Summary:
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I have a dual boot machine (WinXP, FedoraCore4) that has worked flawlessly for months and months, and now, suddenly in the last week or so it is freezing up so regularly that most of the time it does not complete the boot sequence for either OS.
The Facts:
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1. I have made no hardware or software changes to this machine in months.
2. Every time I boot up the machine, it makes it just fine to the boot loader screen where I can choose the OS (however this only takes a few seconds).
3. At the GRUB screen:
a) If I choose Windows (w/ Normal startup): the screen usually just goes blank/black and the system must be hard reset.
b) If I choose Windows holding F8 w/ Safe Mode: it freezes upon loading gagp30kx.sys.
c) If I choose Windows holding F8 w/ Last Good Configuration: it freezes right then on that selection and must be hard reset
d) If I choose Fedora, 9 times out of 10 it will freeze when it says “booting the kernel” on the first screen.
4. When Windows does let me in (rarely), the desktop is white and it asks me if I’d like to Restore my Active Desktop. Anything I do after that causes a freeze and the system must be hard reset.
5. When Fedora does let me in (1 out of ever 6 or 7 boots), I’m able to use the system for up to 30 minutes or so, before it either freezes or goes blank/black and must be hard reset.
6. I have 2 hard drives: HD1 has Windows and the MBR (or whatever you call it that references the OS locations) and HD2 has Fedora.
7. When I put in the Windows XP install CD to attempt to reinstall/repair, it freezes within 30 seconds, at the screen that says Set is Loading Executive Files, consistently.
8. When I put in the Fedora Core 4 install CD to attempt a reinstall/repair it freezes within the first few configuration screens, consistently.
9. I’ve attempted install CDs in both of my disc drives.
10. Both of the install discs work in other machines.
11. I’ve checked the motherboard carefully and can’t find any evidence of damage shown on www.badcaps.com
12. I’ve recently moved to a new apartment, but for weeks after moving in, my machine has worked fine (only in the last week has this scenario started).
13. When these symptoms started, it used to just freeze Windows with the “Restore Active Desktop” error, but then quickly progressed into a state that wouldn’t finish booting.
14. I recently removed the case cover to allow (what I thought) was more air flow. I wish I could tell the internal temps, but it won’t stay on long enough for me to run any programs.
15. There is no over-clocking done in this system
16. Specs: (tell me if you need more detailed info)
MB: MSI K8T Master-2 FAR (with only 1 processor)
CPU: Opteron 244
2 GIG RAM
2 HDs, 250 GB each
ATI Radeon 9800 graphics card
Comments:
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It seems pretty clear that this isn’t a software issue. I’ve read a lot of freeze-related newsgroup entries and the thing that seems the most likely is a heat-related problem. Suggestions online that have caught my attention include:
- Removing the cover of the computer can sometimes increase the temp because the fans, etc assume certain airflow (and I removed my cover).
- Some “goop” on my processor’s heat sink has been reduced (or something) and it’s over heating which causes the freeze.
- My graphics card may be over heating and causing the freeze.
- Additionally, the fact that this situation occurs within minutes (or sometimes seconds) of turning on the system makes me think it could be heat.
It may also be that HD1 has some sort of corruption of data that would affect the boot process, but still keep the data intact. I mention this because when I do get into Linux, I’m able to access the data on the NTFS file system just fine. Not sure.
Any suggestions or help would be much appreciated. Please tell me if there is someone else out there experiencing the same issue(s).
Thanks in advance.
Ben
------------
I have a dual boot machine (WinXP, FedoraCore4) that has worked flawlessly for months and months, and now, suddenly in the last week or so it is freezing up so regularly that most of the time it does not complete the boot sequence for either OS.
The Facts:
------------
1. I have made no hardware or software changes to this machine in months.
2. Every time I boot up the machine, it makes it just fine to the boot loader screen where I can choose the OS (however this only takes a few seconds).
3. At the GRUB screen:
a) If I choose Windows (w/ Normal startup): the screen usually just goes blank/black and the system must be hard reset.
b) If I choose Windows holding F8 w/ Safe Mode: it freezes upon loading gagp30kx.sys.
c) If I choose Windows holding F8 w/ Last Good Configuration: it freezes right then on that selection and must be hard reset
d) If I choose Fedora, 9 times out of 10 it will freeze when it says “booting the kernel” on the first screen.
4. When Windows does let me in (rarely), the desktop is white and it asks me if I’d like to Restore my Active Desktop. Anything I do after that causes a freeze and the system must be hard reset.
5. When Fedora does let me in (1 out of ever 6 or 7 boots), I’m able to use the system for up to 30 minutes or so, before it either freezes or goes blank/black and must be hard reset.
6. I have 2 hard drives: HD1 has Windows and the MBR (or whatever you call it that references the OS locations) and HD2 has Fedora.
7. When I put in the Windows XP install CD to attempt to reinstall/repair, it freezes within 30 seconds, at the screen that says Set is Loading Executive Files, consistently.
8. When I put in the Fedora Core 4 install CD to attempt a reinstall/repair it freezes within the first few configuration screens, consistently.
9. I’ve attempted install CDs in both of my disc drives.
10. Both of the install discs work in other machines.
11. I’ve checked the motherboard carefully and can’t find any evidence of damage shown on www.badcaps.com
12. I’ve recently moved to a new apartment, but for weeks after moving in, my machine has worked fine (only in the last week has this scenario started).
13. When these symptoms started, it used to just freeze Windows with the “Restore Active Desktop” error, but then quickly progressed into a state that wouldn’t finish booting.
14. I recently removed the case cover to allow (what I thought) was more air flow. I wish I could tell the internal temps, but it won’t stay on long enough for me to run any programs.
15. There is no over-clocking done in this system
16. Specs: (tell me if you need more detailed info)
MB: MSI K8T Master-2 FAR (with only 1 processor)
CPU: Opteron 244
2 GIG RAM
2 HDs, 250 GB each
ATI Radeon 9800 graphics card
Comments:
--------------
It seems pretty clear that this isn’t a software issue. I’ve read a lot of freeze-related newsgroup entries and the thing that seems the most likely is a heat-related problem. Suggestions online that have caught my attention include:
- Removing the cover of the computer can sometimes increase the temp because the fans, etc assume certain airflow (and I removed my cover).
- Some “goop” on my processor’s heat sink has been reduced (or something) and it’s over heating which causes the freeze.
- My graphics card may be over heating and causing the freeze.
- Additionally, the fact that this situation occurs within minutes (or sometimes seconds) of turning on the system makes me think it could be heat.
It may also be that HD1 has some sort of corruption of data that would affect the boot process, but still keep the data intact. I mention this because when I do get into Linux, I’m able to access the data on the NTFS file system just fine. Not sure.
Any suggestions or help would be much appreciated. Please tell me if there is someone else out there experiencing the same issue(s).
Thanks in advance.
Ben
), I hope at least that this thread will be useful for others who face similar issues. Even now as I write this and watch the fans spin on this thing I still can’t believe it was the RAM, especially because of how it seemed to “progress” into a worse state over a short period of time, like I would imagine a heating issue would. Money well spent on a degree in Computer Science eh? Good thing I’m applying to law school soon. 
