# Endless computer problems...



## Welsher (Aug 19, 2011)

So this all started a couple of months after I upgraded my computer with a new graphics card (GTX 460) and a new PSU (I have no idea what the name is, but its 600W) 

My problems started simply with having to reboot my computer a couple of times for it to start every couple of weeks, i thought nothing of this but it got progressively worse.
I have no idea where to begin on this so im just going to jump straight into the problems I am having/had;

-Freezing during games and being unable to ctrl alt del/alt tab out so the only way was to cold boot (used to have this problem, played a couple of games since then and its been fine)

-Computer running extremely slow, can be when loading an application such as task manager or when browsing the internet, usually have to cold boot. If I try CTRL ALT DEL it will usually greet me with a black screen and an error message about pressing escape to reboot...

-Computer can freeze/run extremely slow during startup at the windows screen, I dont know whether it is freezing because it could just be running extremely slowly, either way I usually have to reboot several more times for the computer to get past the Windows screen

-Corrupted disk messages, this only happened today, I ran CHKDSK and they stopped (I've had to run CHKDSK several times in the past)

-I once had a blue screen appear with white writing that stated there eas a fatal error, after this happened I sent my computer to be fixed but they could'nt find anything wrong with it, they tested RAM etc etc and it was fine....

-Sometimes, after it freezes, the computer will restart itself several times when it reaches the Windows screen

-Unable to start safe mode, again I cant tell whether it is the computer freezing or it just running incredibly slowly... it gets stuck on the part where it has to load drivers.

I can usually run my computer for days without this happening, my computer running extremely slowly is what starts the whole process of having to reboot several times, and that causes CHKDSK to run. These are about all the errors I can think of at the moment. I am on the verge of just formatting my computer, but I dont know if that will solve anything.

System specs;

Windows 7 Ultimate 64 bit
Geforce GTX 460
MSI MS-7309
AMD Athlon II x4 620 processor (4 cpu's) 2.6Ghz
4gb RAM


Any help would be massively appreciated... Im pulling my hair out over this.


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## MPR (Aug 28, 2010)

The first thing I would do would be to update my definitions and run a full virus scan.

Then I'd run a hard drive diagnostic to see if the hard drive is working properly.

You also can download Memtest and check your RAM.

If all of these are OK, I'd look at the exact specifications of the power supply. Many cheap power supplies actually supply nowhere near their stated power.


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## Welsher (Aug 19, 2011)

Sorry I took so long to reply, I ran a boot scan, Turns out there are 12 trojans (called Java Agent) on my computer. Earlier, I accidentally stopped a full scan that detected a 'rootkit: Hidden file' I have no idea whether this is a false positive or not, so for now, the Java Agents and rootkit is in a virus chest.

Im not really sure what to do next, I guess i'll have to do a full system scan to see if it finds more... Im puzzled as to why the boot scan failed to pick up on the rootkit file though...

Do you think these trojans could be to blame for bad computer performance?


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## Tyree (May 10, 2009)

Infections generally effect performance. Open the case side and look at the label on the PSU for the Brand & Model.


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## Welsher (Aug 19, 2011)

Tyree said:


> Infections generally effect performance. Open the case side and look at the label on the PSU for the Brand & Model.


It's an Atrix extreme power 80 plus 800W

*Edit*

Just noticed the typo in my original post, that is supposed to be 800W not 600, my bad.


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## brobarapas (Sep 26, 2009)

The best thing to do is partition your hard drive and dual boot .Install the o/s on the new partition,see now how your PC is performing,If it is running OK you will know that your initial problem lies with in windows on the old partition.You can either post in the virus section and try to relieve the old partition of all the malware/trojans..or you can back up your files from it , afterwards format it and continue to use the new partition.


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## Tyree (May 10, 2009)

Trying brobarapas' suggestion is a good option though I would go with backing up any important data and doing a clean install to insure ridding the PC of all infections.
I doubt it is related to your problem but your PSU is a poor quality unit and I seriously doubt it is capable of producing it's advertised power.


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## Welsher (Aug 19, 2011)

Tyree said:


> Trying brobarapas' suggestion is a good option though I would go with backing up any important data and doing a clean install to insure ridding the PC of all infections.
> I doubt it is related to your problem but your PSU is a poor quality unit and I seriously doubt it is capable of producing it's advertised power.


 
I don't really have anything I cant replace on my computer so I may just do a clean install.

Do you recommend a certain good quality PSU capable of supporting the GTX 460?

This may be irrelevant but I have seen hundreds of posts online about the GTX 460 having compatibility issues with certain older motherboards and having the same general problems as me (causes freezing before you can even log in/ freezing during games etc etc). When i sent the computer to be fixed the guys said it might be a graphics card issue, What do you think?


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## brobarapas (Sep 26, 2009)

Start off with a clean install of windows ,If the problem persists you can trouble shoot else were.You did post in a earlier post that you had Trojans,They will defiantly slow your system even at start up especially if they have found there way into the boot sector


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## Welsher (Aug 19, 2011)

I will hopefully perform the clean install sometime later today, at the moment I found a metric crap ton of errors in Event log, all of them the same (for the most part)

I have some Kernel power events, which I think is me having to cold boot when the system freezes...



I have several nvstor64 Event ID 129 errors that state;

'Reset to device, \Device\RaidPort0, was issued.'

And then I have literally HUNDREDS of nvstor64 Event ID 3 errors;

'Data error on device.

Device: \Device\RaidPort0
Model: STM3500418AS <--- Hard drive problem?
Firmware Version: CC37
Serial Number: 9VM53M9X
Port: 0'

When I asked for event viewer to send this info to the internet and search for solutions it could not find any.


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## Tyree (May 10, 2009)

Welsher said:


> Do you recommend a certain good quality PSU capable of supporting the GTX 460?
> 
> This may be irrelevant but I have seen hundreds of posts online about the GTX 460 having compatibility issues with certain older motherboards and having the same general problems as me (causes freezing before you can even log in/ freezing during games etc etc). When i sent the computer to be fixed the guys said it might be a graphics card issue, What do you think?


SeaSonic-XFX-Corsair ( not the GS or CX Series) are top quality PSU's.
It is not unheard of for AMD Mobo chips to have issues with Nvidia GPU chips.
You will know more after you do the clean OS install. A good idea would be to use a 3rd party app to wipe the Hdd. I use DBan: Darik's Boot And Nuke | Hard Drive Disk Wipe and Data Clearing


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## Welsher (Aug 19, 2011)

Tyree said:


> SeaSonic-XFX-Corsair ( not the GS or CX Series) are top quality PSU's.
> It is not unheard of for AMD Mobo chips to have issues with Nvidia GPU chips.
> You will know more after you do the clean OS install. A good idea would be to use a 3rd party app to wipe the Hdd. I use DBan: Darik's Boot And Nuke | Hard Drive Disk Wipe and Data Clearing


 
Thank you, I will try the new OS install very soon... Should I run DBAN before and then perform a clean install of the OS?


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## brobarapas (Sep 26, 2009)

dban will wipe your hdd ,clean


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## Welsher (Aug 19, 2011)

All has been sorted guys, thanks for the help.


However I have just encountered another problem. Literally 5 mins ago I noticed a strong smell of burning/hot plastic coming from the computer, I checked the temps and some of it is higher than normal, graphics card is around the 35-40 mark, couldn't fit it in the picture... i cant seem to locate the source of the smell, All fans are working.


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## brobarapas (Sep 26, 2009)

What did you do to solve your problem,,,?


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## Welsher (Aug 19, 2011)

brobarapas said:


> What did you do to solve your problem,,,?


Exactly as you guys reccomended, clean install... wiped the HD just to be sure though. I didn't have anything irreplacable and it was full of rubbish anyway.

Regarding the BSOD I had, that was because I had exceeded 4GB of RAM. This could have been behind the general crashes too, although my HD and two year old copy of windows was completely corrupt. Still don't know what to do about the overheating issue though.


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