Combination cry for PC help and purchasing advise.

[DeadlyNinja]

God, I'm so pissed. I got screwed over by HP's repair service. They fixed my code purple problem, but they didn't fix another problem, and now I'll probably have to pay to get it fixed (again), or pay for a new motherboard. Anyway, any experts here care to hear me out and see if you can figure out what's the problem? And if not, help me decide on what to buy for the repairs.

Late December, my PC started to freeze at or around start up. The mouse moves, but nothing else happens. It was random at first, but it got worse. It would freeze whenever it felt like it, and you never know when it'll freeze. It gets worse.

After freezing, I would naturally be forced to restart the computer. The problem is, the PC would hang on the Windows XP loading screen. It can't load into Safe Mode either. Seems like you can start it up if I shut it off and let it sit for 10-15 minutes. Still, that doesn't solve the freezing issue.

I tried a destructive restore on the PC, and the issue seems to have disappeared... at least for a month or so. The issue would start to show up again.

Once, I even got a Master Boot Error on start up. I've done dozens of thorough harddrive scans and it seems to be working perfectly. After continuous attempts to solve the issue by chatting with HP technicians, one of them told me to unhook the SATA cables from the HD, reconnect them, and do another full restore. I did that, and got a Code Purple. The PC was sent to HP for repairs. It came back good as new. Or so I thought.

It's been roughly a month after it's been fixed, and now the freezing issue is appearing again. I also encountered the Master Boot Record this morning. After more talks with HP tech, we've come to the conclusion that either I pay 49.99 buck to talk with a technician over the phone, or probably pay through my nose for a new motherboard. All the attempts by the HP guys to solve the freezing issue was useless.

Any experts here care to give me their thoughts on what might be the problem? The HP guy thinks it's the motherboard (the code purple was the Motherboard Tattoo being incorrect).

Now for the purchasing part. If it is a motherboard issue, I'm better off buying something off of Newegg, but can I? It is an HP. Can I just replace the motherboard with something else from Newegg?

My CPU is an Athlon 64 x2 4200+. I really don't want to spend that much money in this economy. Will I be able to install the motherboard and still use my HP stuff? The software is obviously configured to their specs, so I don't know if I can just buy a new one. If I buy from them, it would cost 300 bucks.

 

[{Sniping}Waste]

Can yo post the model of the computer and can you take some pics of the motherboard inside the case. I need some pics of the voltage regulation area near the CPU.

 

[Bouncing Zabaglione Bros.]

My initial thoughts would be to run some diagnostics on the ram (or swap it out if you have other compatible modules available). Try running Memtest, Prime95 blends, or Intelburntest (I think it runs on AMD systems now). Faulty ram could cause the problems you describe, and along with lots of hard resets could cause the the disk corruption that is giving you other errors. If you can identify a single stick of ram that is causing problem, I'd move it around in the sockets to check the sockets are not at fault.

Then I'd check the CPU/RAM seating and heatsink to make sure everything is mated correctly.

Next I'd run diagnostics on the hard drive, maybe swap the SATA cables. Then I'd swap the PSU out as a test if I could, or run some voltage tests on it.

After that you're looking at possible CPU/motherboard replacement. Ideally you'd swap these out with a spare to see if the problem stays or moves to find out empirically where the problem is coming from. Then you'd be looking to buy a new CPU for your motherboard, or a new motherboard for your CPU.

A final note would be to check on the manufacturers support site for the motherboard, and any other tech sites for info on your problem. I experienced a similar problem for a few weeks after I built a new system - it turned out I had upgraded the BIOS to the latest version that had a major bug. I had to revert to an older BIOS and wait for a fixed version to be released. Is it possible you need to upgrade to a new BIOS, or chipset/hard drive drivers?

 

[DeadlyNinja]

Can yo post the model of the computer and can you take some pics of the motherboard inside the case. I need some pics of the voltage regulation area near the CPU.

Here's a link of the inside. Not sure if it's good enough. If you need more, tell me.

My PC's model is HP Media Center m7664x
http://img5.imageshack.us/img5/4425/img4433u.jpg

Next I'd run diagnostics on the hard drive, maybe swap the SATA cables. Then I'd swap the PSU out as a test if I could, or run some voltage tests on it.

Unfortunately, I don't have the option of trying spare parts on it. I'll try to run the programs you recommended.

 

[Blazkowicz]

LOL at the 49.99$ support. you could buy a motherboard for that price.
UGH for the $300 motherboard. it's probably a pretty low end one and $300 buys you a whole PC.

I second the advice about ram (memtest is usually run from a bootable CD or USB key and left running for many hours). it's the probable offender when there's instability and a lot of data corruption. You may end up repairing your PC by merely removing the one faulty ram stick.

would you find out the mobo is dead (next probable offender) here's the $49.99 one with same socket, chipset and a reputable make
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128383
should be a working drop-in replacement.. unless HP has made some evil BIOS-checked tattooing on the hard disk (I heard OEMs tend to do that, I find it disgusting.) btw you didn't have a "warranty void if removed" sticker on the case? (gurps). what's a "code purple" also, that must be some HP jargon.

 

[Davros]

and whats a motherboard tatoo ?

 

[suryad]

and whats a motherboard tatoo ?

Seconded...curious as well.

 

[Bouncing Zabaglione Bros.]

and whats a motherboard tatoo ?

It's a way of preventing you from upgrading your system unless you pay out lots for their badged hardware. So it's basically another reason to put your own together.

A motherboard tattoo is a unique code that can be written in the basic input/output system (BIOS) of a computer to ensure that System Restore or diagnostic compact discs (CDs) will work only on the machine or line of machines with which the CDs are sold. The tattoo process ensures that recovery or diagnostic CDs cannot be illegally used with computers other than those for which they are intended to be used.

A tattoo consists of an erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM) chip that contains information about the machine, such as the serial number and operating system data. This chip is unique to each machine. If the motherboard, or certain components on it, are replaced, the EPROM chip must be reprogrammed. The same is true if the original recovery or diagnostic CDs are lost. The technical support department of the computer vendor, or the technician who performed modifications or repairs, should be contacted for details about the reprogramming (re-tattooing) process.

 

[DeadlyNinja]

I second the advice about ram (memtest is usually run from a bootable CD or USB key and left running for many hours). it's the probable offender when there's instability and a lot of data corruption. You may end up repairing your PC by merely removing the one faulty ram stick.

I have this thing called PC doctor in my computer. Will doing a scan with that work?

The motherboard tattoo issue does lead me to suspect problems with the motherboard itself, but the weird thing is how the computer will operate properly if I do a system restore. I'm afraid it's a virus, but I ran a test with Avast, and only found some minor adware in there.

Also, is it possible to accurately find out the true cause of these problems through the internet? I want to know what's really causing the issues before deciding on my next move.

 

[Bouncing Zabaglione Bros.]

I have this thing called PC doctor in my computer. Will doing a scan with that work?

Not really - it just won't stress the RAM hard enough or be precise enough to spot small problems. There are much better programs for stress testing the RAM/CPU subsystem, some of which I suggested above.

 

[DeadlyNinja]

I'm using Prime95 to test the RAM and stuff, and after an hour, it's only at .22%. How long will it take? Doesn't seem to be any problems so far.

Also, is it possible that a virus could have caused this? It does explain why everything was normal after a restore. Still, I ran my anti-virus (Avast) and didn't pick up any major threats. Just a small adware from some toolbar.

 

[Bouncing Zabaglione Bros.]

I'm using Prime95 to test the RAM and stuff, and after an hour, it's only at .22%. How long will it take? Doesn't seem to be any problems so far.

Also, is it possible that a virus could have caused this? It does explain why everything was normal after a restore. Still, I ran my anti-virus (Avast) and didn't pick up any major threats. Just a small adware from some toolbar.

You should be using prime95 "torture test" blends. Leave it running a few hours at least. I think you are probably running proper prime units, which is not the same thing.

Memtest is also worth using - you write it to a bootable floppy or CD, so it can run and access almost all the memory with no OS running