Hello All,

I have a PC with the following:

Giga GA-7N400 motherboard
AMD 2800 XP processor
1GB memory
WDC 80G HD controller 1
CD/RW, DVD RW controller 2
M-Audio Omni O/I system.
Logi Bluetooth keyboard and mouse

Windows XP SP 2

Yesterday, out of nowhere, the computer reset itself. The PC has been working fine for months. It goes through the bios test OK, beeps once, starts windows, and then just after the splash screen, a 'blue screen of death' is briefly displayed. I can't read it because the PC quickly reboots.

I tried booting from the Windows CD but my bluetooth keyboard doesn't seem to work when the PC displays a menu which says 'press any key to boot from the CD'.

If I turn the power on, the PC sequences through the steps above, BIOS OK, WIndows STarts, Blue Screen, ...

The only thing that appears abnormal is that the Fan on top of the processor is very loud at startup. It's not running smoothly. After a minute or two, it seems to get significantly quiter. Is this normal? SHould I replace the fan? Could this have anything to do with the problem?

Any ideas what could be causing this? My hunch is a bad power supply. Any other ideas and recommendations for diagnosis?

My next step is to pick up a cheap keyboard/mouse so I can boot from the CD.

Thanks.

Welcome Aboard!

Your last step should be your first - it's always handy to have a standard keyboard around, even if it's just stored away somewhere - they're cheap and vital for troubleshooting.

It could well be a heat problem if the fan sounds a bit dodgy - the only way to see this through the screen is to use a standard keyboard and enter the bios to check the temperatures; however this could obviously cause more problems if it is overheating.

Take the side panel off the pc and have a look if anything is obstructing the fan. if there is, just move it aside (cables sometimes get caught up in the fan)
If not, leave the side off and if possible place a desktop fan blowing into the system. If this helps at all, then a different processor fan is called for. If not, then it could still be a heat problem, but post back and let us know how you get on.

See if it will boot into Safe Mode.

I dusted the inside of the system, and reseated the CD and DVD, HD, and audio card. THe problem is gone (for now).

The fan on the CPU is quite again.

Thanks for the tips.