does windows have a half life?

[otispunkmeyer]

i think it does.

after a fresh install it doesnt take too long for windows to start gettin abit buggered. ive had this install on since just before christmas and already....

*autorun doesnt work
*nvidia firewall no longer functions correctly
*i get a message every time i switch on telling me windows has found new hardware in the form of a IDE controller
*my tv card no longer synchs video and audio allowing the audio to get about 10mins ahead.
*i cant use standby mode because i get BSOD and a restart.

thats since decemeber, it'll probably tail off soon.....things will stay go wrong but more slowly

there are a couple more niggles, but those are the main ones......windows just likes to fall apart and it does it faster n faster with each reformat.

 

[n0cmonkey]

Check ram, check cables, check PSU. I don't have any issues like that on my Windows machine, and I abuse the hell out of it.

 

[Robor]

I leave my Windows XP Pro box running 24/7 and it's overclocked from 2.0Ghz to 2.5Ghz and running Rosetta@Home (that keeps the CPU at 99%). I only reboot it for patches or software installs or uninstalls that require a reboot. I play games, rip CD's to mp3's and back to CD, web, email, etc, etc. That system has been running like that since my motherboard upgrade probably a year ago or more and I can't remember a BSOD or lockup. XP is a pretty stable OS. I think you've got a bad piece of hardware there.

 

[KB]

Well how much software do you install? If you keep it barebones it should stay running well.

 

[otispunkmeyer]

this all started to kick off really after i upped to 2gigs of ram. this required a phone call to MS just to re-activate my copy of windows....do you think thats part of it?

 

[otispunkmeyer]

Originally posted by: KB
Well how much software do you install? If you keep it barebones it should stay running well.

regular installation/uninstallation of games and programs such as MATLAB and solidedge

 

[spherrod]

Tried some diagnoistics? Memtest? How old is the hardware?

 

[FrustratedUser]

I've come to the conclusion that Win DO actually have a half-life. This has been bothering me for some time.
Same goes with firmware in routers. They work fine and then suddenly I need to upgrade to make it work again.

 

[MrChad]

Originally posted by: otispunkmeyer
i think it does.

after a fresh install it doesnt take too long for windows to start gettin abit buggered. ive had this install on since just before christmas and already....

*autorun doesnt work
*nvidia firewall no longer functions correctly
*i get a message every time i switch on telling me windows has found new hardware in the form of a IDE controller
*my tv card no longer synchs video and audio allowing the audio to get about 10mins ahead.
*i cant use standby mode because i get BSOD and a restart.

thats since decemeber, it'll probably tail off soon.....things will stay go wrong but more slowly

there are a couple more niggles, but those are the main ones......windows just likes to fall apart and it does it faster n faster with each reformat.

Nope, your issue is hardware, not your operating system.

 

[RebateMonger]

A month is a bit short.....You ought to take a look at your hardware and your drivers. I had one Windows install that was upgraded over Windows 3.x, Windows 95, and Windows 98 with no particular issues. All of my personal XP computers have OS's that are at least three years old. They all behave as they are supposed to and are run 24/7. They are rebooted once a month for patches.

I've READ that the Nvidia firewall is problematic. Their RAID drivers, too. But I don't use them and can't speak from first-hand experience.

 

[Robor]

*Note - On the system I'm referring to it's got an Asus A8N-SLI Deluxe but I disabled the Nvidia firewall.

 

[Smilin]

Originally posted by: otispunkmeyer
i think it does.

after a fresh install it doesnt take too long for windows to start gettin abit buggered. ive had this install on since just before christmas and already....

*autorun doesnt work
*nvidia firewall no longer functions correctly
*i get a message every time i switch on telling me windows has found new hardware in the form of a IDE controller
*my tv card no longer synchs video and audio allowing the audio to get about 10mins ahead.
*i cant use standby mode because i get BSOD and a restart.

thats since decemeber, it'll probably tail off soon.....things will stay go wrong but more slowly

there are a couple more niggles, but those are the main ones......windows just likes to fall apart and it does it faster n faster with each reformat.

Most of these are indicative of improper drivers being loaded (or flat out hardware failure). Are you ghosting an install or running through full setup? Are you updating bios and drivers for every component in your system?

Just so you know, NO Windows does not have a "half-life". I'm using the same install of XP that I was using when it first came out. No problems.

 

[acole1]

nvidia firewall? i didn't know nvidia had a firewall.

what do you do to your computer?! drop it in a bathtub? your issues arn't totaly normal you must understand. it is very hard to trash a good windows install in 3 months unless your really abusing it. oh, and dont do registry cleans if you dont know what your doing

 

[n0cmonkey]

Originally posted by: acole1
nvidia firewall? i didn't know nvidia had a firewall.

They do, it's not worth it.

 

[daniel49]

if you maintain your system regularly and don't use poor download/surfing practices it should not be a problem.

I built this system almost 2 years ago now am still running the original install.

 

[Philippine Mango]

I'm currently on a windows' install from may '05, seems to be fine for the most part although I'm sure it could be albiet better, if XP wasn't so damned bloated...

 

[xtknight]

Originally posted by: MrChad
Nope, your issue is hardware, not your operating system.

Yup, because we all know Windows is 100% bug-free, right?

 

[Philippine Mango]

Originally posted by: xtknight

Originally posted by: MrChad
Nope, your issue is hardware, not your operating system.

Yup, because we all know Windows is 100% bug-free, right?

While I can definately agree with you on what you're saying, in this case it's probably due to poor hardware and or drivers..

 

[thegorx]

judging by what you've said I'd say the memory needs to be tested
perhaps the timings need to be adjusted or you have bad or incompatible modules
I've had problems with two kingston KVR pc3200 modules with different chips
either works fine by themselves but together cause frequent crashing

more than likely your memory is corrupting your registry
or improper reboots are corrupting files in general


in a properly working system over long periods of time the registry can become corrupt
personally I do a windows system restore every once in a while to have fresh copies of the registry hive files, I'm not sure if it really helps but at least it changes the hive files creation date.
anytime installed hardware is redetected the registry has been damaged
unless the firmware on the hardware was updated or connected differently

 

[gsellis]

XP, no. Windows 95's half-life was 9 months. We kept looking for the secret reg setting for it, but never found it.

Edit - OtisP, I had a wierd thought and I am about the last person every to say it is a virus... But have you checked for the Sony Rootkit? If it thought you were in violation of its bad programming, it might effect autorun and the ide controller (it jumps in part of the removable media controllers.) I would more suspect a damaged file in the device driver region and chkdsk /r is your best friend first.

 

[MrChad]

Originally posted by: xtknight

Originally posted by: MrChad
Nope, your issue is hardware, not your operating system.

Yup, because we all know Windows is 100% bug-free, right?

Based on the symptoms he describes, he has driver or hardware issues. I never claimed that Windows was bug free, but in almost all cases that I've encountered (in person and on this forum), instability in Windows 2000/XP/2003 is due to failing hardware or poorly written third party device drivers.

 

[Smilin]

Originally posted by: xtknight

Originally posted by: MrChad
Nope, your issue is hardware, not your operating system.

Yup, because we all know Windows is 100% bug-free, right?

That was helpful there Mr Troll.

 

[ubercaffeinated]

Originally posted by: daniel49
if you maintain your system regularly and don't use poor download/surfing practices it should not be a problem.

I built this system almost 2 years ago now am still running the original install.

I hear you. Run Defrag, crapcleaner, and virus scans once a week, and I don't see why you can't have an xp install go for a while. Just don't download stupid crap and install ****** all over the place.

 

[xtknight]

Originally posted by: Philippine Mango
While I can definately agree with you on what you're saying, in this case it's probably due to poor hardware and or drivers..

I apologize for being overly belligerent, but it's obvious software can play a role in problems. What I meant to say was software, not Windows I guess.

I'm just saying, Windows has idiosyncrasies and to just blame it on the hardware is a little premature without any evidence of it, don't you think? I really meant Windows as in the whole software "ecosystem". There's plenty of times when sporadic issues like this are caused by software (mainly incompatibilities), just as much as hardware from my experience. Overall, after you install so many things and default DLLs that "aggressive" installers love to replace, the whole thing effectively does have a half life unless you are extremely careful. Not mentioning flaky drivers (software) as a possible cause of this is ridiculous (MrChad didn't in his original posting). But now he did so that's fine (was evidently just an honest mistake). I really do agree with the OP that after awhile the whole thing will degrade unless you are really aware of every last thing you're installing, etc. Granted I don't have the problem because I use PCs on a "religious" basis, but that's another story. It was possibly just a rumor but didn't even Microsoft themselves say you should do a repair installation once a year?

 

[thegorx]

Originally posted by: otispunkmeyer
this all started to kick off really after i upped to 2gigs of ram. this required a phone call to MS just to re-activate my copy of windows....do you think thats part of it?

sounds like the memory, yes I do