63 replies to this topic

[Sshadow]

Should I look into updating the bios? I have never done it before and have heard it can mess things up bad if done wrong. btw yes I have looked on the Asus site and when using the auto detect thing it shows several updates for the bios. No worries with Everest

[DaChew]

Memory: 4x1gb DDR pc6400 Buffulo Sel 374mhz

Let's look a little closer at your setup, that everest crashing may indicate something's wrong with your ram or how it's set up?

When i was fine tuning my overclock windows might load but everest would crash my computer right after opening

It was a quick check on stability, another program might not crash for 5-10 minutes

I was pushing my system pretty hard back then(HyperTransport @1450)

http://www.cpuid.com/cpuz.php

if this crashes then I would take a hard look at how I had my bios setup especially with respect to that ram?

I am guessing yours will crash

Attached Files

•  cpuz.htm   10.95KB   25 downloads

Edited by DaChew, 25 March 2008 - 02:57 AM.

[Digerati]

There seems to be more than one apparently unrelated issue here - noting this started out as a high temp question - with no mention of performance issues or unexpected crashes or reboots. That makes this confusing and difficult to troubleshoot. I need to regroup.

Except for the "alleged" high temps, and Everest crashing - are you having any other problems?

Generally I have found that if a computer has several apparently unrelated problems, but not sudden reboots or freezes/crashes, it usually boils down to one of two things:

• Power - For troubleshooting purposes only if nothing else, just so I knew I was working on a solid, stable power foundation, I would swap in a known good PSU with ample power - eliminate your PSU from the equation.
  
  If you were crashing or rebooting, I would say to inspect for leaky capacitors, and test your RAM too. If you are not having problems using your computer otherwise, and all RAM is recognized, then I'm having a hard time accepting this as a RAM problem. Usually, if you bump into a bad section of RAM, something crashes - if not the computer, a program, game, etc.
  
  
• Malware - have you done a complete malware scan? One of the firsts thing I do when troubleshooting a PC is make sure I have a clean platform to work from. That's clean of heat trapping dust and dirt, as well as malware. Here's a link to my canned text on Cleaning Out Malware. Use it if you don't already have a complete security suite and disk cleaning utilities to rid your system of malware and clutter. You can also use it augment or as a guide to build your own security suite, and to help you develop or enhance a "Practicing Safe Computing" self-discipline.

CPUz is a great program (everyone should have a copy!) and I agree if it crashes too, something more than just misread sensors is going on here. But unfortunately, CPUz does not poll sensors, or report temperatures. It does provide some RAM information, and a lot more.

I think I would reboot directly into the BIOS Setup Menu, navigate to PC Heath/Hardware Monitor (or some similar verbiage) - What are the temps reported there? If these are wacho - you have a corrupt BIOS/CMOS. Is the RAM properly identified?

Should I look into updating the bios? I have never done it before and have heard it can mess things up bad if done wrong. btw yes I have looked on the Asus site and when using the auto detect thing it shows several updates for the bios.

Flashing the BIOS is pretty easy, if you follow the instructions by the board maker, and use their latest installer for your OS from their website. However, if the update does go bad for some reason, it has been known to cause permanent damage. For the record - long ago and far away I was flashing a BIOS and we had a complete facility power outage at the worst possible moment - dead motherboard! Since that time, all my systems are on UPSs. Fortunately in most (not all ) cases today, if a flash goes bad you can simply reset the BIOS (with jumper or pulling the battery) and recover with little hassles.

That said, you are wise to be cautious, IMO. Sadly, too many people upgrade just because an upgrade is out there. My general policy about flashing the BIOS (upgrading other hardware drivers too) is, you should never do it! Not unless one or more of the following conditions has been met:

• The upgrade addresses a specific problem you are having (check the readme or history)
• The upgrade corrects a security vulnerability
• Existing install is corrupt/causing problems

This brings up a point - and one I thought I already mentioned - - since most folks that use alternative cooling solutions overclock, don't! At least not until this is resolved. So, with that in mind, I would try resetting the BIOS now, before attempting an upgrade. This would reset all your voltages, as well as clear any possible "soft" corruption elsewhere in CMOS. I say "soft" in the hopes it is not a hardware (or in this case, firmware) failure.

Check your motherboard manual for using the reset jumper, or, to reset by pulling the battery:

• Shutdown Windows, power off the computer, AND UNPLUG the power supply from the wall
• Touch bare metal of the case to discharge any static
• Pry out battery - a thumbnail works great if you can get in there, otherwise, with EXTREME care to avoid a slip and scratching the motherboard circuit traces, pry out the battery with a small screwdriver, or the like.
• Wait 1 minute - or better yet, since it is most likely a CR2032 and cost $2 at just about any battery/watch/camera counter, go get a new battery. Or better still, get it at Radio Shack - take your old battery with you and they will properly recycle it (they take old UPS batteries too! ) - thanks Tandy!
  
  Do not touch batteries with bare fingers (except to remove from motherboard). Skin oils and other containments promote corrosion and collect dust.
  
  
• With a clean cloth (I use a sock), ensure battery is clean, and insert the new battery, plus side up.

After the reset, the very first time you boot, go directly into the BIOS Setup Menu. During the boot process RAM count, see if it counts through all the installed RAM. Once in the menu, set date and time, then check to ensure all your drives were properly identified. Leave everything else at the defaults, then "Save and Exit". It should boot normally.

You can test your RAM using one of the following programs. Both require you to create and boot to a bootable floppy disk or CD to run the diagnostics. Using the floppy method is generally easier and yet another reason I still include floppy drives in all my new PC builds. However, the CD method is just as effective at detecting RAM problems. Allow the diagnostics to run for several passes or even overnight. You should have no reported errors.

Windows Memory Diagnostic - see the easy to follow instructions under Quick Start Information.
or
MemTest86+ (for more advanced users) - an excellent how-to guide is available here.

[DaChew]

http://www.newegg.co...N82E16820150048

what his bios is doing with this memory is an issue?

374mhz

I would investigate it further, looks like it's running overclocked!

Edited by DaChew, 25 March 2008 - 10:25 AM.

[Digerati]

http://www.newegg.co...N82E16820150048

what his bios is doing with this memory is an issue?

374mhz

I would investigate it further, looks like it's running overclocked!

Not sure the point of your NewEgg link, DaChew. According to ASUS, the M2N-SLI supports PC6400. sshadow reports he has PC6400, so that should not be a problem. Your link is for slower RAM - did I miss something?

But the 374 is odd. 374 X 2 = 748.

748?

2 X 400 = 800
2 X 333 = 667

Something is either too fast, too slow - or misread.

[Sshadow]

I actually have had CPUz for awhile now and have noticed that memory speed a while now. All my bios setting are at default with the exceptiong of turning on the SMART thing for the hard drives so there should not be any overclocking at all. I will look into some of the bios things you posted earlier in just a bit when I have a bit more time. Meanwhile here is the CPUz report. BTW the 2 Melco Chips are the Buffulo Select brand I have listed. They came with the system. The other 2 are Kingston chips(brand new) I added after getting the system.

Attached Files

•  cpuz.htm   11.05KB   34 downloads

Edited by Sshadow, 25 March 2008 - 11:49 AM.

[DaChew]

the auto settings don't always work right sometimes it's necessary to set the spd timings manually in bios especially with mismatched sets and dual channel

Attached Thumbnails

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[Digerati]

Yeah, something is wrong. In your CPU report is says your Processor's Stock Frequency is 5000MHz. I don't think so.

So either your system is reporting the wrong data, or CPUz is not properly recognizing it. Edit add: Nevermind, I forgot this was an AMD.

Hmmm, while checking the site to see if you (and me too) had the latest CPUz, I found something new (Dec 07 it seems) from those folks: HWMonitor - check it out.

Edited by Digerati, 25 March 2008 - 12:50 PM.

[Sshadow]

Ok I can't tell which sensors to believe? See what you think.

Attached Files

•  HWMonitor.txt   20.89KB   395 downloads

[DaChew]

I have seen the same mess come out of hwmonitor for the last month or so? It's still a work in progress, one of mine(temp) readings is way below ambient/room temp. And my motherboard has been out for 3 years, asus and has a mature bios. to capture a screen shot press alt/prnt scrn, paste into paint, save as x.png and attach

[Digerati]

This is what I get on this machine:

[Sshadow]

oops sorry didn't notice what happend there. That is not actually what it looks like when I open the text file locally for some reason it got jumbled on upload.

Attached Thumbnails

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[Sshadow]

Can anyone tell me which one of those sensors is accurate for my Processor temp.?

[DaChew]

Is that an oem board, I am not finding that model at the asus site, there's one with that bios number but wrong date on it?

[Sshadow]

I don't think it's an OEM its is an M2N-SLI