should have your ratio (multiplier) at 5.5, your FSB (Front Side Bus) at 100mhz, and your jumpers l-10 set will everything OFF except 4=ON and 10=ON. And that 64mb of memory should be PC100: it might not be the best around, so when you get a new stick, try just the new stick without the older - and everything might be fine.

back to my boring work...
. . . Gary

[joshpsdca]

Gary,

With all the information you gave me it will take some time for me to try. So, bare with me until I have the time to get everything together. So check back form time to time.

By the way, where did you get all this info?

Thanks

[GaryRouth]

Hi josh

Most of the info came from the Microsoft and Asus websites. Good luck & hope it's running smoothly soon.
. . . Gary

[joshpsdca]

Gary,

I'm stilling working on all the suggestions. I just wanted to let you know. Thanks for leting me in on your source, so in the future I will be able to rearch other issues.

Thanks