Windows 7: My laptop locks up when I perform certain tasks

I've been having this issue for maybe three weeks now, and I'm hoping someone can at least shed some light on what might be causing it. I've got an ASUS K50IJ notebook, and lately, when I try to Save, Save As or Browse files on my computer, it freezes. This doesn't happen all the time; it's pretty unpredictable. In fact, the problem disappeared for a whole week before showing up again today.

The nature of each crash tends to vary. Sometimes the whole system locks up, and I have to forcibly shut it down with the power button. Other times, the window that triggered the problem is the only thing that freezes. Furthermore, sometimes the computer will unfreeze after several minutes, while in other cases my only option is to restart.

Usually when this happens, the laptop makes strange noises that sound as if it's struggling to read a disc or something. I've never had an issue like this before and I don't know how to begin troubleshooting it. I've only found a handful of cases where people have experienced similar issues, so I'm at a loss.

Any help would be much appreciated. Thanks.

We do need the DMP file as it contains the only record of the sequence of events leading up to the crash, what drivers were loaded, and what was responsible.

If you are overclocking STOP

You may be able to get the DMP files without crashing by booting into safe mode (F8) with networking.

To enable us to assist you with your computer's BSOD symptoms, upload the contents of your "\Windows\Minidump" folder.

The procedure:

Quote:

* Copy the contents of \Windows\Minidump to another (temporary) location somewhere on your machine.
* Zip up the copy.
* Attach the ZIP archive to your post using the "paperclip" (file attachments) button.
*If the files are too large please upload them to a file sharing service like "Rapidshare" and put a link to them in your reply.

To ensure minidumps are enabled:

Quote:

* Go to Start, in the Search Box type: sysdm.cpl, press Enter.
* Under the Advanced tab, click on the Startup and Recovery Settings... button.
* Ensure that Automatically restart is unchecked.
* Under the Write Debugging Information header select Small memory dump (256 kB) in the dropdown box (the 256kb varies).
* Ensure that the Small Dump Directory is listed as %systemroot%\Minidump.
* OK your way out.
* Reboot if changes have been made.

Well, the thing is I'm not getting a BSOD or any kind of error message. The computer simply freezes and occasionally makes strange noises. Would a DMP file still be useful and would I have to get it immediately after a crash?

Please provide us with your Event Viewer administrative logs by following these steps:

1. Click Start Menu
2. Type eventvwr into Search programs and files (do not hit enter)
3. Right click eventvwr.exe and click Run as administrator
4. Expand Custom Views
5. Click Administrative Events
6. Right click Administrative Events
7. Save all Events in Custom View As...
8. Save them in a folder where you will remember which folder and save as Errors.evtx
9. When asked, save the display information in English.
10. Go to where you saved Errors.evtx
11. Create a new folder by right clicking in a blank area within the folder Errors.evtx is saved in. You could also click New Folder at the top of the directory under the directory path box.
12. Name the new folder Errors.
13. Place Errors.evtx and the LocaleMetaData folder into the new Errors folder.
14. Right click the Errors folder -> send to -> compressed (zipped) folder
15. Upload the .zip file here.

Do the following steps and test by doing your normal routine after each step to see if stability increases (the memory tests you can run concurrently as they will not increase stability unless you are forced to move modules around). Post back your results after each step, and if you get a blue screen crash, upload the files and await further instructions after we are able to analyze the crash.

If you can do your normal routine for a few weeks without a crash, and your crashes are usually more frequent than that, then the problem is likely solved.

• If you are overclocking any hardware, please stop.
  
  
• Troubleshoot Application Conflicts by Performing a Clean Startup to see if you have a service or application causing the freezes.
  
  
• Monitor temperatures during the following tests.

  Use the following programs to monitor the temperatures.

  • Real Temp is a good CPU temperature monitor.
  • Speccy - System Information - Free Download will monitor all hardware temperatures.
  • HWiNFO, HWiNFO32 & HWiNFO64 - Hardware Information and Analysis Tools can be inaccurate for CPU temperatures, but is a good program for GPU temperature monitoring.

  • Use FurMark: VGA Stress Test, Graphics Card and GPU Stability Test, Burn-in Test, OpenGL Benchmark and GPU Temperature | oZone3D.Net to test the graphics card GPU. Then use the |MG| Video Memory Stress Test 1.7.116 Download to test your graphics card memory. Let the memory test run for at least seven passes; the more the better.
    
    
  • Run Hardware - Stress Test With Prime95 to determine any hardware problems. Run all three tests for a few hours each. If you get errors, stop the test and post back here.

• Run the boot version of Memtest86+ paying close attention to Parts 2 and 3 of the tutorial. Also, in case Memtest86+ misses anything and comes up with no errors, run the extended version of the Windows Memory Diagnostics Tool for at least five passes. These you may want to run overnight since they take a long time to complete (run them an hour before bed each of the next two nights and check before going to sleep that they are still running).
  
  If you swap any memory components, follow these steps for ESD safety:
  1. Shut down and turn off your computer.
  2. Unplug all power supplies to the computer (AC Power then battery for laptops, AC power for desktops)
  3. Hold down the power button for 30 seconds to close the circuit and ensure all power drains from components.
  4. Make sure you are grounded by using proper grounding techniques, i.e. work on an anti-static workbench, anti-static desk, or an anti-static pad. Hold something metallic while touching it to the anti-static surface, or use an anti-static wristband to attach to the anti-static material while working.
  Once these steps have been followed, it is safe to remove and replace components within your computer.

Here's the file. I'll try those other steps right away and let you know what I find.

Do you have a genuine copy of Windows????

I'm not sure if performing a clean restart did the trick or not. The Save As window temporarily went unresponsive but stopped. I'll continue testing.

It is. It came with my computer, but I got a single authorization error a few months after I was forced to reinstall due to a BSOD. It never showed up again, so I thought it was fixed.

EDIT: I just finished running Prime95 for two hours or so. Didn't get any errors. I'll do the other tests tomorrow. But I'm wondering about the possibility that this is my hard drive dying on me.

How did you re-install? Did you use a disc or the factory system image saved on the recovery partition?

If you used a disc, where did you obtain it?

Please follow the https://www.sevenforums.com/crashes-d...tructions.html so we can provide troubleshooting steps to check the hard disk.

In the meantime, run a Disk Check with both boxes checked for all HDDs and with Fix File System Errors checked for all SSDs.
For any drives that do not give the message:
Windows has checked the file system and found no problems
run disk check again as above. In other words, if it says:
Windows has made corrections to the file system
after running the disk check, run the disk check again.

Sorry about the delay. The last test I ran took all day and I forgot to report what happened. I ran the disk check and didn't get any errors at all, and I haven't had the freezing problem ever since.

I'm not convinced that the issue is resolved so I won't mark it as solved yet. I'll just post if it happens again. After all, it previously seemed to disappear for a week before returning.

That's good news, at least. :) Best wishes!