How to remove a video adapter?

[docsavage20]

Having problems with the following error;

*** Hardware Malfunction
Call your hardware vendor for support

NMI: Parity Check / Memory Parity Error

*** The system has halted ***

One of the suggestions on the Microsoft site is:

"Check the Adapters
Remove any adapters that are not required to start the computer and run
Windows. In many cases, you can start your computer with only the drive
subsystem controller and the video adapter. "

Are adapters a physical plug in a socket or something I would disable
in software? In either case, how is this accomplished?

Thanks for all input

 

[Malke]

Having problems with the following error;

*** Hardware Malfunction
Call your hardware vendor for support

NMI: Parity Check / Memory Parity Error

*** The system has halted ***

One of the suggestions on the Microsoft site is:

"Check the Adapters
Remove any adapters that are not required to start the computer and
run Windows. In many cases, you can start your computer with only the
drive subsystem controller and the video adapter. "

Since you are getting a memory error, I wouldn't mess around with the
video adapter. Test the memory:

I like Memtest86+ from www.memtest.org. Obviously, you have to get the
program from a working machine. You will either download the
precompiled Windows binary to make a bootable floppy or the .iso to
make a bootable cd. If you want to use the latter, you'll need to have
third-party burning software on the machine where you download the file
- XP's built-in burning capability won't do the job. In either case,
boot with the media you made. The test will run immediately. Let the
test run for an hour or two - unless errors are seen immediately. If
you get any errors, replace the RAM.

Testing hardware failures often involves swapping out suspected parts
with known-good parts. If you can't do the testing yourself and/or are
uncomfortable opening your computer, take the machine to a professional
computer repair shop (not your local equivalent of BigStoreUSA). Based
on your post, I would suggest that this is your best course of action
anyway. I'm not saying that to be hurtful; just being practical.

Malke

 

[Jonny]

http://www.pcguide.com/ts/x/sys/booterrGBER39-c.html
If the below is where you got "One of the suggestions on the Microsoft site
is:", you sure left some more critical and important information out... And
did not indicate if you followed the advice, the predecessor of the adapter
path solution. Do this first.
http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=222973

In most cases, MS's definition of drive subsystem controller is on the
motherboard. Even though an ide controller is on the hard drive or CD
reading device itself. They are trying to get you down to the motherboard,
and video card only. You may have to either remove other cards, and/or
disable other hardware equivalent via the motherboard's bios setup.

The bottom of the KB article is indicating simply its an I/O (input/output)
problem related to moving data via memory/hard drive and its bus system/cpu,
cpu cache memory, and its related busses. Its usually physical memory
that's the culprit.

 

[Doc]

http://www.pcguide.com/ts/x/sys/booterrGBER39-c.html
If the below is where you got "One of the suggestions on the Microsoft site
is:", you sure left some more critical and important information out...

Similar problem, different location:

http://support.microsoft.com/?id=315223

I'm running XP Home. I was asking about that particular point because that's
what was not clear to me. By "adapter" I wasn't sure if they meant the
physical cards themselves.

And
did not indicate if you followed the advice, the predecessor of the adapter
path solution.

The first thing I tried before even do a search was pulling out various
memory modules. Have 1-256k and 2-128K modules. Gives the same result using
any of the three. It was working flawlessly until I fired it up today.

Do this first.
http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=222973

Will check into it. Thanks.

 

[Doc]

As a follow-up, I uninstalled & removed the modem, video capture card and
sound card and the problem went away. So far have reinstalled the capture
card and sound card and the problem hasn't come back.

 

[Arno Wagner]

Having problems with the following error;

*** Hardware Malfunction
Call your hardware vendor for support

NMI: Parity Check / Memory Parity Error

*** The system has halted ***

One of the suggestions on the Microsoft site is:

"Check the Adapters
Remove any adapters that are not required to start the computer and run
Windows. In many cases, you can start your computer with only the drive
subsystem controller and the video adapter. "

Are adapters a physical plug in a socket or something I would disable
in software? In either case, how is this accomplished?

They are talking about removing hardware. However today this is
nonsense, unless you have a server-board with ECC. Normal memory
does not have parity anymore and cannot trigger the non-maskable
interrupt (NMI), since there is no way for the chipset or CPU
to detect the error in ordinary memory acceses.

However there is one type of memory that can have parity/ECC in
a modern computer and that are the CPU-integrates caches. So unless
you have _very_ old hardware or a server-board with ECC memory,
you likely have a problem in the CPU cache. These generally cannot
be replaced except by replacing the complete CPU.

Somebody else here suggested using memtest86+. That might be a good
idea even in this case, since it can test the CPU cache to some
degree as well. The tests are run with caches enabled and with
caches disabled. If you get errors with caches enabled, but not
with them disabled, then it is definitely the CPU.

Arno

 

[Arno Wagner]

As a follow-up, I uninstalled & removed the modem, video capture card and
sound card and the problem went away. So far have reinstalled the capture
card and sound card and the problem hasn't come back.

Fascinating. Maybe you have unstable power?

Arno

 

[Doc]

Somebody else here suggested using memtest86+. That might be a good
idea even in this case, since it can test the CPU cache to some
degree as well. The tests are run with caches enabled and with
caches disabled. If you get errors with caches enabled, but not
with them disabled, then it is definitely the CPU.

I burned it to a CD, which precedes the C: drive in the boot sequence, but
it doesn't run. It just boots normally. Any suggestions on how to get it to
run?

 

[Arno Wagner]

I burned it to a CD, which precedes the C: drive in the boot sequence, but
it doesn't run. It just boots normally. Any suggestions on how to get it to
run?

Seems you BIOS has problems with booting from CD...
Floppy? Memory stick?

Arno