At this time I think it is safe to say that it is a RAM issue.
There is an incredibly slight miniscule chance that it may be the IDE controller (due to cdrom.sys and atapi.sys) but it's doubtful.
It sounds like you have some bad RAM that is putting things where they don't belong.
The fact that it doesn't always turn on after these errors occurs (it tries, the caps lock light flashes for some reason, but the fans don't kick in and it doesn't boot) or the fact that I sometimes have to lift the whole laptop at an angle and press the power button that it magically turns on
Does that swing it one way or the other as to whether this is a RAM or IDE controller problem?
At this time I think it is safe to say that it is a RAM issue.
There is an incredibly slight miniscule chance that it may be the IDE controller (due to cdrom.sys and atapi.sys) but it's doubtful.
It sounds like you have some bad RAM that is putting things where they don't belong.
The fact that it doesn't always turn on after these errors occurs (it tries, the caps lock light flashes for some reason, but the fans don't kick in and it doesn't boot) or the fact that I sometimes have to lift the whole laptop at an angle and press the power button that it magically turns on
Does that swing it one way or the other as to whether this is a RAM or IDE controller problem?
That could be almost anything. CPU, power supply, mainboard, etc...
Or the power button might just be loose... who knows. I'd take it to a professional about now.
At this time I think it is safe to say that it is a RAM issue.
There is an incredibly slight miniscule chance that it may be the IDE controller (due to cdrom.sys and atapi.sys) but it's doubtful.
It sounds like you have some bad RAM that is putting things where they don't belong.
The fact that it doesn't always turn on after these errors occurs (it tries, the caps lock light flashes for some reason, but the fans don't kick in and it doesn't boot) or the fact that I sometimes have to lift the whole laptop at an angle and press the power button that it magically turns on
Does that swing it one way or the other as to whether this is a RAM or IDE controller problem?
Alright. Hold on. Give me a couple minutes and I'll track down my service manuals.
Still thinking RAM. As far as your power button goes, the connector is picky. Open the screen as far as it can, and use a small flathead to pry the bezel off. There is a notch on the right side, near the screen hinges. Once that's off, you'll see a ribbon that connects the power button to the mobo. Pull it off, and reseat it. That should take care of the hard to start issue.
Still thinking RAM. As far as your power button goes, the connector is picky. Open the screen as far as it can, and use a small flathead to pry the bezel off. There is a notch on the right side, near the screen hinges. Once that's off, you'll see a ribbon that connects the power button to the mobo. Pull it off, and reseat it. That should take care of the hard to start issue.
Do you still have the Dell OEM CDs?
I saved everything the thing came with so yeah, probably.
And it looks like according to Dell's website the warranty ran out a year ago.
Are you running on the laptop now or posting from a second computer? This is key. (if I could IM you, I would. But I'm at work for another couple hours.
I'm on a second computer, my laptop can't seem to stay alive for more than fifteen minutes now, safe mode or otherwise without crashing. First BSOD and if you let it sit long enough, crazy rave screen.
The Otaku Suppository on
0
WeaverWho are you?What do you want?Registered Userregular
Weretaco, the Dell diagnostics contain a memory test that is quite comparable to Memtest x86, but runs a bit faster. It completes all the MARCH and MATS tests and parity and whatnot.
But the Dell diagnostics also test keyboard, pointing device, HDD, proc, every mobo component and display/adapter.
redimpulse on
0
RankenphilePassersby were amazedby the unusually large amounts of blood.Registered User, ModeratorMod Emeritus
edited February 2007
awesome, thanks for taking over on this Red. I've been stuck in a meeting for the past couple hours, and have been wondering what has been going on with this. Sounds like you know your shit better than I do.
Also, god damn I'm a geek when I get off on this sort of shit.
No prob Rank. We'll get this taken care of soon. With the error codes supplied by the diagnostic CD Otaku will be able to bypass the majority of Dell's support and order the necessary parts for replacement.
I took jwalk's advice and chucked it out the window after the monitor started spewing forth blasphemous phrases and rotating itself 360 degrees. When it landed it broke in half and black ichor seeped out from between the keys. I threw holy water on it and a scream not meant to be behelden by mortal ears was unleashed whilst the earth shook and the skies blackened. Turns out my pc was the holder of the end.
In other news, red thanks for the awesome advice, maybe when I'm less frustrated I'll come back to it, but as I said earlier, fuck this to the shop with you.
God I hope I don't need a new mobo. Backing things up 512 MB at a time in a window of 4-10 minutes before a restart is taking it's toll.
I took jwalk's advice and chucked it out the window after the monitor started spewing forth blasphemous phrases and rotating itself 360 degrees. When it landed it broke in half and black ichor seeped out from between the keys. I threw holy water on it and a scream not meant to be behelden by mortal ears was unleashed whilst the earth shook and the skies blackened. Turns out my pc was the holder of the end.
In other news, red thanks for the awesome advice, maybe when I'm less frustrated I'll come back to it, but as I said earlier, fuck this to the shop with you.
God I hope I don't need a new mobo. Backing things up 512 MB at a time in a window of 4-10 minutes before a restart is taking it's toll.
if it is the motherboard there is no reason you can't salvage the hard drive out of the machine and get all the data off of it, quite easily. Hell, you can find a IDE to USB adapter on Ben's Bargains for twenty or thirty bucks most days.
Pop it in, and for posterity hit F12 at the BIOS screen until it gives you a boot option. This way you can force boot to CD instead of taking the risk of booting HDD first.
Once the Dell Diagnostics CD boots (and it will say on the CD Dell Diagnostics), you'll get to a blue screen with some choices. You can interactive test or run a full scan. I suggest a full scan of all hardware, so we can be sure of the culprit.
Also, post or PM your service tag so I could check to see if you have any warranty left or any recalls available.
OK. I'm not going to read through this entire thread, but as a former Geek Squad employee, I can tell you with absolute confidence:
DON'T EVER TAKE YOUR MACHINES TO GEEK SQUAD FOR THE LOVE OF CHRIST I MEAN HOLY SHIT
Can you elaborate? I mean beyond myself who is going to fix this thing?
red - I sent you a pm about the code.
Well, I would take it to someone better trained to fix it. Say you take it to a Geek Squad...on the minute chance that the person assigned to work on it can actually fix it, they won't be allowed to. That Diagnostic they want to sell you? A good portion of it can't even be done on a machine that won't boot into XP under normal conditions. Furthermore, the only hardware fixes they are authorized to perform there are HDD and RAM replacement; everything else gets sent to a "service center," which--depending on your location--could be a three-to-five week wait for no fix at all. And they will almost certainly be expecting you to pay in advance.
It's not that they're all incompetent. They aren't. Probably three or four of the sixteen or so "agents" I worked with were tech savvy, extremely sharp fellas. The corporate apparatus animating the beast, however, is completely counterproductive, and antithetical to speedy, competent repairs.
PM me your email address and I will give you some options.
i mean for the time being i would go to someone's house and download the latest version of knoppix's livecd. it has ntfs support, boots off a cd and will get you up and running on the internet at the least. you can transfer any key files to a usb drive or cd and then delete the windows folder to prep for a clean install.
irq errors like that can be alot of things but are generally fucked drivers that could have gotten corrupted by a million things including a sudden reset. system restore would probably do wonders if it's enabled. sorry if any of this has been mentioned..
I haven't run red's diagnostic yet but more and more signs are pointing to the mobo. It also occurs to me that I usually use my laptop on my bed, which means it gets little circulation. Also, this morning after being turned off all night, it booted fine. After I had used it for a number of hours it started having problems. After things started to get hot. Methinks the mobo is partially fried or sensitive to heat at this point.
Or not, find out tomorrow after I run the diagnostic.
The Otaku Suppository on
0
Raijin QuickfootI'm your Huckleberry YOU'RE NO DAISYRegistered User, ClubPAregular
edited February 2007
That CPU-Z program is pretty cool. I learned today that I have an Intel Core 2 Duo E6400 Conroe processor.
I know laptops are all the rage but they really don't offer much value to me. I'd much rather have a more powerful desktop set up in a location where it can get proper ventilation and I'm sitting at a desk in a comfortable chair instead of sitting on my sofa with the laptop in my lap cooking my legs.
Druhim on
0
Raijin QuickfootI'm your Huckleberry YOU'RE NO DAISYRegistered User, ClubPAregular
edited February 2007
For about $1000 I can outfit my machine with 8gig of PC6400 RAM.
Raijin Quickfoot on
0
RankenphilePassersby were amazedby the unusually large amounts of blood.Registered User, ModeratorMod Emeritus
Posts
If the HDD was going, then there would be "disk" or "fdisk" or "IDE/ATAPI" errors in the System event log.
On the same note, yes. My HDD on this work PC is dying.
edit t Butters: That's odd. Kinda cool though. So I take it the PS/2 connector accidentally grounded itself probably.
The fact that it doesn't always turn on after these errors occurs (it tries, the caps lock light flashes for some reason, but the fans don't kick in and it doesn't boot) or the fact that I sometimes have to lift the whole laptop at an angle and press the power button that it magically turns on
Does that swing it one way or the other as to whether this is a RAM or IDE controller problem?
Do you have any idea how many megahurtz that'll cost?
Or the power button might just be loose... who knows. I'd take it to a professional about now.
Alright. Hold on. Give me a couple minutes and I'll track down my service manuals.
This is sounding worse than originally thought.
BTW I am a Dell professional.
the dreaded kernel data inpage error
I've only had this thing for a year and a half and already it's crapping out on me? Ugh.
Still thinking RAM. As far as your power button goes, the connector is picky. Open the screen as far as it can, and use a small flathead to pry the bezel off. There is a notch on the right side, near the screen hinges. Once that's off, you'll see a ribbon that connects the power button to the mobo. Pull it off, and reseat it. That should take care of the hard to start issue.
Do you still have the Dell OEM CDs?
I saved everything the thing came with so yeah, probably.
And it looks like according to Dell's website the warranty ran out a year ago.
(if I could IM you, I would. But I'm at work for another couple hours.
Run these diagnostics. You can do a full test or an interactive test; either one you're going to have to push some buttons.
Keep track of it, and when you receive a critical stop on any component post it here or PM.
If that comes up clean it's probably the motherboard.
But the Dell diagnostics also test keyboard, pointing device, HDD, proc, every mobo component and display/adapter.
Also, god damn I'm a geek when I get off on this sort of shit.
In other news, red thanks for the awesome advice, maybe when I'm less frustrated I'll come back to it, but as I said earlier, fuck this to the shop with you.
God I hope I don't need a new mobo. Backing things up 512 MB at a time in a window of 4-10 minutes before a restart is taking it's toll.
if it is the motherboard there is no reason you can't salvage the hard drive out of the machine and get all the data off of it, quite easily. Hell, you can find a IDE to USB adapter on Ben's Bargains for twenty or thirty bucks most days.
Whatever the case, I'll try it in a few hours, I need a drink. This has not been a good day.
DON'T EVER TAKE YOUR MACHINES TO GEEK SQUAD FOR THE LOVE OF CHRIST I MEAN HOLY SHIT
Twitter | Facebook | Tumblr | Last.fm | Pandora | LibraryThing | formspring | Blue Moon over Seattle (MCFC)
Once the Dell Diagnostics CD boots (and it will say on the CD Dell Diagnostics), you'll get to a blue screen with some choices. You can interactive test or run a full scan. I suggest a full scan of all hardware, so we can be sure of the culprit.
Also, post or PM your service tag so I could check to see if you have any warranty left or any recalls available.
Can you elaborate? I mean beyond myself who is going to fix this thing?
red - I sent you a pm about the code.
if it doesnt, then it is heavier than a duck
It's not that they're all incompetent. They aren't. Probably three or four of the sixteen or so "agents" I worked with were tech savvy, extremely sharp fellas. The corporate apparatus animating the beast, however, is completely counterproductive, and antithetical to speedy, competent repairs.
PM me your email address and I will give you some options.
Twitter | Facebook | Tumblr | Last.fm | Pandora | LibraryThing | formspring | Blue Moon over Seattle (MCFC)
irq errors like that can be alot of things but are generally fucked drivers that could have gotten corrupted by a million things including a sudden reset. system restore would probably do wonders if it's enabled. sorry if any of this has been mentioned..
Or not, find out tomorrow after I run the diagnostic.
cpu-z is fucking awesome. very, very handy util.