Several potential hardware/driver problems

Hi,

I originally posted a message in the Malware forum (here) and having taken all the steps in the reply there, I am taking the other advice given there, and posting in this forum in the hope that someone here can help!

Here are the problems:
- It reboots itself regardless of the program that's running (also in Safe mode)
- The keyboard sometimes seems to get "hijacked", typing totally the wrong keys (not always the same wrong ones) or will not respond at all
- The mouse pointer jumps all over the screen making it hard to select anything

Sometimes on a reboot (of which there are many) the screen stays blank and I end up having to switch it off and hope that it will work on the next try. I have had some overheating problems in the past and but the laptop seems to reboot even when it's not overheated, so that doesn't seem to be the problem.

I'm running Windows XP Professional. Some details about my HP laptop:
Processor: mobile AMD Athlon 4 4200 +
RAM: 450MB
Hard disk: 40GB

 

As a starter, you could download this, http://majorgeeks.com/Memtest86_d4226.html, burn it to a CD and let it run for an hour or two and see if it shows any problems.

 

Novice, thanks for the reply. I downloaded the zip file for Memtest but there doesn't seem to be anything in the file! I even tried a different file source. Am I missing something?

 

The downloaded zip file should unzip into an ISO file which should be burned to a CD using a burning program that supports burning image files. Then put the CD in, set the computer to boot from CD first, if it isn't already, and the computer should boot from the CD.

 

Hi, it's taken me a while to get around to this but finally I had the time! Memtest came up with over 3000 errors on test 5 and all the other tests were fine. I have no idea what that means, but it sounds like a lot of errors! What do I do now?!

 

It looks like one of your ram modules is having problems ( if you have more than one ). Try removing one module with the computer unplugged, and then try the test again, and do so with the other module. This should isolate the defective ram.

 

I have no idea how to do that! I'm pretty ok with software-related issues but I have absolutely no clue when it comes to hardware problems. It all seems very scary! How easy is it to remove ram modules from a laptop and how do I go about doing it?

 

As you didn't give the model no. or type of HP laptop that you have, I honestly don't know. The older Toshiba, NEC, and Dell's that I've worked on had memory access through a panel on the bottom of the laptop. The newer Compaq's that we use at work is underneath the keyboard. So, withouth knowing the model or type of your HP laptop, I can't advise!

 

I apologise for leaving out this crucial info! I thought I'd already posted it. It's an HP laptop, Pavilion ze4300... about 3 years old.

 

Something else that might help you help me! My laptop has an Athlon processor, and I read somewhere that Memtest86's test 5 can often bring up problems for Athlon processors, even when there isn't something wrong with it.

Any further suggestions on how to heal my naughty machine greatly appreciated!

 

I just looked through HP's guide for your notebook, and the memory is accessible from the bottom of the computer. You should see two compartment covers retained by small phillips screws. The memory modules will be underneath one of them. As for removal, there will be two small spring clips retaining each module. Gently pull these apart far enough to all the moduld to pop up ( it will at a small angle). Then simply run the test with each module and see if the errors stop.

I read through some of the MemTest forums for the Athlon and Test 5 issues that you mentioned. While it is true that the memory errors may not be caused by the memory modules themselves, something does cause it, and it could be the motherboard chipset, etc.

This test will merely prove whether removing a module stops the errors or not!