Random Freezes

serodsis · Jan 1, 2009

Hi, this is my first time posting here and it is basically a last resort.

I bought this computer about 2 months ago, installed a few games and anti-virus etc.
I can play the games fine (Warhammer, WoW) on max graphics with no problems at all however the whole computer will just randomly freeze while playing.

The freeze only lasts for about 10-30 seconds, during the freeze the sound loops in the background and the computer acts as if it is working really hard, occasionally it ends in a blue screen although this has only happened twice out of about 60 freezes.

I have updated all drivers, checked my network and hardware etc.
I thought it may have been a problem with DirectX as when i installed one of my games it froze on the install, i have since reinstalled DirectX off a clean download with no problems.

Spec -
AMD Phenom 8450 Triple Core 2.1 GHz
NVIDIA GeForce 8200 Integrated
3 GB Ram
Vista Home Premium
Realtek High Def Audio Integrated

I know it's not the best gaming machine but the games themselves run fine apart from these freezes.

P.S I have tried reducing graphics etc to minimum and it still occurs, also tried with sound off.

serodsis · Jan 2, 2009

Update -

Two different memory tests came up clean.
Temperatures are fine.
Installed the complete DX package and am testing to see if that has helped.

The freeze can happen at any time aswell, sometimes it occurs two hours after i start playing, once it occured while i was logging into the game.

MrNeeds · Jan 2, 2009

can be network lag, since you are connecting to an online service, i would try and play it at a friends house with maybe a cable connection, and see if that improves.

serodsis · Jan 2, 2009

I did read somewhere that Vista refreshes wireless network connections to try and get a better signal however i was unsure if this was true.

Would this not happen at set times? This morning i had 4 nearly consecutive freezes while sat at the login screen of WoW and then nothing for the next 3 hours.

If it is a wireless problem is there a way to turn it off?
Moving to cable is not an option i have at the moment.

MrNeeds · Jan 2, 2009

PhilSRD said:
I did read somewhere that Vista refreshes wireless network connections to try and get a better signal however i was unsure if this was true.

Would this not happen at set times? This morning i had 4 nearly consecutive freezes while sat at the login screen of WoW and then nothing for the next 3 hours.

If it is a wireless problem is there a way to turn it off?
Moving to cable is not an option i have at the moment.

huh, ive never heard about vista refreshing connections, my friend plays xbox 360 though his computer which is connected by a linksys wirelessG USB adaptor and he doesnt have any issues with lag online. i suspect that maybe you have a background service running that uses your internet connection.

serodsis · Jan 2, 2009

Thanks for the advice, i have checked services and they are all fine.
After checking error logs i seem to be getting a lot of RaidPort0 hard drive errors.

Doing some research has indicated it may be a glitch with the DVD drive and a corrupt vista, i am going to test this tonight although it seems unlikely as my problem is not the same one as with other people. My freezes only occur while gaming whereas theirs occur doing anything.

merlin3000 · Jan 3, 2009

I have a similar problem, when playing fallout 3 the game runs smooth (with high definitions), but suddenly it becomes very slow, the computer remains slow even if I switch tasks to explorer or task manager (CPU 100%). 20~30 seconds later everything back to normal but one minute later it becomes slow again. This keeps happening over and over again.

I've tried about 4 different drivers and the problem remains.

My machine is
CPU: T9400
GC: 9600m GT
Ram: 4 Gbs

Windows Vista Business x64

dmex · Jan 3, 2009

Hey Guys,

Do you both use SATA HardDrives?

Steven

merlin3000 · Jan 4, 2009

In my case the answer is positive. Why?

serodsis · Jan 4, 2009

I do not have a SATA hardrive although my problem seems to be fixed now, i've done a restore to factory on Vista and am running a barebones system with just one game installed.
I am going to slowly install one program a day to try and pinpoint the problem although i still think it may have been a Direct X or Networking issue.

In regards to Direct X, i installed the complete package once on request and that is the only time i have attempted to install it.

In regards to a wireless network i have found a program called WLAN Optimizer which i am going to try if the problem does come back, this supposedly counteracts vista scanning for a better connection and stops lag spikes and random freezes.

Thankyou for all of the advice and good luck with your problem merlin.

MrNeeds · Jan 4, 2009

merlin3000 said:
I have a similar problem, when playing fallout 3 the game runs smooth (with high definitions), but suddenly it becomes very slow, the computer remains slow even if I switch tasks to explorer or task manager (CPU 100%). 20~30 seconds later everything back to normal but one minute later it becomes slow again. This keeps happening over and over again.

I've tried about 4 different drivers and the problem remains.

My machine is
CPU: T9400
GC: 9600m GT
Ram: 4 Gbs

Windows Vista Business x64

thats the cpu overheating, i know this video is extreme but this is what can happen when cpus overheat YouTube - CPU overheat

serodsis · Jan 4, 2009

After a fresh Vista install and with the WLAN program running i am still experiencing my freezes, i am now attempting a dual boot of XP to see if it is a corruption problem.

dmex · Jan 4, 2009

merlin3000 said:
In my case the answer is positive. Why?

I have seen SATA controller chips cause "Random Freezes" on XP and Vista when they randomly decide to rescan the SATA array, I had a similar problem when I tried installing XP/Vista on some specific SATA ports and it would randomly freeze at random times so after I tried changed the HDD to a different Sata Port it fixed the problem instantly

Give it a try and let us know

Steven

merlin3000 · Jan 4, 2009

MrNeeds said:
merlin3000 said:

I have a similar problem, when playing fallout 3 the game runs smooth (with high definitions), but suddenly it becomes very slow, the computer remains slow even if I switch tasks to explorer or task manager (CPU 100%). 20~30 seconds later everything back to normal but one minute later it becomes slow again. This keeps happening over and over again.

I've tried about 4 different drivers and the problem remains.

My machine is
CPU: T9400
GC: 9600m GT
Ram: 4 Gbs

Windows Vista Business x64

Click to expand...

thats the cpu overheating, i know this video is extreme but this is what can happen when cpus overheat YouTube - CPU overheat

I checked the temps at the time, they were not that high, I got higher temps, both CPU and GPU, while playing crysis or spore.

I'll try play a bit with intel drivers for the sata controller, I can't change the SATA port, I only have one in my laptop.

Until now this only happens with Fallout 3, I'll check a few more games.

lordvader · Jan 8, 2009

I feel sometimes my Laptop goes grrrrrrrr like its being pulled down or something

I have Vista Ultimate 64, Ati 3870 x 2, 4gb ram
I feel its happening cos System mechanic has a small window
on right side bottom pop up & starts to work

or is it some thing else

binbag751 · Jan 15, 2009

i have the same probem although i heard somewhere that its the graphics card loading i turned down the settings in my games and the probem has gone away and i have an integrated graphics card so the loading thing is probobly true

lordvader · Jan 15, 2009

Does anybody know about this ?

How to Max out ram
Start
Control panel
System
In Left Side bar LIST last is:
Advance System Settings
It will open in ADVANCE tab:
open Settings - (under PERFORMANCE heading)
Click on ADVANCE tab again
under VIRTUAL MEMMORY
Click Cutom (when window opens)
& make BOTH - 10,000
Intial Size - 10,000
Max Size - 10,000

Is this good to do ?

MrNeeds · Jan 16, 2009

lordvader said:
Does anybody know about this ?

How to Max out ram
Start
Control panel
System
In Left Side bar LIST last is:
Advance System Settings
It will open in ADVANCE tab:
open Settings - (under PERFORMANCE heading)
Click on ADVANCE tab again
under VIRTUAL MEMMORY
Click Cutom (when window opens)
& make BOTH - 10,000
Intial Size - 10,000
Max Size - 10,000

Is this good to do ?

all your doing is using your hard drive as virtual memory or RAM, if it will do anything, it will slow your computer down as your hard drive might not be upto the job and you will also lose 10GB of hard drive space.

Klaudius · Jan 16, 2009

I don't know what the solution on a desktop is, but I do know that on laptops the following can sometimes fix that performance problem.

If you have a laptop this happens when you don't change the power scheme to high performance.

If the laptop is set to Powersaving mode you will notice stuttering graphic performance, even when you plug in the laptop to the ac adapter.

You have to actually reset the power scheme to high performance to fix this when plugged in. Its on the bottom right of the task bar, right click on the battery, select high performance and then your all set.

lordvader · Jan 16, 2009

MrNeeds said:
lordvader said:

Does anybody know about this ?

How to Max out ram
Start
Control panel
System
In Left Side bar LIST last is:
Advance System Settings
It will open in ADVANCE tab:
open Settings - (under PERFORMANCE heading)
Click on ADVANCE tab again
under VIRTUAL MEMMORY
Click Cutom (when window opens)
& make BOTH - 10,000
Intial Size - 10,000
Max Size - 10,000

Is this good to do ?

Click to expand...

all your doing is using your hard drive as virtual memory or RAM, if it will do anything, it will slow your computer down as your hard drive might not be upto the job and you will also lose 10GB of hard drive space.

The Tech Service guy tolled me it will make my Laptop faster
& adds ram to my system
I dont mind using 10gb of my hard drive cos i have alot
(7200 rpm) 250 x 2 = 500 GB - raid 0 set on my Laptop
4GB« Dual Channel DDR3 SO-DIMM at 1066MHz – 2 x 2048MB
Dual 512MB ATI Mobility Radeon™ HD 3870 - CrossFireX™

My Power is set to High Performance

What would You advice ?
should i let this setting be as it is
Or call them & tell them to take it off &
make it the way it was

God Bless You For Your Help

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