System hang

[Guest]

My computer boots and loads the Window XP without problem. But just after
that or sometimes a while later, it hangs. I have checked the event viewer
and have found the following message: "Error. Disk Event ID 11. The driver
detected a controller error on \Device\Harddisk0\D".

Before discovering the error message, I had suspected heat problem as the
cpu fan seems to be a little louder than before. But the error report seems
to suggest problem in other area. Would appreciate any helpful advice to
diagnose and troubleshoot this problem. Thanks.

 

[Guest]

Sorry, after checking further. Sometimes error message is reported as: Error.
atapi. Event ID 5. A parity error was detected on \Device\Ide\IdePort0.

 

[Guest]

Such errors typically indicate a hard drive that is starting to fail. If
reseating the IDE cable at both ends doesn't clear it up, find out the brand
your hard disk (Start - right click on My Computer - Properties - Hardware -
Device Manager - double click on Disk Drives. Download the manufacturer's
diagnostic from their website and run it to verify the hard drive health. If
it fails, get another h/d asap and use the disk mfg's copy utility to copy it
over onto the new hard drive.

 

[Malke]

Sorry, after checking further. Sometimes error message is reported as:
Error. atapi. Event ID 5. A parity error was detected on
\Device\Ide\IdePort0.

This is referring to an error with your hard drive and/or the drive
controller on the motherboard. Here are some suggestions for
troubleshooting. Do one thing at a time and test after each change.

1. With the computer turned off and unplugged, reseat the cable going
from the drive to the motherboard at both ends and reseat the power
supply connector to the drive. If it is an SATA cable, make sure both
ends are connected snugly.

2. If #1 doesn't help, swap out the drive cable for a known-working one.

3. If #2 doesn't help, test the drive with a diagnostic utility
downloaded from the hard drive mftr.'s website. Download the file and
make a bootable floppy or cd with it. Boot with the media and do a
thorough test. If the drive has physical errors, replace it. If you
can't complete the test, because at this point there is a question as
to whether the problem lies with the drive or the motherboard, put the
drive in a known-working computer and run the drive diagnostic there.

4. If the drive tests good, then the problem is probably with the
motherboard.

Testing hardware failures 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).

Malke

 

[Guest]

Thanks for all the replies. Will try out your advice. Happy holidays.