I am running an approximately 2 year old Windows XP Media Center Edition Service Pack 3, on a Dell Dimension DV051, Intel Pentium 4 CPU 3.06 GHz, 504MB RAM. The hard Drive is a Western Digital 80GB, the C drive has 50gb with 6.91GB free. I use mostly Firefox 2.0, but I do use IE7 for things that won't work on Firefox.

Okay, so here is the deal:

My computer has been having problems for a while now. I worked with the guys on the infection removal list here a few weeks ago to remove some infections I had. I thought the blue screens I was having then were caused by the infection, but they are back and with worse problems. When I looked at the Event Viewer I saw almost 200 DCOM errors since 6/30, over 100 happened yesterday. I also noticed lots of cdrom errors around 6/30 as well.

Here is the gist of the errors:

DCOM got error "The service cannot be started, either because it is disabled or because it has no enabled devices associated with it. " attempting to start the service MDM with arguments "" in order to run the server:
{0C0A3666-30C9-11D0-8F20-00805F2CD064}

and most recently:

The server {DC0C2640-1415-4644-875C-6F4D769839BA} did not register with DCOM within the required timeout.

a couple of weeks ago:

The device, \Device\CdRom0, has a bad block.

I also got this one yesterday:

The time service has not been able to synchronize the system time for 49152 seconds because none of the time providers has been able to provide a usable time stamp. The system clock is unsynchronized.

I have had this one for a few days now:

Installation Failure: Windows failed to install the following update with error 0x80070643: Security Update for SQL Server 2000 Service Pack 4 (KB948110).

I received this one last night:

Received Handle Query Remove notification.
RSM refused the request and prohibited this action.

and this one:

Error code 10000050, parameter1 a1f023f6, parameter2 00000008, parameter3 a1f023f6, parameter4 00000000.

and this one:

The IPSEC Services service terminated with the following error:
The attempted operation is not supported for the type of object referenced.

this is the log entry from the blue screen:

The computer has rebooted from a bugcheck. The bugcheck was: 0x10000050 (0xa1f023f6, 0x00000008, 0xa1f023f6, 0x00000000). A dump was saved in: C:\WINDOWS\Minidump\Mini071608-01.dmp.

before the blue screen this:

The IMAPI CD-Burning COM Service, was started and stopped repeatedly.


The things that have consistently lead to blue screens are:

uploading videos to Youtube, running Kodak Easyshare, and plugging in IPODS and running ITunes. This doesn't mean that they ALWAYS cause a blue screen, just that one of them is usually being used before a blue screen happens.

In addition, I regularly receive errors from Norton 2008, and get memory could not be read errors as well. I especially get errors during or after running scans or liveupdate. In fact, today I see that liveupdate was started and stopped multiple times just like the imapi service was a few weeks ago. I have attempted to work with Symantec to fix problems with norton, but I have grown tired of it.

Thank you in advance for your help!

**Update**

I forgot to mention that when windows attempted to send an error report to microsoft about the blue screen it was unable to do so because the information was corrupted. I also did a HJT scan in case it is relevant, I see a couple of things that weren't there before...



This post has been edited by LDTate: Jul 22 2008, 03:05 PM

Bump to top

Hi computerwannabe, Sorry for the delay in responding to your topic.

1 The first step is to check that your back up/archive/copy of all the important stuff on your machine is 100% up to date, accurate, reproducible and kept safely on removable media. (Make sure that it includes everything that is important to you and that would likely cause a problem if lost)

2 If your C drive is your boot drive (as is customary) then free space of 6.91GB on a total partition size of 50GB is causing your operating system to run in a cramped environment and likely to produce problems.

3 You need to aim for a target of 35% of free space on your C partition, so uninstall/remove/move anything that you can, to get the required free space. Start>Control Panel>Add & Remove programs and uninstall what is not required, then a restart after each uninstall followed, by a disc clean up (Cleanmgr or ATF-Cleaner by Atribune is good, but if using Firefox do read the instructions)

4 Once happy, and with 35% of your C partition free, then a defrag or three will be necessary (with a restart between each one)

5 Next do a disc integrity check using chkdsk /r
Start> Run> chkdsk /r (select Y to allow the reboot) and if it finds problems, keep running it with a restart in between until it has completed all 5 passes on two consecutive occasions without having found/ fixed any faults. You will need to plan this task as each run will take several hours to complete during which time you will be unable to use your machine (Do not allow a shutdown whilst this is running, using an UPS is recommended.)

6 Now run the Windows Protected File Scanner, sfc /scannow and be sure to have the correct version and service Pack level Microsoft Windows XP Installation disc handy, as this will be required in the event that fresh copies of System files need to be copied to the dll cache. This scan will generally not take longer than 20 minutes or so, and you may need to run this once more after a restart.

7 Now your system has a bit of room to breathe and hopefully some Windows problems may have been fixed, so now you can go here:
http://www.eventid.net/display.asp?eventid...COM&phase=1

the debugger may be at the root of the problem and the mdm.exe file may be missing.
Good luck
Regards
paws

I have wondered about the free space issue, but I am not sure what to uninstall. A month or so ago I attempted to defrag the computer and it told me I needed 15% free space to do so, and so I went on a deleting spree to make enough room to run it. I had problems right after the deleting spree, as I can no longer watch dvd's from my computer. (Clearly I uninstalled the wrong thing.) Is there a way that I can provide you a list of programs and let you know the ones my family uses regularly so that you can tell me what I can safely delete?

As for backing up my important files...short of buying an external hard drive, what is the cheapest way to reasonably back up the computer? It seems like it will take ten or more cd-roms to do it that way. What should I choose in my backup to minimize the size of the content? Can I choose to backup just pictures, documents, etc.?

Lot's of questions, I know....sorry!

Also, the computer inexplicably restarted itself while my son was using it monday or tuesday. The only thing I noticed in the event log at that time was an error of too many TCP/IP connections. Sounds like virus behavior, but norton says I am clean.

Finally, I just want to let you know that I consulted Symantec and they recommended that I uninstall and reinstall Norton, and I did that on Monday. I haven't had any errors with that program since then, that I can recall.

Thanks!!!

Hi,
1 There's a big difference between deleting stuff and uninstalling it......
If you go to Start >Control Panel>Add & Remove programs, this will list all the programs you have installed....just uninstall any you don't use.....The advantage of using the Uninstall route is that the uninstaller will also remove the Registry entries (usually!) whereas if you just delete stuff it won't and your system will still get Registry calls to start running or locate files that are not there!

2 An external hard drive is a fine thing to have, if you have an old hard drive lying around anywhere, then you can buy a USB case for a pound or two or a dollar or four and you will have a very valuable piece of kit. Check with your chums...folks often throw them out in the rubbish bin and others may have an old computer with a hard drive you can pull out before it gets recycled. As an absolute last resort you could actually buy one.....they are pretty cheap now. I do not recommend keeping your entire and only copy back up on a different partition of the same hard drive as if the drive fails...bang goes your back up (difficult to recover, without a potential great deal of effort) However you do have another partition on your drive with approx 30GB...what do you currently use this for?

3 Using CDs to back up 80GB is not really viable (unless you are really dedicated!) and its even difficult with DVDs...my feeling is to use an external hard drive but "image" your boot drive Just the applications/programs and most important Windows itself,
An Image of Windows and a few key applications will fit on a few CDs or Dvds and in the event of disaster that cannot be overcome by the usual means then your boot partition can be reimaged back to "perfect" in the time it takes to walk the dog!

4 I usually recommend that folks back up archive copy (or image) everything that would be important to them and keep it (backed up data) up to date daily. To determine if you should back it up ask yourself, would I be concerned if I lost it,....if so back it up!

5 You can back up as much or as little as you like...its a bit like driving without a seatbelt, and without airbags in a car that is unserviced and without maintenance.....you may "getaway with it" for years and years...but I can't recommend it as a sensible strategy

6 Its always a good idea to consider uninstalling any troublesome application..(stop it running before you uninstall it!) and after a reboot ( that's important as well) reinstall it. This often solves a multitude of problems.

7 If you are thinking of imaging then make sure your system is "perfect" free from any problems, viruses, bad configurations, or the usual junk that tends to accumulate and slow down performance...when it is running fast and sweet free from any problems then quick! image it!..........if you use your image (validate it as soon as you make it) to put your boot partition back to the state it was when you took the image its no good at all if your image is full of problems.
Regards
paws
ps post back if you need any further info.

This post has been edited by paws: Jul 23 2008, 03:55 PM

I realize I said delete in my post, sorry for the confusion! I actually did uninstall the things I was referring to. I am just not sure whether the things I want to uninstall are necessary or not. There are many updates for Microsoft programs that I would love to uninstall, and just keep the most recent, but I don't dare. I have several Dell programs that came with the machine such as Dell Digital Jukebox Driver, DellConnect, Dell Support, Documentation and Support Launcher, and Search Assist that I would like to uninstall, unless doing so would cause me problems. Do you know if any of them are actually necessary?

I was told by Dell that the 30gb partition was set up by them for use when I need to reset the computer to the original condition it was in when it was shipped to me. I have had to use it once already. The D partition was set up to work with Norton Ghost, which came with the computer as a free trial. It is now used just for system restore.

I have uninstalled a few things today but have only reached 7.33gb free. I think we are going to have to take all of our pictures and documents off of the computer to free up the necessary space. Do you have any suggestions for music? The music needs to be on the computer when the kids sync their Ipods, but the songs take up so much space! My oldest son has 700 songs already.

Thanks for the help!

Hi, Ok I understand, however you seem to have an unusual configuration of your machine............A manufacturers Recovery Partition ( ie for use in extremis, to set back the computer to its "factory" state, of 30 GB is most unusual it would normally be in the range 4 to 8 GB.

However if you are imaging your boot drive using Ghost to that partition then this may explain it (assuming that your D drive is the 30GB.......however I usually recommend that a manufacturers Recovery Partition is left strictly alone with nothing extra on it at all and folks should refrain from attempting to write any data to it... That way it will generally work satisfactorily if called upon.

Do you have a disc image taken when your machine was running fast and sweet and with all systems correctly configured? if so how old is it ?

I am reluctant to make further comments on your set up until I have a clearer idea of your machines configuration......it might be wise for you to have a look here:
www.pcpitstop.com
and either run the "Full Tests" and post back here with the Tech Express link or use the "Overdrive" tests and post a link to the "Summary" back here in this thread. You may be asked to register at PcPitstop and accept an Active X control...both these are generally considered safe from this site. The tests are free, there is no need to buy anything unless you strongly want to!

Can you not shift all the photos and songs to an external drive?..they are very cheap now...or make one...or better still let him with the 700 songs make you one...it would be a good learning project for him!
Regards
paws

This post has been edited by paws: Jul 24 2008, 03:00 AM

Okay, let's see if this works:

http://www.pcpitstop.com/techexpress.asp?id=DEN9TWQ6DMGSGCL9



That should be the link for th test results.

There are actually two extra partitions on my computer that have no explanation. One is 39mb, and the other is 4.73gb. I am not sure which one is the restore to original manufacturer state one, and not sure what the other one is. I thought Norton Ghost used D. I allowed my subscription for Ghost to lapse because it kept telling me that there wasn't enough space to store anything even though I had it set to delete old points when the new ones were created. It annoyed me immensely!!!

I don't have any other images of the drive than what Ghost may have made and are still on the computer, just unreadable without Ghost. I have only backed up the computer to D. I know that I have been basically walking through a battlefield without any armor here, but hopefully I will be able to correct that soon.

Do you have any recommendations for good how to sites for using an external drive with Itunes?

Thanks!

This post has been edited by computerwannabe: Jul 24 2008, 11:53 AM

Hi,
1 Thanks for the link...that all worked well..you have a pretty smart piece of kit, but with low memory....a fast machine like yours really needs 1Gb of RAM ie twice the amount currently fitted to achieve anything like it's true potential. When your machines running well we can revisit this if you want to.

2 The 4.7GB partition is almost certainly your Dell Recovery Partition" designed to be used in extremis to restore your machine back to the exact state it was in when it left the factory. The best advice here is to leave it alone and don't try to write any data to it all...when or rather if you ever come to use it make sure that all the important stuff on your computer is backed up/archived/copied to removable media as everything will be "erased" and it will just be the same as the day it left the factory.

3 the 39Mb is so small you can ignore it.

4 A Ghost images to D: is a fast way of restoring your computer to the exact state it was in when you took the image (you will see that I have bolded this statement so you can compare it with the bolded phrase in 2 above...the difference is important!)

5 The D drive seems to have plenty of space on it ........it is labelled back up and I magine that when Ghost was installed it was used to create this partition........If you no longer have the Ghost programs on your machine then your choices are to obtain it, and install it again, or consider removing them as the ghost images are of little use to you without the program. This would free up a lot of space that might go a long way towards letting XP have the breathing space it needs!

6 Sorry I am the worlds worst person to ask anything about ITunes........ but I still think shifting a lot of your data files incl video, music and photos to an external hard drive would be well worth considering!

7 All the blue items under the Pitstop Test Report (applications loading from start) are sapping your machines resources, all can be disabled using Start>Run and typing MSconfig and hitting the enter button, tabbing to startup will allow you to remove the checkmark/untick the boxes to the left of the items that you don't want to start from boot up...you can always start them manually if you want......CAUTION only disable the blue items labelled as optional nothing else.... you will get a quick box come up, click to say don't show it again and OK your way out

8 A defrag is long overdue but you may have difficulty as Windows needs some elbow room to do this ........

9 You seem to have a large collection of Java on your machine you can uninstall all of these apart from the current version that is Version 6 update 7 it may also be shown in Add & Remove Programs as JSE run time

10 Once your machine has some room to breathe I think you will find it much improved and you can move on to the other fixes if necessary...but don't forget the defrags...do 3 with a reboot in between each
Regards
paws