bootloop after extended ram check

I need some help. My pc has this problem where it begins booting up by checking the "extended ram passed". Trouble is that after checking it, it immediately bootloops back to checking it again. I've replaced the ram..that didn't fix it. Tho it seems if i try to run with less than the 2gb it's used to it then gets through the check...says"memory error" press f2 to continue...i hit f2 and it boots up just fine....this makes no sense. Ive tried both slots and each seems to work alone or with 256mb in one slot and 1gb in the other.. Please help.

 

Ok so this has happened once before actually. Had my comp down for a month or so...I was less literate about these things then. Ultimately my fix wasnt anything I understood. I booted it up with 1 gb of ram with one side open, once it was into windows i pushed the 2nd gb into the slot. (Yes, i know, very bad) In any case it froze for a second and then rebooted right up into windows all 2gb of RAM working just fine and was working for the last 4 mons till yesterday.

To get to some other things u asked. i have 3 sticks, all DDR2. i have 2 sticks that are exactly alike and are 2Gb. They have been working fine for months before and after the first time this happened. I also have a 256mb stick that came with the comp.

If i use just one in either side it works fine after the "Error Message" in the initial boot.
If i use 1gb stick on one side and the 256 on the other it works the same way.
If i flip flop those two sticks to the opposite port it still works just fine.
When i put both 1gb sticks in it bootloops

I am not sure how to change the button cell but im sure google can help me there. If it would help i could easily make a video of exactly whats happening for all to see. Thanks for the speedy reply.

ps. if you need any other infor from Speccy just let me know. Day off today for me

 

I'd definitely concentrate on changing the battery since they can cause unusual problems. The battery is almost always CR2032 type, available at any big supermarket, drugstore or Radio Shack. This video is pretty good (I always unplug the computer before opening case and touch a piece of metal to the case to disperse static electricity--screwdriver will do): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ao866I9XpTo&feature=related

It is unusual for a PC to run an extended memory check at each boot. I'm thinking it is because the PC is losing saved information during power off. Replacing the battery will ensure it saves information about the memory and/or settings which tell it to do a Quick memory test rather than an Extended one. The F2 error definitely seems battery related. My suggestion is to get a new battery and then we can figure out if the problem is purely battery related or a problem with the memory itself.