Stop Error (0x0000007E) when Restoring OS

My (elderly) Dell laptop has been really slowing down, so I decided to restore it back to factory settings. Pulled all my files off and popped in the OS Reinstallation CD. Partway through the restore process I get blue screen of death:

Problem detected . . . computer shut down to prevent damage. Stop error screen . . .

Stop: 0x0000007E (0xc0000005, 0xf748e0bf, 0xf748e0bf, 0xf78d9f08)
pci.sys – address f748e0bf base at f7487000, datestamp 3c0bfadb

I have run both quick and deep care by Advanced SystemCare 5, the diagnostic tool in the start-up screen (it found some errors and fixed them), chkdsk (found errors & fixed), chkdsk/r, chkdes/f. I have also "stepped back" to the earliest system restore points (Oct 2011). Still not able to run the OS resintallation cd.

Computer specs below. Any thoughts?
Cheers,
Allec

Win XP
Media Center Edition
Version 2002
Service Pack 3

Dell Inspiron 9400
Intel Core 2
T7200 @ 2.0 Ghz
1.99 GB

 

Hi my friend , welcome to MG's :major

first thought is checking Ram

http://majorgeeks.com/Memtest86_d4226.html
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1rELrucWAMY

second thought is checking hdd's health

http://majorgeeks.com/Hard_Disk_Sentinel_d7520.html

go for it !! :wave

 

There could be (see above) a number of things causing this.

Stop: 0x0000007E 0xc0000005 ("a memory access violation occurred" - from the above link) makes me think bad driver, bad memory (RAM, CPU cache, paging file) or possibly malware.

 

Efharisto, FalconAttack - running memtest86 now.
Satrow, Malwarebytes was run and says all is good.

 

You must run memtest 5 hours at least my friend ( φίλε μου ) !! :-D

 

Malwarebytes does not detect every malware ... check the hardware first, a problem there will affect everything connected. 7+ runs for MemTest is good (usually), any errors mean that you have a problem.

 

I let memtest run overnight. 20 passes and 0 problems.
I ran HD Sentinel. Overview reports says: 167 bad sectors . . . may form conintous areas.

So now what?

 

Greetings, matador7...

Your next step should probably be to analyze those bad sector reports. If you know the manufacturer of the hard drive, you should download and run the OEM's drive diagnostics software. If you don't know the manufacturer, then we can probably help you find that information.

From your symptoms and tests so far, however, I can see the possibility of a failing hard drive emerging. I would advise taking steps to salvage any important data asap.

 

thanks caliban. i was actually in the process of wiping the hd when this issue arose, so data was moved to the new desktop. i really just want to use the laptop for surfing - not sure how invested i am in replacing components.
HD Sent captured the HD model & serial number - found out it was by Western Digital. They have a diagnostic software, which i loaded and ran. it passed the extended test.
i tried running the OS resintallation process again and it failed - same error as before.
i ran HD Sent again, and still have 167 bad sectors.
the WD diagnostic software does have 2 "Write Zeros" functions
thoughts?

 

I can't speak for Caliban but my thoughts would be "Don't trust it, replace it". While writing zeroes might clear the problem if they're 'soft' errors - damaged data, it might be usable for occasional, non-vital backups - it should not be trusted for a system drive or any data of value.

 

and i really wouldnt use it for anything besides web browsing. have a work laptop and a new home desktop.
as of now, the thing is pretty useless. is there any harm in overwriting the HD with zeros and reinstalling the OS and aps/drivers?

 

No harm in doing it; you might have the same problems in a few days, months - maybe never.