Random Reboots, AVG8 and memory voltage...

[Evildead666]

The title says it all really.

My PC has had a couple of times when i've come home from work and found the PC off...
OK, check the logs, no sign of any switch off, or back on again...
its 6006 and 6009 for event log shutdown and startup.
nothing...very weird...

Didn't think too much of it, twice, well apart.

Its done it a couple of times lately, like last week, but i put that down to instability from the video driver being ATi, still installed, and the Voodoo taking over for a while...

The i sort of remembered how AVG8 always got the short end of the stick and was always corrupted...this is AVG8 Network edition, not the free one, with which I had no problems...

So, today, this morning, I wake up and the PC is off. It was off when i got home from work yesterday, AND today...so, looking into it, the bugger had a very hard time starting windows without crapping out.
example : After putting in my password, when I got that far, a nice message saying " Could not connect to your Domain <My computer name>. It is not available. "
I have NO domain.
Another example, getting just the mouse pointer on a black screen, and having peerguardian and gmail notifyer freeze on bootup.

Uninstalled AVG 8 and the PC was still pretty unstable, but better.

Dropped the memory voltage by a notch, and it seems fine.
But this is what it was like yesterday evening, working fine until i left it for a while...

THEN, i just checked to see if there was enough space on the C drive for the Hiberfile.sys...and i saw the contents of the C: Drive.
Check the picture out, I think it might be the IDE HDD ?

What the hell could cause that ?

I don't want to reboot just yet (ever) if it might mean having to start from scratch ?

i'll do that tomorrow with a fresh cup of XP install. The C: drive only has the Windows dir, and I backed up my Internet links last week...

So, from whence do you think this whatever came from, and how to do anything bar reinstall ?

Cheers

Jez

[Evildead666]

I'm itching to do a shift-delete on those weird named folders, but i don't want to, like they are linked to the 'real' Windows folder somehow...

I could also just leave them there and not do anything, they don't seem to take up any space....

I just thought it might create a confusion in the bootup process...

[Evildead666]

Systems been stable since AVG8 full version hs gone, and i've reinstalled avg free...
Internet isn't extremely sluggish when i'm DL'ing, I expect since AVG 8 is limited to one core, or something, and it couldn't cope with all the traffic.
Avg free doesn't do as much, so its a lighter load....

No-one got any ideas about the Windows folder thing ?
I mean i've done a lot of PC's, and i've never seen this before..

multiple folders yes, weird naming like that, no...

[spadnos]

Have you looked at what's in the folders?

That seems more virus-like than anything else, though it could be from disk errors or something.

As far as AVG using only one core, unless you have a 10Gbit/sec internet connection, one core should be far more processing power than you need for downloads - by orders of magnitude. Even a 100Mbit/sec connection is only ~10 MBytes/second, and the average CPU from 5 years ago could checksum, route, and store 100x as much data (assuming it even had to do any of that - most network chips do checksumming and filtering these days).

- Steve

[Evildead666]

I'm saying number of connections per second.

Torents take alot of connections, and the full avg checks evryone of them.

Theres only a badly named system32 folder with boxes in the name.

(is after midnight, friday, and i'm tanked, sorry)

Due to the bad boots, there might be some extra folders, but i dont see why.
I dont visibly have any virus, i check all the processes running regularly.

[Evildead666]

AVG updated and asked for a reboot, and i forgot about the probs, rebooted, and failed on reboot with message about AVGsx something.
Uninstalled AVG8 and it seems OK.

Maybe the other virus companies aren't happy about there being a free popular AV and are killing it ?

Which was the other free AV that was OK ?
NOD or Avast ?

[WxDude]

I would check (using HijackThis) to see if you have a rootkit/malware on your system.
It will install and then run a very detailed scan on your system and tell you EVERYTHING
that is running. You might need some help to decode the output. You could post the
log to have extra sets of eyes look over what is running.

The installation of AVG failing right off the bat suggests that you might also have a virus
that detects ANY virus software being installed and corrupts the virus software so it
fails.

There are a number of free online virus scanners (that do not install on your computer)
that might be worthwhile to run. TrendMicro House call is one.

http://housecall.trendmicro.com/

I would not be surprised if you picked up something on the torrent sites. It's real easy
to do that (even if you are careful). Do you have a router between you and the internet
or is your computer directly connected to your modem?

[Evildead666]

Yay, Thanks for the info.

I finally managed to get Kaspersky installed, and after a few reboots, its fine and dandy.
I'm very very careful about where I go and what I do online, and usually only visit the same sites, less than 20, daily.
There is only one svenska site that I visit, and only with http blocked etc...

AVG scans on bootup, and i'm pretty sure it was that that borked the files, even though it could have been any of a few hardware malfunctions...

I spent saturday trying to fix it, and reinstalled Windows.
Sunday I spent stabilising it back at 3.6GHz.

|Mehen| will be pleased to know that i've only got a 1.4V vcore this time round, but the NB is taking a pumelling at 1.72V. Doesn't go above 41C...
Memory latency has been pulled back to 555-15-5 at 900MHz 2.2V, just for stabilitys sake.
I ran Malwarebytes antimalware thingy we use at work, and it found nothing.
AVG only ever found a few hundred tracking cookies in a backup of my previous Installs...
Nothing that was being used.

Kaspersky crapped out a few times, and got up all by itself, so i'm very happy with that.
It was hardware unstability.

Right now i'm popping off to collect a 8800GTS-320 while i wait for the delivery-date-always-getting-put-back-4870-1GB........b'stards.

Hopefully it will sort out the GeForce 6200 Turbocache I have in here thats nicking 200-odd megs of my system memory...

The computer stayed on today, finally.
The Voodoo3 wasn't playing well either, I think its had its last cough...had some bad streaking in Videos before the complete system bork-up...

Anyhoo, will be kind to it until I get the 4870 and find out my PSU doesn't have the right number of Video connectors...(PSU on the way methinks...will be here b4 the card at this rate)

Jez

edit : I don't exactly have a router, but a switch, and it might be worth giving it all a cycle, its all UPS'ed and hasn't been switched off for a while now...

[WxDude]

edit : I don't exactly have a router, but a switch, and it might be worth giving it all a cycle, its all UPS'ed and hasn't been switched off for a while now...

So you're saying you have nothing between your Windows box and the internet except for some
sort of software firewall? IMO, that is just begging for infection. I always recommend a router
between the modem and the computer (or a modem with an integrated router) to protect
you from all of the malware out that that looks specifically for Windows exploits. Having a
router is better because you the device that is connected directly to the outside world is not
running Windows and it makes it more difficult for hackers to compromise your machine.

[Evildead666]

No, its just a switch. 1GB/s switch, 8-port.
The modem is a modem router, supplied by the Internet people. (FreeBox HD)
Its very good, and the router is only set up to redirect the Trackmania ESWC connections to my game server....
i haven't checked the games server in a while, it only runs the command line of Trackmania server....maybe thats gotten infected...

When i swapped the 6200 memory stealing card for the 8800GTS, I don't have corruption in RAR's anymore...
I think that the overclocked memory was creating problems between the 6200 and the Windows System...its corrupted a few files...nothing major...

[Evildead666]

Well F*CK de roooooo.

The Quad is down.
It wouldn't reboot this morning, and I left it off all day.
Wouldn't even boot this evning.
Taken cards out, all I get is the fans. and pretty lights.
The LED Poster tells me it stops on detecting DRAM, but thats just the second thing after CPU init...
No POST, no Video display at all...
( Maybe the 4850 works after all...? Haven't tried it in another pc yet...)

So, here i am nursing a i955 mobo with the 805D..slow machine, but works.

It beggars belief that i haven't built a backup pc yet....a permanent one at that.

Took the battery out for 1min, and still nothing, reset CMOS, nada...
Then again, it took the i955 a bit of coaxing to stop bluescreening on XP install...
It takes a flew slaps to the face to stop wanting to up the fsb cos its soooo sluggish..
But a stable, backup possible machine comes first.

Theres a lesson to be learnt here : Don't screw around. Unless you have plenty of backup.
And the patience and the beer to set it up again...

At least I can go to bed watching some vids...and some music...

Gonna have some better light tomorrow to see the Quads mobo better...
If it gets up again, its staying at 3.2 GHz, it did that "les doigts dans le nez" lol

edit : yes i am seriously peeved at myself for having possibly killed a lot a hardware in the laast couple of months, but you have to take the good with the bad.
edit2 : beer helps.
edit3: the original Rollerball is sweet

[Evildead666]

Well, after nearly a week off, it boots fine.
keeping it at stock until 4870 arrives (tomorrow normally) and new psu.
The PSU is the only item that has gone from PC to PC, even the 5GHz Pentium D, and I think its time for an updated one.

And it doesn't have enough video connectors for the 4870...

excuses excuses...

[Evildead666]

Corsair HX1000 on the way...

[Marshmallowman]

I Got a corsair hx750 a few months back, seem to be a very good PSU, plenty of connectors including 4 pci-ex power plugs(6/8).

[Evildead666]

Well, basically i've had the Enermax 725 something since my first foray in S775, and even on my last NF2 board...which was watercooled...
Its really a 600W PSu, as stated on Enermax's site, but it IS quite old, and maybe the rails don't have enough current any more...

The Pentium D i'm using atm gave me a little nod, its using a really sh*tty Heden 350W psu.
All is stock, everything, and It has the 8800GTS installed, and an IDE hard drive.
I added three SATA HDD's and it was fine.
Tried to add one more SATA HDD and the power light dips in intensity as it tries to boot, but to no avail. To me, this meant the PSU is sucked dry...
Took the 4th drive off again, and happy boot.

thats for a 350W psu, a 600W one should have been able to cope with the Quad overclocked, but there was the 880GTS overclocked, the memory overclocked, and 6 hard disks...and a DVDRW...and 13 fans, all at 12V...
All in all, I think I may have finally been on the limit, and that might ( i said might) be one of the reasons for some really bad Voltage indicators...

I didn't want to have to get a new X48 mobo, they are like 200-250euros...
ANyhow, I only have a 425W enermax after this 700W , so a good PSU is sort of needed...

especially for the quad and the 4870...
gonna have to get a new UPS to cope with the 1000W, don't think a 800VA is gonna be enough...