Page 1 of 3 123 LastLast
Results 1 to 10 of 30

Thread: Random hangups/restarts

  1. Random hangups/restarts

    So my computer started to just up and wonk out on me yesterday. I'll be in the middle of something and video will just drop out. My monitor goes right into sleep mode. Soon after the sound drops and my entire computer just hangs. I hadn't downloaded or installed any applications recently, virus scan and spyware scan produced nothing, my hardware temps are normal, and I've even done a system restore to before I installed my latest windows update. I've had windows do an entire file system scan on my HDD and do a memory test.

    Upon attempting to reboot and restart, it will oftentimes hang up or freeze just as the Vista logo appears. I'm thinking that if it's a hardware problem, it's either the graphics card or the motherboard. Anyone know anything about my situation?

  2. Kind of sounded like my problem with my computer. Worked the day before Labor Day. Came home on Labor Day and I see wiggly colored lines on the monitor. Reboot and no signal and I dont see HDD being accessed. This never happened before.

    Sent my computer out and UPS f'd up my computer. Dented the tower, case fan fell off and a chip or something fell off videocard. So now, the person fixing my comp doesnt know for sure if its the videocard so he'll let me know what was the problem even though I definitely have to replace the videocard. Hopefully its not the mobo.

    The same computer above also had freezing as a piece of the mobo (next to processor popped off). I assume it would be your mobo. I would also think that is why the videocard isnt getting signal.

  3. Yeah, it's definitely looking like a hardware issue to me now. When I can get Windows started I try and start Quake Wars or Bioshock. The moment something graphics intensive appears, it's only moments before it locks up. There's nothing strange about the card though, it's not running hot and it's securely in place. I'm thinking it might be a mobo problem, which would really suck.

  4. #4
    I've had this issue before as well. One thing you can try is to pull the power cord and the video card. Put the plug back in and boot without the card. Shut down by holding down the power button. Pull the power cable and reseat the card, plug the cable back in and reboot. Also, try resetting your BIOS if this doesn't work.

    Good luck.


  5. first thing to do when you get random lockups (and not monitoring temps) is to make sure the cpu and video card fans are working.

  6. Thanks for the advice guys, looks like I have a number of things to try when I get home. Dyne, I did check the heatsink fans for both the CPU and GPU, they were running fine. I checked in the BIOS and the fans were running at their normal RPM.

  7. you said you did windows update right? were there any hardware drivers in the list of things you updated?

  8. Quote Originally Posted by Dyne View Post
    you said you did windows update right? were there any hardware drivers in the list of things you updated?
    They were malware related updates. One was a definition update for email and the other a malware scanning update for Windows.

  9. you said you tried a memory test. i was going to say try only using one stick of ram if you have two or more to see if ones the culprit.

    the symptoms scream overheating but you said all the fans are working.

    the psu would be about the only option you have left if you said the hdd checks out.

  10. Well, I came home and tried a few things. I turned it on and windows booted without a problem. I checked my GPU heatsink fan and saw it was running. I turned on Quake Wars and played about 20 minutes, quit, then checked my temps again. My temp had gone from 46 degrees to 74 in 20 minutes of playing. I think this is the culprit. I've never had a problem before though, so I'm hoping the card isn't wearing out.

    In the meantime I've increased the fan speed of the GPU heatsink from 59% to 90% through Ntune. Hopefully it might solve my heat problem. If it persists I might begin to think it's a card flaw.

    Is there such a thing as a PCI-E card fan? like something you can install underneath a GPU to blow air on it?

Bookmarks

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •  
Games.com logo