Computer locks up
brandon277
Status: Curious
Joined: 19 Nov 2008
Posts: 6
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hey ... My computer locks up quite often, and the only thing I can do about it is restart using the restart button. No CTRL+ALT+DEL, as it doesn't receive input from the keyboard or mouse, everything just locks up... Doesn't even give XP a chance to write an error report or anything .. I did a scan using ESET NOD32 AV, and nothing came up... Also ran RegCure, it found and "fixed" over 700 errors, and was "supposed" to fix the problems of lockups and BSODs, but that didn't help either.

What should I try next?
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Crust
Status: Contributor
Joined: 08 Sep 2008
Posts: 64
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This is usually a hardware error.

In my experience, it is usually due to something overheating (CPU or GPU) or the memory being corrupt (bad memory module).

It could be because of some driver.
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brandon277
Status: Curious
Joined: 19 Nov 2008
Posts: 6
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Hmm ... This isn't the first time I've had this problem,
and it's not the first computer of mine that's had the problem ..
I've also tried taking out my ATI 9600XT AIW, and just using the onboard video, but it still locks up... Could it possibly be the HD? I've found that most of the time it locks up is when I'm writing data to it ...

I'm pretty much out of ideas here ...
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techAdmin
Status: Site Admin
Joined: 26 Sep 2003
Posts: 4124
Location: East Coast, West Coast? I know it's one of them.
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Download any Linux livecd, try sidux, burn it to cdrom, boot the livecd on the machine in question.

This will show you if the hardware is more or less working.

I agree, it sounds like a hardware problem.

I'm assuming you have checked Windows event viewer (admin control panel -> event viewer), system, for red flags?

If you see ANY disk errors, assuming it boots now and then, then it's without any question a failing disk. Disk errors are generally fatal.

Also, download the Ultimate Boot Cd, burn it, then use their hard disk testing utilities to do an in depth hard disk surface scan, that takes hours, so start it at night, then let it run, and check it in the morning.

More than an error or two is usually signs of a dying drive.

Also check your ram, using the memtest tool on the ultiimate boot cd. I have found, however, that memtest does not always show ram problems, I've had cases where it said, after testing all night, that the ram was fine, but it was not fine, as I learned when I replaced it and the problems vanished immediately.

This is almost certainly a dying motherboard however, that's my initial feeling, although if Linux live cd boots on it, it might be a serious corruption in windows itself, caused by for example a corrupted hard disk, which has caused some data loss in windows itself.

Since you are using one of the few high quality, reliable, anti virus products out there, updated (I assume) completely, there's very little question of virus issues, nothing is in my experience more reliable than nod32, it's the only AV I use for people who want to pay for Antivirus.

You have to be methodical and go down the test list, whatever you do, do NOT, I repeat, NOT, assume you know what is wrong and then say, oh, it's not x or y, test it all.
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brandon277
Status: Curious
Joined: 19 Nov 2008
Posts: 6
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Hmm ...
Actually ... Last time I had this problem, was on my HP Pavilion, 2GhZ AMD Athlon CPU, 512mb RAM, and the ATI AIW. It would run flawlessly in Ubuntu, yet would lock up consistently in Windows. I'll try the hard disk and ram tests starting tonight ..
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