Question

Windows XP Laptop keeps getting Kernel_Stack or Thread or Process BSODs

Asked by: build18er

I have a windows xp laptop that has always been a problem.

I have reformatted it many times, and have also tried restoring it to factory images (i am currently running on a factory image, that i loaded a couple months ago).  For the most part it is stable, as i am using it right now, and it doesn't loose my data (though i  back it up).

At seemingly random points, sometimes when it is under load, other times when it is not the computer will get one of 2 bsods, a Kernel_Stack_InPage_Error or a "A thread or process crucial to..." BSOD.  

The laptop is an Alienware m15x.  I know it isn't a hardware issue as this is the second complete system that i have had from them, and i switched out the ram to my own 3 gigs of OCZ DDR2 ram.  (and memtest checks out ok).

I have pagedefrag run at startup.

I have the system set to create minidump files when it crashes, but it fails to all but 2 of the times (i will upload these)

I use driverwizard to get the latest of all the drivers for the system.

I have symantec corporate and superantispyware running, and the system is clean.

The system does have 2 graphics cards that i can switch back and forth from (a nvidia card, and an internal intel card).

I have an excel spread sheet that i have kept a log of all of the BSODs and which graphics card the computer was using.  Along with that i have a text file with the only errors i see in the event log, although there are none that correspond with the time/name of the BSODS.

I had to add .log to the end of the minidump files such that EE would allow me to upload them.

I am really at a loss for ideas of things to do and how to troubleshoot this.  I would love to finally have this machine work fully.

Thanks for the help.

This Question has been solved and asker verified All Experts Exchange premium technology solutions are available to subscription members.

Subscribe now for full access to Experts Exchange and get

Instant Access to this Solution

  • Plus...
  • 30 Day FREE access, no risk, no obligation
  • Collaborate with the world's top tech experts
  • Unlimited access to our exclusive solution database
  • Never be left without tech help again

Subscribe Now

Asked On
2008-12-31 at 10:39:37ID24018386
Topic

Windows XP Operating System

Participating Experts
3
Points
500
Comments
19

Trusted by hundreds of thousands everyday for fast, accurate and reliable tech support.

  • "The time we save is the biggest benefit of Experts Exchange to Warner Bros. What could take multiple guys 2 hours or more each to find is accessed in around 15 minutes on Experts Exchange." Mike Kapnisakis, Warner Bros.
  • "Our team likes having a resource that is more secure than just using Google and most experts using this service really know their stuff. It's nice to look here first versus using Google." Dayna Sellner, Lockheed Martin
  • "Anytime that I've been stumped with a problem, 9 out of 10 times Experts Exchange has either the accepted solution or an open discussion of the potential solution to the problem." Kenny Red, eBay Inc.

See what Experts Exchange can do for you.

Got a question?

We've got the answer.

Experts Exchange has been collecting answers to technology questions since 1996…3 million and counting! If you have a question, chances are we already have your answer.

Screenshot of Experts Exchange Knowledgebase

Need individual assistance?

Our experts are ready to help.

If you can't find the exact answer you're looking for, ask our exclusive community of 50,000 experts. You’ll get a personalized answer from a trusted professional.

Screenshot of Experts Exchange Knowledgebase

Want to learn from the best?

Read articles from industry experts.

Thousands of free tech tips, tricks, how-to’s and tutorials are available in our peer reviewed articles section. See for yourself how smart our experts are, no login required.

Screenshot of an Article

Working on a long term project?

Store your work and research.

Save solutions to your questions, answers you’ve discovered through searching plus helpful articles in your personal knowledgebase for easy future access.

Screenshot of Experts Exchange Knowledgebase

Access the answers to your technology questions today.

Subscribe Now

30-day free trial. Register in 60 seconds.

What Makes Experts Exchange Unique?

Members of the expert community talk about why the experience at Experts Exchange is different than what you will find anywhere else.

Trusted by the world's most respected brands.

image of each brand's logo

Faithfully serving IT professionals since 1996.

Experts Exchange Logo

Try it out and discover for yourself.

Subscribe Now

30-day free trial. Register in 60 seconds.

Related Solutions

  1. Delete a Kernel and build a new Kernel with IPX support
    Hi, Yesterday I updated my kernel. At least I thought so. But Linux added the new kernel instead of replacing the old one with the new one. How can I remove either the new kernel or the old kernel? Since I need only one. The old kernel has my network-card working. For the ne...
  2. Kernel Source RPM
    I'm trying to load the NVIDIA drivers for my graphics card so I can start xwindows, however, when I run the installer from the command line I get this error: No precompiled kernel interface was found to match you kernel... Unable to find the kernel source tree for the curren...

Free Tech Articles

  1. WARNING: 5 Reasons why you should NEVER fix a computer for free.
    It is in our nature to love the puzzle. We are obsessed. The lot of us. We love puzzles. We love the challenge. We thrive on finding the answer. We hate disarray. It bothers us deep in our soul. W...
  2. SCCM OSD Basic troubleshooting
    SCCM 2007 OSD is a fantastic way to deploy operating systems, however, like most things SCCM issues can sometimes be difficult to resolve due to the sheer volume of logs to sift through and the dispe...
  3. Migrate Small Business Server 2003 to Exchange 2010 and Windows 2008 R2
    This guide is intended to provide step by step instructions on how to migrate from Small Business Server 2003 to Windows 2008 R2 with Exchange 2010. For this migration to work you will need the fo...
  4. Create a Win7 Gadget
    This article shows you how to create a simple "Gadget" -- a sort of mini-application supported by Windows 7 and Vista. Gadgets can be dropped anywhere on the desktop to provide instant information, ...
  5. Outlook continually prompting for username and password
    There have been a lot of questions recently regarding Outlook prompting for a username and password whilst using Exchange 2007. There are a few reasons why this would happen and I will try to cover t...
  6. Backup Exchange 2010 Information Store using Windows Backup
    There seems to be quite a lot of confusion around the ability to backup Exchange 2010 using the built in Windows Backup feature. This stems from the omission of this feature prior to Exchange 2007 s...

Cloud Class Webinars

  1. Avoiding Bugs in Microsoft Access
    Alison Balter takes and in-depth look at avoiding bugs in Access. In this webinar you will learn about using the immediate window to debug your applications, invoking the debugger, using breakpoints to troubleshoot, stepping through code, setting the next statement to execute, ...
  2. Top 10 Best New Features in Visio 2010
    Scott Helmers gives live demonstrations of the top 10 new features in Visio 2010. This webinar will teach you how to create compelling diagrams by adding shapes to the page with a single click, linking the shapes in a diagram to data in Excel (or SQL Server, or SharePoint), ...
  3. IT Consultant Business Secrets Revealed
    Michael Munger, Experts Exchange tech pro and IT consultant, pulls back the curtain on his very successful businesses and answers question on every IT consultant and business owner should know about. He shares secrets on what he did to solve the 5 most common problems in IT, ...
  4. Disaster Recovery and Business Continuity
    Quest CTO, Mike Billon, gives an overview of the steps involved in building a dunamic disaster recovery plan. Through case studies and an examination of software/hardware tooles for monitoring and testing, you'll gain a better understandin of where you are, where you want ...
  5. Organize Your Visio Diagrams with Containers and Lists
    Scott Helmers uses cross functional flowcharts, wireframe diagrams, data graphic legends and seating charts to teach you: how to ustilize all three new structured diagram components in Visio 2010, the best practices for organizeing shapes in previous version of Visio, how to organize ...
  6. How to Us Objects, Properties, Events and Methods in Microsoft Access
    Alison Dalter gives an in-depbth look at objects, properties, events and methods in Microsoft Access. In this webinar you will learn about using the object browser, referring to objects, working with properties and methods, working with object variables, understanding the ...

Join the Community

Give a Little. Get a Lot.

Join the community of experts here and help other tech pros by answering question in your area of expertise. You can earn FREE access to all Experts Exchange's premium features and resources.

Join the Community

Answers

 

by: SysExpertPosted on 2008-12-31 at 11:16:28ID: 23272468

Start to downgrade drivers.

ALso, it still could be a glitch in the motherboard, due to manufacturing defects, overheating, poor quality control, etc.


I hope this helps !

 

by: build18erPosted on 2008-12-31 at 12:28:06ID: 23272891

I had the issues with the original drivers too.

second, this is the second identical laptop (i had them build the new one before i send back the old one) so i don't think it is a hardware issue.

 

by: SysExpertPosted on 2008-12-31 at 20:22:28ID: 23274141

It could be, but if the combination of devices in your machine have some sort of conflict, it may not be simply bad hardware, but poor integration..

 

by: build18erPosted on 2009-01-01 at 07:45:16ID: 23275162

how do i go about troubleshooting it?

 

by: SysExpertPosted on 2009-01-01 at 08:44:01ID: 23275327

Not easy unfortunately.

SOmetimes a complete rebuild will resolve these kind of issues, or disabling certain programs or drivers may also help.


I hope this helps !

 

by: build18erPosted on 2009-01-01 at 11:46:17ID: 23275870

the error codes/minidumps don't really point to anything?

 

by: Expert4XPPosted on 2009-01-03 at 14:44:12ID: 23287471

 

by: dl2019Posted on 2009-02-01 at 11:09:54ID: 23522374

I am having EXACTLY the same problem, on an m15x, which I purchased last July. Perhaps we can compare notes...

The problem did not start right away for me, and I thought it was due to some buggy software I had installed and couldn't quite seem to get rid of. However, I just performed a clean install, and it happened while I was installing the drivers (specifically, the CIR remote control drivers) from the Alienware suport disk. I had not installed SP3 yet, nor had installed any programs. Unfortunately, the machine rebooted so quickly that I could not look at the error codes (there was no event or dump), but I caused another BSOD by running a few programs (namely a C# scientific program I wrote that causes heavy disk+CPU usage + iTunes--which seems to be a good combination to cause this to happen).

This latest had the following error codes:
0x00000077 (0xc0000056, 0xc0000056,0x00000000,0x021DA000)

No event, no minidump.

Prior to the clean install, I had a crash with the following:
0x00000077 (0xc0000056, 0xc0000056,0x00000000,0x021e5000)

While heavy use seems to cause this to happen more often, I can be doing almost nothing at all and it will happen. I have had few programs open (e.g., excel and word, a few explorer windows), many programs open (scientific simulation software, lots of windows, etc.). iTunes seems to be a catalyst for me, though, causing a higher perceived number of BSODs.

The computer always seems to work fine with sequential reads and writes for me -- large video files, 80GB+ file transfers, backups, etc. all seem to complete ok without a crash. Long, CPU-instense simulations don't seem to be problematic either--but programs that need disk reads and writes (many or few) seem more suceptible than those that only run in memory until you specifically hit "save". Memtest and benchmarks have all completed with no errors. (This could be misleading, though--with so much time between crashes, it is hard to say what is really happening.)

One thing I have noticed is that iTunes stops playing seconds before a crash. Once the music dies, I have a few seconds of mouse movement, then windows freeze in place, then the mouse and screen freeze for a couple minutes, then the BSOD appears. Also, the CPU fan runs at full-tilt while the BSOD is showing--have you seen this too?

I have tried to keep a text log of what was running when the crash occurred, but there is no recognizable pattern.

I have seen the F4 error too with the following code:
0x000000F4 (0x00000003,0x8a1ef2d0,0x8a1ef444,0x805d297c)

and also:
0x000000F4 (0x00000003,0x8a211850,0x8a2119c4,0x805d2970)

Hope we can figure this out--this is an expensive laptop!

 

by: build18erPosted on 2009-02-08 at 18:07:09ID: 23586913

definitely...give me a little to read over your notes.

 

by: build18erPosted on 2009-02-08 at 18:28:42ID: 23587000

Here is my config file...is yours similar?

I have found that running chkdsk, and having it fix errors fixes the problems temporarily...

I wonder if it is something to do with the hard drive?

II. Configuration
 
 
Processor(s)
 
Processor 1
Name: Intel(R) Core(TM)2 Duo CPU T9500 @ 2.60GHz 
Manufacturer: Intel Mobile Core 2 Duo T9500 
Caption: Intel(R) Core(TM)2 Duo CPU T9500 @ 2.60GHz 
Version: Model 7, Stepping 6 
Processor Id: BFEBFBFF00010676 
Current Clock Speed: 2592MHz 
Address Width: 32Bits 
Data Width: 32Bits 
Socket Designation: U2E1 
Verified Hardware Device against Order: CPU-2.60C2DT9500
 
Case Color: New Background
 
 
System Memory
 
Memory Module 1
Capacity: 2048MB 
Bank Label: DIMM #1 
Mem_Type: DDR2 
Mem_Frequency: 664 MHz 
Verified Hardware Device against Order: MEM-MOBLDDR22GP53ELP 
Memory Module 2
Capacity: 2048MB 
Bank Label: DIMM #2 
Mem_Type: DDR2 
Mem_Frequency: 664 MHz 
Verified Hardware Device against Order: MEM-MOBLDDR22GP53ELP 
 
BIOS Information
 
Manufacturer: Quanta
Name: PhoenixBIOS 4.0 Release 6.1
Version: vX34 P3
Version: ALWARE - 6040000
 
Motherboard Information
 
Manufacturer: Alienware
Product: m15x
Serial Number: 
Version: Not Applicable
Verified Hardware Device against Order: MB-MD2WUXGASILVERPNT
Verify correct motherboard
Power settings optimized
 
Video Adapter
 
Caption: NVIDIA GeForce 8700M GT
Adapter RAM: 512MB
DriverVersion: 6.14.11.6532
Verified Hardware Device against Order: MOBL-VMD2NB8ESE512
Test Video Card
 
Hard Drive(s)
 
ST9320421ASG
Model: ST9320421ASG 
Size: 320GB 
Total Heads: 255 
Total Cylinders: 38913 
Total Tracks: 9922815 
Tracks Per Cylinder: 255 
Verified Hardware Device against Order: MOBL-HD320GB72SATASG 
 
Optical Drives / Other Storage
 
Optiarc DVD RW AD-7590A
 
Operating System: XP
 
 
DirectX Version: 9.0c
 
 
Assembler Initials: RR
 
 
Tester Initials: AI
 
 
Test Date: 08/06/2008 09:35 AM
 
 
Burn-In/Benchmarks
 
Doom 3
Doom 3: 76.9 fps 
3DMark 2006
Customer Information:
3DMark Score: 6,559.00 3DMarks 
SM2.0 Score: 2,668.00 
HDR/SM3.0 Score: 2,671.00 
CPU Score: 2,393.00 
Game Score: 0.00 Points 
SM2.0 Graphics Tests
GT1 - Return To Proxycon: 21.64 FPS 
GT2 - Firefly Forest: 22.82 FPS 
CPU Tests
CPU1 - Red Valley: 0.76 FPS 
CPU2 - Red Valley: 1.21 FPS 
HDR/SM3.0 Graphics Tests
HDR1 - Canyon Flight: 23.17 FPS 
HDR2 - Deep Freeze: 30.24 FPS 
 
IRQ Configuration
 
0 System timer
1 Standard 101/102-Key or Microsoft Natural PS/2 Keyboard
2 -available-
3 -available-
4 Winbond HID CIR Receiver
5 -available-
6 -available-
7 -available-
8 System CMOS/real time clock
9 Microsoft ACPI-Compliant System
10 Intel(R) ICH8 Family SMBus Controller - 283E
11 -available-
12 Synaptics PS/2 Port TouchPad
13 Numeric data processor
14 Primary IDE Channel
15 Secondary IDE Channel
16 NVIDIA GeForce 8700M GT
16 Intel(R) ICH8 Family USB Universal Host Controller - 2834
17 Broadcom NetLink (TM) Gigabit Ethernet
17 Ricoh Memory Stick Controller
17 Ricoh SD/MMC Host Controller
17 Ricoh xD-Picture Card Controller
17 SDA Standard Compliant SD Host Controller
18 OHCI Compliant IEEE 1394 Host Controller
18 Intel(R) ICH8 Family USB Universal Host Controller - 2832
18 Intel(R) ICH8 Family USB2 Enhanced Host Controller - 283A
19 Intel(R) 82801HEM/HBM SATA AHCI Controller
19 Intel(R) Wireless WiFi Link 4965AGN
19 Intel(R) ICH8 Family USB Universal Host Controller - 2831
21 Intel(R) ICH8 Family USB Universal Host Controller - 2835
22 Microsoft UAA Bus Driver for High Definition Audio
23 Intel(R) ICH8 Family USB Universal Host Controller - 2830
23 Intel(R) ICH8 Family USB2 Enhanced Host Controller - 2836
 
Miscellaneous
 
Optiarc DVD RW AD-7590A
Device Name: Optiarc DVD RW AD-7590A 
Description: CD-ROM Drive 
Class: CDROM 
Service: cdrom 
Driver Version: 5.1.2535.0 
Driver Date: 7-1-2001 
Verified Hardware Device against Order: MOBL-NEC8XDVDRWR2 
Intel(R) Wireless WiFi Link 4965AGN
Device Name: Intel(R) Wireless WiFi Link 4965AGN 
Description: Intel(R) Wireless WiFi Link 4965AGN 
Class: Net 
Service: NETw4x32 
Driver Version: 11.1.1.11 
Driver Date: 4-30-2007 
Vendor Id: 8086 
Device Id: 4229 
Revision: 0061 
IRQ Number: 19 
Verified Hardware Device against Order: NIC-INTELWIREL4965 
 
Final Checks
 
Inspect machine for exterior defects
Power and data cables connected properly and bundled neatly
Components securely in place with correct type and quantity of screws to prevent short circuiting
System powers on
All fans function
All LEDs function
Ensure BIOS updated
Ensure BIOS boot up sequence runs in proper order
Check for DMI Installation
System settings customized
Application and utility software installed and tested
Correct DirectX version installed
All hardware functions properly
Device drivers installed and tested
Verify Operating System against Order
System burn-in run to ensure system operates at peak efficiency
Run Scandisk
Empty Recycle Bin
Check for CDs in the drives
Test all ports
Run Disk Cleanup
Defrag the System Drive
Ensure Operating system installed, optimized, and purged of any unnecessary programs
Benchmark scores meet performance standards
Shutdown and unplug the system
Plug the system back in and ensure system boots up properly
Repeat previous 2 steps
Shutdown and unplug the systems
Check for Windows sticker Placement
Check for Setup Poster
Check for Customer Support Warranty Information
Ensure all periphials are with system
Mousepad Present
Agent ID card present
Ensure all cables are with system
Ensure all device manuals are with system
Ensure all driver disks are with system
Ensure all software CDs are with system
Ensure correct Recovery CD with system
Check for Power Cord
System cleaned and buffed
System poly-bagged, and packaged with Styrofoam to prevent damage during shipping
No scratches, dents, or other damage on peripherals
Peripherals sealed securely 
Shipping box sealed securely 
Correct shipping labels placed on peripheral boxes
Correct labels placed on shipping box
Sales invoice present
Shipping manager sign-off
Checklist present
System shipped to the customer
 
Installed Device Drivers
 
Microsoft AC Adapter, 7-1-2001, 5.1.2535.0
Intel(R) Core(TM)2 Duo CPU T9500 @ 2.60GHz, 4-1-2004, 5.1.2600.0
Standard 101/102-Key or Microsoft Natural PS/2 Keyboard, 7-1-2001, 5.1.2600.2180
Microsoft ACPI-Compliant Control Method Battery, 7-1-2001, 5.1.2535.0
Synaptics PS/2 Port TouchPad, 12-6-2007, 10.1.8.0
Winbond HID CIR Receiver, 5-7-2007, 7.1.64.1010
Microsoft Bluetooth Enumerator, 4-13-2008, 5.1.2600.5512
Realtek High Definition Audio, 8-15-2007, 5.10.0.5466
HID-compliant device, 7-1-2001, 5.1.2600.5512
HID-compliant consumer control device, 7-1-2001, 5.1.2600.5512
HID-compliant device, 7-1-2001, 5.1.2600.5512
HID Keyboard Device, 7-1-2001, 5.1.2600.5512
HID-compliant device, 7-1-2001, 5.1.2600.5512
Optiarc DVD RW AD-7590A, 7-1-2001, 5.1.2535.0
ST9320421ASG, 7-1-2001, 5.1.2535.0
NVIDIA GeForce 8700M GT, 8-30-2007, 6.14.11.6532
Ricoh Memory Stick Controller, 2-16-2007, 6.0.1.10
SDA Standard Compliant SD Host Controller, 10-1-2002, 6.0.4069.5
Ricoh SD/MMC Host Controller, 2-24-2007, 6.0.2.3
Ricoh xD-Picture Card Controller, 3-21-2007, 6.0.1.12
OHCI Compliant IEEE 1394 Host Controller, 7-1-2001, 5.1.2535.0
Broadcom NetLink (TM) Gigabit Ethernet, 6-5-2007, 10.39.0.0
Intel(R) 82801HEM/HBM SATA AHCI Controller, 3-21-2007, 7.5.0.1017
Intel(R) ICH8M Ultra ATA Storage Controllers - 2850, 11-15-2006, 8.2.0.1011
Intel(R) Wireless WiFi Link 4965AGN, 4-30-2007, 11.1.1.11
Primary IDE Channel, 7-1-2001, 5.1.2600.2180
Secondary IDE Channel, 7-1-2001, 5.1.2600.2180
Winvnc video hook driver, 9-25-2001, 1.1.0.0
Audio Codecs, 7-1-2001, 5.1.2535.0
Legacy Audio Drivers, 7-1-2001, 5.1.2535.0
Media Control Devices, 7-1-2001, 5.1.2535.0
Legacy Video Capture Devices, 7-1-2001, 5.1.2535.0
Video Codecs, 7-1-2001, 5.1.2535.0
Microsoft Kernel System Audio Device, 7-1-2001, 5.1.2535.0
Microsoft Kernel Wave Audio Mixer, 7-1-2001, 5.1.2535.0
Microsoft WINMM WDM Audio Compatibility Driver, 7-1-2001, 5.1.2535.0
Broadcom Bluetooth 2.0 EDR USB Dongle, 10-24-2006, 5.1.2535.0
USB Video Device, 7-1-2001, 5.1.2600.2180
USB Human Interface Device, 7-1-2001, 5.1.2600.5512

                                              
1:
2:
3:
4:
5:
6:
7:
8:
9:
10:
11:
12:
13:
14:
15:
16:
17:
18:
19:
20:
21:
22:
23:
24:
25:
26:
27:
28:
29:
30:
31:
32:
33:
34:
35:
36:
37:
38:
39:
40:
41:
42:
43:
44:
45:
46:
47:
48:
49:
50:
51:
52:
53:
54:
55:
56:
57:
58:
59:
60:
61:
62:
63:
64:
65:
66:
67:
68:
69:
70:
71:
72:
73:
74:
75:
76:
77:
78:
79:
80:
81:
82:
83:
84:
85:
86:
87:
88:
89:
90:
91:
92:
93:
94:
95:
96:
97:
98:
99:
100:
101:
102:
103:
104:
105:
106:
107:
108:
109:
110:
111:
112:
113:
114:
115:
116:
117:
118:
119:
120:
121:
122:
123:
124:
125:
126:
127:
128:
129:
130:
131:
132:
133:
134:
135:
136:
137:
138:
139:
140:
141:
142:
143:
144:
145:
146:
147:
148:
149:
150:
151:
152:
153:
154:
155:
156:
157:
158:
159:
160:
161:
162:
163:
164:
165:
166:
167:
168:
169:
170:
171:
172:
173:
174:
175:
176:
177:
178:
179:
180:
181:
182:
183:
184:
185:
186:
187:
188:
189:
190:
191:
192:
193:
194:
195:
196:
197:
198:
199:
200:
201:
202:
203:
204:
205:
206:
207:
208:
209:
210:
211:
212:
213:
214:
215:
216:
217:
218:
219:
220:
221:
222:
223:
224:
225:
226:
227:
228:
229:
230:
231:
232:
233:
234:
235:
236:
237:
238:
239:
240:
241:
242:
243:
244:
245:
246:
247:
248:
249:
250:
251:
252:
253:
254:
255:
256:
257:
258:
259:
260:
261:
262:
263:
264:
265:

Select allOpen in new window

 

by: SysExpertPosted on 2009-02-09 at 12:44:03ID: 23594234

Well, a new hard drive is fairly cheap.

The fact that chkdsk fixes stuff does at least partially point ot a hard drive.

have you run the full Vendor diagnostics for your hard drive ?

UBCD will have them.

 UBCD Free with Disk tests and Vendor utilities
www.ultimatebootcd.com


I hope this helps !

 

by: build18erPosted on 2009-02-09 at 12:53:49ID: 23594353

I will do that.

It seems that itunes can cause the bsod,  but consistantly running high data apps such as Utorrent or Newsbin (for usenet) can cause crashes.

This leads me to lean towards the HDD, as these apps including itunes are reading and or writing lots of data to the hard drive.

 

by: build18erPosted on 2009-02-09 at 13:28:25ID: 23594736

problem:  UBCD can't detect my HDD when i run the seagate utilities.

 

by: SysExpertPosted on 2009-02-09 at 14:01:08ID: 23595057

Ok
In the BIOS check the SATA setup. Set it to ATA instead of AHCI ( but remember to change it back after the testing is done )


I hope this helps !

 

by: build18erPosted on 2009-02-09 at 15:45:28ID: 23595875

Don't have that option...for a 3500 dollar computer, they give me no choices...

I just ordered a new hard drive (a larger one too so i get to upgrade)

I am planning on moving the hdd image from the current drive to the new one (too much work to start from scratch) it is also a seagate (just larger).

It should arrive on Wednesday.

 

by: build18erPosted on 2009-02-10 at 11:59:23ID: 23604588

BTW... I just ordered the  ST9500420AS...I didn't get the one with the g-shock protection (i currently have the ST9320421ASG).

 

by: build18erPosted on 2009-02-17 at 09:13:31ID: 23661834

Installed the new HDD a couple of days ago...cloned the image to it....and fingers crossed...so far so good...Its amazing 2 bad hard drives from alienware in a row.  Maybe that drive isn't compatible with the hardware of their computers (stupid)

 

by: dl2019Posted on 2009-02-17 at 11:46:32ID: 23663347

I also got a replacement hard drive from Alienware (same size and speed (320 GB at 7200 rpm), but I didn't check in detail before installing to see if there had been a new revision). So far so good for me as well--actually the drive seems to be faster than before overall, though a clean install will sometimes do that.

I can't seem to get my computer to crash no matter what I do, when I used to be able to get a crash after about 10 minutes with sufficient disk accesses. I will let you know if I do. Also, please post if you have any issues.

 

by: build18erPosted on 2009-02-17 at 12:18:05ID: 23663704

yea...i have to get a new hdd from them...i bought this one online.

i have someone that i can sell it to

20120131-EE-VQP-002

3 Ways to Join

30-Day Free Trial

The Experts

98% positive feedback on 31,087 answers since March 2000. angeliii is a Microsoft Most Valuable Professional for his work with MS SQL Server & Develoment.

He has also proven his knowledge of Visual Basic Programming, PHP Scripting and Oracle Databases.

The Experts

97% positive feedback on 10,752 answers since July 2000. lrmoore has more than 18 years experience in the networking industry.

The six-time Mircosoft MVPs specialties include firewalls, virtual private networking, and network management.

Testimonials

"...and excellent source for support... Kind of like having your very own IT dept." Electriciansnet

Testimonials

"I was apprehensive at signing up at first. However... it has already made my life as an IT administrator much easier." JaCrews

Testimonials

"WOW! You guys have great, active, and knowledgeable people on here." moore50

Business Clients

Business Clients

In the Press

"If you’ve got a question... Experts Exchange can supply an answer.”

In the Press

"...an invaluable aid for both IT professionals and those who require tech support."

In the Press

"where IT professionals provide quick answers on just about any topic"

Business Account Plans

Loading Advertisement...