stop errors help

[JCROCCO]

I cant get a good handle on what these stop errors are pointing me too. The machine would reboot, go to a stop error, and continue rebooting going thru any one of the 3 above stop errors, and once in a while it would then boot up fine. for a few minutes until I run a system tool, or something.

I got it into safe mode, ran a cpu tester on it, and it goes for a few minutes then reboots again.

I am thinking either bad ram or the CPU is damaged. This machine had caking of dirt on it on the heat sink

This is a Pentium D 2.8 with 1 gig ram running Xp home. Dell XPS, nice case lots of fans, but with all the dust, not sure if it could damage the cpu or not.

Any ideas? I already ran the repair windows on it, didnt help.

 

[cubby1223]

Random stop errors can be bad memory. It's a quick test, grab http://www.memtest.org/ , create a cd, and boot from it. If it is bad memory, it usually shows in the first 30 seconds.

Also, dclive has a writeup on how to analyze the error reports, you'll probably have to grab the file and check it from a different machine, to see if they indicate what driver or hardware caused the stop error:
http://bluescreens.homeserver.com/BSOD

 

[JCROCCO]

GREAT, Thanks, I will give that a try and let you know how it goes.

 

[Skewer324]

It's very likely bad memory as cubby said, but if it returns no errors, the next step is to test the hard drive.

 

[JCROCCO]

I am running the test now. so far, no BSOD's and no errors. I will let it run for a while.

****update***********
That didnt take long, after ess than 30 minutes, i started having LOTS of errors It says 1981 errors, after one complete test passed, and failed on test 5.
****end of update*****

It does seem like the computer can be on for 1/2 hour to 2 hours before I start getting alot of them. That I why I thought it was heat buildup that maybe damaged the CPU. Last night, the computer would reboot up to 10 times then it finnaly would get into windows, then a few minutes later, reboot. The werf thing is I couldnt stop it, I had to unplug it. After I unplugged it, and plugged it back in, it rebooted by itself without pressing the button.

BTW, the BSOD web address you gave me does not work.

When I tried to run CPU testers, it would reboot on me. Is there something for the CPu like the Memory tester where it can run from a bootable CD rather than from within Windows?

 

[cubby1223]

You've eliminated software as the cause of the crashes. It's a hardware problem, just a matter of finding out what needs replacing.

I would now take the side panel off the case, and set a desk fan to blow air inside. Have the computer boot to memtest86+, if it can run for hours without error, then it's an overheating issue.

 

[JCROCCO]

Well, thats what I would have thought, however I did more tests.

First off, I ran all the tests with the case closed. The first test I ran with the system unchanged. After it failed, I removed both memory chips. This system has 4 slots and two chips (installed in the first and third slot).

I ran one chip in the first slot, and it tested fine.
I ran the second chip in the first slot, and it tested fine.
I ran the first chip in the third slot, and it tested fine.
I ran the second chip in the third slot, and it tested fine.

After all that, I made sure the test was actually testing the memory, so I took the memory out, and it would not start to boot. I wasnt sure if I had to have memory in slot one either, but apparently I dont.

So finally I put the memory chips into slots 2 and 4 (they were in slots 1 and 3) and ran it over night. It went 14 rounds with no errors.

I am going to now put them back in the original slots (1 and 3) and run it for a while, see what happens.

My conclusion . . .
If after putting them back in the first and third slot, it fails, it could be the slot itself.
If it passes, it could have been a memory chip wasnt seated very well, or dust (as this was very very dusty) cause a terminal connection problem, and by removing and reinstalling the chips actually may have solved the problem alone.

 

[JCROCCO]

After all of fthis, it seems the likely cause was the memory contacts. After I removed the memory, and reinstalled it, it has worked fine ever since.

Something to keep in mind should stop errors occur frequently.

Thanks for everyones help.