Unpredictable freezes making my $1300 notebook a paperweight

[hassannoob]

First of all, this is not a new problem, but one that I experienced consistently since I installed w7 x64 on my new barebones MSI GT640 laptop in 2010. My other laptop is sent for repair so I thought I might revisit this laptop which has been in storage.

The problem is, the laptop will suddenly freeze when in use (especially under high load), sometimes pre-shadowed by the hard disk light turning solid and the PC lagging significantly. The end result would be long pressing the power button to turn it off before turning it on again.

The diagnostics I have performed up to today are

1. chkdsk on C: and D: partition - No issues found

2.Hd Sentinel health check - Very healthy disk, 98%, 2 non repairable bad sectors. Approximately 5000 hrs in use, 50 failures, which seems reasonable upon consulting other forums.

3. Memtest86 - A total of 5 tests for each combination of ram units and slots. 4 passes for each test, 0 errors.

4.Clean and replace CPU and GPU thermal paste - No noticeable difference

5. Format and reinstall Windows - Problem comes back after a while

After doing all the above tests, I am still unable to identify the source of the problem.

At this moment I suspect three things:

1. The laptop is not made for 64 bit Windows that is currently installed, so I should downgrade.

2. The power supply is faulty

3. The hard disk is indeed faulty despite favourable diagnostic results.

This problem had made my $1300 investment into a paperweight sitting in my storage. If I can in anyway make it a reliable machine for even light web browsing, I would be ecstatic.

Will appreciate any tips and guides, thanks guys.

 

[LTC8K6]

Is the cooling fan working? Are the cooling vents and channels clean?

Check the CPU temp with CPU-Z
Check the GPU temp with GPU-Z

See if either one is overheating prior to the crash?

 

[Burpo]

"5. Format and reinstall Windows - Problem comes back after a while"

How long is awhile? After drivers have updated?

Laptop is fine for 64 bit OS. I suspect a driver issue.

I'd try the Nvidia reference drivers first.

Ver 3.40
http://www.geforce.com/drivers/results/77228

or Ver 3.41
http://www.geforce.com/drivers/results/89881

 

[Steltek]

"5. Format and reinstall Windows - Problem comes back after a while"

How long is awhile? After drivers have updated?

Laptop is fine for 64 bit OS. I suspect a driver issue.

I'd try the Nvidia reference drivers first.

Ver 3.40
http://www.geforce.com/drivers/results/77228

or Ver 3.41
http://www.geforce.com/drivers/results/89881

You might also want to set Windows Update not to install driver updates. It means that you'll have to manually install driver updates, but this is my own preference anyway.

https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/kb/2500967

 

[VirtualLarry]

The problem is, the laptop will suddenly freeze when in use (especially under high load), sometimes pre-shadowed by the hard disk light turning solid and the PC lagging significantly.

2.Hd Sentinel health check - Very healthy disk, 98%, 2 non repairable bad sectors. Approximately 5000 hrs in use, 50 failures, which seems reasonable upon consulting other forums.

What kind of failures are we talking about here?

 

[pigsty]

Any updates on this? If you are still having problems, I have some suggestions that might help, but I'd rather not open a can of worms if this has been resolved

 

[hassannoob]

What kind of failures are we talking about here?

I'm not sure to be honest but i think its nothing serious based on my readings on other forums.

 

[hassannoob]

Any updates on this? If you are still having problems, I have some suggestions that might help, but I'd rather not open a can of worms if this has been resolved

Yes the problem is still unresolved as ever but at the moment my suspicions are towards the hard disk, but I can't be certain as I don't have another disk that I can try replace it with.

Plus, the problem started to occur only a few months of using the laptop, so how likely is it a hard disk to malfunction that early in use?

 

[hassannoob]

"5. Format and reinstall Windows - Problem comes back after a while"

How long is awhile? After drivers have updated?

Laptop is fine for 64 bit OS. I suspect a driver issue.

I'd try the Nvidia reference drivers first.

Ver 3.40
http://www.geforce.com/drivers/results/77228

or Ver 3.41
http://www.geforce.com/drivers/results/89881

I didn't really notice how long, only the reformat and reinstall of Windows did not do anything to the problem.

CPU-Z does show both CPU and GPU running hot, around 90°C under light load ( chrome, browsing windows explorer, MS Word).
But after a while they will cool down a bit on their own (no change in load) and go back up again, which does seem to indicate driver issues.

Here are my temperature data, after cleaning and applying new thermal pastes, dusting all vents and the fan.

 

[pigsty]

I've replaced more than 1,000 defective hard drives in the last 20+ years. Some were under warranty, most were not, but some were defective straight out of the box. You just never know with mechanical devices; they can fail at any time. Can you borrow an SSD or HDD from a friend? If not, you might as well plan on replacing the HDD, even if you have to buy a used / refurbished one from eBay. I understand that you probably don't want to replace the HDD until you are positive that it is defective, but I don't think you have any other choice.

Last year I replaced a dead HDD with a new one. For reasons I still can't explain, I couldn't install Win7 no matter what method I used, so I decided to install Linux from a USB drive. The installation worked fine until the HDD started smoking. A controller chip on the PCB burned and that was the end of the brand-new HDD. I returned it under warranty and had no problem with the replacement.

What is the brand and model of the HDD? Download the diagnostic utility provided by the manufacturer and use it to test the drive. Let us know how this turns out; your HDD could be failing, better to know now than lose your data.

 

[hassannoob]

I've replaced more than 1,000 defective hard drives in the last 20+ years. Some were under warranty, most were not, but some were defective straight out of the box. You just never know with mechanical devices; they can fail at any time. Can you borrow an SSD or HDD from a friend? If not, you might as well plan on replacing the HDD, even if you have to buy a used / refurbished one from eBay. I understand that you probably don't want to replace the HDD until you are positive that it is defective, but I don't think you have any other choice.

Last year I replaced a dead HDD with a new one. For reasons I still can't explain, I couldn't install Win7 no matter what method I used, so I decided to install Linux from a USB drive. The installation worked fine until the HDD started smoking. A controller chip on the PCB burned and that was the end of the brand-new HDD. I returned it under warranty and had no problem with the replacement.

What is the brand and model of the HDD? Download the diagnostic utility provided by the manufacturer and use it to test the drive. Let us know how this turns out; your HDD could be failing, better to know now than lose your data.

It is a Fujitsu MHZ320BH G2. I suppose if I could borrow a HDD from someone it would really help with pinning down the problem, but I can't unfortunately. I might just send the laptop to a shop for a professional diagnostic.

 

[pigsty]

Don't pay someone to run a test you can do yourself; save your money. Open the following link and download the software to test your HDD:

http://pcsupport.about.com/od/hardware-testing-software/fl/fujitsu-diagnostic-tool.htm

Let us know the test results, good luck.