Need help, Laptop is acting strange

[kxm9976]

Hello everyone, below are the details.

Gateway MX6920 Laptop (around 3yrs old).
Old Hard drive - WD1200BEVS- 120GIG 1.5Gb/s
New Hard drive - WD2500BEVSRTL1 - 250GIG 1.5Gb/s

1) Some time ago it was not working and some family friend tried to fix it.
2) Deleted a legal XP (it came with the laptop) that was on the computer and installed some illegal XP that was working strangely and I was never able to install the video drivers and as a result the screen was fussy.
3) Again it started acting. It will start, work for about 5 minutes and completely freeze.
4) During these 5 minutes, i was able to transfer important data out (took many 5 minutes).
5) My guess was that the hard drive went. So I download Western Digital's hd diagnostic tool, burnt it as Image (ISO), but was not able to run it because it would give me some licensing error.
6) Download the Hitachi diagnostic tool. Quick test showed everything is fine. But i couldn't run the advanced test, because the laptop keeps freezing. I tried this many time, but no luck.
7) Installed a new hard drive, got a legal XP Professional SP2.
8) When I try to install the OP, I get message that it is missing some INF file, and can't go any further.

If the computer keeps freezing when I try to run the hard drive diagnostic test, what could the problem be?
Also, why am I not able to install a clean OP on a new hard drive?

I am guessing there is something seriously wrong with this computer. Sometimes, if I let it seat a little bit, and they I try to do something, it will go a little longer. But eventually it will freeze again.


Thank you all.

 

[Pederv]

Have you checked the memory?
Have you tried re-seating it?
Do you have one or two sticks?
Have you tried one at a time?

Can you see the CPU fan through the vent on the bottom of the lap top?
Can you hear the CPU fan when the laptop is on?
Have you tried blowing the CPU fan vents with compressed air?

 

[kxm9976]

Have you checked the memory?
Have you tried re-seating it?
Do you have one or two sticks?
Have you tried one at a time?

Can you see the CPU fan through the vent on the bottom of the lap top?
Can you hear the CPU fan when the laptop is on?
Have you tried blowing the CPU fan vents with compressed air?

Few things I forgot to mention. Before the laptop started acting and freezing, my sister caught some sort of virus. The kind that keeps scanning and finding different viruses and forces the user to purchase their product. The computer will still freeze in safe mode, and sometimes I can't even start in safe mode.

I haven't played with the memory and I will do that tomorrow.
The CPU fan I believe does start.
I do notice that the laptop can get pretty hot. I use one of those USB cooling pads with 2 fans, which helps a little.

When I start OS install, I do hear the CD ROM making some clicking noise, not the regular spinning.

Could it also be the motherboard?

thanks

 

[Blain]

Heat buildup can cause all kinds of bad things to happen in a laptop.
You need to make sure the fan and heatpipe fins are clean and working properly.

1. Remove the cover plate and use canned air to clean out the fan.
> Place something in the blades of the fan to keep them from spinning while you blow out the dust (a toothepick, small screwdriver, etc) <
2. Use canned air to blow dust out of the heatpipe vent from the rear.

* Make sure you're using a good CD when installing the OS (no scratches, nicks, etc)
* Repete steps 1 & 2 a couple of times until you're sure the fan and heatpipe fins are clean.

 

[kxm9976]

Have you checked the memory?
Have you tried re-seating it?
Do you have one or two sticks?
Have you tried one at a time?

Can you see the CPU fan through the vent on the bottom of the lap top?
Can you hear the CPU fan when the laptop is on?
Have you tried blowing the CPU fan vents with compressed air?

I finally got a chance to work on this.

Played with the memory sticks (I have two) today, and I switched them around, used one at a time in different slots, computer seemed ok.

I cleaned all the dust. I even applied some Arctic Black 5 thermal compound after I cleaned off the old stuff which was pretty dry.

I had the computer running for about 30 minutes and it did not freeze, which is good. It didn't last that long before. i am not sure if it will last few hours though.

However, when I tried to install the XP, it initiated the process and started loading files. Then, it brought up the window where one has to hit ENTER to install XP or R for repair, etc.
I hit enter and I received this message.

"Set up did not find any disk drives installed in your computer.

Make sure any hard drives are power on and properly connected to your computer and that any disk related hardware configuration is correct. This may involve running a manufacturer supplied diagnostic or setup program.

Setup cannot continue. To quit Setup, press F3"

I tried it on the old hard drive and on a brand new hard drive with same results.

Any ideas what this might be?
I am getting mixed opinions about SATA drivers.

Thanks