install problems

[eldinv]

I dont' think so. Someone else may know for sure. Formatting is supposed to quarantine bad sectors, but the combination of chkdsk and maker's CD scan are the sure way I know of to diagnose and even repair the HD, should be done on any problem install, and best are done anytime there's a reinstall to head off problems later.

Likewise the memtest86 CD scan for 5-6 passes or overnight for stress test should be done after you clear up the ports issue with the expert help you're getting on that.

Thanks for that.. Next step is indeed to check RAM.

OP, just to be certain you got a good DVD? Tons of "BROKEN" ISO images on the net and most are crap from problems we hear.

 

[eldinv]

If you got a 4GB Flash Drive, I would do what was said earlier and create a bootable Windows 7 Flash Drive.

As long as the laptop has a DVD player, it should be able to read your Windows 7 disc and allow you to create the Windows 7 USB Stick.

A great utility for creating the USB stick is WinToFlash.

http://rapidshare.com/files/420471547/Novicorp_WinToFlash.rar

 

[DirtyElf]

see the thing that leads me to believe that my windows disk is OK is that before i found these forums, i actually had win7 installed and ran into a problem with installing video drivers, windows update, etc... couldn't get it running smoothly so i tried to reinstall and haven't been able to get it back up and running

whats semi humorous in this situation is that the first time i installed it i had all 8 gigs of ram in the machine (windows saw it all too) and the optical drive was also in the marvell sata 6g/s controller along with the HD

i really want to do it correctly and get it working flawlessly, so now im doing alot more reading and learning before i just go plugging away like i know what im doing.

 

[gregrocker]

Makes memory and/or HD even more likely suspects.

I don't suspect the DVD although I would certainly clean off any smudges. We solved one marathon install issue once by a newbie dropping in after a week to tell OP (to much snickering) to copy his DVD and it worked. So anything is possible.

The OD could be failing, or the controller which might have some issues fixed in BIOS update. Installing from flash removes these as suspects.

You now have the 3 top methods for writing the stick: manual bootsecting, UltraISO trial and Win2flash. I'd try the latter two first.

 

[DirtyElf]

reading up on tutorials, and showering.. ill check back

thanks guys

 

[DirtyElf]

ok i have the memtest ready to boot and run overnight tonight, should i run it with all 4 sticks of ram?

 

[gregrocker]

I'd run it with all sticks and then if there are errors you may need to re-run it to test individual sticks to find the bad one.

There are

Known problems
There are two versions (or "streams") of Memtest86. One is simply known as Memtest86 (current version 3.5) and the other is known as Memtest86+ (current version 4.10). They both have almost identical screen appearance. The 3.5 version is known to fail on some (or many, or most) computers with 4 GB of installed memory (the failure results in a spontaneous system reboot soon after the program starts running). The Memtest86+ 4.0 version does not exhibit this behavior. Also, there is a single-core and multi-core version of the Memtest86 3.5 version, and the multi-core version has been observed to not function on systems using AMD or Intel Quad-core CPUs.

Source: Memtest86 - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

[DirtyElf]

thanks for the tip, i have the 4.10 version... ill let you know the results in the morning

night

 

[DirtyElf]

got errors almost instantly.. going to try one stick in slot A1


edit: errors again, trying another sitck

 

[gregrocker]

A-ha! Looks like you hit pay dirt.

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.

More: http://www.sevenforums.com/crashes-...ographer-cant-work-go-back-xp.html#post953322

and http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=1248356

 

[DirtyElf]

from that thread:

I'm nearing the end of my memtesting. I pulled two sticks and ran memtest, 0 errors.

Transferred the two known good sticks to the other two slots to verify no bad slots, 0 errors.

So now I know all slots are good and at least one of the two sticks I first pulled are bad.

I plugged in one of the sticks, ran memtest, 0 errors.

So now I think I have it isolated to the one stick that is left and that it must be bad. I ran memtest and got 28,416 errors, so it has to be bad, right?

So I plug it in the last slot to run memtest again just to verify that it is indeed bad. It's through 6 passes right now and 0 errors.

How can that be explained? Why would I get over 28,000 errors one time, then get 0 errors with the exact same memory another time?

what if something like that happens? i labeled all my sticks of ram with a piece of tape so i wont mix them up. the stick currently in the slot made it through 1 pass no errors, let it go over night to 7+? then if it passes with no errors, move it around to all 4 slots on the mobo to ensure the slots are good. then test the other two one at a time in any slot?

 

[gregrocker]

You may need only a few passes if its showing errors already, as it doesn't even need stress testing. It's up to you to decide how thorough you want to be.

The comment to try a known good stick in all slots for several passes will eliminate slots.

Then try install with known good sticks.

What brand RAM do you use? Kingston backs their RAM for life, and will help with testing.

 

[DirtyElf]

that ubuntuforums thread was a good read, kudos. after reading that it explains why alot of the errors ive been having sorta make sense...

its almost through the 2nd pass on this stick with no errors.. i want to do this the correct way, you seem like a trustworthy and knowledgeable guy.. if this was your rig, what would you do?

im going out of town this weekend (jets vs dolphins game!) so after tonite, and its already getting late, ill have to resume debugging next week on tuesday..

ill have to start an RMA with newegg to return my sticks.. i want to test them all before i do this so that if i have two bad ones i can put them in the package and keep the two good ones

the ram is A-Data

4.Duration of Warranty
(1)DRAM Module:
ADATA brand:
All ADATA module series bought after 2005/7/1 are covered by a lifetime warranty.

 

[gregrocker]

You'll likely have to deal with their tech support rather than NewEgg unless the purchase was recent. This is good because they may have a testing regimen to complement yours.

I would test the RAM thoroughly enough to know which are bad sticks, and eliminate the slots as suspects.

Then I'd try install with remaining stick(s) until it works.

You in SoFla? I'm spending part of the winter starting Nov in FtL.

 

[DirtyElf]

the purchase was recent enough to still RMA, ive had this stuff about 2 weeks.

the stick in there now is through 4 passes, i figure ill let it go overnight (which is only 4~5 more hours) to ensure that this stick is indeed a winner, then when i get back from fort lauderdale this weekend, test it in the other slots on the mobo. once i know the mobo is good, ill try the other sticks, narrow down the good ones and go with the install

currently im in orlando which some would consider sofla, however i do not... i grew up in fort lauderdale, which is south florida to me, and my parents still live there

what part of ftl do you stay at in the winter? i love it down there

 

[gregrocker]

Sounds like a good testing plan.

I had a feeling about the RAM but figured sorting the mobo slots was more important while you had the help handy. You may still want to do that with more certainty in the Hardware forum, or someone may add to this thread tho it's gotten almost prohibitively long for doing that easily.

I know when I read back over it I got queasy over missed troubleshooting steps, but I do that anyway. Memtest was foremost, started blinking orange.

Victoria Park near the beach. I take care of a couple dozen computers down there, including another houseful at the place I'm stayin.

 

[DirtyElf]

alright, sounds good. enjoy your time down in fort lauderdale.

ill make a post in the hardware forum about my mobo, i was on the asus forums.. but there is very little traffic there

ill be back next tuesday - hopefully with good news (about the dolphins, and my computer)

for now, i must sleep...... work at 8

thanks again

 

[gregrocker]

Hey have a good trip.

Nice to work with you.

You're gonna have a great Win7 rig. We'll make sure.

 

[DirtyElf]

when i woke up this morning the memtest had done 17 passes with no errors.. im fairly certian i have at least one good stick and one good mobo slot

 

[Bare Foot Kid]

Hello again, glad to see you're getting it sorted.