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1 Hardware conflict The
number one reason why Windows crashes is hardware conflict.
Each hardware device communicates to other devices through
an interrupt request channel (IRQ). These are supposed
to be unique for each device. For example, a printer
usually connects internally on IRQ 7. The keyboard usually
uses IRQ 1 and the floppy disk drive IRQ 6. Each device
will try to hog a single IRQ for itself. If there are
a lot of devices, or if they are not installed properly,
two of them may end up sharing the same IRQ number.
When the user tries to use both devices at the same
time, a crash can happen. The way to check if your computer
has a hardware conflict is through the following route:
* Start-Settings-Control Panel-System-Device Manager.
Often if a device has a problem a yellow '!' appears
next to its description in the Device Manager. Highlight
Computer (in the Device Manager) and press Properties
to see the IRQ numbers used by your computer. If the
IRQ number appears twice, two devices may be using it.
Sometimes a device might share an IRQ with something
described as 'IRQ holder for PCI steering'. This can
be ignored. The best way to fix this problem is to remove
the problem device and reinstall it. Sometimes you may
have to find more recent drivers on the internet to
make the device function properly. A good resource is
www.driverguide.com. If the device is a soundcard, or
a modem, it can often be fixed by moving it to a different
slot on the motherboard (be careful about opening your
computer, as you may void the warranty). When working
inside a computer you should switch it off, unplug the
mains lead and touch an unpainted metal surface to discharge
any static electricity. To be fair to Mcft, the problem
with IRQ numbers is not of its making. It is a legacy
problem going back to the first PC designs using the
IBM 8086 chip. Initially there were only eight IRQs.
Today there are 16 IRQs in a PC. It is easy to run out
of them. There are plans to increase the number of IRQs
in future designs.
2 Bad Ram Ram (random-access
memory) problems might bring on the blue screen of death
with a message saying Fatal Exception Error. A fatal
error indicates a serious hardware problem. Sometimes
it may mean a part is damaged and will need replacing.
But a fatal error caused by Ram might be caused by a
mismatch of chips. For example, mixing 70-nanosecond
(70ns) Ram with 60ns Ram will usually force the computer
to run all the Ram at the slower speed. This will often
crash the machine if the Ram is overworked. One way
around this problem is to enter the BIOS settings and
increase the wait state of the Ram. This can make it
more stable. Another way to troubleshoot a suspected
Ram problem is to rearrange the Ram chips on the motherboard,
or take some of them out. Then try to repeat the circumstances
that caused the crash. When handling Ram try not to
touch the gold connections, as they can be easily damaged.
Parity error messages also refer to Ram. Modern Ram
chips are either parity (ECC) or non parity (non-ECC).
It is best not to mix the two types, as this can be
a cause of trouble. EMM386 error messages refer to memory
problems but may not be connected to bad Ram. This may
be due to free memory problems often linked to old Dos-based
programmes.
3 BIOS settings Every motherboard is
supplied with a range of chipset settings that are decided
in the factory. A common way to access these settings
is to press the F2 or delete button during the first
few seconds of a boot-up. Once inside the BIOS, great
care should be taken. It is a good idea to write down
on a piece of paper all the settings that appear on
the screen. That way, if you change something and the
computer becomes more unstable, you will know what settings
to revert to. A common BIOS error concerns the CAS latency.
This refers to the Ram. Older EDO (extended data out)
Ram has a CAS latency of 3. Newer SDRam has a CAS latency
of 2. Setting the wrong figure can cause the Ram to
lock up and freeze the computer's display. Mcft Windows
is better at allocating IRQ numbers than any BIOS. If
possible set the IRQ numbers to Auto in the BIOS. This
will allow Windows to allocate the IRQ numbers (make
sure the BIOS setting for Plug and Play OS is switched
to 'yes' to allow Windows to do this.).
4
Hard disk drives After a few weeks,
the information on a hard disk drive starts to become
piecemeal or fragmented. It is a good idea to defragment
the hard disk every week or so, to prevent the disk
from causing a screen freeze. Go to * Start-Programs-Accessories-System
Tools-Disk Defragmenter This will start the procedure.
You will be unable to write data to the hard drive (to
save it) while the disk is defragmenting, so it is a
good idea to schedule the procedure for a period of
inactivity using the Task Scheduler. The Task Scheduler
should be one of the small icons on the bottom right
of the Windows opening page (the desktop). Some lockups
and screen freezes caused by hard disk problems can
be solved by reducing the read-ahead optimisation. This
can be adjusted by going to * Start-Settings-Control
Panel-System Icon-Performance-File System-Hard Disk.
Hard disks will slow down and crash if they are too
full. Do some housekeeping on your hard drive every
few months and free some space on it. Open the Windows
folder on the C drive and find the Temporary Internet
Files folder. Deleting the contents (not the folder)
can free a lot of space. Empty the Recycle Bin every
week to free more space. Hard disk drives should be
scanned every week for errors or bad sectors. Go to
* Start-Programs-Accessories-System Tools-ScanDisk Otherwise
assign the Task Scheduler to perform this operation
at night when the computer is not in use.
5
Fatal OE exceptions and VXD errors
Fatal OE exception errors and VXD errors are often caused
by video card problems. These can often be resolved
easily by reducing the resolution of the video display.
Go to * Start-Settings-Control Panel-Display-Settings
Here you should slide the screen area bar to the left.
Take a look at the colour settings on the left of that
window. For most desktops, high colour 16-bit depth
is adequate. If the screen freezes or you experience
system lockups it might be due to the video card. Make
sure it does not have a hardware conflict. Go to * Start-Settings-Control
Panel-System-Device Manager Here, select the + beside
Display Adapter. A line of text describing your video
card should appear. Select it (make it blue) and press
properties. Then select Resources and select each line
in the window. Look for a message that says No Conflicts.
If you have video card hardware conflict, you will see
it here. Be careful at this point and make a note of
everything you do in case you make things worse. The
way to resolve a hardware conflict is to uncheck the
Use Automatic Settings box and hit the Change Settings
button. You are searching for a setting that will display
a No Conflicts message. Another useful way to resolve
video problems is to go to * Start-Settings-Control
Panel-System-Performance-Graphics Here you should move
the Hardware Acceleration slider to the left. As ever,
the most common cause of problems relating to graphics
cards is old or faulty drivers (a driver is a small
piece of software used by a computer to communicate
with a device). Look up your video card's manufacturer
on the internet and search for the most recent drivers
for it.
6
Viruses Often the first sign of a virus
infection is instability. Some viruses erase the boot
sector of a hard drive, making it impossible to start.
This is why it is a good idea to create a Windows start-up
disk. Go to * Start-Settings-Control Panel-Add/Remove
Programs Here, look for the Start Up Disk tab. Virus
protection requires constant vigilance. A virus scanner
requires a list of virus signatures in order to be able
to identify viruses. These signatures are stored in
a DAT file. DAT files should be updated weekly from
the website of your antivirus software manufacturer.
An excellent antivirus programme is McAfee VirusScan
by Network Associates ( www.nai.com). Another is Norton
AntiVirus 2000, made by Symantec ( www.symantec.com).
7
Printers The action of sending a document to
print creates a bigger file, often called a postscript
file. Printers have only a small amount of memory, called
a buffer. This can be easily overloaded. Printing a
document also uses a considerable amount of CPU power.
This will also slow down the computer's performance.
If the printer is trying to print unusual characters,
these might not be recognised, and can crash the computer.
Sometimes printers will not recover from a crash because
of confusion in the buffer. A good way to clear the
buffer is to unplug the printer for ten seconds. Booting
up from a powerless state, also called a cold boot,
will restore the printer's default settings and you
may be able to carry on.
8
Software A common cause of computer crash is
faulty or badly-installed software. Often the problem
can be cured by uninstalling the software and then reinstalling
it. Use Norton Uninstall or Uninstall Shield to remove
an application from your system properly. This will
also remove references to the programme in the System
Registry and leaves the way clear for a completely fresh
copy. The System Registry can be corrupted by old references
to obsolete software that you thought was uninstalled.
Use Reg Cleaner by Jouni Vuorio to clean up the System
Registry and remove obsolete entries. It works on Windows
95, Windows 98, Windows 98 SE (Second Edition), Windows
Millennium Edition (ME), NT4 and Windows 2000. Read
the instructions and use it carefully so you don't do
permanent damage to the Registry. If the Registry is
damaged you will have to reinstall your operating system.
Reg Cleaner can be obtained from www.jv16.org Often
a Windows problem can be resolved by entering Safe Mode.
This can be done during start-up. When you see the message
"Starting Windows" press F4. This should take you into
Safe Mode. Safe Mode loads a minimum of drivers. It
allows you to find and fix problems that prevent Windows
from loading properly. Sometimes installing Windows
is difficult because of unsuitable BIOS settings. If
you keep getting SUWIN error messages (Windows setup)
during the Windows installation, then try entering the
BIOS and disabling the CPU internal cache. Try to disable
the Level 2 (L2) cache if that doesn't work. Remember
to restore all the BIOS settings back to their former
settings following installation.
9
Overheating Central processing units (CPUs)
are usually equipped with fans to keep them cool. If
the fan fails or if the CPU gets old it may start to
overheat and generate a particular kind of error called
a kernel error. This is a common problem in chips that
have been overclocked to operate at higher speeds than
they are supposed to. One remedy is to get a bigger
better fan and install it on top of the CPU. Specialist
cooling fans/heatsinks are available from www.computernerd.com
or www.coolit.com CPU problems can often be fixed by
disabling the CPU internal cache in the BIOS. This will
make the machine run more slowly, but it should also
be more stable.
10
Power supply problems With all the
new construction going on around the country the steady
supply of electricity has become disrupted. A power
surge or spike can crash a computer as easily as a power
cut. If this has become a nuisance for you then consider
buying a uninterrupted power supply (UPS). This will
give you a clean power supply when there is electricity,
and it will give you a few minutes to perform a controlled
shutdown in case of a power cut. It is a good investment
if your data are critical, because a power cut will
cause any unsaved data to be lost.
Please
contact as to
inquire more information's since every job is customized to your needs .
Adnan Kazazic
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