Computer Locking Up (Update: Looks like HD is dying)

jedikuonji

I've got a Hewlett-Packard a6720y PC that I bought a few years ago. The only thing I added was a NVIDIA GTS 250 video card. The last couple days it's developed some issues.

Right now about the only thing I can get to work is chrome, but only if I disable java and flash. Whenever I try to run nearly anything (steam, games, malware scan, etc) the computer freezes up and eventually I'm left with a blank, black screen with a mouse pointer. I've managed to update audio and video drivers without a lock up, but it hasn't done much good. Also ran CCleaner, but again, didn't help.

Physically I've reseated everything and tested each memory stick individually but still get the same issues.

One other thing I've noticed is that if the machine has been off for a few hours, the first time I turn it on all the fans run up full speed and it just sits like that. I have to hard power down and then back on in order to get it to boot to windows.

It's been a very long time since I've had to do any serious computer trouble shooting and I'm sort of at a loss as to where to proceed at this point.

Griswold

This sounds like any of:

1) egregious overheating, though I suspect if you've reseated everything you've probably also cleaned out most of the dust.
2) failing power supply (highly likely)
3) failing motherboard.

If you can acquire a spare power supply of equal or higher voltage, I'd try swapping that out first. See if you can download a copy of HWMonitor or something similar to take a look at your temperatures.

jedikuonji

Thank you for the suggestions.

1) I did give it a pretty good cleaning.
2) Tried a different power supply and got the same results.
3) I really hope not

I picked up HWMonitor and all my temps were within recommended specs. My video card was running on the high end so I removed it to see what the onboard video would do, but even with the vid card out, the machine still locks up when attempting to run anything.

Sumanai

Check your motherboard for any swollen capacitors. I had a problem recently with a computer that was BSOD'd when running some programs and found a couple of slightly swollen capacitors near the RAM slots. Had to remove one of the DIMMs to make it work again.

You could also test your RAM for errors.

jedikuonji

Sumanai wrote: »

Check your motherboard for any swollen capacitors. I had a problem recently with a computer that was BSOD'd when running some programs and found a couple of slightly swollen capacitors near the RAM slots. Had to remove one of the DIMMs to make it work again.

You could also test your RAM for errors.

I will take a look at the mb to see if there are any phsical defects. Any reccomendations for a RAM test?

Sumanai

Memtest86+. You will need to create a bootable cd or usb.

Griswold

Sumanai wrote: »

Memtest86+. You will need to create a bootable cd or usb.

If you tested each DIMM individually and saw the same issues, I doubt this is the source of your problem. It's highly unlikely that multiple sticks of RAM would crap out at the exact same time.

jedikuonji

Ran the memtest and everything came back good. I found a diagnostic option on the boot splash screen and ran that. It gave me a HD error code of biohd-8 which my good friend google tells me means my HD is crapping out. I guess now the question is do I shell out the money for a new HD plus a copy of windows (since I don't have one, it was preloaded on the machine) or just save up for a few weeks and buy a whole new rig for about twice what I would end up paying for a HD and windows. Thanks Griswold and Sumanai for your helpful suggestions, I appreciate the assistance.

Griswold

What's your budget? What do you use your current computer for?

I'm pro-building-a-new-machine but that's my own bias creeping in.

EDIT: assuming no discounts, a new HD + Windows should cost you about $175. Are you planning to buy a new PC for only $350?

jedikuonji

It's my gaming rig. It's been good to me and I've gotten almost 4 years out of it, which is a pretty nice run for something I use every day, often for several hours. If I hold out till the end of the month, I can probably swing somewhere in the 5 to 6 hundred range for a budget, which should at least do well to replace everything except maybe the video card. If I have to wait to replace the vid card, I'm pretty OK with that as the GTS 250 might not be top of the line, but it's ran everything I've thrown at it so far.

Griswold

If the GTS 250 is suiting your needs, there's no reason to upgrade it now (esp if you're gaming at 1680x1050 instead of 1080p)

I'm assuming you've got a monitor, keyboard, and mouse. Here's a quick build at $475 before rebates and without looking for combo deals:



(There's a promo code for the Spinpoint F3 that knocks off $15. I haven't entered it in the screenshot.)

Also, the i5-3570 is on sale for $199 until Monday, which is a fine deal.

Essee

You know, I was totally going to post saying maybe it was your hard drive, but I wasn't sure with the computer going to a black screen when things refused to open, haha. On the subjects of buying hard drives and things, I'm subscribed to Newegg's weekly newsletter, and they totally have a sale on various hard drives right this instant. (That link should work even if you don't have an account with Newegg yet.) Disclaimer: I have no idea about the quality of these hard drives, so please make sure you check reviews before grabbing stuff. There have been some reliability issues at various points in the last couple years since 1TB hard drives came out/became common.

phoo

There are ways to pull the smart info from your drive. They make a program for windows. I usually use a GRML bootable disc, but it is linux based. http://sourceforge.net/apps/trac/smartmontools/wiki/Download is the tool (linux native but is also ported to windows).

Okeedoke, I googled the error you got and it looks like that what they do is pull the smartinfo themselves and then report the error. Most likely, smart info has marked your drive as FAILING_NOW. Occasionally this info is wrong, but it sounds like you are having actual issues. If you like, you can still use the tool I mentioned to check this. I wouldn't do the long test, but instead just look at the info already there.

Whatever you do, I would suggest backing up onto an external drive and with a bootable CD. It will be easiest while the drive still recognizes. Otherwise you'll have to use Ghost to copy the entire drive and the will be dicey. OTOH, it sounds like you may not have made the crucial system discs and thus have no copy of windows, so ghosting the drive may be a good option for you. Again, better sooner than later before the drive fails so drastically that it won't happen. I usually don't need to save the entire drive so I usually prefer not to ghost because if the drive fails midway through, you save no data.

I hope this helps and I am sorry about your HD.

jedikuonji

Appreciate all the suggestions. I'll probably start looking at replacement options in a couple weeks. Until then I can at least work on pulling data.