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28 May 2016 | #1 |
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Freezing and unusual visuals, but not convinced it's my graphics card
OK, pretty specific set of issues here; I haven't found anybody on forums and the like that seems to have the same.
I'm not much of a computer guy, so any assistance or pointers at all would be truly appreciated. I'll describe the issue as completely as I can, in this order: 1.system specs, 2.user specs, 3.symptoms and non-symptoms, 4.what I've tried, 5.possible diagnoses(?) and thoughts. 1. System specs -HP Pavilion g series laptop, purchased in 2011. -Windows 7 Home Premium, 64bit, version 6.1.7601 SP1 Build 7601 -AMD Phenom™ II P960 Quad-Core Processor, 1800 Mhz, 4 Core(s), 4 Logical Processor(s) -Norton and Malwarebytes for anti-bad stuff -Not sure what other specs would be useful. (Let me know if I should add something.) -Note: I've never done a wipe or system reinstall, because I've never had a reason to -- everything has worked pretty fine so far, given a troubleshooting session here and there. 2. User specs -Super vanilla case -- not a gamer, no special software, try to minimize what I'm running at any given time. I don't have lots of programs running in the background (that I know of) and when I run my web browser, I rarely have more than a few tabs open. -really like Win7 and would like to keep it for as long as I can. -Not wealthy (to put it lightly) and have had a couple bad experiences with repair people in the past, so I'm a bit non-trusting and would rather do as much as I can (with the help of kind-hearted folks like yourself) before I resort to a tech repair person. 3. Symptoms and Non-symptoms -Original symptom: random freezing. Doesn't respond to Ctrl+Alt+Del. Mouse cursor still visible. *Occasionally* gives me the Black Screen (maybe 10% of the time it freezes) but stays running/doesn't shut down. --Doesn't appear to be related to what programs I am or am not running: it happens in the middle of a video, when idle, or after "sleeping". Once while loading Windows. --Doesn't appear to be related to how long I've been logged on -- sometimes it doesn't freeze for 1hr, sometimes 5 mins. --It *does* appear to increase in frequency if I log on shortly after rebooting -- it will freeze slightly more quickly than the previous time. --> NOTE: this symptom is absent in Safe Mode, but apparently NOT in Safe Mode With Networking. --> Also NOTE: this symptom started soon after a recent series of Windows Updates. Possibly a coincidence, but I dunno. -Added symptom (a day or so later): parts of the display that should appear WHITE appear BLUE. (well, white with lots of very skinny vertical blue lines). --this symptom now happens all the time, including in Safe Mode, while doing a "Clean Boot", and while loading Windows (you can see the blue lines in the flashing Win logo). -Added symptom: the "cmd.exe" window sometimes briefly pops up when Windows is starting. Don't know if it matters, but this didn't use to happen. -Non-symptoms: for all of the above: -fan is running normally (i.e. not loud) -temperature is normal (i.e. not hot) -lights and screen illumination are normal (even with the Black Screen). 4. What I've tried (with no results) -Clean out as much dust as I can from the laptop. -Did a "Forced Reset" -Ran a malware check. -Checked all my hardware and drivers on Control Panel-->Device Manager. -Made sure all my Windows updates, browser plugins, and software I use were up to date. -*Uninstalled a bunch of Windows Updates, (as mentioned, this problem started immediately after a series of updates.) -Did a system restore [but I didn't have a restore point before the aforementioned Windows Updates; also I don't have an image to do an advanced system recovery with.] -Installed BIOS updates. -Reverted to BIOS setup defaults. -Ran every HP and Windows diagnostic tool on my computer (hard disk test, RAM test, etc.) -Uninstalled and Reinstalled the graphics chip driver. -Consulted HP Support Assistant, Windows Troubleshooting, etc... as well as every online forum I could find a similar problem for. 5. Possible diagnoses(?), Thoughts, Questions. -My instinct says "graphics chip is screwed", however: --no problems are listed with the hardware or driver on Device Manager. --my computer doesn't overheat. (It used to back in the day, but not since I've regularly blown compressed air into it. As mentioned the fan is working normally) --I don't do anything more visually/graphically taxing than watch Youtube videos, --For the first week or so, other than the blue lines and the freezing, there was nothing unusual visually: no distortions, artifacts or weird patterns. Photos and video generally load and play normally (except for blue lines in the white parts). (As of today, I've started to get a couple random red lines here and there. Not sure if they will persist.) --For the first week, it wasn't running abnormally slowly. (As of today, it seems to be struggling a bit more.) -I also considered it might be some hardware component reacting allergically to something in one of the recent Windows Updates, but I've uninstalled all the ones that it could have been (*except the security-related ones). -Why do the blue lines happen in Safe Mode, but not the freezing? (Except it does freeze in Safe Mode with Networking --> is this relevant?) -Is it worth doing a complete system overhaul and reinstall Windows from scratch, or would that be a waste of time? -What haven't I thought of? THANKS --Pete |
My System Specs![]() |
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28 May 2016 | #2 |
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Hi Peter,
getting you moved to BSOD subforum. Have a read of the posting instructions there please. Roy |
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29 May 2016 | #3 |
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Hi Pete,
Welcome to the 7forums ![]() Please read Blue Screen of Death (BSOD) Posting Instructions and upload the zip file. Quote:
Why do the blue lines happen in Safe Mode
Quote:
not the freezing?
In many cases freezes are caused by drivers. Quote:
Except it does freeze in Safe Mode with Networking --> is this relevant?
Have you (re)installed all driver updates from HP? Please make sure that if you have the updated drivers already installed you reinstall the drivers. |
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04 Jun 2016 | #4 |
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Re:
Hi axe0, hi torchwood,
Thanks for your replies. Attached is the zip file. Please note that I didn't post in this subforum because I have not actually had any BSOD, only the freezing and very occasional black screen described. (As well as the strange visuals.) axe0, I have double-checked my network adapters and everything appears to be up to date. Not sure if wiping the drive and starting over would make a difference? Any pointers or thoughts appreciated!! |
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04 Jun 2016 | #5 |
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Try removing the graphics driver with this tool and then reinstalling. Display Driver Uninstaller Download version 16.0.0.1
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04 Jun 2016 | #6 |
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Hi townsbg, thanks for your reply.
I tried the DDU uninstall and reinstalled my graphics driver.... Unfortunately I still have the same issue with the weird blue lines, so nothing seems to have changed. Any other ideas? |
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04 Jun 2016 | #7 |
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Try an older version of the drivers.
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05 Jun 2016 | #8 |
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Do you have any CD inserted?
Code:
Event[54797]: Log Name: System Source: cdrom Date: 2016-06-04T18:02:43.143 Event ID: 51 Task: N/A Level: Warning Opcode: N/A Keyword: Classic User: N/A User Name: N/A Computer: PDURAN-HP Description: An error was detected on device \Device\CdRom0 during a paging operation. |
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