XP runs great when comp is cold, bluescreens when warm

[9xer]

Hey all, I have a baffling problem here. Comp is an '04 HP a345w, 2.6 P4, 1 gb ram, xp sp3. When it's cold, it runs great....if I reboot when warmed up, it immediately bluescreens after post...and when I say blue screen, I mean no warning messages, just a dark blue screen. In Safe Mode, I went to Event Viewer and got the following event id's;

7026 Service Control Manager---drivers that aren't loading; AFD, Fips, intelppm (that one worries me), IPSec, MPfilter, MRxSmb, NetBIOS, NetBT, RasAcd, Rdbss, Tcpip

7011 Service Control Manager; I get a rash of these, simply stating that the above drivers did not load

10005 DCOM

51 Warning disk

But it's acting wierd even in Safe Mode...stuff isn't working right, like the start button.

Things I've done; did a quick scan with MS Security Essentials, and it came back ok...made sure there was no dust clogging up the processor heat sink (which would cause a thermal issue), and ran Seatools on the hard drive (no errors).

What's going on here?

 

[bryonhowley]

Well the first place to start if you have ruled out thermal problems would be to run memtest so go here http://www.memtest86.com/download.htm you can get a usb bootable image or burn to cd. Either way after making the bootable image just boot that and let the test run.

Given the way your system is BSODing it still sound like a heat problem to me. But check the memory first. If that comes back OK it could be as simple as the TIM needing to be cleaned and replaced given the age of the system.

Given that your system is from 2004 when is the last time you have done a clean re-install of the OS? Over time Windows does tend to get a little clogged and a clean install can some times fix problems that other wise can't seem to get fixed.

 

[9xer]

Thanks Bryon, I"ll have to check the memory (right now I"m defragging the HD)

What is the TIM?

I've reinstalled the o/s at least 5 times, trying to solve the problem; no go.

Something I should mention; a while back, one of the clips that secures the cpu fan to the heatsink broke, and I lashed that side of the heatsink down with a ziptie (couldn't find a new clip)....it ran ok for awhile, and then it started shutting down due to thermal errors. I replaced the entire heat sink/fan assembly with a new one....no more error messages/shutdowns, but I was wondering; can something like that damage the cpu to where it now acts up when it gets hot?

Thanks for your help

 

[Saga Lout]

That list of drivers is what I would expect not to have loaded in Safe Mode without Networking enabled. Is this possibly related to the other problem you recently posted?

 

[9xer]

You could be right, I don't remember if I had started in Safe Mode with networking or not. But which other post are you referring to?

I think this must be heat-related....it's been sitting cold all night, I just fired it up, and it works great again. Now if I go to reboot 30 minutes from now, forget it--blue screen city. Are there areas of the computer that are more heat-sensitive than others?

 

[Saga Lout]

But which other post are you referring to?

My bad - it's a memory/age thing. It wasn't a problem, just a question about the Refurb thing. Sorry.

 

[9xer]

No prob...

Right now I"m doing a full MS Windows Defender scan.....it's been running for a little over 2 hours, and it's only scanned 32,000 items. I have no files of my own at all on this comp, it's factory fresh as far as programs and files go (except for Win Defender of course). I've also cleaned up the disk/defragged as well before the scan.

Obviously something is going on if it's running this slow, right?

 

[Hawkeye22]

TIM is the thermal paste that sits between the CPU and heatsink. Just becuase your vents aren't clogged doesn't mean it not a heat problem. Download HWMonitor and check your temps.

http://www.cpuid.com/softwares/hwmonitor.html

 

[9xer]

I replaced that when I replaced the heat sink/fan assembly (barely used the computer since).

Thanks for the link. I tried installing CPUID twice from two different sites, but it would not install correctly on my machine; instead of looking like the screenshots that have all of the different data areas, mine just had one; System. No way to expand or configure it, so instead I downloaded SpeedFan. But the readings on this program are quite cryptic. It tells me that Temp 1 is 38C, Temp 2 is in the warning area with 53C, and the HD is 43C. Problem is, I don't know if temp 1 or 2 is the CPU. Any recommendations?

Thanks for the answers guys, I appreciate it

 

[Hawkeye22]

Odd that HWMonitor didn't work for you. I've never had issues. As you found out, speedfan can be cryptic unless you can find a template for your motherboard. They have links to them somewhere on the speedfan site.

You can also try core temp, although it doesn't provide as much information as HWMonitor..

http://www.alcpu.com/CoreTemp/

 

[9xer]

I've got an update; I now know the problem is definitely either in the o/s or the hard drive...and the hd passes Seatools tests and also Scandisk with flying colors, so I'm leaning towards the o/s itself.

How I found out; I remembered I had an old hd with XP Pro installed on it, so I threw it in to see what would happen--left the comp on for hours, rebooted it many times with no issues at all (it's been a couple of days now, still no problems).

So, if it's in the o/s, how do I fix it? I've already reinstalled it many times from the recovery disks, and the problem persists.

 

[Saga Lout]

Clone the system from the old hard disk on to the new one and at least you know you have a good system. If it fails, the new disk is flawed in spite of Seatools results. You'll still have the system on the old disk - a clone is a copy not a wipe-out.

 

[9xer]

Well, I haven't tested the disk I just put in, maybe I better do that first to make sure it's good. But I am at a total loss as to how to clone my old system onto the new disk. My old HD has XP o/s on a partition; I was able to do a fresh recovery with the recovery disks I made when I bought the computer. Would those recovery disks work on the new HD that has XP Pro on it? I don't have any reinstall media for the XP Pro, it's just an old HD I pulled from a system years ago. And oh yeah, I'm getting the Windows Advantage validation screen; the new HD with Pro on it isn't recognizing the hardware...but I knew that would happen, I'm just using that HD to test the computer.

Thanks for the answers, much appreciated.

 

[Saga Lout]

Cloning is achieved through software, many of which are available free but my own preference is Acronis True Image. It can resize and include the Partitions, scaling up according to the relative size of the new drive. The Recovery Partition is useless in the new box but you can leave it there or delete it if you wish once the clone is finished.

As to Activation, you can work around that on the telephone if it doesn't sort itself out. Many times in the past, I've noticed it just goes away after a day or so when the latest updates come through.

 

[9xer]

Thanks for that info. I"m wondering though; if the problem is indeed in the o/s, wouldn't copying it simply carry the problem to the new drive?

 

[Saga Lout]

That is the disadvantage - everything gets carried over. A clean installation is ideal, followed by copying over the personal files and introducing the third party programmes in small doses to see how the system reacts. You must have an idea of what's running when the problem starts - try shutting them down one at a time in an experiment to see if the fan slows.

 

[9xer]

Thanks Saga for all of your help, and everyone else that replied. Unfortunately, I think I'm out of luck on this one....I think the o/s has corrupt files, and that they were corrupt before I made the restore disks (meaning that they are corrupt too). I think the only way I can save that comp is to buy a new (legal) XP o/s and start over. Thanks again

 

[Saga Lout]

Is it really worth paying out for XP? You'd find a used PC with it on for less and, as we are constantly reminded, it is out of support as of April next year. So long as that's the worst that happens to it, it should go on for years but if strange codes comes down the pipe to our installations, it may suffer an early death.

Thanks for the BA but I really don't think this has been a success. Better luck with your next setup.