# Computer freezes and unfreezes randomly



## kennethr127 (Sep 7, 2013)

Hey there!

I've been using these forums a lot for computer help recently but I can't seen to figure out my newest problem. Currently, my computer will randomly freeze for about 10-20 seconds and then unfreeze and continue as if nothing happened.

My System:

- MSI 970A-G46 AMD Motherboard 
- AMD FX-4100 Zambezi 3.6GHz Quad-Core Desktop Processor 
- Antec VP-450 450W ATX 12V v2.3 Power Supply
- Radeon HD 6670
- Seagate Barracuda 3TB HDD (Running in UEFI BIOS)
- 4 (2GB) sticks of RAM

Whenever I monitor my computer and look at temperatures, they are usually well below what they should be. My CPU and RAM usage are also low when the freezing occurs. In fact the computer froze while I was running BurnInTest and the test still came out with no errors. The tests were on everything but the optical drive, network, and printer. I also ran memtest86+ with no errors.

At this point I am at a complete loss as to what the problem could be. I would really like to fix it without having to do a clean install. I was thinking that it could be PSU related but I have no idea. I suppose it could also be a software issue, but I haven't heard of any programs that would cause this type of problem.

Thanks in advance for any help,
kennethr127


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## Tyree (May 10, 2009)

Brand & specs of the 4x2GB of RAM?
Trey removing two of the sticks and see how it goes.
MemTest needs to be ran on one stick of RAM at a time and make several passes to render accurate results.
How old is the build? Your PSU is lower quality, not 80+ certified and only has a 2 yr. warranty. have you checked/monitored the Voltages?


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## kennethr127 (Sep 7, 2013)

I have 2 Kingston sticks of RAM and 2 Patriot Memory 2000EL series sticks of RAM. I will try running MemTest and let you know know how it goes.

The build is pretty new, I started it last summer and have gradually upgraded it since then.

I agree, the PSU is low quality, at the time I was just trying to get the computer built and haven't upgraded that yet because it seemed to be working fine. I have not checked the voltages, is there some software I can do that with?


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## Tyree (May 10, 2009)

Are the Kingston sticks also 1600MHz?
Mixing RAM brands/specs commonly causes problems. Kingston and Patriot are both known for compatibility issues.



Tyree said:


> Try removing two of the sticks and see how it goes.


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## kennethr127 (Sep 7, 2013)

All the sticks are actually running at 1333Mhz. How would you determine if it is a compatibility issue?


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## Tyree (May 10, 2009)

Tyree said:


> Mixing RAM brands/specs commonly causes problems. Kingston and Patriot are both known for compatibility issues.


Simple try- run one matched pair at a time and see if there are any issues.


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## kennethr127 (Sep 7, 2013)

Thanks, I will try that! I'll let you know how it goes.


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## Tyree (May 10, 2009)

You're welcome and please post back with any results.


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## kennethr127 (Sep 7, 2013)

Sorry it took so long to get back to you guys, but I tried using only one pair of RAM at a time and still had the freezing issue. I didn't actually run MemTest because I figured RAM must not be the issue if it occurs with both pairs. I was running some programs and I noticed that the issue seems to be more that the computer is not freezing but that the programs that are being used at the time are simply going in a "Not Responding" state for some reason. Any ideas?


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## JimE (Apr 16, 2009)

Anything in common when it occurs? Such as one particular program is open, trying to perform a specific task, etc.


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## kennethr127 (Sep 7, 2013)

Not that I have noticed yet. It occurs whether I am playing a game or running Google Chrome. I am currently trying to terminate any task bar programs to see if one of those is causing it.


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## JimE (Apr 16, 2009)

You can also check Windows Event Viewer. Maybe Windows is logging an issue. But likely not as issues that cause programs to "not respond" are not always an actual fault. What I mean by that is a program can be busy performing an action and Windows will mark it as "not responding". Sometimes the program is still running and will complete it's action and continue normally, or sometimes it actually is hung. While there could be something causing the program to hang, it's not necessarily anything that Windows will flag or log as a problem.

My first thought would be a HDD fault. You can test the HDD using the HDD manufacturers disk tools available from their website. If the testing shows any errors or fails, the drive is likely faulty.


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## kennethr127 (Sep 7, 2013)

Thanks for the suggestion. I looked at the windows event viewer and all it logs for errors is a Service Control Manager error stating that the program timeout was reached. This error does not always occur. The second event posted is an error that has occurred the past two times before a freezing occurs. I have no idea if it is actually related to it because I have only just started looking and have only looked at it for two freezes.

Log Name: System
Source: Service Control Manager
Date: 9/16/2013 11:43:05 PM
Event ID: 7009
Task Category: None
Level: Error
Keywords: Classic
User: N/A
Computer: KenJohn-PC
Description:
A timeout was reached (30000 milliseconds) while waiting for the Windows Error Reporting Service service to connect.
Event Xml:
<Event xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/win/2004/08/events/event">
<System>
<Provider Name="Service Control Manager" Guid="{555908d1-a6d7-4695-8e1e-26931d2012f4}" EventSourceName="Service Control Manager" />
<EventID Qualifiers="49152">7009</EventID>
<Version>0</Version>
<Level>2</Level>
<Task>0</Task>
<Opcode>0</Opcode>
<Keywords>0x8080000000000000</Keywords>
<TimeCreated SystemTime="2013-09-17T03:43:05.973037500Z" />
<EventRecordID>153742</EventRecordID>
<Correlation />
<Execution ProcessID="704" ThreadID="5776" />
<Channel>System</Channel>
<Computer>KenJohn-PC</Computer>
<Security />
</System>
<EventData>
<Data Name="param1">30000</Data>
<Data Name="param2">Windows Error Reporting Service</Data>
</EventData>
</Event>

Log Name: Security
Source: Microsoft-Windows-Security-Auditing
Date: 9/17/2013 12:15:39 AM
Event ID: 6281
Task Category: System Integrity
Level: Information
Keywords: Audit Failure
User: N/A
Computer: KenJohn-PC
Description:
Code Integrity determined that the page hashes of an image file are not valid. The file could be improperly signed without page hashes or corrupt due to unauthorized modification. The invalid hashes could indicate a potential disk device error.

File Name:	\Device\HarddiskVolume3\Program Files\CheckPoint\ZAForceField\Plugins\ISWSHEX.dll	
Event Xml:
<Event xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/win/2004/08/events/event">
<System>
<Provider Name="Microsoft-Windows-Security-Auditing" Guid="{54849625-5478-4994-A5BA-3E3B0328C30D}" />
<EventID>6281</EventID>
<Version>0</Version>
<Level>0</Level>
<Task>12290</Task>
<Opcode>0</Opcode>
<Keywords>0x8010000000000000</Keywords>
<TimeCreated SystemTime="2013-09-17T04:15:39.609779200Z" />
<EventRecordID>45158</EventRecordID>
<Correlation />
<Execution ProcessID="4" ThreadID="44" />
<Channel>Security</Channel>
<Computer>KenJohn-PC</Computer>
<Security />
</System>
<EventData>
<Data Name="param1">\Device\HarddiskVolume3\Program Files\CheckPoint\ZAForceField\Plugins\ISWSHEX.dll</Data>
</EventData>
</Event>



I don't believe my HDD is at fault because I ran SeaTools for Windows on the drive and a complete surface test with MiniTools Partition Wizard with no errors from either.

Thanks


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## JimE (Apr 16, 2009)

To test the HDD, all you really need to run is the short and long test. If either fail or have errors, the drive is faulty.

The second alert noted above is a Zone Alarm issue.

For testing purposes, check all of the autorun/autostart programs and disable everything not needed for proper operation. Most likely, the problem will stop, at which point you can start enabling the programs one at a time until the problem occurs. And then you will know which program is the cause.


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## kennethr127 (Sep 7, 2013)

I actually did both those tests with the SeaTools for Windows and neither came up with any errors; so I don't think it is an HDD problem at this point.

I will try your suggestion this weekend and let you know how it goes.

The only other possibility that I can think of is that the PSU isn't giving it enough power. But again, I'm no expert.


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## Tyree (May 10, 2009)

Your GPU requirements are 400W minimum with a good quality PSU.
Your Antec VP-450 is a lower quality (made by FSP) unit, not 80+ certified and has a 2 yr. warranty so it is suspect.


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## JimE (Apr 16, 2009)

I don't believe it's the HDD either. Just noting that you don't need to perform a full surface scan just to verify the drive is "good".


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## kennethr127 (Sep 7, 2013)

Thanks for the reply Tyree, I have been looking into the PSU but I'm still not sure how to test it.

Oh, OK, Dogg, I just read your message wrong. I see what you were saying now. I was just trying to cover all my bases.


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## Tyree (May 10, 2009)

The only reliable test for a PSU is substitution with a known working PSU, that has sufficient power for the components.


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## kennethr127 (Sep 7, 2013)

That's what I was afraid of..... I'm going to try all the other tests I can before I go and get a new PSU.


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## Tyree (May 10, 2009)

OK and please post back with any findings/results.


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