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Date: Thu, 20 Jan 2005 16:25:11 -0800
From: Matt Staroscik <matt@wrongcrowd.com>
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Subject: Re: My computer keeps crashing
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This sure smells like a hardware problem. 

>I think the problem might be due to my bios settings running the CPU to fast 
>although I do not think I am overclocking it. This might explain the strange 
>timing of the problem, maybe the motherboard is unstable.

If you are not explicitly overclocking, the BIOS should be smart enough to run the cpu at or below its rated speed. 

Time to start checking the hardware. Here is what I would do. Check for stability after each step. 

1. Wiggle & Giggle: Reseat all cables, cards and RAM. Inspect CPU cooling.

2. Turn off ACPI in BIOS. (someone correct me if I am crazy, I recall ACPI being problematic) Look for other weirdo BIOS settings.

3. Underclock CPU. (I did once get a bum CPU that was not stable at its rated speed and produced similar problems. Unlikely, but possible.)

4. Swap in new RAM or run memtest86

5. Get rid of all peripherals, re-attach one at a time if this clears it up

6. Swap in new power supply (with that nice Antec this is unlikely... but not impossible... and a bad PSU can cause all KINDS of weirdness.)

Good luck!

- matt s.