PC keeps freezing.

I recently installed a further 128 of RAM taking me upto a massive 512MB. The system speed is now acceptable but slow by new PC standards. I also upgraded Windows XP.

But now I'm stuck with a PC that freezes after an hour or so and it doesn't come back on. So I have to switch off and then on again.

Any ideas please

RAM came from Crucial so a recognised supplier.

 

all because crucial is a known brand does not mean there could be errors in the memory.
you need a memory test program but it would just be the xp upgrade that have bulked the speed out,then again it could be your pc doesnt like the new memory.

 

I've fitted memory before on this PC and no problems.

It is a v. expensive (not ) emachine which I purchased new in May 2002 and apart from speed it has been as good as gold.

 

i had more ram fitted to my last pc packard bell, xp windows it run well for a while and mine started freezing couldnt get it on, asked pc world and the hard drive was on its way out, eventually it just went couldnt get it back on, so had no alternative but to buy a new pc, hoping that is not happening to yours. my last pc was just 5 years old

 

Thanks all. I will try and give Crucial a ring.

Rosa, I hope its not the hard drive but I need to do some backing-up just in case

 

Here's a few things to consider (sorry if it gets a bit techy):

* Just because memory fits doesn't mean it is fully compatible. The memory will be built for a certain 'bus speed' (the rate in megahurtz (MHz) that your computer talks to the memory chip). If your bus speed is much faster than the memory is meant for, you will get intermittent problems because the chip can't address the data as fast as your machine is asking for it. If on the other hand the memory is designed for a much higher bus speed than your computer, then you'll get intermittent problems because memory chips can't actually hold data for more than a few milliseconds at best, and need to be 'refreshed' regularly.

* If your machine takes DDR memory (or any of its successors like DDR2 etc), then you ideally need an even number of memory chips. If you have an odd number then you lose all the adavantages of DDR (which accesses the chips in pairs to double the data rate), and your computer has the extra burden of having to work out whether you are running DDR or not. So in short, an odd number of chips negates the advantages of DDR.

* Whereas once 512MB was massive, it is now considered tiny. Programmers know this, and when writing programs tend to assume that you'll have much more than that. The result being that most newer programs hog lots of resources. With Windows XP, antivirus stuff and a couple of apps running, your machine will be permanently using virtual memory, which means it has to swap big chunks of data to and from the hard disk regularly.

* Because of the point above, if there is anything wrong with your hard disk (needs defragmenting, is old and slow, is faulty, is full etc), your machine will regularly become unacceptably slow like you describe.

So in summary, more memory is a good thing, provided you keep an even number of paired chips. Check space on your hard disk and if it is more than 90% full, delete some old stuff or upgrade the disk, run the defragmenter.

If you have a software firewall (other than the built in Windows one), it may be worth clearing its log file, as these grow huge and can grind the system to a halt.

Also scan for viruses, spyware and other evil programs. These can slow your machine down horrendously.

 

Clueless,

Even number of memory cards. Checked and I've 30% spare capacity and it doesn't need defrag'ing and there ar no errors

Checked with Crucial who suugested I tried a memory test and there are no errors after checking 103.8% (!!!) of the RAM.

I regularly run AVG for the nasties.

Hasn't frozen today - fingers crossed

Thanks

 

Did you upgrade to XP from another version of Windows or did you install an XP upgrade (eg SP3)? If the former, it's possible that an 'incompatibility' might have crept in. For example, some device drivers may need to be upgraded to operate correctly under XP.

I have heard reports that SP3 can cause problems but I believe it's been ironed out now.

In any case, I'd check Windows Update and make sure you're up-to-date with all the important Windows updates from Microsoft and check if new drivers are available for things like your sound card, display adapter and network card. Also, I believe you need to be at Version 8 of AVG for XP.

 

I have had this before after installing new memories. The simplest way to diagnose it is to take the new memory chips out and check that the existing ones are correctly fitted by taking them out and putting them back in again and making sure the notches are pushed down enough. I bet the freezing will stop!

 

When I get a computer that acts up like this, I do a clean install of Linux/Ubuntu (it's free). It's amazing how the problems disappear. Download the ISO and burn to CD, http://www.ubuntu.com/. You can try it from the live CD and then install if you want.