SYSTEM "FREEZING" RANDOMLY

[BANSHEE]

Somebody, Anybody, please HELP! I'm running a newer system w/ XP Home,
SP2,P4 3.0, 512MB, 2x2 mirror/stripe, (promise RAID controller) and 420W
p.s.--system freezes randomly regardless of program I am running or load
system is under. Screen freezes wherever I may be---no keyboard, no mouse,
no CTRL anything, no error message. I can only restart by hitting the reset
on the case, and then it runs fine ('til the next time). I've run SpyBot,
virus scan, disc clean and defrag, and system scan and it always comes up
'healthy'. Any help?? ---BANSHEE

 

[R. C. White]

Hi, Banshee.

The first thing that comes to mind is HEAT. Have you ruled that out?

RC

 

[R. McCarty]

Yes, excellent suggestion. P4's can generate 100+ Watts and the new
multicore P4's are being spec'd at 130+. Can't figure out if Intel is
making Processors or a new form of the "Easy Bake Oven".

 

[Michael Solomon \(MS-MVP\)]

If you rule out or possibly a problem with the power supply, try the
following:
First, be sure your antivirus software has the latest definitions and run a
virus scan.

Also, download, install and run Ad Aware:
www.lavasoftusa.com

If your system is clear of viruses and any malware, open Control Panel, open
System, go to
the Advanced tab, click Settings under Startup and Recovery, remove the
check from "Automatically Restart" under System Failure. This will cause
the system to blue screen instead of restarting on errors and the
information on the blue screen may give a clue as to the source of the
issue.

Open Control Panel, open Administrative Tools, open Event Viewer, look for
errors corresponding to the crash, double click the error, the information
contained within may give a clue as to the
source of the problem.

Assuming you have an XP CD and not a recovery CD, place the XP CD in the
drive, when the setup screen appears, select "Check System Compatibility,"
the report it generates may point to problem hardware or software on your
system. If you do not have an XP CD, you can download this application
known as the Upgrade Advisor from the following site:
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/pro/howtobuy/upgrading/advisor.asp
Note: If you have access to a broadband connection it might be best to
download using that as this is a rather large download.

Check for the latest drivers for your hardware, especially your graphics
card and soundcard and all peripherals connected to your system. No not use
Windows Update for this, go to the device manufacturer's web sites and if
you install updated drivers, ignore the message about drivers being unsigned
by Microsoft. ***Don't assume a new system came with the latest drivers.
You have no idea how long it or various included devices were on the shelf
before shipping and sale. Dated and corrupt drivers are often the cause of
the problem you describe.

 

[Kelly]

In addition:

By default when WinXP encounters a system failure, it reboots without
warning. The setting that controls this can be changed:

Control Panel/System/Advanced/Settings (Startup & Recovery)/System
Failure/Uncheck-Automatically Restart.

You can use Event Viewer to view and manage the event logs, gather
information about hardware and software problems, and monitor Windows
security events.

To view the event log: Administrative Tools/Event Viewer or
Start/Run/eventvwr.

To review Shutdown Event Tracker data, Open Event Viewer. Click System Log,
scroll to the Event column, and find entries with the number 1075.

HOW TO: View and Manage Event Logs in Event Viewer in Windows XP
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;EN-US;q308427

And also:

Go to Start/Run/Msinfo32/Hardware Resources, Components/Problem Devices and
Software Environment/Windows Error Reporting.

Go to Help and Support/Pick a Task (left side)/Use Tools to view.../(left
pane)My Computer Information/(right pane)View the status of my system
hardware and software/Hardware/Update and Troubleshooters.

How to Troubleshoot Hardware and Software Driver Problems
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;Q322205

Try running the DirectX Tool: Start/Run/Dxdiag, Lower Hardware Acceleration
(Display/Settings/Advanced/Troubleshoot/Hardware Acceleration). Check
System Info for problematic issues: Start/Run/Msinfo32/Hardware Resources
and Components/Problem Devices and Software Environment/Windows Error
Reporting.

Report Error's to Microsoft automatically

Start/Run/gpedit.msc/Computer Configuration/Administrative
Templates/System/Error Reporting. Right click Report Errors/Properties.
Check off Enable and then check off, Do not display links to any MS provided
more information web sites. Apply, ok.

--
All the Best,
Kelly (MS-MVP)

Troubleshooting Windows XP
http://www.kellys-korner-xp.com