My laptop restarts itself - help

[Oathage]

Hi. I have a compaq evo n1020V, Windows XP pro, Sp3, 1gb RAM

My computer restarts itself. I wouldnt say it is random though.

Prior to today i wouldve said it only happens at certain times. It happens mainly if i'm watching a DVD and am moving between chapters etc. Its also happened the other day when i added a facebook interactive program. It does seem to be related with video/graphics.

However

I thought to myself i will re-install the OS. So i got my XP disk and used it to start up from so i could repair install. However it didnt even get to the menu screen. it just restarted itseld again. This kinda told me it might be a DVD drive fault but then i remembered it happened in facebook and the drive wasnt even being used.!

Anyways..i ran AVG, adaawre,regcure..all that..still problem.

So after it restarts i have to take out all cd/dvds and any usb devices otherwise the ...LAst good config..start windows normally screen appears ...if i dont remove devices the computer will continue to say this screen and not start up.

I've run Diagnostics for windows in control panel.....all clear.
re-installed all the latest drivers from compaq website.

I am lost.....anyone help????..Is it a buggered video/graphics card...I have run VideoCardStabilityTest and it crashes. Is there anyway i can know for sure the video/graphics is working or not?

Cheers guys !

 

[kimsland]

Please run Memtest on your Ram

 

[Oathage]

yeh very sure i ran that and no errors.

forgot to say that i initially had 2x256mb RAM and presumed the problem was memory so bought 2 new 2x512MB but problem was still there

thanx

 

[kimsland]

Actually, I'm thinking possibly heat related now
You say it happens when you play DVDs I wonder if when you do a full Virus scan and even run Defrag at the same time, if it'll then restart. If it does, then it may not be video but actually internal dust near or around the CPU or Fan.

The big question is can you take it apart and remove any internal dust, using high compressed air can? You could try just blowing high compressed air into the fan area outside the case.

Have you noticed if it's running hot at times?

 

[almcneil]

I'm inclined to belive this may be a hard drive issue. I noticed you mentioned you tried to boot using the Windows installation CD and never made it to the first screen. Often that's an indication of a HDD problem. I'd either run the HDD manufacturer's diagnostic program or swap another HDD in and see if the Windows installation CD works.

-- Andy

 

[kimsland]

Well here's the link to a HardDrive diagnostics program

Drive Diagnostics

Best to supply links (clickable ideally) to help members

 

[Oathage]

Hi Guys. OK. There isnt a Compaq diagnostic there so i didnt run that but i looked at another couple and you need a floppy drive to boot from. I dont have that.
But i ran the Diagnostics for windows in the control panel with no errors. see next post.

To be honest the laptop does feel like it gets a bit warm sometimes but then again i have nothing to compare it with and am not sure if its normal or not.

I'm running Defrag and AVGvirus simutaneously as we speak and it hasnt restarted yet. will let you know if it does.

I ran PC wizard and it says the temperature is normal.

I'm giving the laptop to my boss tonite and he is gonna is use compressed air as suggested to try and to clear the fan area. The fan is buzzing away on the back of the lappy fine. Will let you know the result.

One other thing.....i was browsing the net for a while last night and no troubles....then i decided to watch a DVD on it....it got thru about half hour of the film and just restarted itself, i didnt even touch the mouse or skip chapters or anything. After a restart i finished watchin the film no problems.

Any other advice would be appreciated.

thanx again guys



Hi guys. Whilst running AVG and defrag together it has just restarted itslf bout half way though. Does this lean more towards dust or a fan problem?

I had a DVD in the drive at the time. Forgot to take out after running diagnostic.
Just saying that the computer doesnt restart until i take DVD out fo drive....if left in, the computer keeps restarting itslef upon startup.,

Just run PC wizard to check everything and i wrote a TXT file of the system.i t crashed and restarted again....this time it just kept restarting itself at startup. I had to turn the power off at the mains for about 10 minutes and startup again.

Not sure if it makes any difference in this case but I am always runnig off the mains as i dont have a laptop battery.

cheers guys

Moderator Edit
I have removed your pasted logs and then attached the text file instead
Then I have merged your 4 Posts into one
In future ATTACH any large text

 

[Oathage]

Hi guys. OK...i've used compressed air to clear out any dusk thru the fan vent at the back. I've also run Compaq diagnostics and got the all clear from that but I still have the restart problem.

OK...i was thinking about the overheating issue so i downloaded Speedfan to see what it said.

Here are the temperature details.

HD0: 43°C Temp1: 72°C Temp2 30°C

Fan01: 0 RPM
Fan02: 0 RPM

Speed01: 100%
Speed02: 100%

As you can imagine i was surprised to see the fan reading. This is because the fan on the back of the laptop is buzzing away like crazy so it works fine.
Maybe its a sensor problem? Are the readings for temp too high?
Please note these readings are the highest i have had so far when laptop has been left on for a few hours.

Any help would be appreciated guys !

Cheers

 

[kimsland]

The 0 rpm just means that this info is either disabled in Bios, or the connection on the M/b is not being used, or it is in fact not spinning !

Regarding Temp1: 72°C
I'm not sure which sensor Temp1 is referring to, but if it's CPU then I'd suggest doing this:
Have a look at ArcticSilver Instructions

 

[Oathage]

OK...so you think it isnt a fan problem..i mean it is working !..cant work it out....

that link you gave me starts gettin complicated for me..i have no idea what chip i have or how to get into my laptop. even if i did find out ..exactly what am i lookng for?

cheers

 

[kimsland]

Hmm, good point on laptops it is difficult
Not sure how to respond, except you may need dust blown out internally
I wonder if you have someone there who may be confident doing this critical job (critical in the respect that it must be done properly)

 

[Oathage]

Hi guys...Ok well...i will give the laptop a good blowout with compressded air as a last ditch effort to get it going but i'm not sure if its a dust issue.

My laptop was on for 5 minutes MAX last night and I tried to play a Soccer clip stream off the BBC website and the laptop restarted almost immediately......after a restart i went to the same stream again and it again restarted itself whilst trying to watch that Soccer clip.

This kinda tells me its not a heating issue as it happened whilst trying to play a clip and also that i only had the laptop on for a Max of 5 minutes.

I know we are at the bottom of the barrel here guys but any other suggestions?

Cheers