shassouneh

Here is the information I was able to cllect. The First part is the processor information, the second is a PARTIAL list of my BIOS settings. Of coarse, it wouldn't make sens to post all the BIOS settings, as that would take me FOREVER to write down and type. Please feel free to also look over the recently-updated sysinfo.txt or sysinfo.nfo (posted above). Processor Information: NOTE: It was really hard to read this, I appologize if a few letters or digits may be off. I have done my best to get them right. This is from the central rectangle (on the processor chip): --DATA Segment Starts Here-- Processor Information: AMD Athlon A1400AMS3C AYHJA0132BPLW Y6717730639 (copyright symbol) 1999 BIOS information: Advanced Setup: Quick Boot: Enabled 1st Boot Device: IDE-0 2nd Boot Device: floppy 3rd Boot Device: CD ROM Try Other Boot Devices: Yes BootUp Num-Lock: On Floppy Drive Swap: Disabled Floppy Drive Seek: Disabled Password Check: Setup Boot To OS/2 > 64MB: No L1 cache: Enabled L2 cache: Enabled System BIOS Cacheable: Enabled GraphicWin Size: 64M DRAM Timing Configuration: Normal SDR/DDR CAS Latency: SPD SDR/DDR RAS Active Time: 4T Auto Detect DIMM/PCI Clk: Enabled Clk GEN Spread Spectrum: Enabled PCI/Plug n Play Setup: Plug and PLay Aware O/S: yes AGP Select: 4x Primary Graphics Adapter: AGP Allocate IRQ to PCI VGA: yes Features Setup: Onboard FDC: Disabled Onboard Serial Port A: 3F8h/COM1 Onboard Serial Port B: 2F8h/COM2 Serial port 2 Mode: Normal Onboard Parrallel Port: 378h Parrallel port Mode: SPP Parallel port IRQ: 7 Parallel port DMA: N/A Onboard Game port: 201h Onboard MIDI Port: 300h MIDI port IRQ: 10 Onboard PCI IDE: Both Onboard AC' 97 Sound: Disabled Onboard AC' 97 Modem: Disabled Onboard LAN: Enabled USB Function Support: Enabled USB Function for DOS: Disabled CPU PnP Setup: CPU BRAND: AMD k7 CPU Type: Athlon CPU Speed: 100/100 MHZ CPU Core Voltage: 1.792 V CPU Ratio: 10.5x CPU Frequency: 100 MHZ DRAM Frequency: 100 MHZ Hardware Monitor: -==System Hardware==- Vcore: 1.792 V Vcc2.5v: 2.496 V Vcc3.3v: 3.264 v vcc5v: 4.865 v +12v: 12.352 v SB3v: 3.472 v -12v: -11.393 v SB5v: 5.053 v VBAT: 3.488 v SYSTEM fan speed: 0 RPM CPU Fan Speed: 5113 RPM SYSTEM TEMPERATURE: 28C/82F CPU Temperature: 55C/131F (sometimes this is 56C/132F) --END OF DATA segment-- Note: The setting above make the processor work at 1 GHZ (1050MHZ) perfectly. It is STILL problemeatic with 133/133MHZ (1.4GHZ). Please look over the data given above, and the sysinfo.txt (or sysinfo.nfo) through the link posted above. Again, here is the link to the system information OPEN ME IN A WEB BROWSER Remmember: You MUST open the baove link in a web browser, THEN you can right click / save target as... The zip file contains two files, a sysinfo.nfo and a sysinfo.txt, they are identical apart from how you open them. I included both to suit your preference.

Ok, Lemme first start by collecting some data. I'm about to shut down, wait for the system to cool a bit, then take out the chip and record everything on it. Before I do that, I am going to go in the CPU PnP setup and report all the values I get. NOTE: When I reset the bios (above) it said something like "run setup" and it set the default settings at 1050MHZ @ 100MHZ/100MHZ. Anyways, let me colle3ct some data and get back to you, ASAP

I Have just updated the System information File(s). Below is a link to the zip file containing them. REMMEMBER: YOU MUST OPEN THE LINK BELOW IN A WEB BROWSER then you can use right click / save target as. OPEN ME IN A WEB BROWSER Note: The zip file contains two files, one is a .nfo file, and the other is a .txt file. They are identical. I included both just in case you prefer to view the .nfo file or vice-versa.

Quote: Don't know what Shassounes real issue is, but he is not reading the advice given or even care to reply on several important matters. I get the feeling that there's something he doesn't wanna tell.. It is really a waste of time to try to help here before we know: Why he claims its a fresh windows install, then posts a link to a several weeks old sysinfo which is everything but fresh. He also says he has a "minimal set of hardware (hard drive, DVD drive, and video card") and again the sysinfo shows loads of other stuff. Secondly, why is the CPU voltage wrong ? Apart from proving that he did not clear the CMOS as he claimed, it strongly suggests that the system is or was overclocked. Maybe somebody sold him a stepped up CPU ? We don't really even know what CPU he has, do we? And thirdly, he steadfastly refuses to determine if it is a hardware or a windows issue which easily could be done by booting to DOS (or his Linux partition). Neither do we get answer to what the CPU settings are in bios and how the CPU is identified on boot. H. Dear All, first of all, the reason i posted an old sysinfo.txt file is that with THAT configuration, the system was working perfectly fine at 1.4GHZ. As for the processor, it is OBVIOULSY 1.4GHZ since it was working at 1.4GHZ. Also, I did some research, and my board doesn't support overclocking to begin with. Hiding something? huh? neg your pardon. I have tried my best to reveal as much infromation as possible. As for resetting the BIOS, I HAVE done that by shutting down/power off, removing the power chord, and removing the jumper for 10 seconds before placing it back in. The result? The BIOS settiings where re-sert at 1GHZ (something I could have done myself). As for booting to DOS its pointless. Yes I can boot into a command prompt just fine (that's how I formatted), BUT windows also boots succesfully at 1.4GHZ, but doesn't handle a large load (if the machine runs WITHOUT OPENING ANY PROGRAMS it will give a stop error in less than 20 minutes. Try to run RTCW and it will give a STOP error IMMEDIATELY). I am currently about to restart my computer, and as soon as I do, I'll run System INformation, and make an updated sysinfo.txt file. I will post to a link to it here shortly!

I'll update sysinfo.txt and post a link to it very soon You cane asily look at the sysinfo.txt file and see for yourself everything

Correction, CPU Voltage : 1.792 volts Average CPU temperature:38C as reported by BIOS with an open case. Again, the machione runs perfectly at 1 GHZ but not at 1.4GHZ which urges me to accept an over-heating theory. Please re-read the data given. Can anyone help me still? This problem is way too irritating

Copper? I thought Aluminum was much better than copper! ????

You have a point Sampson that is certainly worthy of consideration. Hwoever, due to the fact that the computer functions almost flawlessly at 1GHZ, I am lead to beleive it is an overheating issue. Right now I'm running it at 1 GHZ to avoid damage that can be caused by overheating. Does anybody know where i can get a decent heatsink and fan combo for Athlona and Athlon XP processors ???

try ripping a single mp3 form BOTH your cd drives, meaning you make 2 copies of the mp3 file. If you can succesfully do that, then at least you know its probably not a hardware issue

Try Norton Disk Doctor. Its great!

Have you tried using a differnet video card? borrow one form a freind, if the game runs OK using his/her card, then it maybe incompatible video drivers, or simple messed up DirectX video drivers. You said you tried compatibility mode right? Have you tried Windows NT or Windows 2000 compatibility mode? Jedi knight was written to work natively in Windows NT

I think we need a little bit more information Here. For example, does it give you an error message? If so what does it say? Do you have administrator privelages on both machines? Have you tried with a different cable? Have you messed with file/folder permissions and made sure you have complete "ownership" of your hard drive and all the directories in it? Please provide us with somemore information and hopefully we will be able to help

Hey guys, I just talked to a freind about my problem(s) and he has STRONGLY suggested I look into getting myself a better/bigger fan, even though mine seems to be working OK, at least for 1 GHZ. I think it is an un-eliminatable possibility that my problems are strictly temperature based, so I shall be looking into getting a better fan/heat sink/etc... After you guys have read through this post what fan/heatsink combo would you guys recommend for Athlon THUNDERBIRD processors running around 1GHZ to 1.7GHZ (just in case I decide to upgrade my processor late, my mobo supports AThlon xp processors )

6 partitions: C: (windows partition) D: (storage partition) E: ("crashproof" partition) /: Linux roor partition /swap: Linux Swap partition /boot: Linux boot partition. So the 6 partitions are well justfified. Again I shall update that sysinfo file soon, so keep checking it

Hmm,weird. No it doesn't compute. I have A DVD drive a Burner (Cd rom), so I have 2 CD ROM drives. The removable media is an external parralel port ZIP drive. I am looking into the defective hardware theory! wish me luck By the way, "crashproof" is a name i came up with since i would use that partition to dump any data i want to back up before an emergency format, hence its almost like "crash proofing" my system ALSO NOTE: The sysinfo file above will be updated soon to reflect my NEW hardware configuration (the troublesome one). Check for the date of the file. Currently the date on the file is Apr 4th.

Dear Sampson, First of all allow me to express my gratitude for you helping me out and being ever so patient with me. Let me clear up an important few points here. 1.) I only haver TWO CD devices, one is a PlexWriter 8/4/32 (8432A), and the other a DVD drive. Both are running on the IDE channels. 2.) The stop message I get 15 to 20 minutes after the system has booted up differs! For example, when Nero was running (not burning enaything) the stop error was IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL. Other times its something else like just a series of hexadecimal numbers. 3.) Heating Issues. Even though it seems like an appealing idea that the heatsink isn't installed or mounted right, i HIGHLY doubt it, since the system was working PERFECTLY without a single hitch at 1.4GHZ. 4.) @ 1GHZ (100MHZ FSB) the system works PERFECTLY! However (as described in my previous post) the system will not even boot at 1GHZ any more. Windows will just HANG so I'm stuck at 1.4GHZ and a maximum of 20 to 30 minutes of NON heavy work (again, running a game as demanding as RTCW will IMMEDIATELY cause a stop error). 5.) I have an SB PCI 512 sound card. My onboard sound card has been disabled in the BIOS.I have 5 PCI ports available, and putting the sound card in any of them doesn't help at all regardless of which slot I put the card in. 6.) My mouse is a logitech USB wireless optical mouse. Its running at the USB port right now. To convince myself that its not a mouse issue, I ran it on a PS2 port (using an adapter that came with the mouse). Heck i even completely removed the mouse (and took out the batteries) and plugged in an old-school PS2 mouse. None of what I did with the mouse configuration did anything. The system STILL behaves in exactly the same way. 7.) I tried the trick you described about PIO/DMA and restarted, etc.. No effect at all. The system STILL behaves in the same way. It seems the BEST way to test the system is runn to Return to Castle Wolfenstein since its a demanding application, and it works just fine with the 1 GHZ configuration, but IMMEDIATEY causes a stop error in the 1.4GHZ configuration. Again, Thanx to everyone for all the support and feedback. I really do appreciate it

Dear All, Thank you for your extensive support and feedback. Allow me to give you some updates / data as Dirty Harry pointed out. 1.) Average IDLE CPU temperature (with case open) and as reported by BIOS: 38 C [i beleive in "open case technology" so the case is always open]. 2.) I cannot manually set the multiplier. The BIOS ONLY allows me to change the RAM cycle speed (100 or 133 MHZ) and the processor cycle speed (100 or 133 MHZ). to get at 1.4GHZ, I have to have them both set at 133MHZ 4.) The Voltage (of the CPU) again, as reported by the BIOS and with an open case: 1.8 Volts 5.) RAM Latency: I tried ALL of 2T, 2.5T and 3T. Not a da** bit of a difference 6.) RAM Slots. I have two DDR ram slots and two SDRAM slots. I tried switching the RAM chip back and forth between the two DDR slots. No difference whatsoever. 7.) The processor has NOT been fiddled with, meaning I haven't moved it since I installed it. So I am pretty confident its not a CPU-contact thing. Now allow me to describe the general behaviour of the computer: Windows XP will now ONLY boot at 1.4GHZ. If i set it at 1GHZ, it would just hang after the hidden "starting windows xp" stuff. When the machine does boot, it runs anywhere from 10 to 20 minutes before giving a STOP error. If I run anything heavey (e.g Return to Castle Wolfenstein), I get a stop error IMMEDIATELY. Now allow me to give you my hardware specs (just in case they may be needed): Motherboard: ECS K75SA Athlon/Athlon XP motherboard. Built in LAN card and sound card Processor: Genuine AMD Athlon 1.4GHZ RAM: DDR 2100 256MB chip Video Card: Nvidia GeForce 2 MX400 AGP 4x 64MB Sound Card: SBPCI 512 PCI Hard Drive: IBM Deskstar 60GB 7200 rpm For More details on my hardware / system information, please click the link below. (NOTE: OPEN IT IN YOUR WEB BROWSER! DO NOT RIGHT CLICK/SAVE TARGET AS). THEN you can save it. Its a ZIP file that contains a text file which describes my exact system! OPEN ME IN A WEB BROWSER

Thanx for the reply. I have just reset te BIOS.Ofcoarse it defaulted to 100MHZ/100MHZ (1050MHZ).When I set it to 133MHZ/133MHZ it did the same thing! I have also tried reformatting / re setting up several times, BUT the setup will not even start orcontinue unless I have it set at 1GHZ. As for the CPU overheating, I doubt it. I have ran that CPU formonths without a single hitch like this, so even though overheating IS possible, it is highly unlikely. I am gonna try borrowing a RAM chip from a freind. If i STILL have trouble, then maybe my processor and/or motherboard have gone defective! I'm just pissed that I can only run at 1GHZ when I paid hard-earned money for a 1.4GHZ,andi know the 1.4ghz configuration worked before! If someone has any ideas please do not hesitate to share them! PS: Sorry guys if I seem to reply with a sharp tone. I am just frustrated. Also,I use CAPITAL LETTERS for emphasis, NOT for shouting!

Well the fact of the matter is I DID run both SuSE Linux 7.3 Professional AND Windows XP Professional for over 6 monthst WITHOUT A SINGLE HITCH with the same hardware configuration. My power supply is a generous 400 W power supply. Furthermore, the system DOES run @ 1.4GHZ (133MHZ memory / 133 MHZ processor0 its just not very stable at all! It runs perfectly at 1GHZ! I only have one RAM chip (DDR 2100), and I Know for a fact the motherboard has a 266MHZ FSB. By the way, the cache memory I talk about is BOTH L1 and L2, meaning On and OFF the processor. The machine only works perfectly at 1.4GHZ if i turn BOTH of them completely off! As for a component not being able to handle 133MHZ, that DOES seem like an appealing idea, HOWEVER the fact that I ran with this same exact configuration before at 1.4GHZ (133MHZ/133MHZ) can only suggest that the hardware DOES support a 266MHZ FSB with 133MHZ/133MHZ speeds. Can anyone please help?

UPDATE: I converted my file system to NTFS. THis is to elliminate any possibility that FAT32 is causing the problem. I am now running at 1.4GHZ. Here is the stop message I get 10 to 15 minutes after windows has booted and started succesfully. (again, I bolded the important parts) Quote: A problem has been detected and Windows has been shut down to prevent damage to your computer. DRIVER_IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL If this is the first time you've seen this Stop error screen, restart your computer. If this screen appears again, follow these steps: Check to make sure any new hardware or software is properly installed. If this is a new installation, ask your hardware manufacturer for any windows updates you may need. If problems continue, disable or remove any newly installed hardware or software. disable BIOS memory options such as caching or shadowing. If you need to use Safe Mode or remove or disable components, restart your computer, press F8 to select Advanced Startup Options, and then Safe Mode. Technical information: *** STOP: 0x000000D1 (0x00000028, 0x00000002, 0x0000000, 0xF97406F9) *** USBPORT.SYS - Address F97406F9 BASE AT F9737000, DataStamp 367d868b Beginning dump of physical memory Physical memory dump complete. contact your system administrator or technical support group for further assistance Can anyone please help?

OK folks, Thanx for all the feedback. Allow me first to point out a few points: 1.) I do NOT have a floppy disk drive. I ONLY have a DVD drive, my hard drive, and an EXTERNAL parralel port Zip 250 Drive. 2.) I am NOT running Windows 2000. I am running Windows XP Professional 3.) Hard drive problems are out of the question since the machine works PERFECTLY and boots without any problems at 1 GHZ, but ONLY behaves in this way at 1.4GHZ. 4.) This is a FRESH INSTALL of Windows XP. Meaning I already DID format and fdisk my hard drive. 5.) An Alternative to running at 1 GHZ would be to run at 1.4GHZ with no cache memory. The machine WILL succesfully boot and work this way, BUT who wants to run a machine without cache memory? If i run it without cache memory I'm looking at the speed of a 286! LOL 6.) The problem may not be Windows-specific after All. Remmember that Windows XP setup freaked out on me until I put the processor at 1GHZ, MEANING I don't think its some setting or corruption in Windows. I think it may be deeper than just that. 7.) The given STOP error is complete! I typed it in myself. It has NO MENTION whatsoever of FAT or FAT_FILE_SYSTEM! I had to copy it down letter-for-letter and type it here Please consider the above points. Anyways, I'll check out the links you gave me for the heck of it. Please feelf ree to add to this topic to update it if you wish. I really appreciate all of your help and support!

Ok, I zeros out my pagefile, then restarted with the 1.4GHZ configuration. Windows boots up, and runs somwhere for about 5 to 15 minutes, then gives me the expected STOP screen. Here is what the stop screen said. (note I bolded out the areas That I think may be important): I quote: Quote: A problem has been detected and Windows has been shut down to prevent damage to your computer. If this is the first time you've seen this Stop error screen, restart your computer. If this screen appears again, follow these steps: Disable or uninstall any anti-virus, disk defragmentation or backup utilities. Check your hard drive configuration and check for any updated drivers. Run CHKDSK /F to check for hard drive corruption, and then restart your computer. Technical information: *** STOP: 0x00000023 (0x000E0100, 0xF843D7B8, 0x404DD760) Beginning dump of physical memory Physical memory dump complete. contact your system administrator or technical support group for further assistance --END OF QUOTE-- I am currently running at 1.04GHZ with no problems whatsoever. i wish to be able to use the 1.4GHz though. Please help if you can

Cool, I'll try zeroing out my pagefile, then doing the 1.4GHZ thingy. Let me try real quick....

Quote: By the way did you zero out your cache file (virtual memory) then reboot and then reset it the MAX and MIN values to give it? I don't understand what you mean by this. I will try setting the processor to function back at 1.4GHZ anmd I will update this post witht he stop error(s) i get...

Dear Sampson. No insult taken! LOL. I generally use uper case for emphasis. I used uppercase to emphasize previously-working condition. Anyways, You name it And I've tried it. I removed my burner from the system, heck, even switched my ram chip to a different slot, and even set my hard drive on a different channel. I also tried safe mode (to no avail). For some reason the computer now works PERFECT @ 1GHZ but not at 1.4GHZ. Note that my motherboard does not support overclocking, and the processor itself is a 1.4GHZ. Like i said, the STOP errors I get vary. Sometimes i get acpi.sys, other times PCIIDEX, I aso get "NON PAGED AREA" fault or something like that! For the life of me I can't figure this out. I used to think of myself as a windows/computer expert, only to be given a "lesson" in Windows NT (XP) pukes!