Multiple problems

Hi please let me know if I am in the wrong place but here goes...

I have a Dell E521, Windows Vista, 2 GB RAM, AMD Athlon 63 3500+, NVidia GEForce 7300 LE, if any of that helps. Since I got my computer it has been randomly freezing, I'm talking at as random as times as you can get. I have ran all the diagnostic tools that Dell told me to do at their web site, but still no go. Now things are starting to get worse as of the past couple days. Whenever I start my computer, it won't go past the opening screen (with the big Dell logo and the BIOS number). I have to do a hard shut down for it to start properly. also, a few little things, like after my computer starts, I will right click on something in the taskbar, and nothing will happen until about 10 minutes later, where a menu will pop up in the middle of the screen from what i right-clicked 10 minutes before. Also Windows Media Player is telling me that "Media sharing is currently diabled, either because the sharing service is not running, or your firewall settings have been changed. To restart sharing, you must first confirm your sharing settings." Then the program just freezes. I have not changed any firewall settings. Also, my internet connection icon at the bottom of my screen says I'm not connected and when I hover, it says "Connection status unknown, server execution failed." But obviously, my internet works. Also I keep getting these Windows Security Alerts, saying that Windows Defender is not on, when it is, and that I do not have a virus protection program, but I do... Norton Internet Security 2008. All of these little problems all at once are becoming extremely annoying!!!! I hope if you have read this you know what I am talking about and again if I posted this in the wrong section, please let me know where I can copy and paste it before it gets deleted. Thank you!!

 

Thank you so much for your wonderful advice and technological support.

Not.

I don't think I would be on this site if I were to consider that option.

 

A list of what software is installed would be helpful, but consider this:

Did the machine exhibit this symptom "direct from the factory" with NO new software added? If so, then it is possible that something internal is wrong.

The most common non-software problem in that scenario is simple - slightly contaminated connections on the memory plug-in. Many times, removing and reseating will resolve the issue... but be careful, as those chips are "sensitive" to static electricity. Don't touch the metal on the connector fingers, partly to avoid the possibility of static damage, and partly to avoid getting any skin oil or other contamination on the metal.

Software is still the leading cause of system instability. And I have a comment that you probably will not like:

"Norton Internet Security 2008"

That software is a leading cause of system instability. Big companies like Dell will often include something like that, because Norton gives them the software for extremely low cost, as they want to hook you in to a subscription. Unfortunately, the software is not what the once excellent Norton name always was, and each newer version seems to get worse and worse.

If you have any other software NOT included from Dell, try uninstalling it (one at a time if necessary) to see if it is the culprit. Many "third party" software applications cause system instability - it is extremely common. AOL software causes system instability. Adobe Reader can cause instability (especially version 7 - version 8 seems pretty good so far, and older version 6 was solid, but suffered from security issues, as did version 7).

If you've installed any extra "gadgets" for your sidebar, those can easily cause instability.

If none of the above is helpful, perhaps you could post an inventory of what software came installed from Dell, and what software has been added, as well as a clear description of when the symptom first began.

Best of luck with it. These kind of issues can be SO frustrating!

 

I put a can of dust remover to the inside of my computer... Windows Media Player works now, but other than that no changes.

Here is what was on my computer after I bought it (I am just going by what's showing in Programs and Features):

Ad-Aware SE Personal
Adobe Flash Player ActiveX
Adobe Reader 8.1.1
Adobe Shockwave Player
Adobe Photoshop Album Starter Edition 3.2
AIM 6
AOL Install
AOL Uninstaller
Apple Software Update
CCleaner
Creative Audio Pack
Creative MediaSource 5
Creative Removable Disk Manager
Creative System Information
Creative Zen V Series
DFX 8 for Windows Media Player
EA Link
EA SPORTS Online 2007
eGames Game Butler
getPlus(R)_ocx
GGE909 PC Recoil Pad
Google Earth
Google Toolbar for Internet Explorer
HP Customer Participation Program 8.0
HP Deskjet& Photosmart Printer Driver Software 8.0.A
HP Imaging Device Functions 8.0
HP Photosmart Essential
HP Solution Center 8.0
HP Update
HPSSupply
Java(TM) SE Runtime Environment 6
Limewire 4.12.11
LiveUpdate 3.2 (Symantec Corporation)
LiveUpdate Notice (Symantec Corporation)
Micro Innovations Optical Scroll Mouse
Microsoft Visual C++ 2005 Express Edition - ENU
Mini Golf Designer
Mozilla Firefox (2.0.0.2)
NETGEAR WG111T 108Mbps Wireless USB2.0 Adapter
NHL 07
Norton Internet Security (Symantec Corporation)
Oasis
QuickTime
Spybot - Search & Destroy 1.4
Virtual Earth 3D (Beta)
WinRAR archiver
WinZip
Yahoo! Browser Services
Yahoo! Install Manager
Yahoo! Messenger
ZENcast Organizer


Stuff that came installed in the factory (again, according to my Programs and Features):

Conexant D850 PCI V.92 Modem
Dell Resource CD
Dell System Customization Wizard
DellSupport
Digital Line Detect
Documentation & Support Launcher
Games, Music, & Photos Launcher
Internet Service Offers Launcher
Microsoft Office Home and Student 2007
Modem Diagnostic Tool
NetWaiting
NVIDIA Drivers
Roxio Creator Audio
Roxio Creator BDAV Plugin
Roxio Creator Copy
Roxio Creator Data
Roxio Creator DE
Roxio Creator Tools
Roxio Drag-to-Disc
Roxio Express Labeler
Roxio MyDVD DE
Roxio Update Manager
SigmaTel Audio
URL Assistant
User's Guides


Stuff I am not sure when it was installed:

MSXML 4.0 SP2 (KB927978)
MSXML 4.0 SP2 (KB936181)
MSXML 4.0 SP2 (KB941833)



Thanks again.

 

ugh... Now i get the following message every time I try to download something:

(Name of what I am trying to download).

The requested operation requires elevation.

grrr...

 

uninstall windows defender, also uninstall norton and see how your computer response, then make sure its turned off on your start up programs.one thing at a time...

 

>> ..The requested operation requires elevation..
That's a Vista thing, and is normal. You can shut off UAC to stop that, but I do not recommend it.

Regarding other comments...

>> ..I put a can of dust remover to the inside of my computer..
Was the machine clogged with dust? Usually, that takes a fair amount of time before it happens. If it was not clogged, thus not likely to be overheating, and that one simple action changed the behavior (you said "Media Player works now"), then you should reseat the memory modules - carefully; they can be sensitive to static electricity, even when there appears to be none, and don't touch the metal fingers, because even microscopic amounts of contamination can be a problem as time goes on.

Regarding your software, you said...
>> ..Here is what was on my computer after I bought it..
[long list]
>> ..Stuff that came installed in the factory..
[short list]

The short list looks ok. The long list has some potential offenders...
AIM 6
AOL Install
AOL Uninstaller
Unfortunately, AOL software is known to cause system instability in many cases, though not always.

getPlus
Not familiar with that one, but Google reveals that others have had issues with it. Here's one example (does not appear to be a major issue, but maybe the text of it will mean more to you than it does to me)...
http://forums.cnet.com/5208-6620_102-0.html?forumID=14&threadID=252976&messageID=2518147

GGE909 PC Recoil Pad
Games are often a cause of system instability. They are among the first things recommended to be temporarily uninstalled when diagnosing a system. And with Vista, that is more true than with XP, because many games are not yet "Vista ready".

Limewire
That is an open door to malware, virus exposure, potential legal action against you (depends on what you're downloading, but the music industry and others have been successfully suing people left and right over illegal downloads, and basically there is no defense, as even cases where children installed and used the software were successfully prosecuted and the parents were ordered to pay the penalty). But most P2P software like Limewire is a dangerous thing to have because of all the malicious users who intentionally distribute malware, and ignorant users who unknowingly distribute malware.

LiveUpdate 3.2 (Symantec Corporation)
LiveUpdate Notice (Symantec Corporation)
Norton Internet Security
This is often a major offender when it comes to system instability. And I see that one of the other posters mentioned uninstalling it... be aware that it does not properly uninstall with it's own uninstaller, nor via "add/remove programs", and they were sued because of that, and as a result now have a stand-alone uninstaller that you can download here...
http://service1.symantec.com/Support/tsgeninfo.nsf/docid/2005033108162039?OpenDocument

I personally went through this ordeal with the daughter of a friend, whose Vista machine was extremely slow and frequently crashed. After finally using the Norton unstaller, her machine became stable, and gained almost 50% in performance.
I strongly recommend the ESET NOD32 software, especially for Vista machines, as it is the best in terms of protection, and has a very small footprint (uses little system resources compared to most others).

DISCLAIMER: I do not work in any way for ESET, nor do I hold any investment in the company.

Spybot - Search & Destroy
You don't need this, and if you are using it's "TeaTimer" component, that will be in conflict with other software running on Vista.
Vista includes "Windows Defender" which is better than Spybot, so the redundancy is not needed. (Shields UP! I know Spybot advocates will not agree with that statement!... sorry folks, but that's my opinion).

MSXML 4.0 SP2
That is installed as part of the normal updates process, and is nothing to worry about.

One question that remains unanswered:

Was the system unstable from day one?

If so, then it's possible that something internal is a problem.
Good luck with it.

 

okay hopefully the site will let me post this time...

Thanks again for the advice, I will take it and repost the results later.

The machine wasn't "clogged" with dust, but had dust in it. I took the RAM sticks out before dusting, and made sure no dust was in the slots before putting the sticks back in.

Do I need AOL install and uninstaller, or will that make AIM not work?

getplus showed up after i downloaded adobe 8

and yes, i bought my computer late alst winter, and started freezing soon after i recieved it. but the other problems have came up in the past few days.

thanks again

 

Ok so I used that Norton uninstall tool... my computer starts up without me having to do a hard restart, and the machine starts in like 2 seconds and runs faster.
I downloaded that ESET anti-virus 30-day trial, seems okay, just wish i could get my money's worth out of norton since i just renewed a month ago.

does the ESET anti-virus have a firewall (didn't see one) or do i use windows firewall?

couldn't figure out how to uninstall windows defender

got rid of spybot and limewire, don't use it anyway... do i need ad aware?

the only problem i still have is with the internet connection, or should i say network connection as a whole... im not sure how to explain it... like i said my internet connection symbol on the bottom of my screen has a red x, and when i hover it says "Connection status unknown. Server execution failed." I also cannot get into network connections in the control panel. I get the same message and the screen freezes. Not really preventing me from doing anything, I am just anal about stuff like that, and it's annoying.

class in 6 hours... later.

 

oh yeah one more thing... i ran dell's diagnostics all day and i got an error...
code - 0F00:0767
IDE device failed the self-test took too long to run.

I believe it was doing a S.M.A.R.T. long test, whatever that is...everything else passed.

yeah and that antivirus you told me to get just found a trojan. thanks.

 

>> ..Do I need AOL install and uninstaller, or will that make AIM not work?..
Sorry I do not know the answer for sure, as I am not an AOL user. Perhaps others here could comment on that. I could guess, but best not to.

>> ..getplus showed up after i downloaded adobe 8..
Yes, and I see a lot of chatter on various security boards about the "new Adobe spyware", which I hope is just collective paranoia - but one never knows. Spyware is getting into all kinds of software these days, and the places that push it on us say "..it's not spywar.."
The last logitech trackball I purchased had spyware bundled in the driver! A packet sniffer revealed that it was sending a complete list of all browsing activity, all media player activity, and all IM activity. But I have not investigated Adobe's use of "getplus", so can't really comment yet.

>> ..started freezing soon after i recieved it..
That's unfortunate. Debugging random crashes can be a pain.

You may want to read these articles...
http://www.dumpanalysis.org/blog/index.php/2007/05/19/resurrecting-dr-watson-on-vista/

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/308538
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/246084
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/264124
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/258205

And this troubleshooting guide is not directly applicable (it's for embedded XP), but the techniques are generally applicable...
http://download.microsoft.com/downl...9cfe-8ff5ddeb0fc1/4_Troubleshooting_Guide.doc

If you can't find a copy of Watson to install on the Vista machine, but want to try it, let me know and I can post it up at a web site for you.

One last suggestion - a long shot probably - download and install the newest video driver for your machine for Vista. Check to see what Dell recommends for the driver, in case there is anything unique about the lot of components they purchased.

 

>> does the ESET anti-virus have a firewall (didn't see one) or do i use windows firewall?
No firewall in that product - use the one in Vista.

>> couldn't figure out how to uninstall windows defender
Good... don't.

>> got rid of spybot and limewire, don't use it anyway... do i need ad aware?
No need for ad aware either.


>> yeah and that antivirus you told me to get just found a trojan. thanks.

I am surprised to hear that a trojan found its way in to a Vista machine, and if you did NOT disable UAC and a trojan got in, that is disturbing. I would like to know what it was identified as, if possible.

In my various activities, I do volunteer work at some of the local colleges. They all require incoming students to have a notebook computer, and generally the students opt to buy the Dell machines that are offered, because the schools give them a very good deal. Those machines are all running Vista this year. One thing that I and the schools IT staff have observed is that so far - knock on Sequoia - not a single incident of infection on a Vista machine - not one! During the same period, the XP machines have been hit many times with various forms of malware, and even the Mac users have had some issues with a new variant of the Opener script - and the students swear that they did not install it.
Of course, I'm sure the malware wizards out there have been working overtime to find a way to break in to Vista, and it will happen sooner or later (sounds like it already has, in your case!). To help prevent problems, the schools block all P2P applications, and in fact the computer can't connect to their networks without first being checked for "new software" - they use industrial strength monitoring software in conjunction with Cisco NAC appliances and a strong hosts file, so the students can't usually do anything "bad" on their machines, not even by accident. They are in the process of adding a policy that will block connection of external USB storage devices, because that's where most of the infections got into the XP machines.

>> I also cannot get into network connections in the control panel. I get the same message and the screen freezes.

That sounds suspiciously like malware, though it could just as easily be a corrupt file. Before checking for corrupt files, run "SmitfraudFix.exe" on the machine to see if it finds anything. It does not attempt to look for "everything", but is very good at what it does look for...
http://siri.geekstogo.com/SmitfraudFix.php

Run the Secunia Software Inspector, and see if what it finds makes sense...
http://secunia.com/software_inspector/

Reboot, and install and run the Belarc Advisor...
http://www.belarc.com/free_download.html

That software gives a comprehensive report of everything running on your machine, where it's loaded, what version it is, product keys - everything. It is a very helpful tool.

If you see anything suspicious in the report, then run the SilentRunners script and see what it says about it...
http://silentrunners.org/

That tool is similar to the Belarc Advisor, but gives more specific information - not nearly as comprehensive, but extremely detailed with regard to any/all start-up processes.

Almost last on the list, is to install a good hosts file. Go to the "Blocking Unwanted Parasites with a Hosts File" page and download the latest hosts file (October 10 as of this morning).
http://www.mvps.org/winhelp2002/hosts.htm

Follow the specific instructions for Vista, where you're told how to create a "Send To" menu item. You can ignore the part that says "OR.. Start | Run (type) shell:sendto (click Ok)", as in my opinion the longer way teaches you exactly what is happening - nothing mysterious.
Two things to note:
1) if you download the text version of the file, you must rename it as HOSTS with no ".txt" as part of the filename.
2) When you "install" the HOSTS file on Vista, Windows Defender will pop up a little warning message, telling you a change has been detected. You have to give it permission before the actual change happens.
After the hosts file is installed, you will notice that ad banners at lots of web sites will be blocked, but the content of the pages will be ok. The hosts file is the simplest and most bang-for-the-buck security you can use.
The file gets updated once or twice a month, so check back once in a while.


[saved this step for last, because if there IS/was malware on the machine, it would only mess things up again]

Run the System File Checker. This article explains how...
http://www.tech-recipes.com/rx/2231/vista_run_system_file_checker

The SFC tool can do repairs which otherwise might require reinstallation of the operating system, so it's a valuable asset for your toolbox.
Note that if you have installed "Gadgets", sometimes SFC gets fooled and reports and "unrepairable problem". To verify, copt the created log from the specified path at the end of the run (it might be very large) to your documents folder. Open it with Notepad and go to the end to see the most recent activity.

One last comment:
If you are a paranoid user as far as "It's Microsoft - it will be attacked!" is concerned, there is a really cool utility, Sandboxie. It's free, available from
http://www.sandboxie.com/

If you're wondering where I get all this stuff - I find it at stevethornburg.com
I hope this information is helpful, and good luck with everything!

PS: Thanks Steve_East9 for tip about AimAdHack!

 

I cannot believe how much faster my machine runs without Norton!!! Thank you so much... I have used everything you have suggested, except sandboxie. HOSTS wouldn't work... kept telling me it requires elevation... how do you get around that without disabling UAC?

Thanks Steve for the new AIM. It fixed my networking problem!!

Everything is up-to-date and running well now! I will check up or post later if anything happens.

Thanks for all the help... really.

I like Vista, it is better than XP, safer, won't waste my time downgrading, especially since I spent so much money on it. Had a Compaq notebook with XP on it, was on here about once a month posting my highjack this results trying to rid of something. My school doesn't give out computers, from what I know.

Not really sure where to find Watson, I will install it if you think I need to.

Maybe Norton being gone will keep my computer from freezing now... I had a subscription that I transfered from my old computer to this one, so Norton has been on here since day one until last night.

Anything else you wanna suggest lemme know, you have been extremely helpful.

 

uh oh.. whenever i hover over one of my contacts in my contact list, aim shuts down...

 

hmm, just noticed that it only shuts down when i hover over my girlfriends' name, she and i are on the same wireless network...

 

>> HOSTS wouldn't work... kept telling me it requires elevation

Sorry for delayed response... somehow this one slipped by me.

Detailed instructions for the "requires elevation" scenario are on the Vista instructions page, about half way down, at
http://www.mvps.org/winhelp2002/hostsvista.htm

Look for subtitle "Updating the HOSTS file via "Elevated" Command Prompt"