Windows Vista 64bit Freezing after idle x hours

[Nov94949]

I have a Windows Vista Home Premium 64-bit edition machine that has run reliably for the last year that I've had it. I typically leave it running 24 hours a day for one reason or another and have never had this problem before. What I am finding now is that it is frozen when I wake up in the morning or after I come home from work at the end of the day. The only changes that I can pin down are that I recently added a WD 2 terabyte internal drive, and also networked in a Mac OSX Leopard machine to help me with encoding processes I do for work. The freezing never happens when encoding, just when idle. Has anyone run into this issue and can help me out? I run AVG Internet Security with daily updates and scans, with nothing being found.

 

[arges86]

it could be a bad HD
does it freeze if you unplug the STATA cable form the HD?
also, try cleaning out any dust from inside the case, especially from heatsinks and fan blades... caned air is a must

 

[Scotteq]

I would start checking problems with Sleep mode. Quickest thing is to disable it and see does the problem go away.