weird pc problem

hi there wondering if you could help me again?

my pc just got formatted and re installed xp so its fresh this is because it used to get blue screen errors all the time and one day it didnt even go pass the windows xp loading screen.

but now i have a similar problem i only just got the pc formatted i thought it would have no problems now as its fresh, but it still goes to the blue screen with random errors like win32sy?, non fault paged area, stop 0x00000 errors like this not specific also i cannot download any anti virus or malware spyware product if i do install it i cant open it errors like stub.exe or application host error come up?
sometimes randomly the computer crashes and goes to the blue screen~?

this is really making me mad please help:cry

 

how much ram do you have installed and do the timings match? a quick search of the forums here would assist you in finding these values. if you have 4gb or more of ram on a 32 bit os this very well may be your problem. also if the timings do not match you will get a blue screen because one stick gets ahead of the others, or behind, whichever your case may be. always good to check these things. as mentioned try the windows ram test. you will have to write a floppy or burn a cd but its well worth the time.

 

sounds like virus then again I could be wrong, please right down the error that pop up in order to determin whats wrong with your computer

 

Agreed, blue screens are frequently hardware related and more often than not, RAM related, it may be something simple like a stick isn't quite seated properly.
It could also be a driver issue if you have the wrong drivers installed.

A little more info would help like what are you doing when it crashes?

To test your RAM you can download "Memtest" from this site and run it.
It could also be a HDD error, maybe a bad sector so a HDD test would be a good idea too (you'll need to know the brand of HDD for this)
Could also be a CPU problem, maybe over heating because the thermal paste has worn out or the heatsink not seated correctly.

It's going to be a matter of diagnosis and process of elimination, but I'd start with the RAM test.

 

The first thing I would recommend is to pull the cover and examine the mainboard. Look for any capacitors that are bulging on top or are showing any evidence of leaking such as a battery would do. If there are no bad caps, then proceed with all of the other tests.

If there are bad caps, a new mainboard would be in order unless your good at soldering.

 

thanks guys for all the replies

my spec for the pc is intel pentium 4 2.66ghz
ram 1 gb and 1 256 ram
120 gb hd
xp pro sp2


i will be doing a mem test, hd test now if that doesnt show up any thing i will open the tower and see if anything is out of place also i was wondering if you format a pc from fresh can a virus still stay on the pc even thogh everthing is been cleaned?

 

Not to my knowledge, providing you actually "Formatted" it then everything on the drive/partition will be gone.
It is possible that a virus stored in a file on a storage partition or drive could reinfect the C-Drive when you access it but you would have had to have moved the file to that area in the first place.

 

Some viruses are able to infect the Boot Sector of the HD. Formatting the HD will not remove this kind of infection. In this case, a new Boot Record needs to be written to remove the virus. To do this, boot the installation CD to the command prompt or recovery console and run fixmbr. Then in the new installation, be sure to remove the partition and create a new one before installing Windows.

I have heard of viruses that can infect the bios of a mainboard or HD but I have never encountered one.

 

I think it depends on how big the virus was

 

what i hav done so far to check the system

* mem test. i ran this but at 50% it came back with errors as soon as i was righting down the errors the pc crashed to blue screen sayin "win32.sys page fault in non paged area

* i then opened the tower i cleaned all the dust that was in the fans i removed the 256 ram as i have one with 1 gb which is enough for me.

*checked for any leaks or wires that are loose everthing was intact

* now i am running the mem test again and so far no crashes and no errors at 180% (how long does the mem test go for)?

*i ran cc cleaner registry tool and it came back with no issues at all

*also tried tren micro house call virus scan it came back with cmdow.exe EXPL hide win (spyware so i reomved it)

*at the moment its all running fine in mem test still running now

can any1 tell me any more software i can download that will help me find out any other errors or problems in the hard drive, proccessor e.t.c or any other check you would recommend?

any thanks guys for the help

 

just got 46 errors from mem saying pair 39661539 does not share value correctly

i don not know what it means but i collected some more numbers 39679281,39912985 , 40114201

 

another pc error

IRQL NOT LESS OR EQUAL

 

another blue screen error

A PROCESS OR THREAD CRUCIAL TO THE SYSTEM OPERATION HAS UNEXPECTEDLY EXITED

while i was just surfing the net

i have noticed i can run programs now like anti virus and spyawre but the randonm crashing is still there:confused

 

You must move quick.

First unplug your system. Then find someone with a compressor and blow the dust out of your system.
Once the dust is removed unplug and the plug back in all the cards.

 

did you run the avast scan

 

i some reason it wont let me open avast

 

All your problems point to corrupted or broken RAM. I suggest you take the 1GB stick out, put the 256MB stick back, and run Memtest overnight. Memtest is designed to run until it is stopped, and if there are no errors after about 12 hours then the system is probably OK and you can trace the RAM fault to the 1GB stick.

If there are errors, then either both sticks are bad, or the motherboard is, but the RAM error is more likely and is easier to fix.

By the way, how old is the system?

 

I would just like to add, be very careful when doing the suggestion I've quoted, most compressors store moisture in the tank unless specifically designed for electronics. Make 100% sure after blowing it out that everything is perfectly 100% dry!

Also I second what Collins said.

 

Personally I would recommend a compressed air can, although this is just personal preference as I find they can get into smaller spaces better as most of them come with straws for this purpose.

 

system is 7 years old maybe this is why its giving me problems worn out?
if i doesnt fix up then i may purchase a new one or upgrade the tower

 

Have you had a chance to run memtest on the 256MB stick yet?

 

You should be aware that bad capacitors on the main board can cause the memory to test bad and even cause the memory to become bad.

 

True, this is why I was suggesting the extra memtest, then we can see if the board is bad because if the second stick does not giver errors then we know it is the 1GB stick at fault.

 

A visual inspection of the mainboard should be the first order of business. If there are bad caps, any tests you run on components attached to that board would likely have flawed results. If you determine that no caps are bad then proceed to testing the components so your not wasting you time.

I give every computer that comes in my shop a visual inspection before the customer leaves and before I even plug it in. If it has bad caps I recommend a new mainboard and power supply or a new computer if it's a proprietary machine such as a Dell. There is no point to try to diagnose components that are running on a defective mainboard.

 

just ran mem test on the 256 ram came back with 40 errors! also this machine is doing my head in now arrrgh!

i have noticed it lets me open programs up now and i can run antivirus but i do get the occasional blue screen errors.

i did a visual inspection again there's nothing that looks melted or out of place everthing looks new as i have cleaned all the dust. i also think it may be the motherboard that is causing the problem can any one advise me in some software i can download to see if my hardrive is messed up ? or is there any way i can rest factory defaults on hardrive memory e.t.c

 

As you have found errors in the RAM I highly doubt there is anything wrong with your hard drive.

My suggestion to you now is to see if you can borrow a compatible known working RAM stick from a friend or computer shop, re-run Memtest and see if you still get errors.

 

hi guys my pc crashed agian arrgghh!:cry im so sick and tired of it now after all its an old machine. im not going to bother with it now i have decided to buy a new one now i want something with atleast 1gb mem , 120 gbhd, what processor do you think i should get?? also any suggestions on a good graphics sound video card?

i run around 2-4 programs the most simultaneously i used the internet most and i maybe play a game now and then

im not thinking of splashing out on one, because i dont want to waste money on what i wont use, but above average is the idea

and thanks alot guys for the support

 

Modern specs are likely to be around 3GB of RAM, with at least a dual core 2GHz processor. Hard drive sizes are likely to start around 250GB. For what you are suggesting your uses are I would recommend a graphics card around the nVidia 8400 mark. Sound wise onboard sound should be fine.