Random freezes

YnHDaRkMaN · Jan 6, 2011, 04:30 PM

Well, recently I upgraded my rig with a 5770 and a new hard drive (specs in my sig below)

So, everything was ok until some days ago... PC started to freeze/crash randomly... At first I thought it only happened while watching videos, but my brother told me that it happened while in normal use (surfing the web, etc)... oh, and these freezes/crashes didn't happen until I did the upgrade (not immediately after as I said before...)

AFAIK, no problems while gaming, and it seems that it happened more frequently while watching videos, both from the HD and flash videos...

And also, when it happens, suddenly, something inside starts 'revving-up' (we're guessing it's the hard drive...), sometimes, the PC just freeze for a moment and everything gets back to normal, but last night it crashed while watching a flash video on the web and had to reboot...

Any thoughts? I'm using the 10.12 ATI drivers and I'm pretty sure all other drivers are up-to-date...

Thanks in advance

Kizo · Jan 6, 2011, 07:13 PM

If the OS is Windows, I recommend looking at the latest system events in the Event Viewer (type Event Viewer in Vista/7 search), and see Critical or other errors, they may indicate the cause.

For example, I am running Win7 x64 and had random lockups these 2-3 days, and the log showed error from the atapi driver (which indicates HDD or other device that uses this), so I tried changing the HDDs Sata cable and it fixed the random lockups.

steves6403 · Jan 6, 2011, 10:45 PM

check your temps

blibbax · Jan 6, 2011, 11:19 PM

"Revving up" sounds like a CPU or GPU fan. Hard drives don't rev up, they click, they whir, they grind, but they don't "rev up".

The first thing I'd reccomend is that you get realtemp to watch your GPU and CPU temps (I presume realtemp works for AMD, if not something similar will, just google it).

Then, get hold of Prime 95 and Furmark. Let Prime 95 run a 4 thread blend test for a while, and keep an eye on your temperatures. You should be able to check what are sensible temperatures for your CPU on the AMD website, but I am guessing the safe limit is between 80 and 100 degrees. If either your CPU exceeds its safe maximum, or Prime 95 reports an error within an hour, that's your problem, and we can help you to fix it.

If not, do the same, but use Furmark instead of Prime95. This stresses your GPU. Temperatures shouldn't exceed 95 degrees.

If your PC passes these two tests with flying colours, you can then look at HDD or software issues

YnHDaRkMaN · Jan 6, 2011, 11:51 PM

I'm always running HWMonitor so I'm pretty sure it's not an overheating issue, the highest CPU temperature across all cores I've ever seen is around 67-69c load and around 40-45c idle, and for the GPU is 67c while gaming...

I've just noticed that in the energy options, the HD was configured to turn off after 20 mins... and as I said before, it happened while watching videos (entire episodes of shows and movies) mostly... Could it be the cause, or it has nothing to do with these kind of problems? Changed configuration to never turn off, let's see if that does the trick... I'll let you guys know if anything else happens

Thanks in advance

iPlayer · Jan 7, 2011, 12:22 AM

By your description, I doubt it's any of the things previously suggested.

You seem to be having issues with flash/drivers. The "revving up" likely indicate the card's power states were changed. Maybe try an older version of the drivers.

blibbax · Jan 7, 2011, 12:28 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by YnHDaRkMaN

I'm always running HWMonitor so I'm pretty sure it's not an overheating issue, the highest CPU temperature across all cores I've ever seen is around 67-69c load and around 40-45c idle, and for the GPU is 67c while gaming...

I've just noticed that in the energy options, the HD was configured to turn off after 20 mins... and as I said before, it happened while watching videos (entire episodes of shows and movies) mostly... Could it be the cause, or it has nothing to do with these kind of problems? Changed configuration to never turn off, let's see if that does the trick... I'll let you guys know if anything else happens

Thanks in advance

HDs turning off while on idle is perfectly normal and doesn't generally cause issues. Did you run those stability tests? Just because your PC isn't overheating doesn't mean it's stable.

iPlayer · Jan 7, 2011, 12:31 AM

Notice how he mentioned he doesn't crash while gaming, but does while browsing pages with flash content.

I suppose a general stability test wouldn't hurt, but..

blibbax · Jan 7, 2011, 12:37 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by iPlayer

Notice how he mentioned he doesn't crash while gaming, but does while browsing pages with flash content.

I suppose a general stability test wouldn't hurt, but..

Yeah, I realise that flash videos aren't the most demanding content in the known universe, but imo, for any problem with crashes, a stability test is the best place to start. An unstable PC, for example, will have installed all of its applications with errors...

Once you know that the hardware isn't the issue, it's much easier to eliminate your way down to the actual issue

YnHDaRkMaN · Jan 7, 2011, 12:38 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by iPlayer

By your description, I doubt it's any of the things previously suggested.

You seem to be having issues with flash/drivers. The "revving up" likely indicate the card's power states were changed. Maybe try an older version of the drivers.

so should I change the ATI drivers then?

blibbax · Jan 7, 2011, 12:45 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by YnHDaRkMaN

so should I change the ATI drivers then?

That's what is being suggested, yes.

YnHDaRkMaN · Jan 7, 2011, 12:45 AM

nvm, I'll change the drivers and see what it happens, thanks for the help

blibbax · Jan 7, 2011, 12:45 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by YnHDaRkMaN

well, an hour of Prime95 should suffice?

Yeah, for most purposes

Jan 6, 2011, 04:30 PM	#1
YnHDaRkMaN Image of the invisible... Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Mexico Posts: 199 Rep Power: 33 System Specs	Random freezes Well, recently I upgraded my rig with a 5770 and a new hard drive (specs in my sig below) So, everything was ok until some days ago... PC started to freeze/crash randomly... At first I thought it only happened while watching videos, but my brother told me that it happened while in normal use (surfing the web, etc)... oh, and these freezes/crashes didn't happen until I did the upgrade (not immediately after as I said before...) AFAIK, no problems while gaming, and it seems that it happened more frequently while watching videos, both from the HD and flash videos... And also, when it happens, suddenly, something inside starts 'revving-up' (we're guessing it's the hard drive...), sometimes, the PC just freeze for a moment and everything gets back to normal, but last night it crashed while watching a flash video on the web and had to reboot... Any thoughts? I'm using the 10.12 ATI drivers and I'm pretty sure all other drivers are up-to-date... Thanks in advance __________________ Current rig specs: Phenom II x4 945 3.0GHz Asus M4A78T-E Mobo 4x2GB DDR3 1333MHz Dual-Channel XFX HD 5770 1GB Single Slot Antec Three Hundred Case Corsair GS600 Acer LCD 19'' Widescreen 1TB Seagate Barracuda

Jan 6, 2011, 07:13 PM	#2
Kizo HHs Valve fanatic/C++ dev Join Date: Apr 2007 Posts: 281 Rep Power: 73 System Specs	Re: Random freezes If the OS is Windows, I recommend looking at the latest system events in the Event Viewer (type Event Viewer in Vista/7 search), and see Critical or other errors, they may indicate the cause. For example, I am running Win7 x64 and had random lockups these 2-3 days, and the log showed error from the atapi driver (which indicates HDD or other device that uses this), so I tried changing the HDDs Sata cable and it fixed the random lockups.

Jan 6, 2011, 10:45 PM	#3
steves6403 HardwareHeaven Lover Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: lilydale australia Posts: 249 Rep Power: 27 System Specs	Re: Random freezes check your temps

Jan 6, 2011, 11:19 PM	#4
blibbax What does this do? Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Oxford, UK Posts: 4,230 Rep Power: 254 System Specs	Re: Random freezes "Revving up" sounds like a CPU or GPU fan. Hard drives don't rev up, they click, they whir, they grind, but they don't "rev up". The first thing I'd reccomend is that you get realtemp to watch your GPU and CPU temps (I presume realtemp works for AMD, if not something similar will, just google it). Then, get hold of Prime 95 and Furmark. Let Prime 95 run a 4 thread blend test for a while, and keep an eye on your temperatures. You should be able to check what are sensible temperatures for your CPU on the AMD website, but I am guessing the safe limit is between 80 and 100 degrees. If either your CPU exceeds its safe maximum, or Prime 95 reports an error within an hour, that's your problem, and we can help you to fix it. If not, do the same, but use Furmark instead of Prime95. This stresses your GPU. Temperatures shouldn't exceed 95 degrees. If your PC passes these two tests with flying colours, you can then look at HDD or software issues __________________ Donate the spare computing power of your PC to help to cure Alzheimer's, ALS, Huntington's, Parkinson's disease and cancer: Fold for HH!

Jan 6, 2011, 11:51 PM	Thread Starter #5
YnHDaRkMaN Image of the invisible... Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Mexico Posts: 199 Rep Power: 33 System Specs	Re: Random freezes I'm always running HWMonitor so I'm pretty sure it's not an overheating issue, the highest CPU temperature across all cores I've ever seen is around 67-69c load and around 40-45c idle, and for the GPU is 67c while gaming... I've just noticed that in the energy options, the HD was configured to turn off after 20 mins... and as I said before, it happened while watching videos (entire episodes of shows and movies) mostly... Could it be the cause, or it has nothing to do with these kind of problems? Changed configuration to never turn off, let's see if that does the trick... I'll let you guys know if anything else happens Thanks in advance __________________ Current rig specs: Phenom II x4 945 3.0GHz Asus M4A78T-E Mobo 4x2GB DDR3 1333MHz Dual-Channel XFX HD 5770 1GB Single Slot Antec Three Hundred Case Corsair GS600 Acer LCD 19'' Widescreen 1TB Seagate Barracuda

Jan 7, 2011, 12:22 AM	#6
iPlayer Filled with noobsauce Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: between the buns Posts: 1,450 Rep Power: 59	Re: Random freezes By your description, I doubt it's any of the things previously suggested. You seem to be having issues with flash/drivers. The "revving up" likely indicate the card's power states were changed. Maybe try an older version of the drivers.

Jan 7, 2011, 12:31 AM	#8
iPlayer Filled with noobsauce Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: between the buns Posts: 1,450 Rep Power: 59	Re: Random freezes Notice how he mentioned he doesn't crash while gaming, but does while browsing pages with flash content. I suppose a general stability test wouldn't hurt, but..

Jan 7, 2011, 12:45 AM	Thread Starter #12
YnHDaRkMaN Image of the invisible... Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Mexico Posts: 199 Rep Power: 33 System Specs	Re: Random freezes nvm, I'll change the drivers and see what it happens, thanks for the help __________________ Current rig specs: Phenom II x4 945 3.0GHz Asus M4A78T-E Mobo 4x2GB DDR3 1333MHz Dual-Channel XFX HD 5770 1GB Single Slot Antec Three Hundred Case Corsair GS600 Acer LCD 19'' Widescreen 1TB Seagate Barracuda