Solved New Laptop randomly stops responding

[Monkey94]

I've heard that this could be from overheating, and was wondering if it was that, or something entire different.

Toshiba Satellite C655
Pentium Dual Core CPU T4500
2.30 GHz
4 GB DDR3
285 GB HDD
Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit
At this moment my speedfan is
HD0: 37C
Temp1: 51C
Core 0: 42C
Core 1: 40C.

At the moment I'm running Google Chrome, Speed fan, and Windows Live Messenger. The computer has stopped responding during Windows updates, specifically one for Maverick prevention or something, I isolated it by one by one installing every update available (As it was new and the OS was behind 54 updates, it was a painstaking process.)
It has also stopped responding when working on Microsoft Word, a major problem because if I do not save every five seconds I'm at risk for losing everything. It's also stopped when I was simply browsing.Another popular instance is if I exit something, usually Windows Live Messenger, it will refuse to exit and simply crash and hang out where it is. If one program stops responding, I usually can't do anything. My internet browser will not work and it will say something about "Your profile cannot be read." And if other programs are up when one crashes, they sometimes work, and sometimes crash in a random order chain. Occaisionally I can end the program with task manager, or just by mashing the x, but afterwards nothing opens and I can't even log off or turn off the computer in the proper manner.

Edit: I was in the process of doing a Disk Cleanup, and this maybe week old laptop has 3.87 GB of system error memory dump files.

 

[zigzag3143]

I've heard that this could be from overheating, and was wondering if it was that, or something entire different.

Toshiba Satellite C655
Pentium Dual Core CPU T4500
2.30 GHz
4 GB DDR3
285 GB HDD
Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit
At this moment my speedfan is
HD0: 37C
Temp1: 51C
Core 0: 42C
Core 1: 40C.

At the moment I'm running Google Chrome, Speed fan, and Windows Live Messenger. The computer has stopped responding during Windows updates, specifically one for Maverick prevention or something, I isolated it by one by one installing every update available (As it was new and the OS was behind 54 updates, it was a painstaking process.)
It has also stopped responding when working on Microsoft Word, a major problem because if I do not save every five seconds I'm at risk for losing everything. It's also stopped when I was simply browsing.Another popular instance is if I exit something, usually Windows Live Messenger, it will refuse to exit and simply crash and hang out where it is. If one program stops responding, I usually can't do anything. My internet browser will not work and it will say something about "Your profile cannot be read." And if other programs are up when one crashes, they sometimes work, and sometimes crash in a random order chain. Occaisionally I can end the program with task manager, or just by mashing the x, but afterwards nothing opens and I can't even log off or turn off the computer in the proper manner.

Edit: I was in the process of doing a Disk Cleanup, and this maybe week old laptop has 3.87 GB of system error memory dump files.

Memory corruption probably caused by a driver. please run these two tests



1-Memtest.

*Download a copy of Memtest86 and burn the ISO to a CD using Iso Recorder or another ISO burning program.

*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.

http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/105647-ram-test-memtest86.html



2-Driver verifier

I'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.

http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/101379-driver-verifier-enable-disable.html

 

[Monkey94]

I ran the memtest, and after awhile it restarted, this repeated a couple times, then it managed to run for 37 minutes and completed a pass, not listing any errors. It made it all the way to the second pass without restarting, but restarted as soon as it started 3. Does this mean anything?

 

[zigzag3143]

I ran the memtest, and after awhile it restarted, this repeated a couple times, then it managed to run for 37 minutes and completed a pass, not listing any errors. It made it all the way to the second pass without restarting, but restarted as soon as it started 3. Does this mean anything?

It means that you dont have any memory results to either confirm a memory problem or not.

I suspect a hardware issue since memtest is run outside of the windows environment.

 

[Monkey94]

Well as of now I'm getting errors such as
Failed extract of third-party root list from auto update cab at: <http://www.download.windowsupdate.com/msdownload/update/v3/static/trustedr/en/authrootstl.cab> with error: A required certificate is not within its validity period when verifying against the current system clock or the timestamp in the signed file.
.
Failed extract of third-party root list from auto update cab at: <http://www.download.windowsupdate.com/msdownload/update/v3/static/trustedr/en/authrootstl.cab> with error: A required certificate is not within its validity period when verifying against the current system clock or the timestamp in the signed file.
.
Many different Error 0x80070002
The attempt by user Computer\Meow to restart/shutdown computer COMPUTER failed
And there was one I can't find at the moment that mentioned 101 registries were leaked or left open or something like that.

 

[zigzag3143]

Well as of now I'm getting errors such as
Failed extract of third-party root list from auto update cab at: <http://www.download.windowsupdate.com/msdownload/update/v3/static/trustedr/en/authrootstl.cab> with error: A required certificate is not within its validity period when verifying against the current system clock or the timestamp in the signed file.
.
Failed extract of third-party root list from auto update cab at: <http://www.download.windowsupdate.com/msdownload/update/v3/static/trustedr/en/authrootstl.cab> with error: A required certificate is not within its validity period when verifying against the current system clock or the timestamp in the signed file.
.
Many different Error 0x80070002
The attempt by user Computer\Meow to restart/shutdown computer COMPUTER failed
And there was one I can't find at the moment that mentioned 101 registries were leaked or left open or something like that.

It may be time for a repair install or a clean install. Might take less time than diagnosing this.

 

[Monkey94]

Well, I have no idea how to do either of those without the disks, my Windows was preinstalled when I bought the computer, all I have is a sticker with a serial key on the bottom of my laptop. Can I do it with just that? And if so how?
Also, I appreciate you taking the time to assist me very much.

 

[seavixen32]

This is not a cop out, but as your laptop is only a week old I'd be inclined to take it back to your reseller for repair, replacement or refund while it's under warranty.

 

[marsmimar]

Another possibility is to restore your laptop to factory specs by accessing the hidden recovery partition. You should have received some paperwork with the Toshiba called Quick Start or something similar. There is usually a section about creating recovery disks and/or accessing the recovery partition.

If you don't have that paperwork try this:

1. Back up any important data you might have on your machine (documents, music, videos, etc)

2. Start up your computer and instantly press and hold '0' (zero) to see the prompt options regarding your recovery partition.

3. Select "Recovery of Factory Default Software" and click "Next."

4. Confirm the decision to begin the process. Once the process is finished, your computer will restart and you should be fully restored to the way your computer was on the day you brought it home. If successful I'd then create a set of recovery disks and keep them in a safe place.

If you can't access the hidden recovery partition then I'd definitely take advantage of your warranty as seavixen suggested.

Once you have your machine back in good condition and you've spent hours getting it set up to your liking, installing optional programs, getting everything updated, etc. I'd further invest in an external hard drive and make a System Image. This is basically a snapshot of your entire hard drive and if your machine ever goes belly up again you can use the system image to be up and running in about 30 minutes or less. Just a suggestion.

 

[Monkey94]

Another possibility is to restore your laptop to factory specs by accessing the hidden recovery partition. You should have received some paperwork with the Toshiba called Quick Start or something similar. There is usually a section about creating recovery disks and/or accessing the recovery partition.

If you don't have that paperwork try this:

1. Back up any important data you might have on your machine (documents, music, videos, etc)

2. Start up your computer and instantly press and hold '0' (zero) to see the prompt options regarding your recovery partition.

3. Select "Recovery of Factory Default Software" and click "Next."

4. Confirm the decision to begin the process. Once the process is finished, your computer will restart and you should be fully restored to the way your computer was on the day you brought it home. If successful I'd then create a set of recovery disks and keep them in a safe place.

If you can't access the hidden recovery partition then I'd definitely take advantage of your warranty as seavixen suggested.

Once you have your machine back in good condition and you've spent hours getting it set up to your liking, installing optional programs, getting everything updated, etc. I'd further invest in an external hard drive and make a System Image. This is basically a snapshot of your entire hard drive and if your machine ever goes belly up again you can use the system image to be up and running in about 30 minutes or less. Just a suggestion.

Well I suppose I'll try this if I can find it, but it was like this from day one, though I do have a thought, could the 'Best Buy app' be behind this, it froze nearly instantly on my first boot up.

 

[marsmimar]

Well I suppose I'll try this if I can find it, but it was like this from day one, though I do have a thought, could the 'Best Buy app' be behind this, it froze nearly instantly on my first boot up.

I've heard stories that Best Buy "technicians" can sometimes mess things up on new machines by installing different software. If it's been "...like this from day one..." then I'd definitely go back to Best Buy and have them make things right. As zigzag said earlier, "It may be time for a repair install or a clean install. Might take less time than diagnosing this." In this case your repair/clean install should come from Best Buy under your warranty, at no cost to you, especially if you are insistent that the problems began as soon as you got the computer home.

 

[Monkey94]

I've now recovered to my factory setting as suggested. So far it's working better than my first run, I believe it might have been my fault. I, after waiting 3 weeks for the laptop to come in, was ridiculously impatient and expected windows to be up to date, and started installing software right away, such as my games, and etc. So far, I haven't encountered a problem. Last time, my computer froze and would not install all of windows updates in one go. This time, it installed them all at once with no problem.

Edit: Also, I was wondering if you guys knew any good free antivirus software that is known not to cause any conflicts with Windows 7, it's been 14 minutes and I've been running cleanly, although I'm not really doing anything on it, and I'd like to get some virus protection up and running. I believe I've seen Microsoft Essentials or something similar suggested, is that good, and if so where can I find it?

 

[marsmimar]

Glad to hear you might have resolved your problems!

Here's the download link for Microsoft Security Essentials. It's lightweight and just runs in the background seamlessly on my computer.

Virus, Spyware & Malware Protection | Microsoft Security Essentials

Once your computer is set up to your liking and you're sure it's running without a hitch, I'd strongly recommend you invest in an external hard drive and create a system image. A system image is like a snapshot of your computer. It includes all your updates, programs, files, folders, music, photos, etc. stored on your internal hard drive. If your computer ever goes belly up again, you can use the system image to get up and running in about 30 minutes or less. Your machine will be in the exact same condition is was when you created the system image. You won't have to go through all the updating, reinstalling, etc. You can use the built in Windows 7 imaging tool or there are several other free tools like Macrium, Paragon and EaseUS that give more flexibility to the imaging and recovery process.

If you decide to make a system image (and I hope you do) don't forget to make the companion system repair disc each imaging tool offers. It allows you to boot to the system recovery options if you don't have a Windows installation disc, or can't access the recovery options provided by your computer manufacturer.

 

[Monkey94]

Do you have a rough idea of how big they are? I only have 700 mb CDs laying around. My computer has been running flawlessly since my last post, I left it on while I was out for the day. It seems to be in working order now. Thanks a lot for the idea of reinstalling windows, and I have installed Windows Security Essentials and it is fully updated. Thank you all for your help you guys were awesome.

 

[marsmimar]

That's very good news that your computer is running flawlessly. You did a good job bringing it back to life!

Do you have a rough idea of how big they are? I only have 700 mb CDs laying around.

I'm guessing you mean how big will a system image be. That all depends on what's installed on your computer. If you click the Start orb and then click on Computer, you'll be able to get a pretty close idea of how many gigabytes your hard drive is using. You should see Local Disk (C: ), "X" GB free of "Y" GB. "Y" GB represents your hard drive size.**

Subtract the "X" from the "Y" and you'll find out how much "stuff" will be included in the system image. I'm guessing it will be several gigabytes. A CD gives you about 650 MB of usable space. A DVD gives a bit more than 4 GB usable space. If your machine has 20 GB of "stuff" you'll need about 5 DVDs or 30 CDs. Even with DVDs, if just one of those DVDs fails to burn properly your system image won't work. And the only way to test if the DVDs work is to try to use them to do a system restore. Way too risky! Stick with an external hard drive and it will be a lot safer and a lot more convenient. 500 GB external drives are going for about $50.

(**NOTE: This figure will always be less than the size of the drive as measured by the manufacturer. For example, a manufacturer's 500 GB hard drive will show as 465 GB to the computer. Has to do with how the manufacturer and computer measure a gigabyte. Manufacturers say 1000 bytes = 1 kilobyte but computers are more precise and say 1024 bytes = 1 kilobyte. That's why a manufacturer's sizing for a hard drive will always be less to a computer.)

 

[Monkey94]

Urg. Alright. Looks like I'll be investing in an external harddrive, they aren't a bad thing to have around anyway. USB Storage on steroids.