Computer Crashes, but no Virus

I have a desktop with Windows XP, and at times the computer will crash to a restart. The screen goes black and the PC restarts. I've recorded all the information i've received from the "error report".

Microsoft response

Files that were reported:
C:\DOCUME~1\Owner\LOCALS~1\Temp\WERc0e5.dir00\Mini072911-01.dmp
C:\DOCUME~1\Owner\LOCALS~1\Temp\WERc0e5.dir00\sysdata.xml

Error Sign:
BCcode:1000000a
BcP1:9898BC4C
BcP2:00000002
BcP3:00000001
BcP4:804E9EB1
OSver:5_1_2600
SP:3_0
Product 768_1

I've done a full system scan using:
1. Avast: and no threats
2. SuperAntiSpyware: with a "system broken file extension", but i can't seem to get rid of it.
http://www.superantispyware.com/applicationdisplay.html?id=20192&trial=yes&activated=no&appid={CC36FE56-766D-4BE8-B1B7-C5C4C1AA801C}
3. Ccleaner: Everything cleaned, but when scanning for registry issues there are a lot of "problems", not sure what to do with them though.
4. Malwarebytes Anti Malware: No threats.

The system runs a little slow, slower than normal at times, but i can't seem to find what the problem is, please help. i was thinking about posting in the malware section, but i haven't seen any malware or Virus issues from my scans.

Thank you
Dave

 

i forgot to add that im currently using a COMODO Firewall also and if this thread more warrants a malware problem, will a moderator please move it if possible.

 

Random crashes can be caused by several things, but usually NOT by viruses. The first thing to do: power down, unplug everything from the PC, take it outside, open the case and use an air compressor or some canned air to blow all the dust and debris out of all the fans, heatsinks, blow out the power supply, etc (this includes cleaning the video card fan and heatsink if applicable). While blowing air thru the case and fans, do NOT let the fans spin all crazy-fast; prevent the spin by holding the fan blades, wedge in a bit of cardboard or paper, whatever works. When fans spin crazy-fast in a powered-off PC, they can act like tiny generators and actually send small amounts of voltage backward in to the system and can potentially cause damage. Also, check any fans you have access to and make sure they're spinning free and easy. If you give a fan a flick with your finger and it doesn't spin freely, then the fan is bad. If the fan doesn't have a little bit of "bounce back", then it's bad. "Bounce back" means that when the fan has stopped spinning, it will actually spin backwards just a bit, maybe an eighth-or-quarter spin. While you're in the case poking around, make a thorough visual inspection of the capacitors on the motherboard.

Normal healthy capacitors look like this:



. . . . and these are more normal healthy capacitors . . . .



Leaking/popped capacitors look like this (notice the crud on top of some of these capacitors; this crud is usually a light brown/beige color, but is sometimes black or a dark brown and occasionally almost white):



And here's some that are just VERY slightly bulging on top, a very slight 'pop'.... this is still a failed capacitor.



Obviously, the popped capacitor is the one on the left.

If ANY of the capacitors are even SLIGHTLY popped (or not PERFECTLY flat), then the motherboard is failing and must be replaced.

Also, we could use some more info: how much RAM is in the PC; what is the processor, hard drive size including the amount of free space and overall capacity; etc. Just general system hardware info.

 

I waited too long to edit . . . the statement "Obviously, the popped capacitor is the one on the left" should actually say "obviously, the popped capacitors are the 3 on the right side of the 2nd picture". I was changing the pictures and ran out of time :-o So, the last picture above has 3 popped capacitors of a dark green color....

 

i actually sprayed the PC out before i posted.
i checked the compacitors and there's no bulging anywhere. There arent many to begin with as the PC is at least 6-7 years old, but i did give a very good look.

Hardware info:
Intel Pentium 4 3.0GHZ (this was replaced with the same model within the last 3 years & added an after market fan)
2GB RAM
RADEON 9250 Video Card
150GB HD with 102GB free space
New corsair power source added within the last year

What is the "system broken file extension" found in superantispyware and what about the registry scan done in Ccleaner? Can those areas be a problem as well?

 

2, A google search only brings up your post so no idea what it means nor how to fix it.
3. Just let CCleaner do its job. Maybe the SAS error will disappear once CCleaner has a chance to clean up.
Note: CCleaner will offer the chance to backup the registry before it removes those entries. Be sure you click YES! That way, if anything appears to be broken, one click will restore the registry back to the way it was.

 

so i should definitely scan for registry issues and fix those issues?

 

The broken file extension means that a file association has been messed up. For example: if the default program for opening JPG files is paint, and then somehow JPG gets 'disconnected' from its association with Paint, you'd have a "broken file extension"; or, if you try to launch an EXE file you're prompted "what do you want to open this file with", that would be another example of a broken file extension. This is easily fixed by running a batch file to re-associate and repair all extensions. You can download the batch file from this link. Unzip it and run it, and all extensions will be reset to the system defaults (this is for Windows XP ONLY!)

And yes, you should run the registry cleaner feature in CCleaner and let it fix whatever it finds. However, this will rarely actually fix any serious problems like blue screen crashes, but it certainly won't hurt. Another great little tool for WinXP is Dial-a-fix. Check all the boxes on the right side (or you can check every box if you want, no damage can be done). If you have Internet Explorer 7 or 8, Dial-A-Fix will report that it can't recognize Internet Explorer and will also pop up a message every time it encounters an Internet Explorer file. If you have an XP install CD for your version of Windows, you can run the System File Check. Insert the XP disc in your CD/DVD drive, close the window that will open, click Start > Run, type cmd and press Enter. In the command prompt window, type sfc /purgecache and press Enter to clear out any potentially corrupt files from the system file cache. This rarely takes more than 2 minutes. When it finishes, type sfc /scannow and press Enter. This typically takes at least 30 min, usually longer. Do not cancel the process, do restart the PC during the process. If you get messages like "insert Windows XP install CD" and they continually pop up over and over, try moving the XP disc to the 2nd CD/DVD drive (if available).

So, try these things and let us know how it goes! Good luck!

 

will do, i'll get it on it today and get back to you. thank you

 

"this link" isnt working, can you provide another?

 

Put this in the address bar http://majorgeeks.com/Dial-a-fix_d4899.html
and then on the right under the flashing download icon, click either of the two download from majorGeeks links (Internode works off and on so I tend to avoid that download link).

 

I just now tested "this link" from post #8 above, and it worked perfectly, but I'll provide again in its 'full' form:
http://www.dougknox.com/xp/fileassoc/xp_fileassoc.zip
It's a direct link, so the download prompt should open w/o being routed to a new web site. If it won't open for some reason, copy-n-paste the link in to your browser's address bar, if THAT doesn't work, copy-n-paste it in to the address bar again, but leave off the /xp_fileassoc.zip part. This will open a "parent directory"; scroll down until you see xp_fileassoc.zip and click on it, this should open the download prompt, if using Internet Explorer, you can right click on it and select "Save Target As..." to download. Once it's downloaded, unzip and run the resulting .BAT file.

 

should i upload the log of my dial-a-fix scan?

 

Sorry if I missed this, but have you tested your RAM or Hard drive yet?

http://www.memtest.org/ <-- Bootable CD
Let it run for 1 PASS.

If you start seeing a bunch of Red lines like the picture below:

Then you know it's a problem with RAM.

I don't think it is a malware problem at this point.

 

ill run that scan now and let you know

 

i tried to burn the iso to a cd but it wont work. i tried memtest86+ 4.20 pre-compiled bootable iso with no luck. any suggestions

 

What did you use to burn the ISO? ISOs are not burned like data CDs. Did you go into the BIOS and set the CD/DVD drive as the first bootable thing?

 

Imgburn and no i havent