Computer randomly freezes and unfreezes

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PsychoDave

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Ive tried to figure this out but the issue is escaping me so ive come for some possible help or ideas as to what the problem is.

Ok so my computer will randomly start locking up on me while im on the web, listening to music, watching movies...whatever. It will completly freeze up for 5 to 30 seconds, mouse wont move cant type anything and if there is sound (music/movie) I get this weird echo-ie/robot sound. After a bit it will unfreeze and all will go back to normal for a few minutes and then it will freeze again. This will go on and on untill i manually reset the system. If I restart from the start menu windows will exit to the shut down screen and just sit there. I left it over night once and it was still there in the morning.

Ive Run CCleaner, MBAM, Super Anti Spyware and a fully updated version of Avast. No virus was found and I removed some addware, but thats it. I ran Windows Disk check (error check) and the HDD is fine, im at a loss.

Anyone have any Ideas?

Thanks in advance
Dave
 
Sounds like you have covered most things in your diagnosis apart from testing the memory. Also, have you tried updating the graphics drivers.

Follow this guide to perform a memory test and please read the quote below that about registry cleaners in reference to CCleaner.

Preliminary checks
You should first check the model of RAM stick that you have on the manufacturers site for the recommended voltage setting and then make sure it is set correctly in the PC's Bios. An incorrect voltage setting may be the reason for your problems so test the PC's performance again if the voltage was incorrect.

Errors can also be caused by dirty contacts, mismatched sticks or using them in the wrong slots. Check all sticks are the same make and specification, check the motherboard manual for the correct slots to use. Remove all the sticks and clean the contacts with a soft pencil eraser and blow out the slots with a can of compressed air.

Download Memtest86+ from here

When the download is complete right click the file and select Extract Here and burn the image to a CD.

In windows 7 right click the extracted file, select Open With, then select Windows Disc Image Burning Tool then follow the prompts. For all other versions of windows (if you do not have an ISO burner) download this free software. ImgBurn
Install the program and start the application. Select the top left hand option to burn image file to disk and then on the next window click on the small yellow folder icon and browse to the ISO file you have downloaded. Then click on the two grey discs with the arrow in between (bottom left) and leave it to complete the operation.

Testing
Boot the PC into the Bios setup and set the CD/DVD drive to 1st in the boot sequence. Insert the disk in the drive then reboot and the disc will load into dos. Leave the test to run through at least 8 cycles or until it is showing some errors. If errors show in the test, remove all but one of your RAM sticks and repeat the test on each stick until you find the one that is faulty. This is a long slow test and should ideally be run overnight.

The memtest will not be 100% accurate but should easily detect any major faults.

IMPORTANT
Always disconnect your PC from the mains supply when removing Ram sticks and earth your hands to discharge any static electricity to avoid damage to sensitive components. If performing this test on a laptop PC you should also remove the battery before removing or replacing the RAM sticks.
Click to expand...


The registry contains all the operating system's knowledge of a computer's configuration, hardware devices, installed software and location of the device drivers.

Under normal conditions, we do not recommend people use Registry Cleaners. Modifying registry keys incorrectly can cause Windows instability, or make Windows unbootable.

No registry cleaner is completely safe and the potential is ever present to cause more problems than they claim to fix.

Windows is a closed source system, developers of registry cleaners are not working on definitive information, but rather empirical knowledge. Automatic cleaners will usually have to do some guesswork.

If you do have a problem that is rooted in the registry, it would be far better to edit only the specific key/s and/or value/s that are causing the problem. For this you need help from someone with good knowledge and an understanding of the Windows Registry rather than leaving it in the hands of automated software. But, first you need to be sure there is a registry problem and discover what may have caused it.
Click to expand...
 
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Downloading memtest, i swear I had a copy of it already but I cant find it.

Graphics drivers are up to date, just updated within the last two weeks. Catalyst notifies me when there are new updates but I will head to the website to double check my drivers are up to date. This is a problem Ive had for quite a while now. Id say 10+ months and this computer had its newest component installed over a year ago.

Ill check back in when memtest is finished

EDIT- Apparently my video driver wasnt up to date. A new version came out 6 days ago, installed. Will run memtest later, it takes forever!
 
Ok, I'll wait to hear from you. Memtest is a slow process, the best thing to do is to let it run overnight. You should allow it to complete a minimum of 8 passes for a reliable result.
 
So memtest ran for 9 hours and said no errors. Under Pass (in the middle of the screen) it only said 3... Where do I check to see if it made 8 passes?

At the top right it said Pass -100% Test 9 - 5%
 
What you see under "Pass" near the middle of the screen is the number of passes, i.e. the number of completed tests, next to it it shows the number of errors. Each test goes through 8 or more different phases which is what you see next to "Test" and the line above, "Pass", shows how much of the pass has been completed. You need to let the number of passes in the middle of the screen reach 8. Nine hours for only 3 passes is not normal.

I can suggest a different method for checking the memory but it does mean that you will have to remove the memory sticks, do you know how to get to them?

If you only have one memory stick this method will not work. The idea is to remove all but one memory stick and then use the PC as normal and see if the problem with the freezing continues. If it does then swap the sticks so you run the PC on each individual stick to see if the error only occurs with one particular stick.
 
Yeah, I know how to get to them...I built this PC. Ive got 4 memory sticks, 2gb each. should have gotten another pair of 4gb sticks with the parts i ordered last week to build a new rig.

Tried the mem test again 4 hours, 1 pass. Guess ill have to do 1 at a time.
 
Ok, now I know what memory you are using I would suggest you just remove one pair of sticks, leaving one stick in each channel. Forget Memtest and just keep using the PC as normal and see if the freezing continues. If it does then swap the sticks for the other pair.

This should speed up the testing and allow you to quickly verify if it is the RAM causing the problem. If you get freezes with both pairs of sticks then we can look elsewhere for the problem.

If one of the pairs causes freezing and the other pair doesn't then just run the PC on the faulty pair of sticks using only one of the sticks at a time to isolate the one with errors.
 
Sounds like a plan. It may take a few days to post results. Sometimes the system runs fine for a day or two before it freezes
 
ok, I took out 2 sticks and ran memtest on the 2 still in the board. 9 passes 0 errors. took about 12 hours to complete the test. going to pull the ram and install the other 2 sticks and rerun memtest. it may be a day or two before i can post results, i didnt order a new cd drive, so if i can im going to pick one up today or tomorrow.
 
Your not following what I suggested, which was this:

Ok, now I know what memory you are using I would suggest you just remove one pair of sticks, leaving one stick in each channel. Forget Memtest and just keep using the PC as normal and see if the freezing continues. If it does then swap the sticks for the other pair.
Click to expand...

It would be quicker and far more accurate to do the test this way and you can continue to use the PC as normal with a slightly reduced RAM capacity.
 
yeah, except i only have 1 cd rom and im building a new computer. But im at a stand still wih the new comp. Installed a new mobo, i5-2500k processor, asus gtx 560 ti gp, and some g.skill ram and i cant get the damn thing to boot. says no hd deteced, then begins to load windows then i get a blue screen and the comp resets. Then it loads again and asks if i want to scan for and fix errors or start windows normally. when scanning for errors it asks if i would like to restore to a previous restore point or cancel. if i cancel it doesnt find any errors. im going to try loading a previous restore point. if that doesnt work, ill pull the hd and cd rom, put it back in the other machine and see if it works. if it does, ill do the memtest then install drivers for the new motherboard, gpu and processor, if there are drivers for the processor and try the new rig again. if hat doesnt work, i guess ill have to start a new thread.
 
I don't understand what the other PC and only having one CD drive has to do with this, or running Memtest. I'm suggesting you don't use Memtest.

Ok, now I know what memory you are using I would suggest you just remove one pair of sticks, leaving one stick in each channel. Forget Memtest and just keep using the PC as normal and see if the freezing continues. If it does then swap the sticks for the other pair.
Click to expand...
 
oh, i thought you said to do that because it would be faster than running two sticks and waiting for the problem to happen. I guess i didnt see your entire post.

Well im on the old comp (the one with the problem) have two sticks of ram in here and am using it right now. If something happens ill post.
 
Ok Dave, just keep using the machine as normal for a day or two. If no errors occur then swap the pair of sticks with the other pair and continue to use the PC as normal. Try and use as many memory intensive operations as you can, games, video, etc, to put the RAM under pressure.

Memtest can miss minor faults so this method (not using Memtest) ensures that whatever the error is it should show up so you can isolate the faulty RAM stick.

As I have already said, if the freezes still occur during the use of either pair of sticks then we can also be fairly certain that it is due to some other fault in the system. Diagnosis can sometimes be a long process.
 
Ok, I had to pull the main HD from the old computer to put into the new one to finish building and setting up the new machine. While I was doing that i put an old IDE drive in the old computer (No IDE ports on the new mother board) and did a clean install of Vista x64. The old computer isnt connected to the web right now, no wireless adaptor and I dont have a hardline running to that part of the house so no windows updates were installed or GPU drivers.

I installed a game on the HD and played for a bit then left the computer on to go run some errands. When I came back the mouse would move but thats it, nothing responded to any clicks of the mouse and the clock didnt advance time so it looks like the problem repeated it self.

My work space has been taken over (roommates are getting ready for a babyshower) so its going to be a few days, before I can set up the rig in a safe spot to continue trouble shooting with the other ram.

Before I swap out the ram do you think I should put the main(SATA) HD back in the old computer and try again?
 
It won't matter which hard drive you have installed as long as you have all the correct drivers (including the chipset for the motherboard) for that PC installed on the drive and none of the drivers for the other working system. You should also have Windows fully updated. Anything that falls short of this may give misleading results.
 
Ok, ill update windows and the GPU drivers and the chipset drivers. I dont think I ever updated the BIOS on the old motherboard, do you suggest I go ahead and do that anyway?
 
ok, finally got the computer up and running and completly updated. 2 sticks of ram are in and i will begin testing today...
 
No need to apologise, just post back and let us know how the PC is performing when you have some results from the trial. If it locks up, swap the RAM sticks with another pair and start again.

Have you checked the RAM timings are set to match the manufacturer's recommended setting?
(Bit short of time, so sorry if that has already been mentioned)

One other suggestion. If you find the lockups still happen with either pair of RAM sticks, does your motherboard have onboard graphics, if so remove the graphics card and run the monitor from the motherboard, then see if the lockups continue.
 
Memory timings match the manufacturers recommendations. The mother board, Gigabyte EP45-UD3P, doesnt have on board graphics. So far so good, I thought it locked up this morning but its just taking a while to "wake up" from sleep mode I guess because its only operating on half the ram. Ill up date as soon as I make any progress
 
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