Thought you'd kick out of this - I downloaded the wrong iso file. I d/l the x86 instead of the x64. So, will do it again tonight and try again tomorrow.
I really have to laugh at this situation now as I think I've made every mistake in the book.
I did the repair install Sunday afternoon. Got a blue screen about 1 hour later, but it was the only one of the day. Didn't get one yesterday at all - first time in a long time that I went a whole day without a reboot. Today, got another blue screen fairly early on in the day.
I have done a new report in case that will help.
Is a clean install up next for me?
I don't know if this means anything, but after I did the repair install, a few hours later I noticed a notification window telling me that Windows was looking to install my usb device and failed to do so. Problem is, I hadn't plugged anything in to any of the usb ports. Everything seems to stem from this phantom usb device that is not working properly.
Thanks for the help!!
Just a passing note/question.
This is a long thread so I am just double checking that you have run memtest and driver verifier to eliminate RAM as the issue and to try and identify if a particular driver is at fault.
Have you?
How many un-powered USB devices do you have attached to this computer?
Hi - thanks for helping out. It's a long thread b/c I'm not particularly conversant with fixing things myself so you'll have to bear with me.
I do not currently have any USB devices attached. The only time I do is to plug a flashdrive in or my external hard drive to back up the laptop. Usually there is nothing plugged in which makes the notices puzzling.
I have not done a memtest. If that involves taking out modules, I have no idea how to do that. Way beyond my knowledge set.
As for a driver verifier - I'm not sure if I've done that one. What is it called? It doesn't sound familiar.
Sorry, as I mentioned, I'm not that great with this stuff.
Memtest can be run with everything intact. All you need is DVD (to burn memtest to) or a USB (which in your case may not be the best idea)Hi - thanks for helping out. It's a long thread b/c I'm not particularly conversant with fixing things myself so you'll have to bear with me.
I do not currently have any USB devices attached. The only time I do is to plug a flashdrive in or my external hard drive to back up the laptop. Usually there is nothing plugged in which makes the notices puzzling.
I have not done a memtest. If that involves taking out modules, I have no idea how to do that. Way beyond my knowledge set.
As for a driver verifier - I'm not sure if I've done that one. What is it called? It doesn't sound familiar.
Sorry, as I mentioned, I'm not that great with this stuff.
Driver verifier is called "driver verifier" it is built into win 7.
Do memtest first. It is longer (but much easier).
I'll try the memtest, but problem is, my laptop is not reliable to stay on for the whole test (it reboots all the time).
Do you have a link for the memtest?
thanks!
Probably now reliable because of the memory. Here are both just in case.
If you are overclocking anything reset to default before running these tests.
In other words STOP!!!
1-Memtest.
RAM - Test with Memtest86+*Download a copy of Memtest86 and burn the ISO to a CD using Iso Recorder or another ISO burning program. Memtest86+ - Advanced Memory Diagnostic Tool
*Boot from the CD, and leave it running for at least 5 or 6 passes.
Just remember, any time Memtest reports errors, it can be either bad RAM or a bad motherboard slot.
Test the sticks individually, and if you find a good one, test it in all slots.
Any errors are indicative of a memory problem.
If a known good stick fails in a motherboard slot it is probably the slot.
2-Driver verifier
Driver Verifier - Enable and DisableI'd suggest that you first backup your data and then make sure you've got access to another computer so you can contact us if problems arise. Then make a System Restore point (so you can restore the system using the Vista/Win7 Startup Repair feature).
In Windows 7 you can make a Startup Repair disk by going to Start....All Programs...Maintenance...Create a System Repair Disc - with Windows Vista you'll have to use your installation disk or the "Repair your computer" option at the top of the Safe Mode menu .
Then, here's the procedure:
- Go to Start and type in "verifier" (without the quotes) and press Enter
- Select "Create custom settings (for code developers)" and click "Next"
- Select "Select individual settings from a full list" and click "Next"
- Select everything EXCEPT FOR "Low Resource Simulation" and click "Next"
- Select "Select driver names from a list" and click "Next"
Then select all drivers NOT provided by Microsoft and click "Next"
- Select "Finish" on the next page.
Reboot the system and wait for it to crash to the Blue Screen. Continue to use your system normally, and if you know what causes the crash, do that repeatedly. The objective here is to get the system to crash because Driver Verifier is stressing the drivers out. If it doesn't crash for you, then let it run for at least 36 hours of continuous operation (an estimate on my part).
If you can't get into Windows because it crashes too soon, try it in Safe Mode.
If you can't get into Safe Mode, try using System Restore from your installation DVD to set the system back to the previous restore point that you created.
Further Reading
Using Driver Verifier to identify issues with Windows drivers for advanced users
Sorry, showing my ignorance again.
So I'm going to download the pre-compiled .iso in a zip file? If I double click on the iso file, I should be able to burn in to a dvd in Windows 7 - correct?
The instructions say to boot from the CD. Does that mean click on set up? Or turn the computer off and then bootup with CD in place?
It says to test the sticks - ????? What are those?
Sorry again - I'm hopeless.
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