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need help - continuous restarts & errors

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I don't have the foggiest idea what's going on here -

My machine has just today started totally freaking out - it will restart unexpectedly, and it is constantly giving me the MS "program xxx has encountered an error and must close" window for any number of programs (ATItool, CCC, System Restore, Firefox, all sorts of things), and then restarting again...this started after I tried to turn off the machine (via start menu) and it would just restart instead.

I can't find any odd processes running, and I even defragged just yesterday.

I tried safemode and ran Avast virusscan to look for viruses, and it even restarted then. I can't get through a scan w/o a restart.

I'm totally perplexed - I build this system from scratch in January and this is the first and only thing that has gone awry that I haven't been able to pinpoint within minutes...

any ideas? Hardware failure?

It's currently up and running for ~ an hour w/o issues but I'm not at all convinced the gremlin has departed.
 

x800professor

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I don't have the foggiest idea what's going on here -

My machine has just today started totally freaking out - it will restart unexpectedly, and it is constantly giving me the MS "program xxx has encountered an error and must close" window for any number of programs (ATItool, CCC, System Restore, Firefox, all sorts of things), and then restarting again...this started after I tried to turn off the machine (via start menu) and it would just restart instead.

I can't find any odd processes running, and I even defragged just yesterday.

I tried safemode and ran Avast virusscan to look for viruses, and it even restarted then. I can't get through a scan w/o a restart.

I'm totally perplexed - I build this system from scratch in January and this is the first and only thing that has gone awry that I haven't been able to pinpoint within minutes...

any ideas? Hardware failure?

It's currently up and running for ~ an hour w/o issues but I'm not at all convinced the gremlin has departed.

That could be a variety of things. First, check your SMART readout for your hard drive (everest or PCWizard will do), then run memtest, and then prime95.
 
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well, it's now in constant restart mode - I can't get it to stay on long enough to try any of the above (on backup laptop atm LOL)

on startup, the bios screen is showing all drives SMART capable and OK - I haven'it got everest installed on his machine, is there any other way to check? I don't recall seeing PCWizard on my HD either..

you think HD failure is a plausible cause?
 
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ok - I ran memtest from safemode (I am using the version that runs in windows) and I get constant errors

I'll try pulling the sticks one at a time, but I haven't got anything to replace them with as I just sold and sent off my old OCZ gold....:banghead:

it's strange though - why would memory cause this sort of problem? And why now? THe stuff wasn't even really OCed, just tightened timings, it is Corsair Dominator 8500 btw
 

kwchang007

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ok - I ran memtest from safemode (I am using the version that runs in windows) and I get constant errors

I'll try pulling the sticks one at a time, but I haven't got anything to replace them with as I just sold and sent off my old OCZ gold....:banghead:

it's strange though - why would memory cause this sort of problem? And why now? THe stuff wasn't even really OCed, just tightened timings, it is Corsair Dominator 8500 btw

what's the voltage you run them at? and what temp do they usualy run at?
 

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Was going to say before you ran memtest that it sounds like a memory problem to me, can you run at stock speeds, stock timings and stock voltages to see if that sorts it? Even try underclocking them with real loose timings.

If it restarts in safe mode it shouldnt be a driver problem, that leaves corruption of Windows/registry, Memory, hard disk serious error or graphics card seriously dying or a northbridge/southbridge on it's way to the big chip graveyard in the sky, most likely to me memory or HDD though IMO.
 
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they run 2.2-2.4v, I was running them @ 2.3 4-4-3-8
they passed memtest a month ago when I got them just fine...

but back to the issue - NOW when I am running w/ one stick, my machine is stuff FUBAR - for one thing, my bookmarks in firefox are all gone, there is a big space at the bottom of my browser window, weird....
 

kwchang007

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they run 2.2-2.4v, I was running them @ 2.3 4-4-3-8
they passed memtest a month ago when I got them just fine...

but back to the issue - NOW when I am running w/ one stick, my machine is stuff FUBAR - for one thing, my bookmarks in firefox are all gone, there is a big space at the bottom of my browser window, weird....

oh god, how is the hd SMART readouts? and back up everything you need RIGHT NOW
 
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SMART readout is fine....all tests read "always passing" or "value is normal"

WTF is going on??
 
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here's what I get - tell me if this is the wrong thing to be looking at...

--------[ SMART ]-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

[ ST3250824AS (9ND0AVYR) ]

01 Raw Read Error Rate 6 117 98 156056117 OK: Value is normal
03 Spin Up Time 0 90 90 0 OK: Always passing
04 Start/Stop Count 20 100 100 199 OK: Value is normal
05 Reallocated Sector Count 36 100 100 0 OK: Value is normal
07 Seek Error Rate 30 75 60 39271465 OK: Value is normal
09 Power-On Time Count 0 99 99 1300 OK: Always passing
0A Spin Retry Count 97 100 100 0 OK: Value is normal
0C Power Cycle Count 20 100 100 162 OK: Value is normal
BB <vendor-specific> 0 100 100 0 OK: Always passing
BD <vendor-specific> 0 100 100 0 OK: Always passing
BE <vendor-specific> 45 65 63 606273571 OK: Value is normal
C2 Temperature 0 35 40 35 OK: Always passing
C3 Hardware ECC Recovered 0 72 56 63469076 OK: Always passing
C5 Current Pending Sector Count 0 100 100 0 OK: Always passing
C6 Off-Line Uncorrectable Sector Count 0 100 100 0 OK: Always passing
C7 Ultra ATA CRC Error Rate 0 200 200 0 OK: Always passing
C8 Write Error Rate 0 100 253 0 OK: Always passing
CA <vendor-specific> 0 100 253 0 OK: Always passing
 

kwchang007

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SMART readout is fine....all tests read "always passing" or "value is normal"

WTF is going on??

hmmm something crappy with windows, if you didn't do so already, backup!!! (i know i said that in my last post, but since we have no clue what's going on you don't want to take chances) is it possible you can make another partition on your disk and reinstall windows on that partition and see if it is the problem is the previous install?

and about your post above, that looks fine...weird...
 
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I could but that wouldn't really FIX my problem, nor identify it...

backing up data though, a good idea.

What's weird is that before pulling one of the RAM sticks, I couldn't run any programs...now I can, but some things just seem off.

@Tatty - I did revert to stock speeds with no realy change
 

kwchang007

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I could but that wouldn't really FIX my problem, nor identify it...

backing up data though, a good idea.

What's weird is that before pulling one of the RAM sticks, I couldn't run any programs...now I can, but some things just seem off.

@Tatty - I did revert to stock speeds with no realy change

what things are off? oh and im asking about the new install b/c it may be a problem with windows itself
 
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the things I mentioned above - firefox has lost my bookmarks, avast! is not starting up, i'll try some other apps once this stupid backup finishes lol
 

kwchang007

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the things I mentioned above - firefox has lost my bookmarks, avast! is not starting up, i'll try some other apps once this stupid backup finishes lol

oh. im taking it you didn't remove the memory while the computer was running or something? have you run something like windows disk cleaner? or ccleaner's disk free?
 
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so it appears as though I have one bad stick of ram. Thanks for the help guys!
 

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If it does that with stock settings, I would say something in Windows is buggered - format time. Also if you havent already, set voltages \ timings manually to make sure the BIOS isnt setting any wrong parameters.
 
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Yeah, it's really odd - the ram worked wonderfully for the last few months but just went haywire yesterday. I reset to stock volts/timings and the bad stick still does the restart thing so i'm going to try and RMA the kit.

Working perfectly with one stick in now
 

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Thats really odd a stick would go from fine to dead in one instant trasition. Usually there are signs :wtf: I guess thats OCZ for you :p
 

x800professor

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Thats really odd a stick would go from fine to dead in one instant trasition. Usually there are signs :wtf: I guess thats OCZ for you :p

Nothing surprises me anymore. If the ram jumped out of the computer and ate all his junk food, I wouldn't be shocked. Mine went from fine (no memtest errors) to totally non-functioning in about 5 seconds too...twice.
 
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Thats really odd a stick would go from fine to dead in one instant trasition. Usually there are signs :wtf: I guess thats OCZ for you :p

Actually, I just sold off my OCZ sticks and wish I hadn't - these were Corsair Dominator 8500s... I was only running them @ 810mhz but 4-4-3-8 timings

OCZ support was pretty great in my experience - I'm still waiting for Corsair to reply to my RMA request
 

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Actually, I just sold off my OCZ sticks and wish I hadn't - these were Corsair Dominator 8500s... I was only running them @ 810mhz but 4-4-3-8 timings

OCZ support was pretty great in my experience - I'm still waiting for Corsair to reply to my RMA request

Did you use that automated RMA request they have? Get something with a tracking number when you ship it in, because sometimes they just forget that they received it. If they do that, they'll ask for a tracking number. Wait two business days after it arrives, and then call them and ask about the status of it. There's probably about a 25% chance that they don't even know they have it. I say call them, because if they don't know they have it, they'll never send it if you don't call them. That's what they did to me once.
 
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