XP randomly freezes. how to find out what's causing it?

[Jason]

I have Windows XP home edition. It came installed on my
PC. I've had this computer for a few months now and I
keep having this same problem that is driving me insane.
The computer will freeze up when not in use. I thought
maybe the screen saver was doing it so I disabled it. It
still locked up after it sat for awhile. Obviously there
is some program somewhere that is the culprit but since
Windows just freezes up without warning how am I supposed
to figure out what's causing it? I don't get any error
messages, the system just freezes. Is there anyway to get
a report of what is causing the problem after I reboot?
Is there any type of error log that Windows keeps that
would report what is causing this to happen? I keep my
virus scanner updated (norton) and have no virus of any
kind. I also have AdAware and keep it updated as well and
have no spyware programs either. Any help for this
problem? It's driving me crazy.

 

[Box134]

Do you have some form of power management turned on? Standby, hibernate? If
you do, turn it off. Some hardware doesn't conform to CAPE standards and it
can't wake up from a power saving state. How old is your mobo?

Give it a try, it's easy.

 

[xe77]

99% Windows XP doesn't freeze, it will simply generate a
STOP error (Blue Screen of Death) and reboot.
You can view the error logs from the Event Viewer,
available from Administrative Tools in your Control Panel.
The event is listed in the System section as the
type: "SaveDump".
It is almost impossible for Windows xP to truly 'freeze'
when the hardware is in good working order. It may appear
to be frozen when in fact is it merely very busy and can't
respond in a timely fashion, you may want to try waiting
before hitting the reset button. (it may take upto 5 to 10
minutes for the system to respond)

 

[Guest]

Thanks for the tip about Event Viewer. I knew there had
to be something somewhere that kept track of all
problems. XP actually locks up on me. I tried pushing
keys, clicking mouse buttons, Ctrl/Alt/Del..everything. I
let it sit afterwards and it still never responds.
Nothing will move or respond when this happens. It just
completely freezes up with my desktop still intact and no
error message. I have no energy saving scheme in use. I
should have mentioned that before. I have it set to leave
everything on all the time. Anyway after checking Event
Viewer I see what the problem is. I am getting alot of
errors called Service Control Manager and DCOM under the
System tab. Under the Application tab I am getting alot
of errors that say True Vector Engine which would be my
firewall, Zone Alarm. Obviously Zone Alarm is causing
problems and freezing up the system. I just need to
figure out why.

 

[Jason]

I have figured out that the DCOM error is being caused by
Messenger. I followed a step by step tutorial on how to
stop messenger from loading when the comp starts. I still
get the errors as well but so far no freeze up.

 

[Sam]

I also get the freeze problems with XP once a while at
startup of the computer (not yet dialup). If I dialup
onto the internet. I can get the freeze for sure every
time right after the dialup. It gets over it after 5 to
10 minutes. After that one freeze, everything will be
fine.

It appeared that the problem started after I upgraded the
XP into XP sp 1. I can't back it out because I opt it not
to backout to save space. It turned out that is a big
mistake.

Would anyone know the problem and how to fix it? If the
XP were buzy doing something, is there a way to find the
running program and kill it. I will appreciate any
suggestion and help.

 

[Guest]

I keep having the same problem as you and as yet I have not been able to resolve it and like you said it drives you crazy

 

[Malke]

I keep having the same problem as you and as yet I have not been able
to resolve it and like you said it drives you crazy

To both the OP and the person who hijacked his thread: Random freezes
are often caused by failing hardware. However, neither of you has given
enough information to get a good diagnosis. Here are general
troubleshooting steps for both hardware and software:

A. For software issues - 1) scan with current antivirus ("current" means
a version not earlier than 2002 but using updated virus definitions);
2) remove spyware with Spybot Search & Destroy
(www.safer-networking.org) and Ad-aware (www.lavasoftusa.com). These
programs are free, so use them both since they complement each other.
You may also want to run the latest CWShredder from http:/
www.spywareinfo.com/~merijn/index.html. Always read the instructions
before running a spyware removal tool. Be sure to update these programs
before running, and it is a good idea to do virus/spyware scans in Safe
Mode; 3) delete temporary and Temporary Internet Files; 4) stop
unnecessary services/programs from starting with Windows - see
www.blackviper.com for services info and www.pacs-portal.co.uk
startup_index.htm for programs info - 5) look in Event Viewer for
clues; 6) make sure you've visited Windows Update and applied all
security patches; 7) run a firewall.

B. For hardware issues - 1) open the computer and run it open, cleaning
out all dust bunnies and observing all fans (overheating will cause
system freezing); 2) test the RAM - I like Memtest86 from
www.memtest86.com - let the test run for an extended (like overnight)
period of time - unless errors are seen immediately; 3) test the hard
drive with a diagnostic utility from the mftr.; 4) the power supply may
be going bad or be inadequate for the devices you have in the system;
5) test the motherboard with something like TuffTest from
www.tufftest.com. 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 good local computer repair shop (not a CompUSA or Best Buy
type of store).

Malke

 

[Guest]

go to control panel
administrative tools
event views
system information
pick a logged entry and double click
click the highlighted address to microsoft
once there, take advantage of running advance systems information
view error log
it might tell you several things.
I found the performance strings in the perfromance registry were corrupt.
run the test
see what you find