Date: Fri, 21 Jan 2005 08:33:16 -0000 From: "cali" <calculus@softhome.net> To: "Matt Staroscik" <matt@wrongcrowd.com>, <freebsd-questions@freebsd.org> Subject: Re: My computer keeps crashing Message-ID: <002201c4ff93$daaeca20$0501a8c0@SPECULUSHX1THE> References: <20050121000746.2535B16A4D8@hub.freebsd.org> <41F04BE7.4040301@wrongcrowd.com>
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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. My Zalman cooler has an adjustable speed, at the moment it is on low, so I can turn this up to test it, I can also take off the side panel and so on. If I can get the CPU temperature monitor working then I can find out whereabouts it becomes unstable. > 2. Turn off ACPI in BIOS. (someone correct me if I am crazy, I recall ACPI > being problematic) Look for other weirdo BIOS settings. I don't think it is ACPI, I've had ACPI problems before but they always occurred only when booting from a freebsd installation. But I don't know enough about ACPI in FreeBSD to rule it out however. > 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.) As mentioned in another reply, I ran the program on underclocked CPU last night and it is still running whereas with the CPU on its rated speed crashing was happening quite fast. I think the temperature hypothesis seems intuitively most reasonable and is the one I will test first. Of course, running the CPU at it's rated speed will presumably draw more voltage, this could then have compilated affects on other components, or could cause a PSU problem to manifest, I don't know but it seems like a reasonable hypothesis. > 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.) I'm going to try temperature first, but if that doesn't work, I'll try as many of these other things as I can. Thanks cali
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