Re: problem please help
- From: "JB" <someone@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Thu, 1 Dec 2005 23:57:36 -0000
So relieved to get a reply!. Thank you.
BTW The machine isn't a laptop, it's a Desktop. I'm sorry I didn't make
myself clear. I was only using the laptop to post message and wasn't used
to its keyboard. :)
I've printed your reply and will go through it now.
J
"Malke" <notreally@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:%23trnnDt9FHA.3804@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
> JB wrote:
>
>> Hi.
>> Never had problems with my pc until yesterday.
>> Firstly, I'm very careful, have McAfee Security Suite 2006 (updated
>> last week from McAfee VS9 and FirewallPlus)
>> Spydoctor (full scan daily) and Microsoft AntiSpy, as well as my ISP's
>> very good Virus and Antispam campaign.
>>
>> Yesterday when I went on my machine, out of the blue, everything I
>> clicked on started to take 1-2 minutes to respond as well as the
>> Windows Programs menu and task manager. I rebooted the machine . At
>> first it asked if I wanted to go SafeMode, a different screen to the
>> F8 when you can choose. it continued as if to start then went back to
>> that odd safe mode thing like in
>> a loop, It did this 3 times and then started normally. But it took
>> over 10 minutes to fully load everything. And again everything I did
>> took ages. This is with Start>Programs (but not Start), the menu opens
>> but just grey and just hangs for ages, but then ok in spurts. the
>> right click on any of the system task icons, particularly Task
>> manager. Task manager process didn't show anything with high cpu usage
>> except windows Explorer. When it 'wakes up' it is fine for a few
>> seconds. IE takes an age. Right clicking on the desktop is fine and
>> opening program seems ok.
>> Also a few fonts have gone Italic, and the following icons are gone
>> and showing generic.
>> All Office2003 icons, PaintshopPro10, and Adobe. All other icons are
>> ok.
>>
>> I did a Virus Scan and Spy Doctor and Microsoft AntiSpy, all came up
>> with 0. Restarted in safe mode, was just as slow, and ran VirusScan
>> while I went to work in safe mode, 7 hours later when I returned,
>> McAfee VS stuck on a file.
>> c:Windows/$/KB899591/update/update_sp2QFE.inf (the slashes are the
>> other way around but cannot find them on my laptop sorry)
>> Could minimise it but could not close it except in Task manager.
>> So I then did a system restore to Monday when all was well, but there
>> is no change at all.
>> I deleted a lot of stuff in Add/Remove. A couple of things came up
>> with the following error:
>> "Windows installer service could not be accessed. This can occur if
>> you are in safe mode or if the windows installer is not properly
>> installed." but of course I'm not in safe mode. I don't know if this
>> is all part of the problem but I thought I'd include everything that's
>> different just in case.
>>
>> PC Packard Bell , Only 1.5 years old.
>> XP sp2,
>> Office 03.
>> 40 Gb only 2/3 free space
>> 448 Mb of Ram
>>
>
> You've done a good job of determining that the problem isn't
> virus/malware. From your description of the problem, I'd lean toward a
> hardware issue. The newness of the computer is irrelevant; in fact if
> hardware is going to fail it usually does so quite soon - or the day
> the warranty runs out :-o
>
> I'll give you general hardware troubleshooting steps, but you probably
> should just call tech support, particularly since this is a laptop. You
> might want to test the hard drive and memory before you call tech
> support so they don't just fob you off with "reinstall Windows". One
> other thing - check whether your drives are using PIO Mode instead of
> one of the DMA Modes. Here's a link explaining that:
>
> http://www.michna.com/kb/WxDMA.htm
>
> 1) Open the computer and run it open, cleaning out all dust bunnies and
> observing all fans (overheating will cause system freezing). Obviously
> you can't do this with a laptop, but you can hear if the fan is running
> and feel if the laptop is getting too hot.
>
> 2) Test the RAM - I like Memtest86+ from www.memtest.org. Obviously, you
> have to get the program from a working machine. You will either
> download the precompiled Windows binary to make a bootable floppy or
> the .iso to make a bootable cd. If you want to use the latter, you'll
> need to have third-party burning software on the machine where you
> download the file - XP's built-in burning capability won't do the job.
> In either case, boot with the media you made. The test will run
> immediately. Let the test run for an hour or two - unless errors are
> seen immediately. If you get any errors, replace the RAM.
>
> 3) Test the hard drive with a diagnostic utility from the mftr. Download
> the file and make a bootable floppy or cd with it. Boot with the media
> and do a thorough test. If the drive has physical errors, replace it.
>
> 4) The power supply may be going bad or be inadequate for the devices
> you have in the system. The adequacy issue doesn't really apply to a
> laptop, although of course the power supply can be faulty.
>
> 5) Test the motherboard with something like TuffTest from
> www.tufftest.com. Sometimes this is useful, and sometimes it isn't.
>
> Testing hardware failures often involves swapping out suspected parts
> with known-good parts. If you can't do the testing yourself and/or are
> uncomfortable opening your computer, take the machine to a professional
> computer repair shop (not your local equivalent of BigStoreUSA).
>
> Malke
> --
> Elephant Boy Computers
> www.elephantboycomputers.com
> "Don't Panic!"
> MS-MVP Windows - Shell/User
.
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