Compaq Presario 5000 Freezes
in [Hardware]
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From: John the WebTV Man on 18 Apr 2008 08:37 OK...how about an old [maybe not that old] computer problem? I am prepping a Compaq Presario 5000 [700 MHz, 256Mb RAM, Win2K Pro] for my son-in-law. Everything runs good, all loaded with all the needed Win2K updates, Office 2K, IE/OE6, etc]...but it has a problem!! After about an hour using the Internet, it freezes...no Mouse, no Keyboard, no response at all...last screen fully visible, PC fans and power supply still running. Strangely, it is apparently NOT a thermal/time problem as it can sit for hours downloading Internet updates, but only seems to happen with changing screens, pages, clicking links, etc. The only problem that I seem to have noted is that a lot of the PC functions are using the same IRQ11 [a problem?]. Any ideas on what to look for and how to identify the problem? TIA...John
From: Ken on 18 Apr 2008 10:00 John the WebTV Man wrote: > OK...how about an old [maybe not that old] computer problem? I am > prepping a Compaq Presario 5000 [700 MHz, 256Mb RAM, Win2K Pro] for my > son-in-law. Everything runs good, all loaded with all the needed Win2K > updates, Office 2K, IE/OE6, etc]...but it has a problem!! After about an > hour using the Internet, it freezes...no Mouse, no Keyboard, no response > at all...last screen fully visible, PC fans and power supply still > running. Strangely, it is apparently NOT a thermal/time problem as it > can sit for hours downloading Internet updates, but only seems to happen > with changing screens, pages, clicking links, etc. The only problem that > I seem to have noted is that a lot of the PC functions are using the > same IRQ11 [a problem?]. Any ideas on what to look for and how to > identify the problem? TIA...John > How old is the hard drive? It might be wise to do a surface test if you have the software to do it. RAM is another suspect. Try removing the sticks and cleaning the contacts with a pencil eraser or alcohol.
From: kony on 18 Apr 2008 10:09 On Fri, 18 Apr 2008 08:37:36 -0400, jgulow(a)webtv.net (John the WebTV Man) wrote: >OK...how about an old [maybe not that old] computer problem? I am >prepping a Compaq Presario 5000 [700 MHz, 256Mb RAM, Win2K Pro] for my >son-in-law. Everything runs good, all loaded with all the needed Win2K >updates, Office 2K, IE/OE6, etc]...but it has a problem!! After about an >hour using the Internet, it freezes...no Mouse, no Keyboard, no response >at all...last screen fully visible, PC fans and power supply still >running. See if the problem persists using a different browser, for example Firefox if it was using IE or vice-versa. Try updating the video driver, get it from the respective chipset manufacturer instead of Compaq. >Strangely, it is apparently NOT a thermal/time problem as it >can sit for hours downloading Internet updates, but only seems to happen >with changing screens, pages, clicking links, etc. That doesn't necessarily mean anything, downloading internet updates doesn't take as much processing power as playing many of today's scripted or Flash enabled webpages. However, if no fans have failed, the system is not clogged with dust, and operated in a typical climate controlled room, there is no reason to think that now suddenly it would start overheating - unless it had poor heatsink grease that degraded drastically over time. If all else fails, pop the CPU 'sink off, clean off original thermal interface material and put a fresh clean coat of (whatever, even generic silicon grease would suffice for a 700MHz CPU). If it is a slotted type CPU with a cartridge instead of socketed, leave it alone it is not likely to have this problem from the factory build and thermal interface. >The only problem that >I seem to have noted is that a lot of the PC functions are using the >same IRQ11 [a problem?]. Any ideas on what to look for and how to >identify the problem? TIA...John That's not likely to be the problem. Examine the motherboard around the CPU socket region for failed capacitors (domed tops or leaky residue on tops or bottoms) and likewise in the PSU (after leaving it unplugged from AC for a few minutes). If you have a spare PSU, try it. Also check Windows Event Viewer, and if nothing else seems the problem, run the hard drive manufacturer's diagnostics and inspect the open system's cards, cables, etc. I would place odds on it being the PSU, but other faults are possible.
From: Grinder on 18 Apr 2008 17:55 John the WebTV Man wrote: > OK...how about an old [maybe not that old] computer problem? I am > prepping a Compaq Presario 5000 [700 MHz, 256Mb RAM, Win2K Pro] for my > son-in-law. Everything runs good, all loaded with all the needed Win2K > updates, Office 2K, IE/OE6, etc]...but it has a problem!! After about an > hour using the Internet, it freezes...no Mouse, no Keyboard, no response > at all...last screen fully visible, PC fans and power supply still > running. Strangely, it is apparently NOT a thermal/time problem as it > can sit for hours downloading Internet updates, but only seems to happen > with changing screens, pages, clicking links, etc. The only problem that > I seem to have noted is that a lot of the PC functions are using the > same IRQ11 [a problem?]. Any ideas on what to look for and how to > identify the problem? TIA...John Where did you get the video drivers? If you're answer is Microsoft (or Win2K just recognized my card) or Compaq/HP, go and get the drivers from the card manufacturer. If you're using onboard video, use the drivers from the motherboard manufacturer. This is only one possibly thing that could have gone wrong, but it's easy enough to try, and I've seen it fix that exact problem before.
From: Paul on 19 Apr 2008 01:21
John the WebTV Man wrote: > OK...how about an old [maybe not that old] computer problem? I am > prepping a Compaq Presario 5000 [700 MHz, 256Mb RAM, Win2K Pro] for my > son-in-law. Everything runs good, all loaded with all the needed Win2K > updates, Office 2K, IE/OE6, etc]...but it has a problem!! After about an > hour using the Internet, it freezes...no Mouse, no Keyboard, no response > at all...last screen fully visible, PC fans and power supply still > running. Strangely, it is apparently NOT a thermal/time problem as it > can sit for hours downloading Internet updates, but only seems to happen > with changing screens, pages, clicking links, etc. The only problem that > I seem to have noted is that a lot of the PC functions are using the > same IRQ11 [a problem?]. Any ideas on what to look for and how to > identify the problem? TIA...John > You could test the processor and memory with Prime95. When prompted to "Join GIMPs" or "Torture Test", select the Torture Test option. You can stop and quit the program, if no errors are detected in a few hours of usage. The program stops on the first error it finds, and if it stops rather quickly (couple minutes), then you'd suspect a processor or memory problem. http://www.mersenne.org/gimps/p95v255a.zip 256MB seems a relatively small amount of memory. I have Win2K on a machine with 1GB of memory, and at bootup, Task Manager shows 260MB in use. (With an AV program running in the background.) I expect with a smaller amount of memory available, Win2K won't be quite as wasteful. You could leave Task Manager open, while surfing the Internet, and see what the free memory looks like as time passes. Some motherboards that use Slot 1 processor modules, have a problem with the connector. Sometimes, pulling the processor and reseating it, then securing the processor in place, will provide temporary relief. You can try that, and see if it runs better for a few days. For a video card test, you could try the demo loop on 3DMark2001SE. But with 256MB of memory available, I don't know if that would load OK or not. If Prime95 is passing, I'd want to find something to load up the video card, and see how sensitive it is to a workout. http://www.majorgeeks.com/download99.html There are some older video card benchmarks, but they don't sustain a test for very long, and I don't think they can be set in a loop. When a computer appears to freeze, one test you can do, is try pinging it from a second computer. You can use "ping <ip_address>" from a DOS window (command prompt), to see if the frozen computer is really frozen. If the machine answers a ping, then you know the processor is in fact still running. That may tell you the problem is just with the video, and a frozen display subsystem. Paul |