k, got a gigabyte a7vxp mb with an athlon 2500 barton, 2 512 mb sticks of crucial 333mhz ddr, maxtor 40 gb hd with a wd 120gb slave, lite on 48x24x48 and xp sp1 installed. the computer will randomly freeze up, sometimes 2 minutes after booting up, sometimes 2 hrs after booting up. also, it will reboot on its own. most of the rebooting occurs when i try to run the windows backup utility. i was trying to make an image of hd or try to copy the files in case this thing took a dive. what do you guys think is wrong with this thing? i have no virus and i checked to see if any spyware or anything is there, but there is nothing? maybe the mb is bad? or the hds taking a crap? please help...

x

i hope you are having problem in the CPU fan. so try to check whether you are getting lot of heat in the cpu.if yes try to put one more fan in the processor .
reply to me

halo,
my temps usually stay around 43c on the cpu. the hd is usually about the same. i have the stock amd fan/heatsink on the cpu and two 80mm fans blowing over the hd. 5 case fans total.

x

Random reboots are most often RAM, heat, or PSU related. However, I would run the harddrive diagnostics. These can be downloaded from your harddrive manufacturer's web site.

Also, I would run a RAM tester:

http://www.memtest86.com/

Easiest troubleshoot for a power supply is to swap a known good...

It appears that heat may not be the issue since you're monitoring your temps and things appear to be okay...

You could try to open the case and set a fan to gently blow on the innards if nothing shows up with the other troubleshooting steps...

Most likely a hardware problem. I would first try a barebones boot:

Bare bones boot to narrow search for malfunctioning hardware device:

Test takes only a few minutes. It sounds difficult, but in practice is quite quick and easy. Take notes if necessary on the devices you disconnect so that you will have no difficulty putting everything back together:

1) When you open the case, make sure that all fans are working, that the heatsinks are not clogged with dust, and that the motherboard appears to be normal – no bulging, leaking or exploded capacitors.

2) Disconnect power and data connectors from all drives (CD, DVD, HD, floppy) leaving only your boot hard drive. Remove any cards from the expansion slots except your video card. Disconnect any devices attached to serial, parallel, firewire or USB ports

2) Try to boot. If the problem has gone away, add devices back one at a time until you discover the defective component.

3) If the problem still exists, you have narrowed your search to motherboard, memory, CPU, hard drive, video card and power supply.

Further Testing:

1) See if machine will boot or whether it still crashes in Safe Mode.
2) Try a different video card if possible.
3) Test memory if possible with DocMem or other software memory tester. If machine won’t boot, remove one memory stick then the other if you have two, or try another compatible memory stick.
4) If machine will boot but crashes randomly, the CPU is probably okay, otherwise try a different CPU.
5) Look at PSU voltages with voltmeter – (red is 5 volts, yellow is twelve volts, black is ground). Or enter bios setup and read the voltages. If machine won’t boot try different PSU.
6) If all other components test okay, motherboard may be the problem.

well guys, i have been extremely busy lately and haven't had the time to mess with the computer. did check the memory with memtest and all ran fine, new psu is + or - .1 vlts on everything. temps inside the case are low, 5 fans are doing their jobs. my wife told me things have gotten worse and i found out this morning. the computer won't stay on longer than 1 min or so. boots up fine then restarts, all on its own. repeatedly. bad thing is i am moving and the computer will be leaving my hands tomorrow!! any ideas for a late night operation?

x

Have you tried just getting into the BIOS and idling from there while. You can usually monitor the temps from with in BIOS setup...

Have you tried the barebones boot that GW mentioned above??