My Laptop failed Prime 95

[ssvegeta1010]

I really am doubting the heat issue. I have a program which tracks my CPU temperature, and the highest it gets under gaming is 46C-50C with the fan on high, and yes it is a mobile P4 chip. My temperature was at about 55C uring prime95, until i brought it into a cooler room, where it dropped to 45C.

So that points to a CPU error. That is very strange as Windows XP responce tells me that it is a RAM problem after I get the PAGED_FILE_IN NON_PAGED_AREA (says something to that effect) BSOD.

I guess ill try more memtest, as my passing couldve been a fluke and it took 3 times longer to find an error in Prime 95 than i tested in memtest.

EDIT: I use compressed air to clean my heatsink out, and it seems that Dell upped the quality on the heatsink as mine has clearly copper fins and acutally does a great cooling job. (but is loud!)

 

[ssvegeta1010]

UPDATE: Passed all Dell Diagonostics (what a suprise)

 

[VirtualLarry]

Originally posted by: ssvegeta1010
I really am doubting the heat issue. I have a program which tracks my CPU temperature, and the highest it gets under gaming is 46C-50C with the fan on high, and yes it is a mobile P4 chip. My temperature was at about 55C uring prime95, until i brought it into a cooler room, where it dropped to 45C.

Ok, those temps look rather reasonable then, assuming that the thermal sensor is remotely accurate. If you have a mobile P4 chip, then it should be running on a lower voltage and running cooler than a desktop chip. (The problem that my friend's laptop had.)

(Unless those temps are case ambient temps inside the laptop... they do seem slightly low for on-die temps for a laptop under load like that, but it is a mobile P4 chip. I don't have much experience with those yet.)

Originally posted by: ssvegeta1010
So that points to a CPU error. That is very strange as Windows XP responce tells me that it is a RAM problem after I get the PAGED_FILE_IN NON_PAGED_AREA (says something to that effect) BSOD.

That error message does not (necessarily) automatically mean that the problem is RAM. It could be memory-corruption due to a faulty piece of hardware or a poorly-written device-driver.

Originally posted by: ssvegeta1010
I guess ill try more memtest, as my passing couldve been a fluke and it took 3 times longer to find an error in Prime 95 than i tested in memtest.
EDIT: I use compressed air to clean my heatsink out, and it seems that Dell upped the quality on the heatsink as mine has clearly copper fins and acutally does a great cooling job. (but is loud!)

I wonder if the problem could be power-related, like perhaps not enough vcore, if the problem isn't bad RAM or high temps? That would be my next suggestion for a desktop P4 rig, try using a bigger/better PSU... but that wouldn't really apply to laptops. Very strange.

If this is still under warranty, I hate to say it, but this is starting to look like an RMA case, they might need to replace the mobo or something.

 

[ssvegeta1010]

So I should try to get on the phone with Dell? It will be hard since it passed all Dell Diagnostics.

Also if it is possibly a device driver, then that has a good chance of being the case, since i have gotten undetermined device driver BSODs as well.

 

[ssvegeta1010]

Results!

I reseated the memory on Sunday night, then tonight I started up, and my system would post but not boot into Windows, and sure enough, I had a memory failure.
I failed Dell Diagnostics! (And im under warranty!)


Now I'm running on the one working stick, (it was auto disabled), and ill call dell by this weekend.

I cant believe how sluggish XP runs on 256MB.

 

[VirtualLarry]

Originally posted by: ssvegeta1010
I reseated the memory on Sunday night, then tonight I started up, and my system would post but not boot into Windows, and sure enough, I had a memory failure.
I failed Dell Diagnostics! (And im under warranty!)

Well, looks like you've found a resolution to your issue, that's good.

Originally posted by: ssvegeta1010
Now I'm running on the one working stick, (it was auto disabled), and ill call dell by this weekend.
I cant believe how sluggish XP runs on 256MB.

LOL. Tell me about it. I just had to pull two of my 256MB sticks to put into a new-ish build, so right now my machine rig is running as "crippled" as it was when I got it, with only 256MB.
scrolll... lag... scroll... lag... (repeat)