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infolord

asked on

Acer Ferrari Laptop freezes up on me at random times

Hello All,

I hope that you cane help me with this problem I'm having with my laptop. It's a standard Acer Ferrari 3000 and it randomly freezes on me.

I used to have WinXP Home and the first time it happenned after 3 months. I thought maybe it was the heat and the dust that had accumulated in the vents, so I carefully hoovered it and that solved the problem. After a while WinXP Home died on me, it wouldn't start no matter what, so I installed WinXP Pro on top. It worked fine for a bit, but after a month the same problem started happenning again. The frequency kept increasing and now it freezes up 4 times a day!

I do use it a lot, it's on most of the day (24 hours, not just an eight hour day), but I mean I've only had it for about 6 months and it shouldn't have that kind of problems, right?

I suspected heat is the cause of the problem, so I installed a little application that watched the temperature of the hard disks, and they don't go over 44 degrees centigrade (about 112 degree Fahreneit). I don't have another application to monitor the temperature of the processor and of the RAM.

One of the things it does that may or may not be relevant is that after a while TYPE32.EXE becomes unresponsive, which means that I lose the functionality of all the extra keys on my Microsoft keyboard. This usually happens after about an hour since starting Windows.

Another thing that I found odd is that it won't let the Norton suite install. I think this may be because Norton existed with the previous installation (the WinXP Home one), so I don't have access to the various utilities that could have helped me monitor what goes wrong.

From what I gather, having looked at forums, people say that usually the problem is found in the RAM of the computer or it has to do with the heat. But, the RAM is the standard one, I've not changed it. And I now have one of these USB laptop bases with a huge fan under it, as an extra precaution and the computer room is air-conditioned (steady at 27C / 80F) and I've vaccumed the vents and the ventilators, so it can't be it!

What else can I try? I used this Hijack This application to see what is running that might be causing the problem, but I can't figure out what all of this stuff is. The program suggests that I ask more knowledge people so here I am.

Anyone who solves this problem for me will get $50 via Paypal. No seriously! But you will have to wait for about a week of problem-free running to cash in.

Thanks

George

PS. Here's what Hijack This says (Main Report and Startup Report):


--- MAIN REPORT ---

Logfile of HijackThis v1.97.7
Scan saved at 21:38:53, on 27 Aug 2004
Platform: Windows XP SP1 (WinNT 5.01.2600)
MSIE: Internet Explorer v6.00 SP1 (6.00.2800.1106)

Running processes:
C:\WINDOWS\System32\smss.exe
C:\WINDOWS\system32\winlogon.exe
C:\WINDOWS\system32\services.exe
C:\WINDOWS\system32\lsass.exe
C:\WINDOWS\System32\Ati2evxx.exe
C:\WINDOWS\system32\svchost.exe
C:\WINDOWS\System32\svchost.exe
C:\Program Files\Common Files\Symantec Shared\ccEvtMgr.exe
C:\WINDOWS\Explorer.EXE
C:\WINDOWS\system32\spoolsv.exe
C:\Program Files\Microsoft IntelliType Pro\type32.exe
C:\Program Files\Palick Soft\HDD Temperature\HDDTsvc.exe
C:\Program Files\Microsoft IntelliPoint\point32.exe
C:\WINDOWS\System32\inetsrv\inetinfo.exe
c:\PROGRA~1\mcafee.com\vso\mcvsrte.exe
C:\Program Files\Common Files\Microsoft Shared\VS7DEBUG\MDM.EXE
C:\Program Files\Zone Labs\ZoneAlarm\zlclient.exe
c:\PROGRA~1\mcafee.com\vso\mcvsshld.exe
C:\PROGRA~1\mcafee.com\agent\mcagent.exe
c:\progra~1\mcafee.com\vso\mcvsescn.exe
C:\WINDOWS\System32\ctfmon.exe
C:\Program Files\Messenger\msmsgs.exe
C:\Program Files\Persits Software\AspEmail\BIN\EmailAgent.exe
C:\Program Files\Hewlett-Packard\Digital Imaging\bin\hpotdd01.exe
C:\Program Files\Hewlett-Packard\Digital Imaging\bin\hpobnz08.exe
C:\WINDOWS\System32\ZoneLabs\vsmon.exe
C:\Program Files\Palick Soft\HDD Temperature\HDDTemperature.exe
C:\WINDOWS\System32\snmp.exe
C:\WINDOWS\System32\svchost.exe
C:\WINDOWS\System32\wltrysvc.exe
C:\WINDOWS\system32\svchost.exe
C:\WINDOWS\System32\bcmwltry.exe
C:\WINDOWS\System32\mqsvc.exe
C:\Program Files\Hewlett-Packard\Digital Imaging\bin\hpoevm08.exe
C:\WINDOWS\System32\mqtgsvc.exe
c:\progra~1\mcafee.com\vso\mcvsftsn.exe
c:\PROGRA~1\mcafee.com\vso\mcshield.exe
C:\Program Files\Hewlett-Packard\Digital Imaging\Bin\hpoSTS08.exe
C:\WINDOWS\System32\HPZipm12.exe
C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\OFFICE11\OUTLOOK.EXE
C:\Program Files\Internet Explorer\iexplore.exe
C:\Documents and Settings\Jojo\Desktop\HijackThis.exe

O2 - BHO: (no name) - {06849E9F-C8D7-4D59-B87D-784B7D6BE0B3} - C:\Program Files\Adobe\Acrobat 6.0\Acrobat\ActiveX\AcroIEHelper.dll
O2 - BHO: (no name) - {259F616C-A300-44F5-B04A-ED001A26C85C} - C:\Program Files\SolidDocuments\SolidConverterPDF\ExploreExtPDF.dll
O2 - BHO: (no name) - {AA58ED58-01DD-4d91-8333-CF10577473F7} - c:\program files\google\googletoolbar2.dll
O2 - BHO: (no name) - {AE7CD045-E861-484f-8273-0445EE161910} - C:\Program Files\Adobe\Acrobat 6.0\Acrobat\AcroIEFavClient.dll
O3 - Toolbar: &Radio - {8E718888-423F-11D2-876E-00A0C9082467} - C:\WINDOWS\System32\msdxm.ocx
O3 - Toolbar: Adobe PDF - {47833539-D0C5-4125-9FA8-0819E2EAAC93} - C:\Program Files\Adobe\Acrobat 6.0\Acrobat\AcroIEFavClient.dll
O3 - Toolbar: SolidConverter PDF - {259F616C-A300-44F5-B04A-ED001A26C85C} - C:\Program Files\SolidDocuments\SolidConverterPDF\ExploreExtPDF.dll
O3 - Toolbar: Anonymizer 2004 Toolbar - {DB264E15-F83B-4603-BFC1-4EA7E3204686} - C:\Program Files\Anonymizer\Anon2004\AnonIEBar.dll
O3 - Toolbar: McAfee VirusScan - {BA52B914-B692-46c4-B683-905236F6F655} - c:\progra~1\mcafee.com\vso\mcvsshl.dll
O3 - Toolbar: &Google - {2318C2B1-4965-11d4-9B18-009027A5CD4F} - c:\program files\google\googletoolbar2.dll
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [type32] "C:\Program Files\Microsoft IntelliType Pro\type32.exe"
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [IntelliPoint] "C:\Program Files\Microsoft IntelliPoint\point32.exe"
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [MsmqIntCert] regsvr32 /s mqrt.dll
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [Zone Labs Client] C:\Program Files\Zone Labs\ZoneAlarm\zlclient.exe
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [VSOCheckTask] "c:\PROGRA~1\mcafee.com\vso\mcmnhdlr.exe" /checktask
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [VirusScan Online] "c:\PROGRA~1\mcafee.com\vso\mcvsshld.exe"
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [MCAgentExe] c:\PROGRA~1\mcafee.com\agent\mcagent.exe
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [MCUpdateExe] C:\PROGRA~1\mcafee.com\agent\McUpdate.exe
O4 - HKCU\..\Run: [CTFMON.EXE] C:\WINDOWS\System32\ctfmon.exe
O4 - HKCU\..\Run: [MSMSGS] "C:\Program Files\Messenger\msmsgs.exe" /background
O4 - Startup: HDD Temperature.lnk = C:\Program Files\Palick Soft\HDD Temperature\HDDTemperature.exe
O4 - Global Startup: hpoddt01.exe.lnk = ?
O4 - Global Startup: hp psc 2000 Series.lnk = C:\Program Files\Hewlett-Packard\Digital Imaging\bin\hpobnz08.exe
O8 - Extra context menu item: &Google Search - res://c:\program files\google\GoogleToolbar2.dll/cmsearch.html
O8 - Extra context menu item: Backward Links - res://c:\program files\google\GoogleToolbar2.dll/cmbacklinks.html
O8 - Extra context menu item: Cached Snapshot of Page - res://c:\program files\google\GoogleToolbar2.dll/cmcache.html
O8 - Extra context menu item: E&xport to Microsoft Excel - res://C:\PROGRA~1\MICROS~2\OFFICE11\EXCEL.EXE/3000
O8 - Extra context menu item: Similar Pages - res://c:\program files\google\GoogleToolbar2.dll/cmsimilar.html
O8 - Extra context menu item: Translate into English - res://c:\program files\google\GoogleToolbar2.dll/cmtrans.html
O9 - Extra button: Research (HKLM)
O9 - Extra button: Messenger (HKLM)
O9 - Extra 'Tools' menuitem: Messenger (HKLM)
O16 - DPF: {3E68E405-C6DE-49FF-83AE-41EE9F4C36CE} (Office Update Installation Engine) - http://office.microsoft.com/officeupdate/content/opuc.cab
O16 - DPF: {4ED9DDF0-7479-4BBE-9335-5A1EDB1D8A21} (McAfee.com Operating System Class) - http://download.mcafee.com/molbin/shared/mcinsctl/en-us/4,0,0,83/mcinsctl.cab
O16 - DPF: {9F1C11AA-197B-4942-BA54-47A8489BB47F} - http://v4.windowsupdate.microsoft.com/CAB/x86/unicode/iuctl.CAB?38176.7382060185
O16 - DPF: {BCC0FF27-31D9-4614-A68E-C18E1ADA4389} (DwnldGroupMgr Class) - http://download.mcafee.com/molbin/shared/mcgdmgr/en-us/1,0,0,20/mcgdmgr.cab
O16 - DPF: {D27CDB6E-AE6D-11CF-96B8-444553540000} (Shockwave Flash Object) - https://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab
O17 - HKLM\System\CCS\Services\Tcpip\..\{9C87473B-FA19-422D-BA40-4E3F83D9BB89}: NameServer = 62.169.194.17 62.169.194.18





--- STARTUP REPORT ---

StartupList report, 27 Aug 2004, 22:02:42
StartupList version: 1.52
Started from : C:\Documents and Settings\Jojo\Desktop\HijackThis.EXE
Detected: Windows XP SP1 (WinNT 5.01.2600)
Detected: Internet Explorer v6.00 SP1 (6.00.2800.1106)
* Using default options
==================================================

Running processes:

C:\WINDOWS\System32\smss.exe
C:\WINDOWS\system32\winlogon.exe
C:\WINDOWS\system32\services.exe
C:\WINDOWS\system32\lsass.exe
C:\WINDOWS\System32\Ati2evxx.exe
C:\WINDOWS\system32\svchost.exe
C:\WINDOWS\System32\svchost.exe
C:\Program Files\Common Files\Symantec Shared\ccEvtMgr.exe
C:\WINDOWS\Explorer.EXE
C:\WINDOWS\system32\spoolsv.exe
C:\Program Files\Microsoft IntelliType Pro\type32.exe
C:\Program Files\Palick Soft\HDD Temperature\HDDTsvc.exe
C:\Program Files\Microsoft IntelliPoint\point32.exe
C:\WINDOWS\System32\inetsrv\inetinfo.exe
c:\PROGRA~1\mcafee.com\vso\mcvsrte.exe
C:\Program Files\Common Files\Microsoft Shared\VS7DEBUG\MDM.EXE
C:\Program Files\Zone Labs\ZoneAlarm\zlclient.exe
c:\PROGRA~1\mcafee.com\vso\mcvsshld.exe
C:\PROGRA~1\mcafee.com\agent\mcagent.exe
c:\progra~1\mcafee.com\vso\mcvsescn.exe
C:\WINDOWS\System32\ctfmon.exe
C:\Program Files\Messenger\msmsgs.exe
C:\Program Files\Persits Software\AspEmail\BIN\EmailAgent.exe
C:\Program Files\Hewlett-Packard\Digital Imaging\bin\hpotdd01.exe
C:\Program Files\Hewlett-Packard\Digital Imaging\bin\hpobnz08.exe
C:\WINDOWS\System32\ZoneLabs\vsmon.exe
C:\Program Files\Palick Soft\HDD Temperature\HDDTemperature.exe
C:\WINDOWS\System32\snmp.exe
C:\WINDOWS\System32\svchost.exe
C:\WINDOWS\System32\wltrysvc.exe
C:\WINDOWS\system32\svchost.exe
C:\WINDOWS\System32\bcmwltry.exe
C:\WINDOWS\System32\mqsvc.exe
C:\Program Files\Hewlett-Packard\Digital Imaging\bin\hpoevm08.exe
C:\WINDOWS\System32\mqtgsvc.exe
c:\progra~1\mcafee.com\vso\mcvsftsn.exe
c:\PROGRA~1\mcafee.com\vso\mcshield.exe
C:\Program Files\Hewlett-Packard\Digital Imaging\Bin\hpoSTS08.exe
C:\WINDOWS\System32\HPZipm12.exe
C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\OFFICE11\OUTLOOK.EXE
C:\WINDOWS\system32\notepad.exe
C:\Documents and Settings\Jojo\Desktop\HijackThis.exe

--------------------------------------------------

Listing of startup folders:

Shell folders Common Startup:
[C:\Documents and Settings\All Users.WINDOWS\Start Menu\Programs\Startup]
hpoddt01.exe.lnk = ?
hp psc 2000 Series.lnk = C:\Program Files\Hewlett-Packard\Digital Imaging\bin\hpobnz08.exe

--------------------------------------------------

Checking Windows NT UserInit:

[HKLM\Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Winlogon]
UserInit = C:\WINDOWS\system32\userinit.exe,

--------------------------------------------------

Autorun entries from Registry:
HKLM\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run

type32 = "C:\Program Files\Microsoft IntelliType Pro\type32.exe"
IntelliPoint = "C:\Program Files\Microsoft IntelliPoint\point32.exe"
MsmqIntCert = regsvr32 /s mqrt.dll
Zone Labs Client = C:\Program Files\Zone Labs\ZoneAlarm\zlclient.exe
VSOCheckTask = "c:\PROGRA~1\mcafee.com\vso\mcmnhdlr.exe" /checktask
VirusScan Online = "c:\PROGRA~1\mcafee.com\vso\mcvsshld.exe"
MCAgentExe = c:\PROGRA~1\mcafee.com\agent\mcagent.exe
MCUpdateExe = C:\PROGRA~1\mcafee.com\agent\McUpdate.exe

--------------------------------------------------

Autorun entries from Registry:
HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run

CTFMON.EXE = C:\WINDOWS\System32\ctfmon.exe
MSMSGS = "C:\Program Files\Messenger\msmsgs.exe" /background

--------------------------------------------------

Shell & screensaver key from C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM.INI:

Shell=*INI section not found*
SCRNSAVE.EXE=*INI section not found*
drivers=*INI section not found*

Shell & screensaver key from Registry:

Shell=Explorer.exe
SCRNSAVE.EXE=C:\WINDOWS\System32\ss3dfo.scr
drivers=*Registry value not found*

Policies Shell key:

HKCU\..\Policies: Shell=*Registry key not found*
HKLM\..\Policies: Shell=*Registry value not found*

--------------------------------------------------


Enumerating Browser Helper Objects:

(no name) - C:\Program Files\Adobe\Acrobat 6.0\Acrobat\ActiveX\AcroIEHelper.dll - {06849E9F-C8D7-4D59-B87D-784B7D6BE0B3}
(no name) - C:\Program Files\SolidDocuments\SolidConverterPDF\ExploreExtPDF.dll - {259F616C-A300-44F5-B04A-ED001A26C85C}
(no name) - c:\program files\google\googletoolbar2.dll - {AA58ED58-01DD-4d91-8333-CF10577473F7}
(no name) - C:\Program Files\Adobe\Acrobat 6.0\Acrobat\AcroIEFavClient.dll - {AE7CD045-E861-484f-8273-0445EE161910}

--------------------------------------------------

Enumerating Task Scheduler jobs:

McAfee.com Update Check (FERRARI-Jojo).job
McAfee.com Scan for Viruses - My Computer (FERRARI-Jojo).job
FRU Task #Hewlett-Packard#hp psc 2170 series#1091798389.job
FRU Task #Hewlett-Packard#hp psc 2170 series#1090148876.job
FRU Task #Hewlett-Packard#hp psc 2170 series#1090220810.job
Symantec NetDetect.job

--------------------------------------------------

Enumerating Download Program Files:

[Office Update Installation Engine]
InProcServer32 = C:\WINDOWS\opuc.dll
CODEBASE = http://office.microsoft.com/officeupdate/content/opuc.cab

[McAfee.com Operating System Class]
InProcServer32 = C:\WINDOWS\System32\mcinsctl.dll
CODEBASE = http://download.mcafee.com/molbin/shared/mcinsctl/en-us/4,0,0,83/mcinsctl.cab

[{9F1C11AA-197B-4942-BA54-47A8489BB47F}]
CODEBASE = http://v4.windowsupdate.microsoft.com/CAB/x86/unicode/iuctl.CAB?38176.7382060185

[DwnldGroupMgr Class]
InProcServer32 = C:\WINDOWS\System32\McGDMgr.dll
CODEBASE = http://download.mcafee.com/molbin/shared/mcgdmgr/en-us/1,0,0,20/mcgdmgr.cab

[Shockwave Flash Object]
InProcServer32 = C:\WINDOWS\System32\macromed\flash\Flash.ocx
CODEBASE = https://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab

--------------------------------------------------

Enumerating ShellServiceObjectDelayLoad items:

PostBootReminder: C:\WINDOWS\system32\SHELL32.dll
CDBurn: C:\WINDOWS\system32\SHELL32.dll
WebCheck: C:\WINDOWS\System32\webcheck.dll
SysTray: C:\WINDOWS\System32\stobject.dll

--------------------------------------------------
End of report, 6,904 bytes
Report generated in 0.041 seconds

Command line options:
   /verbose  - to add additional info on each section
   /complete - to include empty sections and unsuspicious data
   /full     - to include several rarely-important sections
   /force9x  - to include Win9x-only startups even if running on WinNT
   /forcent  - to include WinNT-only startups even if running on Win9x
   /forceall - to include all Win9x and WinNT startups, regardless of platform
   /history  - to list version history only
Avatar of Luc Franken
Luc Franken
Flag of Netherlands image

Hi infolord,

Your Hijackthis log is clean, no entries that shouldn't be there.
So, first of all, as your laptop is only 6 months old, bring it back for warranty! Don't start messing with it yourself!

In case you're for some reason not able to bring it back for warranty you'll have to check some things yourself:
1) CPU temperature
2) Set the bios to defaults
3) other faulty hardware

Greetings,

LucF
First, if I am the one who solves this, please send any donations to one of our experts who is in dire need of medical attention.  You will see that he is the #1 expert on the list..  CrazyOne needs our help..  here is the link to our help CO page:

http://www.cityofangels.com/Experts/Crazyone/

Here is a nifty utility that will measure CPU temp's along with RAM, etc...

http://www.hmonitor.com/

It is free for 30 days, and fully functional.

FE
One little thingy I just noticed, you have a very old version of hijackthis, please post another log with the latest version:
http://aumha.org/downloads/hijackthis.exe 

No need to post another startuplog.

LucF
And, I agree with LucF on this too...  You should not need to be doing this.  It is not acceptable for a system 6 months old.  If the utility above shows extreme heat, then contact your supplier and insist on a replacement...

Evening LucF..  So, if we both help solve this, do you want to send your share to CO also?  :)

FE
Evening FE :)
I'm out of a job at the moment, but as soon as I have another job, the first thing is a donation to CO :o)
Avatar of infolord
infolord

ASKER

Fatal_Exception: Thank you, I'll see that your friend receives the money if you crack this one.  The util you pointed seems pretty good, but unfortunately it only displays the HDD temperature. Perhaps because I'm using a laptop and laptops don't have all that many sensors inside?

LucF: Thanks for replying so fast. Unfortunately I live in Greece and Acer's rep in Greece is not a very stable company, I'm told. And I would really want to avoid setting up from the beginning if I can, so before I even ring them, I want to rule out that there's something wrong with the software/OS or whatever else that I can fix.

Here's the new log that you asked:

Logfile of HijackThis v1.98.2
Scan saved at 22:56:48, on 27 Aug 2004
Platform: Windows XP SP1 (WinNT 5.01.2600)
MSIE: Internet Explorer v6.00 SP1 (6.00.2800.1106)

Running processes:
C:\WINDOWS\System32\smss.exe
C:\WINDOWS\system32\winlogon.exe
C:\WINDOWS\system32\services.exe
C:\WINDOWS\system32\lsass.exe
C:\WINDOWS\System32\Ati2evxx.exe
C:\WINDOWS\system32\svchost.exe
C:\WINDOWS\System32\svchost.exe
C:\Program Files\Common Files\Symantec Shared\ccEvtMgr.exe
C:\WINDOWS\Explorer.EXE
C:\WINDOWS\system32\spoolsv.exe
C:\Program Files\Microsoft IntelliType Pro\type32.exe
C:\Program Files\Palick Soft\HDD Temperature\HDDTsvc.exe
C:\Program Files\Microsoft IntelliPoint\point32.exe
C:\WINDOWS\System32\inetsrv\inetinfo.exe
c:\PROGRA~1\mcafee.com\vso\mcvsrte.exe
C:\Program Files\Common Files\Microsoft Shared\VS7DEBUG\MDM.EXE
C:\Program Files\Zone Labs\ZoneAlarm\zlclient.exe
c:\PROGRA~1\mcafee.com\vso\mcvsshld.exe
C:\PROGRA~1\mcafee.com\agent\mcagent.exe
c:\progra~1\mcafee.com\vso\mcvsescn.exe
C:\WINDOWS\System32\ctfmon.exe
C:\Program Files\Messenger\msmsgs.exe
C:\Program Files\Persits Software\AspEmail\BIN\EmailAgent.exe
C:\Program Files\Hewlett-Packard\Digital Imaging\bin\hpotdd01.exe
C:\Program Files\Hewlett-Packard\Digital Imaging\bin\hpobnz08.exe
C:\WINDOWS\System32\ZoneLabs\vsmon.exe
C:\Program Files\Palick Soft\HDD Temperature\HDDTemperature.exe
C:\WINDOWS\System32\snmp.exe
C:\WINDOWS\System32\svchost.exe
C:\WINDOWS\System32\wltrysvc.exe
C:\WINDOWS\system32\svchost.exe
C:\WINDOWS\System32\bcmwltry.exe
C:\WINDOWS\System32\mqsvc.exe
C:\Program Files\Hewlett-Packard\Digital Imaging\bin\hpoevm08.exe
C:\WINDOWS\System32\mqtgsvc.exe
c:\progra~1\mcafee.com\vso\mcvsftsn.exe
c:\PROGRA~1\mcafee.com\vso\mcshield.exe
C:\Program Files\Hewlett-Packard\Digital Imaging\Bin\hpoSTS08.exe
C:\WINDOWS\System32\HPZipm12.exe
C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\OFFICE11\OUTLOOK.EXE
C:\WINDOWS\system32\notepad.exe
C:\Program Files\Internet Explorer\iexplore.exe
C:\Program Files\Hmonitor\hmonitor.exe
C:\Documents and Settings\Jojo\Desktop\hijackthis2.exe

O2 - BHO: AcroIEHlprObj Class - {06849E9F-C8D7-4D59-B87D-784B7D6BE0B3} - C:\Program Files\Adobe\Acrobat 6.0\Acrobat\ActiveX\AcroIEHelper.dll
O2 - BHO: SolidConverter PDF - {259F616C-A300-44F5-B04A-ED001A26C85C} - C:\Program Files\SolidDocuments\SolidConverterPDF\ExploreExtPDF.dll
O2 - BHO: Google Toolbar Helper - {AA58ED58-01DD-4d91-8333-CF10577473F7} - c:\program files\google\googletoolbar2.dll
O2 - BHO: AcroIEToolbarHelper Class - {AE7CD045-E861-484f-8273-0445EE161910} - C:\Program Files\Adobe\Acrobat 6.0\Acrobat\AcroIEFavClient.dll
O3 - Toolbar: &Radio - {8E718888-423F-11D2-876E-00A0C9082467} - C:\WINDOWS\System32\msdxm.ocx
O3 - Toolbar: Adobe PDF - {47833539-D0C5-4125-9FA8-0819E2EAAC93} - C:\Program Files\Adobe\Acrobat 6.0\Acrobat\AcroIEFavClient.dll
O3 - Toolbar: SolidConverter PDF - {259F616C-A300-44F5-B04A-ED001A26C85C} - C:\Program Files\SolidDocuments\SolidConverterPDF\ExploreExtPDF.dll
O3 - Toolbar: Anonymizer 2004 Toolbar - {DB264E15-F83B-4603-BFC1-4EA7E3204686} - C:\Program Files\Anonymizer\Anon2004\AnonIEBar.dll
O3 - Toolbar: McAfee VirusScan - {BA52B914-B692-46c4-B683-905236F6F655} - c:\progra~1\mcafee.com\vso\mcvsshl.dll
O3 - Toolbar: &Google - {2318C2B1-4965-11d4-9B18-009027A5CD4F} - c:\program files\google\googletoolbar2.dll
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [type32] "C:\Program Files\Microsoft IntelliType Pro\type32.exe"
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [IntelliPoint] "C:\Program Files\Microsoft IntelliPoint\point32.exe"
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [MsmqIntCert] regsvr32 /s mqrt.dll
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [Zone Labs Client] C:\Program Files\Zone Labs\ZoneAlarm\zlclient.exe
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [VSOCheckTask] "c:\PROGRA~1\mcafee.com\vso\mcmnhdlr.exe" /checktask
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [VirusScan Online] "c:\PROGRA~1\mcafee.com\vso\mcvsshld.exe"
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [MCAgentExe] c:\PROGRA~1\mcafee.com\agent\mcagent.exe
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [MCUpdateExe] C:\PROGRA~1\mcafee.com\agent\mcupdate.exe
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [hmonitor] C:\Program Files\Hmonitor\hmonitor.exe
O4 - HKCU\..\Run: [CTFMON.EXE] C:\WINDOWS\System32\ctfmon.exe
O4 - HKCU\..\Run: [MSMSGS] "C:\Program Files\Messenger\msmsgs.exe" /background
O4 - Global Startup: hpoddt01.exe.lnk = ?
O4 - Global Startup: hp psc 2000 Series.lnk = C:\Program Files\Hewlett-Packard\Digital Imaging\bin\hpobnz08.exe
O8 - Extra context menu item: &Google Search - res://c:\program files\google\GoogleToolbar2.dll/cmsearch.html
O8 - Extra context menu item: Backward Links - res://c:\program files\google\GoogleToolbar2.dll/cmbacklinks.html
O8 - Extra context menu item: Cached Snapshot of Page - res://c:\program files\google\GoogleToolbar2.dll/cmcache.html
O8 - Extra context menu item: E&xport to Microsoft Excel - res://C:\PROGRA~1\MICROS~2\OFFICE11\EXCEL.EXE/3000
O8 - Extra context menu item: Similar Pages - res://c:\program files\google\GoogleToolbar2.dll/cmsimilar.html
O8 - Extra context menu item: Translate into English - res://c:\program files\google\GoogleToolbar2.dll/cmtrans.html
O9 - Extra button: Research - {92780B25-18CC-41C8-B9BE-3C9C571A8263} - C:\PROGRA~1\MICROS~2\OFFICE11\REFIEBAR.DLL
O9 - Extra button: Messenger - {FB5F1910-F110-11d2-BB9E-00C04F795683} - C:\Program Files\Messenger\MSMSGS.EXE
O9 - Extra 'Tools' menuitem: Messenger - {FB5F1910-F110-11d2-BB9E-00C04F795683} - C:\Program Files\Messenger\MSMSGS.EXE
O9 - Extra button: (no name) - SolidConverterPDF - (no file) (HKCU)
O16 - DPF: {4ED9DDF0-7479-4BBE-9335-5A1EDB1D8A21} (McAfee.com Operating System Class) - http://download.mcafee.com/molbin/shared/mcinsctl/en-us/4,0,0,83/mcinsctl.cab
O16 - DPF: {BCC0FF27-31D9-4614-A68E-C18E1ADA4389} (DwnldGroupMgr Class) - http://download.mcafee.com/molbin/shared/mcgdmgr/en-us/1,0,0,20/mcgdmgr.cab
O16 - DPF: {D27CDB6E-AE6D-11CF-96B8-444553540000} (Shockwave Flash Object) - https://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab
O17 - HKLM\System\CCS\Services\Tcpip\..\{9C87473B-FA19-422D-BA40-4E3F83D9BB89}: NameServer = 62.169.194.17 62.169.194.18

Very strange that the utility will not work for you..  I assume you mean that the temp windows are greyed out with nothing showing but the HD?
Another perfectly clean logfile, so the problem doesn't ly in the software you're running.

If the tool FE gave doesn't show you the cpu temperature, it means that your laptop doesn't have a temperature sensor near the CPU :(
So to be honest, as you have no way to check otherwise except from voiding warranty and opening the laptop, I do think it's best to return it for repair.

All you can try first is to clean out the ventilation holes another time, and re-seat the RAM (with both can be done without voiding the warranty)

LucF
You could run some memory diagnostics also...  I use Windiag from Microsoft for this.  (memtest86 is another one that is posted on these threads..)

http://oca.microsoft.com/en/windiag.asp

Windows Memory Diagnostics..

Follow the directions on the page after dnloading..

FE
Thanks!

I'll try the MemDiag tomorrow (it's nearly midnight in Olympic city and I have tickets for the basketball final that I'm trying to sell) and let you know how that went!

George
Olympic City..!!  very cool..  Good luck on the sale..  and the diag, of course.. :)
Right, I did the MemDiag thing and after running the extensive tests for about 2-3 hours, it found no errors.

Also, since the laptop does not have temperature sensors, I touched all around to see how hot it was when it froze, and I can tell you that it's been much much hotter (externally at least) than that without freezing in the past, so it could be that the heat is not the culprit here.

So I thought I'd test some things and see what happens, here are my scenarios:

1. I left the laptop running but with Outlook closed. I suspected Outlook's file was too big or something and it could be the reason, but that's not it. The laptop will still freeze after about 2 hours (the time varies widely, but this time it took it 2 hours or less).

2. Then I thought I'd try running my second installation of WinXP Pro that resides on the laptop (other partition) and the laptop did not freeze for about 6 hours. So, that means that it could be a software problem rather than a hardware, yes? Although the second WinXP Pro installation is a clean one, it had nothing running (unlike my normal one that has a network, printer drivers, modem drivers, zone alarm, mcafee, USB hub drivers and lots of other things that I don't see in the system tray, I'm sure).

3. The disk checking utility that comes up for WinXP when the computer has not been properly shut down found some problems (cross-linking I think it was) with some files in the Temporary Internet Files folder and the "C:\Windows\Intenet Logs" folder, so I deleted them and I'm waiting to see if the laptop freezes again.

After that, I'll try and not run my startup applications one by one, and see if anything changes. This could take a while... Any other ideas?

So you ran the chkdsk command from the Command Shell?  If not, definitely do this:

chkdsk /R

Here's an update on what's going on at the moment:

When I deleted the files in the Temporary Internet Files folder and the "C:\Windows\Intenet Logs" folder (where the disk checking utility at startup had indicated there were errors), I run Windows for 36 hours without any problems. Then I tried the "chkdsk /R" command that Fatal Exception suggested, and it said that the check will take place on the next restart. So I restarted, and it found no errors.

Then, I installed Bluetooth drivers for my laptop (it can't find my Bluetooth card although it's integrated), I restarted and it froze just after it had loaded all the startup applications (ZoneAlarm, McAfee, HP printer utility, Bluetooth, network icons). I cut the power to the laptop and rebooted, and it hasn't shown a problem since (yet). I don't think anything has changed since it froze again.

Any other ideas?
Well, some good news at least..  Seems that the Bluetooth drivers are the ones giving you trouble here.  I don't use it, so am not the one to comment, but are you sure you loaded the correct driver versions for your device?  You could use a system inventory tool such as Aida32 to find out what is actually in that system.  Although Aida32 has been bought out and renamed Everest Home Edition, their is a consumer version available for download here:

http://www.snapfiles.com/get/everest.html

FE, are you sure it's the Bluetooth?

Because in the last 2 months, I had not installed Bluetooth and I was having the frozen Windows problem very very often.

I will try Everest and post again.
You could disable the bluetooth device in Device Manager (I believe) to find out for sure...  
There is no Bluetooth device in Device Manager. Like I said, the laptop cannot find the Bluetooth device, even though it's integrated. The Bluetooth icons loads at startup though, but it remains red (indicating there's no Bluetooth device attached).
Windows XP (in its original version) did not support Bluetooth very well.  In the new SP2, they have added support, and I understand that it resolves some of the issues with BT..   Now, I don't really suggest installing it yet, as I don't thing that all the bugs have been worked out (as you can see from my mainpage on my website  www.doverprodutctions.com), but if you want to give it a try, you may..  If you do, be sure to backup all your important files..

Also, try going into msconfig and ck your startup tab to see what is loading on bootup..  

Start > Run > msconfig (OK)

Go to your startup tab and stop anything that is running EXCEPT your antivirus...  You can find more info on this from my link Basic System Maintenance in the table on my MainPage..

FE
I've now stopped Bluetooth from loading, but nothing has happenned. The laptop will still freeze after a little while.

If I try to not load anything but the antivirus (McAfee) won't that be a problem, if I a surf without a firewall?
I've tried loading absolutely nothing from MSConfig. I've disabled all the items in the STARTUP tab and all the non-Microsoft items in the SERVICE TAB. I had no IE, Outlook, LAN or Internet Connection running, and still the laptop froze!

I have a screnshot of the Task Manager saying what exactly was running, but I don't know how to attach it, so I'll just list the items below:

wuauclt.exe
SVCHOST.EXE
ALG.EXE
SVCHOST.EXE
SNMP.EXE
MSDTC.EXE
INETINFO.EXE
MQTGSVC.EXE
EXPLORER.EXE
SPOOLSV.EXE
SVCHOST.EXE (6 times)
LSASS.EXE
SERVICES.EXE
WINLOGON.EXE
CSRSS.EXE
MQSVC
SMSS.EXE
taskmgr.ee
SVCHOST.EXE
System
System Idle Process

All take up 0% of CPU, except for Explorer.exe and System (1%), TaskMgr (8%) and System Idle Process (90%).

Any ideas?
I think we are now looking at the hardware for resolution, but you may want to run a System File check just as a precaution.

Start > Run > sfc /purgecache

Start > Run > sfc /scannow

It is going to ask for your XP cd so it can access the i386 folder, so put it in the CDrom drive before you run the second command...

If the problem still persists, go into safe mode with networking to see if the problem still persists.  This will take some drivers out of the mix, such as your video driver.  Maybe we can narrow down the problem from here..

FE
Hi FE,

I've tried safe mode with networking and the laptop does not freeze. I've also tried a clean installation of WinXP (on drive E:) and it does not freeze. So it must be software, right? Could it be something that we're not looking? For example, the IIS?
Since it not freezing in Safe Mode, I suspect a driver problem.  Try downloading new drivers for you video card first..  If you need to know what model your vid card is, you can install this neat utility for a full system inventory:

http://www.snapfiles.com/get/everest.html

FE
Here's something interesting:

I disconnected from my laptop all the USB devices, the VGA cable (that goes to another monitor) and the LAN cable (that goes to an old computer that I use for storage). And the computer did not crash for 24 hours of consecutive idleness, which can only be a good thing.

Now, I've reconnected my LAN and my USB devices and so far it's going well (4 hours without freezing). I'll wait it out and see what happens. I will dowsnload that utility you mentioned and see what's up.

The USB devices I had disconnected were:
- Microsoft Intellimouse with IntelliEye (or something like that)
- Connector cable for a Sony Cybershot Camera
- A plastic base thingy for the laptop that has its own big fan to help keep the temperature low
- USB hub of unkown brand that has its own power source (not dependent on the laptop) that hosts the following USB devices:
   * Microsoft Wireless Keyboard Elite (comes with mouse that I don't use)
   * Alcatel Speedtouch USB ADSL modem (popular in Europe, not sure if you have it in the US)
   * HP PSC 2175 all-in-one (printer-scanner that I keep turned off when not in use)
   * Creative WebCam

FE: Following your comment with regard to the video card, the only thing I have not plugged in is the VGA cable that goes to another flat-screen monitor. Normally I use that as my primary monitor and have the laptop on the right which I use as a secondary screen. If the computer does not freeze with all the staff that I've reconnected now, it means that it must be the other monitor or the drivers for that other monitor that cause the problem, right?
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Whoa! yes, that's a great thing... so it seems to be that your problem is caused by one of the USB deviced (and you surely have a lot of those)
Nice way of troubleshooting I have to admit. So all you have to do now is sorting what device is causing the problems. And seeing the amount of deviced you had hooked up to that USB HUB, you might want to start there, those might be overloading the hub.

LucF
Well, maybe having a lot of USB devices is not a good thing, but it's not like I have an option.  The laptop has no PS2 port and I have a lot of stuff that needs to plugged in to work.

Anyway, after all the laptop hang again even without the secondary monitor plugged in, so I guess it's not the video display drivers after all.

That only leaves with the LAN and the USB as possible culprits, I suppose. I'll leave the LAN aside for the moment.

I've now taken out the hub and only use the USB connections for the mouse, keyboard and modem. If they don't cause a problem, it's probably the hub.

But, I also suspect one my USB ports to be causing the problem. Whatever device I connect to a specific USB port, it is correctly identified by the system, so I just connected the base with fan thingy to it, which only needs to receive power from the laptop, it's not a device that WinXP needs to identify.

I'll try to isolate the problem first, and then seek to fix it, with your guidance of course!
If that USB hub is a powered Hub, I would plug your base fan into that, and not connect either to your system.  That way the fan will run, but will be taken out of the troubleshooting scenario.
I'm thinking that it's not the base fan.

So far, I've run the laptop without the USB hub, with only the mouse, keyboard and modem plugged in directly in the laptop and it worked fine for 48 hours, so that's safe.

Now, I've added the base fan, and so far I've had no problems.

Will write again.
At least we are getting somewhere finally...  :)
Thank you for all your efforts, both of you. I have selected Fatal_Exception's answer as it was closer to the solution I think, and he was quicker than LucF.

The problem was indeed located in the USB hub. It had no brand name on it, but it was a blue Addison 4xUSB hub. I went back to the store where I bought it and they said that many people have had problems with it, so many have been returned. They wouldn't take mine back though, because I don't have the original packaging.

Now, I've bought a 7xUSB hub from Sunix, and will install it sometime tomorrow probably to see how it goes.

Again, many thanks for your help.
I forgot to say:

I've just sent the $50 to CrazyOne via Paypal and referenced this webpage in the comments field of the payment, so he knows where it's from.
Great to hear you finally got it sorted :)

LucF
Thanks info.  CO needs the help and your donation is welcome by all here.

FE