Freezing and Reboots - IE8?

[Darklighter]

Greetings...

I have just finished a complete reinstall of WindowsXP SP3 on a new HDD on my system. Prior to this reinstall I noticed random freezing/lock-ups and spontaneous reboots would randomly occur... and it mostly seemed to be in Internet Explorer (ver. 8). I have finished my reinstall, with all updates, and it is happening again. On the new install it has only happened to me in IE8 (on the old install I think it happened a couple of times outside of IE8), and I was wondering if anyone else had the same issue? Is it possible that this could be hardware related? I have good components, which I have tested with 3DMark06 and 05 (repeatedly), and MEMTest (single pass). I have also done alot of CPU intensive stuff like Nero encoding, archive manipulation (7-Zip), etc., with no issue. I know I should try a whole bunch of other stuff, but I have tried another CPU (same issue occurred), and this just "started" happening recently (like around the same time I installed IE8). Other than that my hardware has remained unchanged for the last 7-8 months. I am a gamer, and rarely have issues while gaming.

My System:
ASUS M2N32-SLI Deluxe (latest BIOS)
Athlon X2 6400+ (not OCed)
Xigmatek HDT-S1283 HSF
4GB Crucial Ballistix Tracer DDR2-800
XFX 260GTX XXX Edition
Soundblaster X-Fi Xtreme Music
Silverstone Decathalon 850W PSU
Silverstone TJ-05 Case (21" tall, LOTS of cooling)
WindowsXP SP3 fully updated (clean install)
IE8 (fully updated, clean install)
AVG Free (updated)

Services optimized "Safe" via Black Viper
MSCONFIG streamlined to essentials

I am a 20+ year computer vet, but with a busy life and 10-year old daughter... so any time-saving help would be very appreciated. I do have another RAM kit I will try if the problem persists, but I'd rather keep the Tracer kit (Mmmm... lights).

One last thing, I am looking for help here, not peronal preference suggestions (like "IE sucks... use Firefox!")... I like the software I have, and I have been using it without fail for years (well, up to IE8 that is). Thanks in advance for any help!

 

[MrChad]

Make sure your computer isn't set to automatically reboot in the event of a Blue Screen of Death:

http://www.microsoft.com/windo...re/russel_02may13.mspx

1. Right-click My Computer, and then click Properties.

2. Click the Advanced tab.

3. Under Startup and Recovery, click Settings to open the Startup and Recovery dialog box.

4. Clear the Automatically restart check box, and click OK the necessary number of times.

5. Restart your computer for the settings to take effect.

When it happens again, see if you can post the message on the blue screen.

I would also ignore Black Viper settings and just use the standard settings.

 

[Darklighter]

There is no BSoD... just either a solid freeze/lock-up or a spontaneous reboot. Nothing in the Event Logs either.

 

[MrChad]

Unless you follow the instructions I provided, you won't see a BSOD; you'll just see a spontaneous reboot.

 

[Darklighter]

I have Auto-restart disabled... one of the first things I do when I install Windows. I have a side "hobby" business in computers, and have been working with them for over 25 years... not that I am bragging, I am just letting you know where I stand... I've eliminated the obvious, hence my posting here.

I appreciate the help though... keep it coming.

Thanks...

 

[Ken g6]

Is it possible you mainly see it in IE8 because that's what you're in most of the time? (Or are you a WoW gamer or something?)

Doesn't sound like a power problem (though you never know without testing); do you have time to run Memtest86 for a few hours?

 

[Darklighter]

UPDATE: I managed to get hold of another RAM Kit to try... so far no issues/problems! I hope Crucial has a decent RMA policy. I will give a final update after the weekend... that should tell me if the RAM was the problem or not. Thanks.

PS: Not a WoW player, but I do spend alot of time in the internet. When I tried Crysis today (first time in a while) it was freezing in the menus... since it's very RAM intensive, I took a chance that was the problem. Weird how none of my other games had issues (Fallout 3, NWN2, R6V2, C&C RA3, etc.) or BSoDs.

 

[Darklighter]

Played around all weekend, no issues.... looks like the RAM was the culprit. When I contacted Crucial they replied that the RAM I have has a voltage issue, and they will replace it with the new updated version through RMA.

Thanks for the help, everyone!

 

[mechBgon]

If your motherboard was providing default memory voltage to high-zoot RAM like the Tracer stuff, make sure you kick the memory voltage up to what the RAM's designed for. Or use "vanilla" RAM that's built for default voltages.

 

[Darklighter]

The RAM was "faulty"... advertised to run at 2.0v and was actually running at 2.2v. The new RAM uses a different chip setup and runs at a lower voltage.