From owner-freebsd-questions@FreeBSD.ORG Fri Nov 26 04:34:41 2004 Return-Path: Delivered-To: freebsd-questions@freebsd.org Received: from mx1.FreeBSD.org (mx1.freebsd.org [216.136.204.125]) by hub.freebsd.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id DC68816A4CE for ; Fri, 26 Nov 2004 04:34:41 +0000 (GMT) Received: from april.chuckr.org (april.chuckr.org [66.92.151.30]) by mx1.FreeBSD.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id B388843D58 for ; Fri, 26 Nov 2004 04:34:40 +0000 (GMT) (envelope-from chuckr@chuckr.org) Received: from april.chuckr.org (localhost [127.0.0.1]) by april.chuckr.org (8.13.1/8.12.11) with ESMTP id iAQ4x3Ie029863; Thu, 25 Nov 2004 23:59:04 -0500 (EST) (envelope-from chuckr@chuckr.org) Received: from localhost (chuckr@localhost)iAQ4wYJT029860; Thu, 25 Nov 2004 23:58:41 -0500 (EST) (envelope-from chuckr@chuckr.org) X-Authentication-Warning: april.chuckr.org: chuckr owned process doing -bs Date: Thu, 25 Nov 2004 23:58:28 -0500 (EST) From: Chuck Robey To: "Haulmark, Chris" In-Reply-To: <6FC9F9894A9F8C49A722CF9F2132FC220276581D@ms05.mailstreet2003.net> Message-ID: <20041125234948.R27818@april.chuckr.org> References: <6FC9F9894A9F8C49A722CF9F2132FC220276581D@ms05.mailstreet2003.net> MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII cc: Jonathon McKitrick cc: freebsd-questions@freebsd.org Subject: RE: Is this a sign of memory going bad? X-BeenThere: freebsd-questions@freebsd.org X-Mailman-Version: 2.1.1 Precedence: list List-Id: User questions List-Unsubscribe: , List-Archive: List-Post: List-Help: List-Subscribe: , X-List-Received-Date: Fri, 26 Nov 2004 04:34:42 -0000 On Thu, 25 Nov 2004, Haulmark, Chris wrote: > Someone broke the silence: > > > On Thu, Nov 25, 2004 at 04:05:53PM -0500, Lowell Gilbert wrote: > >> Jonathon McKitrick writes: > >> > >>> This is what I get from make buildworld. I've gotten signal 10, > >>> 11, and now 5. > >>> > >>> Is this bad memory? > >> > >> That's a reasonable guess, but the only way to tell for sure is to > >> test it. > > > > Is there a port to do this, or do I have to take it out and take it > > somewhere else to get it tested? > > > > jm > > sysutils/memtest in the ports. I don't want to embarrass anyone here, but something needs to be said. Note this next sentence carefully: THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS A WORKING MEMORY TEST PROGRAM!!! Anyone who tells you otherwise is no friend of yours, because they are making your life hard. It's very alluring to assume that programs written to do a job actually do that job, and most especially in the case of memory test, one would *really* **REALLY** wish that Chuck here was lying, cause you honestly need a memory test program, but the truth is otherwise: memory test programs don't work. At the very best, if they spend 30 minutes carefully exercising memory, you get a factor that is maybe 10% reliable, and 90% wishful guessing. With that in mind, sometimes, the very best memory test programs can give you better ideas that memory you thought was failing IS failing. The opposite, proving that memory is good, is just totally, totally useless, you cannot take any data home at all about your memory being good. > > Chris Haulmark > _______________________________________________ > freebsd-questions@freebsd.org mailing list > http://lists.freebsd.org/mailman/listinfo/freebsd-questions > To unsubscribe, send any mail to "freebsd-questions-unsubscribe@freebsd.org" > > ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Chuck Robey | Interests include C & Java programming, FreeBSD, chuckr@chuckr.org | electronics, communications, and SF/Fantasy. New Year's Resolution: I will not sphroxify gullible people into looking up fictitious words in the dictionary (on the wall at my old fraternity, Signa Phi Nothing). ----------------------------------------------------------------------------