Recently New XP Dell Optiplex 745 becomes unresponsive

I purchased a Dell Optiplex 745 a couple of months ago for someone here at
our offices. For the last several weeks, this machine has become almost
unusable. The person that uses it is one of the more knowledgeable users we
have, she is very cautious and doesn't download crap off the net.

When she first turns it on, it runs great, but in the course of just an hour
or two, the think becomes so slow, I can't see how she uses it. Right-click
on an icon on the desktop and it will take over 30 seconds for the menu to
pop up.

She has current anti-virus software installed and no extra software/apps
that aren't required. When it grinds to a halt, task manager doesn't really
identify the problem, like one process hogging all of the cpu.

What can I do to locate the cause of this problem. If I could at least
identify a pattern or something to give me SOME idea of a general area to
look in, but there is nothing telling so far. If I can at least determine
what is causing the problem, then I could fix it.

There is another machine in the office, same model, purchased at the same
time, it runs fine.

Any suggestions besides fdisk and start from scratch?

Make sure the unit is not overheating. I purchased 20 of these and 5 of the
units had the same issue and the fan was not cooling enough. Dell had to
replace the fan. Some of the units the fan just did not work period.

"dean.carrefour" wrote:

> I purchased a Dell Optiplex 745 a couple of months ago for someone here at
> our offices. For the last several weeks, this machine has become almost
> unusable. The person that uses it is one of the more knowledgeable users we
> have, she is very cautious and doesn't download crap off the net.
>
> When she first turns it on, it runs great, but in the course of just an hour
> or two, the think becomes so slow, I can't see how she uses it. Right-click
> on an icon on the desktop and it will take over 30 seconds for the menu to
> pop up.
>
> She has current anti-virus software installed and no extra software/apps
> that aren't required. When it grinds to a halt, task manager doesn't really
> identify the problem, like one process hogging all of the cpu.
>
> What can I do to locate the cause of this problem. If I could at least
> identify a pattern or something to give me SOME idea of a general area to
> look in, but there is nothing telling so far. If I can at least determine
> what is causing the problem, then I could fix it.
>
> There is another machine in the office, same model, purchased at the same
> time, it runs fine.
>
> Any suggestions besides fdisk and start from scratch?

Power supply fan or cpu fan? I've never cracked the case on one of these
yet, is there any other fan I should check?

Thanks, I'll take a look at it.


"TIm" wrote:

> Make sure the unit is not overheating. I purchased 20 of these and 5 of the
> units had the same issue and the fan was not cooling enough. Dell had to
> replace the fan. Some of the units the fan just did not work period.
>
> "dean.carrefour" wrote:
>
> > I purchased a Dell Optiplex 745 a couple of months ago for someone here at
> > our offices. For the last several weeks, this machine has become almost
> > unusable. The person that uses it is one of the more knowledgeable users we
> > have, she is very cautious and doesn't download crap off the net.
> >
> > When she first turns it on, it runs great, but in the course of just an hour
> > or two, the think becomes so slow, I can't see how she uses it. Right-click
> > on an icon on the desktop and it will take over 30 seconds for the menu to
> > pop up.
> >
> > She has current anti-virus software installed and no extra software/apps
> > that aren't required. When it grinds to a halt, task manager doesn't really
> > identify the problem, like one process hogging all of the cpu.
> >
> > What can I do to locate the cause of this problem. If I could at least
> > identify a pattern or something to give me SOME idea of a general area to
> > look in, but there is nothing telling so far. If I can at least determine
> > what is causing the problem, then I could fix it.
> >
> > There is another machine in the office, same model, purchased at the same
> > time, it runs fine.
> >
> > Any suggestions besides fdisk and start from scratch?

dean.carrefour wrote:
> I purchased a Dell Optiplex 745 a couple of months ago for someone here at
> our offices. For the last several weeks, this machine has become almost
> unusable. The person that uses it is one of the more knowledgeable users we
> have, she is very cautious and doesn't download crap off the net.
>
> When she first turns it on, it runs great, but in the course of just an hour
> or two, the think becomes so slow, I can't see how she uses it. Right-click
> on an icon on the desktop and it will take over 30 seconds for the menu to
> pop up.
>
> She has current anti-virus software installed and no extra software/apps
> that aren't required. When it grinds to a halt, task manager doesn't really
> identify the problem, like one process hogging all of the cpu.
>
> What can I do to locate the cause of this problem. If I could at least
> identify a pattern or something to give me SOME idea of a general area to
> look in, but there is nothing telling so far. If I can at least determine
> what is causing the problem, then I could fix it.
>
> There is another machine in the office, same model, purchased at the same
> time, it runs fine.
>
> Any suggestions besides fdisk and start from scratch?

We've had to return about 40% of our GX745 due to capacitors blowing
leaving some machines unable to boot whereas others would become
unresponsive, reboot or shut-down after an hour or so. Dell have
acknowledged that there is (was) a bad batch of motherboards and have
extended our warranties on this model.

If you're comfortable opening the PC case, take a look at the
motherboard and check the capacitors around it. They should all have
flat tops but if they have a 'domed' top then they have blown and you
will need a new motherboard.

We also had problems with some -- but not limited to GX745 overheating
so check that all of the fans are working.

On Thu, 28 Jun 2007 12:10:02 -0700, dean.carrefour <deancarrefour@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote:

>I purchased a Dell Optiplex 745 a couple of months ago for someone here at
>our offices. For the last several weeks, this machine has become almost
>unusable. The person that uses it is one of the more knowledgeable users we
>have, she is very cautious and doesn't download crap off the net.
>
>When she first turns it on, it runs great, but in the course of just an hour
>or two, the think becomes so slow, I can't see how she uses it. Right-click
>on an icon on the desktop and it will take over 30 seconds for the menu to
>pop up.
>
>She has current anti-virus software installed and no extra software/apps
>that aren't required. When it grinds to a halt, task manager doesn't really
>identify the problem, like one process hogging all of the cpu.
>
>What can I do to locate the cause of this problem. If I could at least
>identify a pattern or something to give me SOME idea of a general area to
>look in, but there is nothing telling so far. If I can at least determine
>what is causing the problem, then I could fix it.
>
>There is another machine in the office, same model, purchased at the same
>time, it runs fine.
>
>Any suggestions besides fdisk and start from scratch?

Sounds like a hardware problem, overheating or the like. I suggest that you log a fault call with
Dell & get them to fix it for you.
--

Cheers

Nigel Barker
Live from the sunny Cote d'Azur
MCE MVP