 Programs Stopping, randomly |
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 Nov 9 2006, 11:42 PM
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#1
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New Member  Group: Members Posts: 7 Joined: 9-November 06 Member No.: 94,738  |
It seems to happen more when I've had the computer running for longer, so I tried opening the case and giving it more airflow, in case something in it was overheating. That seemed to help for a while, but now it doesn't matter what I do. Also, it's possible that just about any piece of hardware in it has been damaged. If anyone has any idea what's wrong, I'm getting desperate. Also, it happened again to FF as I was typing this. EDIT: Also, it's done this with a fresh copy of windows installed, so it shouldn't be a software issue. This post has been edited by okamifujutsu: Nov 10 2006, 12:11 AM |
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Nov 10 2006, 12:40 AM
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#2
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 Bleepin' Mod Group: Moderator Posts: 4,479 Joined: 18-March 06 From: B.C. Canada Member No.: 59,826 |
Welcome to Bleeping Computer okamifujutsu,
Why don't you try this free online scan (it'll scan your registry among other things): http://safety.live.com/ Have you tried a repair install of Windows XP? Here's a link on how to do it: http://www.michaelstevenstech.com/XPrepairinstall.htm Also, sometimes these problems are caused by hardware errors. I'd suggest that you check the SMART status of your hard drive (should be an option for this when the system first boots - before getting into Windows) and checking your memory using this free tool: http://www.memtest86.com/ --------------------  Join Bleeping Computers Folding@home Team and Help find a cure. I am thankful for laughter, except when milk comes out of my nose. ~Woody Allen |
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Nov 10 2006, 01:09 AM
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#3
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New Member Group: Members Posts: 7 Joined: 9-November 06 Member No.: 94,738 |
It's not a problem with registary, viruses, Windows, or hard drives. I've re-installed Windows twice, and I know my hard drive is good.
Also, is that just me, or was that an automated response? |
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 Nov 10 2006, 02:14 AM
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#4
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 Member Group: Members Posts: 55 Joined: 29-July 05 Member No.: 29,166 |
Looks like your "friend" did NOT do something correctly !?
Why don't you take it back to him !? -------------------- For the BEST FREE programs to protect your computer, go to : http://members.accessbee.com/mitch/NewbieOldieUpdated.html For the BEST in what counts in Life : http://www.tacf.org |
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Nov 10 2006, 03:27 AM
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#5
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New Member Group: Members Posts: 7 Joined: 9-November 06 Member No.: 94,738 |
I have taken it back to him, many times, and we've been working on this problem together. He's stumped too. And I'm not going to ask for my money back, since he was nice enough to do it for free. He's pretty good at assembling computers, and does some, I guess you'd call it freelance computer repair work.
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Nov 10 2006, 05:06 AM
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#6
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 Distinguished Member Group: Members Posts: 713 Joined: 18-September 06 From: Nebraska Member No.: 86,034 |
I'm guessing you have all the recent updated drivers for your videocard and all the Windows updates. Since it seemed to help when you took the case off, did you notice if all your cooling fans were running? The case fans, the PSU fans?
How about some info on your system, mobo, chip, how big PSU, ram, that kinda thing. It sounds like a driver problem or too small PSU for video card maybe.... And I don't think that was an auto response, you'll see those quite often here. 
-------------------- "If a man is not free, then I, too, am a small pie made of chicken." From "Thoughts" by Bouffant.
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Nov 10 2006, 05:24 AM
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#7
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New Member Group: Members Posts: 7 Joined: 9-November 06 Member No.: 94,738 |
Ah, you're right, it probably wasn't, it just kinda sounded like one at first.
Also, after a recent test, it appears it's not as heat related as I thought. I tried closing the case, and it ran CoD 2 for an hour or so, much longer than games usually last. And yes, all my fans are running, and yes, I have every update I could find. I have a Gigabyte GA-8N-SLI mobo, Pentium D 915, 160gb WD SATA HDD, 512MB Crucial RAM, Diamond Radeon X1600, 430W PSU This post has been edited by okamifujutsu: Nov 10 2006, 05:26 AM |
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Nov 10 2006, 10:10 AM
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#8
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Bleepin' Mod Group: Moderator Posts: 4,479 Joined: 18-March 06 From: B.C. Canada Member No.: 59,826 |
This is another automated reply...just kidding.
Have a look at this Micro$oft KB article on How to Troubleshoot a "Stop 0x0000004E...PFN_LIST_CORRUPT" Error Message. -------------------- Join Bleeping Computers Folding@home Team and Help find a cure. I am thankful for laughter, except when milk comes out of my nose. ~Woody Allen |
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Nov 10 2006, 10:19 AM
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#9
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Forum Addict Group: Members Posts: 5,898 Joined: 10-March 05 From: Florida, USA Member No.: 14,085 |
The following may help:
Bugchecks Explained: PFN_LIST_CORRUPT http://www.osronline.com/article.cfm?id=334 In many cases the problem is caused by faulty Ram. Did you run the memtest 86 ram test (preferably overnight)? This post has been edited by Enthusiast: Nov 10 2006, 10:31 AM |
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Nov 10 2006, 02:06 PM
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#10
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New Member Group: Members Posts: 7 Joined: 9-November 06 Member No.: 94,738 |
I haven't had a chance to run memtest yet. Also, I've gotten the message DRIVER_IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL before
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Nov 10 2006, 08:38 PM
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#11
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 Visually handicapped, hence the avatar :0) Group: Moderator Posts: 13,380 Joined: 2-October 05 From: Southeastern CT, USA Member No.: 35,824 |
The various BSOD messages, when taken as a whole, may indicate something that the individual message doesn't.
For example the STOP 0x4e message (the PFN...) says it could be drivers or memory. http://aumha.org/win5/kbestop.php#0x4e Whereas the STOP 0xD1 (the Driver IRQ...) says it could be drivers or memory also. http://aumha.org/win5/kbestop.php#0xd1 But there's also mention of the pagefile in the STOP 0xD1 error (and the STOP 0x4e is about the pagefile). And the pagefile is also affected by the condition of the hard disk. So that leaves you with 3 possibilities that have been confirmed by separate error messages. Now, if there's a filename associated with any of these errors - it could help us to narrow down the search a bit. But, without it, we can suggest a few tests that will narrow this down even further. 1) Use this free tester to test your RAM: http://www.memtest86.com/ Follow the directions carefully, and let the test run for at least 2 hours (overnight is better). But, if you start getting errors you can terminate the test because you'll know the memory is bad. If you've got more than one stick of memory, you can run the tests on the individual sticks to see if more than one stick is bad. 2) Use this technique to "reset" your pagefile: a ) Go to Start...Run...and type in "sysdm.cpl" (without the quotes) and press Enter. -Then click on the Advanced tab, -then on the Performance Settings Button, -then on the next Advanced tab, -then on the Virtual Memory Change button. b ) In this window, note down the current settings for your pagefile (so you can restore them later on). -Then click on the "No paging file" radio button, and - then on the "Set" button. Be sure, if you have multiple hard drives, that you ensure that the paging file is set to 0 on all of them. -Click OK to exit the dialogs. c ) Reboot (this will remove the pagefile from your system) d ) Then go back in following the directions in step a ) and re-enter the settings that you wrote down in step b ). Follow the steps all the way through (and including) the reboot. e ) Once you've rebooted this second time, go back in and check to make sure that the settings are as they're supposed to be. 3) If both of the above tests don't isolate the problem - then the issue is most likely with your drivers. Which ones? Well, that's a good question. Have you done anything recently to the drivers (such as adding programs that might change any of the drivers)? If not, then here's a sequence to update them in: a) motherboard/chipset drivers  video driversc) network drivers d) drivers for any other devices built into the motherboard e) drivers for any other devices that are inside the case, plugged into the motherboard f) drivers for any other devices that plug into the outside of the case. Ensure that you download the latest one's from the manufacturer's website and don't use those on the CD as they're probably outdated. This post has been edited by usasma: Aug 17 2008, 06:21 AM
Reason for edit: fixed the b) from making smilies :0)
-------------------- - John
**If you need a more detailed explanation, please ask for it. I have the Knack. ** |
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Nov 11 2006, 04:40 AM
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#12
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Forum Addict Group: Members Posts: 5,898 Joined: 10-March 05 From: Florida, USA Member No.: 14,085 |
Your page file may be insufficient size.
It needs to be at least one and a half times the amount of Ram and larger if you are using heavy graphics aps like games or cad aps. Clear the page file as usasma suggested and then set it with the lower and upper numbers being the same instead of a lower limit and upper limit. Set it for two times the amount of Ram you have installed. Reboot. Let us know. |
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Nov 11 2006, 01:14 PM
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#13
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New Member Group: Members Posts: 7 Joined: 9-November 06 Member No.: 94,738 |
Okay, I checked the RAM, cleared and set the page file like you said, got all the latest drivers for everything, and all it's done is piss my computer off. Now after one program dies, DEP (data execution protection) starts killing everything else. Also, since trying your solutions, I've gotten two BSoD's with no error message, but one did point to ati3duag.dll, so does this mean there's something wrong with my video card?
Just got another bsod, this time pointing to win32k.sys. And another, caused by ks.sys. And a question, is it significant that some programs crash more often then others? Battlefield 1942 only lasts about 5 minutes before dying, but I can play Call of Duty 2 for hours. This post has been edited by okamifujutsu: Nov 12 2006, 01:41 AM |
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Nov 12 2006, 08:22 AM
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#14
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Visually handicapped, hence the avatar :0) Group: Moderator Posts: 13,380 Joined: 2-October 05 From: Southeastern CT, USA Member No.: 35,824 |
Generally, the crash will only occur when certain conditions are met. More severe crashing indicates that the conditions are being met more often.
Also, there can be more than one problem causing this. First tho' - are you running XP with SP2? A whole lot of problems with ks.sys were fixed with the release of SP2. The win32k.sys says that an error occurred in one of your operating system files - most likely this isn't what caused the error tho' (although it's a possibility to consider later on). With my suggestions you've tested the RAM and the pagefile - but we still haven't addressed the drivers (because they're a lot harder to pin down). So, most likely this is a driver issue (as are most BSOD's). As a first guess, I'd say that you should update your video drivers to the latest available certified version available from the ATI website (because of the error you got in the ATI driver). If you're overclocking anything, you'll have to stop it while we're troubleshooting (and also, only use certified drivers not tweaked ones). Once the troubleshooting is done you can return to these customized settings if you're using them. And, if you're using customized BIOS settings, you'll have to return to default while we troubleshoot. This post has been edited by usasma: Nov 12 2006, 08:23 AM -------------------- - John
**If you need a more detailed explanation, please ask for it. I have the Knack. ** |
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Nov 12 2006, 05:12 PM
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#15
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New Member Group: Members Posts: 7 Joined: 9-November 06 Member No.: 94,738 |
Yes, I'm running SP2, I've already got the latest drivers for everything, I'm not overclocking and I don't have any custom BIOS settings. Does this mean I'm screwed?
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