PC Freezes When First Started

  • Thread starter Thread starter M
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M

M

I have an HP Brio Pentium 3, 550MHz, 384Mb RAM, running Windows XP.
When the PC is first started the machine always freezes, where nothing
responds. When it is rebooted it runs OK without any further problems. I
have tried reseating the memory and the PCI cards but this hasn't made a
difference. Memtest does not find any problems with the RAM. It seems
likely that this is a heat issue since it seems that once it has stared to
warm up it is OK. It is kept in a warm, dry room so it isn't getting very
cold or damp.
I have run out of ideas so I would be glad of suggestions!
 
Since you have already tested the RAM, the issue may most probably due to
other electronic(power supply, motherboard/graphics card) or mechanical
components(hard disk). Try these steps:

1. Turn Off your computer(first read this completely! and if necessary write
this down) for 30 mins to let it cool down completely.
2. Disconnect the hard disk power cable.
3. Now turn On the computer and when the display appears, hit "Pause" on the
keyboard to pause the booting process. You may need to press this key a
couple of times.
4. Leave the computer in the "paused state" for 10 mins to let the
electronic components warm up.
5. Now turn Off the computer. Immediately connect the hard disk cable and
start the computer.

Observations:

1. If the computer boots up fine without freezing on the first instance, the
issue is due to one of the electronic components.
2. If the computer freezes up, the hard disk is the culprit(backup the data
immediately, the disk might be failing)

Let us know how things are.
 
M said:
I have an HP Brio Pentium 3, 550MHz, 384Mb RAM, running Windows XP.
When the PC is first started the machine always freezes, where nothing
responds. When it is rebooted it runs OK without any further problems. I
have tried reseating the memory and the PCI cards but this hasn't made a
difference. Memtest does not find any problems with the RAM. It seems
likely that this is a heat issue since it seems that once it has stared to
warm up it is OK. It is kept in a warm, dry room so it isn't getting very
cold or damp.
I have run out of ideas so I would be glad of suggestions!
Click to expand...

Have you checked your cmos battery?
J
 
The heat for the computer shouldnt really be an issue if its cool. that
should be beneficial. perhaps, especially if your running an older system
your power supply is starting to go. it might not be running at its old
effeciency, especially if u notice a change in performance when the
temperature changes. thats all i can really think of.
 
I think you are on the right track. After reading your advice I decided to
scan the hard disc with Seatools bootable CD and scan the hard disc.
Seatools found problems with the hard disc but didn't state specifically
what they were. It did pass the surface test which seems to rule out
imminent failure. Most importantly the PC didn't freeze. I then ran
CheckDisc which finished without leaving a report on screen. The PC hasn't
frozen today but if it freezes again I will follow your advice.
 
Seatools generally reports on the optimistic side, so backup your data
immediately..
 
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