Xp freezes even when idle

[Guest]

my computer is brand new (2 months old) and xp constantly freezes up, even
when idle. i have tried everything i can find but it hasn't worked. this
includes, drivers, temp monitors, os repairs, cables, and memory. i believe
it is a software problem. i am running xp pro sp2 on an amd processor,
nvidia 7600gt vga, a single 80 gb hdd with others hooked up by usb, and 1gb
of ram. it does not freeze in safe mode. i have run virus scans and the
like to no avail. i need to fix this. thx.

 

[GHalleck]

my computer is brand new (2 months old) and xp constantly freezes up, even
when idle. i have tried everything i can find but it hasn't worked. this
includes, drivers, temp monitors, os repairs, cables, and memory. i believe
it is a software problem. i am running xp pro sp2 on an amd processor,
nvidia 7600gt vga, a single 80 gb hdd with others hooked up by usb, and 1gb
of ram. it does not freeze in safe mode. i have run virus scans and the
like to no avail. i need to fix this. thx.

If the computer is still under warranty, get it replaced. That is,
it should not be behaving in this manner. As for probable reasons,
how, for instance, did you arrive at the conclusion that the freezing
is related to software? Need more information, such as what programs
were running at the time? What was being done? And so forth.

 

[Mark M Morse]

Hi wraith:

One thing you might check if your system seems to freeze for short
intervals regularly is whether or not the CPU is a slave to one
particular process (i.e., some software might be hogging too much of
the CPU's time for way too many consecutive seconds).

For example, right now I'm having a similar situation, so I've set
up my screen as described below. Whenever my system seems to stall,
I can see that a program called MsMpEng.EXE is using 88 to 94
percent of the CPU's resources for 45 seconds at a time. As soon as
this process releases the CPU, my system starts responding again.
Clearly, the application to which this process belongs is not
performing normally, and now I'm able to troubleshoot it with the
developer and other users.

Right-click the taskbar, and select 'Task Manager'.

On the menu bar, click on 'View' --> 'Update Speed', and then select
'Normal' or 'High'.

Maximize the Task Manager window, and then click the 'Processes'
tab.

Click on the 'CPU' column-heading, twice. This should sort the list
of processes in descending order of current CPU usage.

Leave Task Manager running while you use the computer, and resize
all of your other windows so that you can always see the list of
process names and the CPU column.

Whenever your system seems to freeze or really slow down, note
whether or not a single process is usually at the top of the list
during these episodes.

If you can correlate a particular process with your system's
performance problem, then you can google its name to find out which
application owns it.

You could also make written notes of the time and date of system
freezes, and then use the Event Viewer to look for possible issues.

If you cannot correlate a particular process or application with the
issue, then more work is required to troubleshoot the issue, and it
may be beyond my abilities to suggest what to try next.

I wish us both luck because I know how much it really sucks waiting
35 seconds with a brand new, high-end laptop for something that
should take 2 seconds (eg: displaying a graphic image from a
thumbnail when the only button on the taskbar is for Windows
Explorer).

~ Mark

 

[Guest]

Thanks a lot you guys, i'll try to monitor the task manager. As for more
information, i usually only have the standard system processes running when
it freezes. my cpu usage stays below the 50% mark most of the time and my
temperature has never exceeded 43 degrees celsius. also, after reformatting
it recently froze up during safe mode. i now believe it is a hardware
problem. when running normal mode, it just recently froze up but now appears
to be running stable. i will give it another chance to see if it freezes
within the next 24 hours and i will be sure to check all details when it does.

 

[Guest]

Alright, it still froze up, the highest process in the cpu column was system
idle process, the second highest was my firewall with 05. cpu usage was
around 15% and the only processes running were aim, xfire, teamspeak, system
processes, and eudora for email. I'm gonna try running it without one of my
512 mb of ram and see how that works. any more advice would be greatly
appreciated.

 

[Malke]

Alright, it still froze up, the highest process in the cpu column was system
idle process, the second highest was my firewall with 05. cpu usage was
around 15% and the only processes running were aim, xfire, teamspeak, system
processes, and eudora for email. I'm gonna try running it without one of my
512 mb of ram and see how that works. any more advice would be greatly
appreciated.

A new computer should be able to handle that. It sounds like hardware
problems to me. I'll give you a link to general hardware troubleshooting
steps but since you say the computer is only 2 months old, a better
solution would be to call the laptop tech support and have them fix it
since it is still under warranty.

http://www.elephantboycomputers.com/page2.html#Hardware_Tshoot


Malke

 

[Guest]

First off, i would like to clear up that this is a PC from cyberpowerpc.com.
Next up, i've been running the computer while swapping out my 2 mem sticks
(512 mb each), and so far, the computer has frozen up. i swapped the first
slot with the other stick and the computer wouldn't even show anything on the
screen. when placed in the second slot it worked just fine and im running it
now to see if it crashes. I'm afraid this may lead to me sending it back.
ughh, i really don't want to have to ship it all the way across the US back
to CA. :-(

 

[Malke]

First off, i would like to clear up that this is a PC from cyberpowerpc.com.
Next up, i've been running the computer while swapping out my 2 mem sticks
(512 mb each), and so far, the computer has frozen up. i swapped the first
slot with the other stick and the computer wouldn't even show anything on the
screen. when placed in the second slot it worked just fine and im running it
now to see if it crashes. I'm afraid this may lead to me sending it back.
ughh, i really don't want to have to ship it all the way across the US back
to CA. :-(

I understand that it is a PITA to send the machine back but I do believe
you will be sorry if you don't. A new machine should work perfectly and
that's what you paid for. Of course, what you do is your choice.


Malke

 

[Guest]

This is probably the last post I write before i send it back in. Nothing i
do with the mem sticks works, im gonna do a final hardware test and then im
gonna send send it back. any final advice is appreciated. thx to all that
helped.

 

[Guest]

Hey!!!! I don't think its hardware! I ran it in safe mode and had no problem
then ran it in normal mode, but with only the system processes and no
freezing. i took the liberty of adding on one startup process at a time,
running it for 24 hours each then adding a new process. It only started to
freezed when i enabled nwiz.exe. That's a program that runs with nvcpl.dll
which is related to the nividia control panel. I cannot find a way to
disable it now through msconfig and deleting it from the registry, it
automatically pops up. There are two instances of nvcpl.dll, one for the
current user and one for the local machine in the registry, the one for
current user will stay disabled with nwiz.exe but the local machine one will
not. I don't remember seeing it (nvcpl.dll) before i enabled nwiz on the
msconfig.

 

[Guest]

i ran the normal boot with no startup items and yet nvcpl still popped up.
Also, the computer tends to crash more often when watching a video.