Memory Problems

After being on the malware and software forums I have been told that one or both of my memory sticks for my HP Pavillion laptop might be faulty. I was also told a while ago my hard drive was running slow and that it may be faulty. Is there something I can check to see what exactly the problem is? My computer only boots in safe mode and it's running very slow.

 

I recommend that you use memtest86+ to check whether or not your RAM starts throwing out errors. This is an .ISO image file, so you will need to burn it to CD with an app like ImgBurn. Nero is also capable of doing this, if you already have it.

Then when you boot from this CD (post back if you need help doing so), it will test your RAM, and run until you are satisfied that your RAM isn't faulty. If this checks out, THEN I would move to dignosing your hard drive. The fact that you can only boot into safe mode might also suggest a software problem.

 

I can only boot my computer in safe mode....I'm running memtest 3.5 that someone from the software forum sent me a link to. Is this test ok?

 

memtest 3.5 meaning you've put it on a 3 1/2" floppy disk? Yeah, that should be fine!

 

No that's a program I downloaded. It's called mem test 3.5 from HCI Design.

 

Can you link it?

 

Link it? As in send you the link?

 

Or post it!

 

Here it is. The test just runs and tells you if you have problems. I don't have any yet.

http://www.majorgeeks.com/MemTest_d350.html

 

Oh, well aren't I the bonehead? I didn't realize it was an MG download! (Having just searched MG for memtest). This should definitely work for you!

 

Will this test be ok? When should I stop the test? The people in the software forum want me to take my computer apart and pull out one memory module, start my computer and then do the same with the other module to see if either one is bad. Am I still going to need to do that?

 

Yes, this should be fine.
You should stop it when you are satisfied that your RAM is okay. Most faulty RAM I've seen will start throwing out errors within the first few seconds of running this.
I would expect that if it has been running all the while we're posting in this thread, and hasn't listed any errors, your RAM is okay. I would only start pulling them out if it gave you errors, so that you could figure out which of the two was doing it!

 

It's at 1,470% with no errors. What should I check now as my computer still is slow and only boots in safe mode. An IT person from my company checked out my hard drive about a month ago and said it was running really slow. Is there anything I can do to test my hard drive for errors?

 

You can run a chkdsk, or perhaps a manufacturer's utility, but to recommend you to one of those, I would have to know who made your hard drive.

The thing with hard drives is that it is one of the few components in a computer system with mechanical parts, making it one of the least efficient, and thus, one of the first components to die. Recommend that you backup your data immediately.

 

Looks like it's a Toshiba hard drive

 

Hmmm....toshiba doesn't produce a diagnostic utility, AFAIK. Run a chkdsk. Don't get your hopes up, though... I wouldn't expect there's much we can do for a dying hard drive. Again, back up your data, ASAP.

Is the laptop still under warranty? I'd be looking for an RMA if it was!

 

I'm not sure what you mean by this???

 

How much does BIOS and memtest report? His installation of Windows is obviously screwy.

 

It means Windows should say you have 512 MB of RAM, where it currently says you have HALF that...again, I would check out what BIOS and memtest report, as they are at a much lower level than windows.

 

Now your losing me

 

Memtest should say how much RAM you have installed. BIOS should as well...you access BIOS by pressing the key that appears on the VERY FIRST screen after powering the computer on. The information you see here is typically more reliable than what is shown in windows, as there are many levels of software between BIOS and Windows where the number could be misreported.

 

I would check the bios but TimW says I should run that mem test for a few hours. Please advise what I should do. I'm out of warranty too.

 

Well, if memtest is still running, we can use that to check how much RAM it is testing... does it show you the quantity? I'm not familiar with the specific version you're running, but the ones I've used do give this information. Please see this link for Memtest 3.5 user manual. They recommend 3 testing strategies:

1. The test reaches 100%
2. Running it for 1 hour
3. Testing overnight

 

It doesn't show anything except a small box that says How much memory you want tested (I said all unused) and a % status of the test and finally it says ERRORS or NO ERRORS.

 

After reading the manual, I would suggest you check BIOS, or continue overnight.

Sadly, I can't advise further, as it is well past quitting time for me!

Good luck!

 

Thank you for your time.

 

The BIOS says 384MB system memory

 

Yes we are talking about a laptop. It's an HP Pavillion zv5000

 

Ok I'm checking and will let you know.

 

Tim,
When I open the latch there is only one Infineon 32Mx64 SDRAM card. It's about an inch wide and 2.5 inches long. Thats all thats in there.

 

The sticker on it says 256MB DDR.333.CL2.5....I don't see any other cards in there.

 

Hi Tim...I did reset and now my computer is hung up and I can't even boot in safe mode.

 

Yes. I made sure of that. I tried taking it out and putting it back a couple of times and it still gets me to boot in safe mode which I try and then it just hangs.

 

Ok I got it to boot in safe mode. The BIOS still says 384 MB RAM.

 

I tried the error checking. My computer starts to boot (still in safe mode) it gets hung up before it can get to windows.

 

Hi Tim. I can't get to windows. I've been trying but not having any luck.

 

No it wouldn't boot before I had a chance to take out the other stick. I never got the recovery cd for some reason. I'll try what you suggested...F11.

 

Ok I will...Thanks for your help!

 

I was finally able to boot my computer in Normal mode after NUMEROUS attempts yesterday. Is there a way to see if my RAM sticks are bad OR if my hard drive is bad?