Vista freezes Randomly

[Kokuson]

I have a problem with my PC (vista). It just freezes randomly while I am working on it. It also freezes during the Antivirus scanning (avast), windows defender scanning and windows update. I cannot do anything except turn it of manually (ON/OFF). It also freezes when I insert a usb drive, and recently is making strange sounds (beebs,toot) as some creatures are living inside it. (It also freezes in safe mood). Moreover, a blue screen appeared morethan once and I don't know if the problem is due to a virus or an error in the system.

I will be thankful for any help.

It certainly doesn't sound very healthy. Trimming down the number of
applications you're running may help, as may the information on those 'blue
screens'; look for driver names like somethingorother.sys, and make a note
of the error messages, which can help with troubleshooting. "Event Viewer"
is also usually a big help in that respect - look for 'critical errors',
'bugcheck' events etc.

And may we know the error message that is generated when system freezes. Event
Viewer is where you will see it.

How much RAM do you have and what version of Vista. Sounds like either a malware
issue or a hardware issue but we need the error.

Also, did you buy this PC with Vista already loaded, or did you upgrade from
a previous version?

Random freeze-ups are generally hardware problems, so unless you are skilled
at hardware troubleshooting you may want to enlist the assistance of someone
who is. Without knowing what the blue screen error messages were it's
difficult to comment intelligently on what they may or may not be.

If I were you I'd back-up your important files to an outside source,
(CD/DVD/External Drive), and start searching for a HDD.

[Kokuson]

My RAM is 2GB and the vista was already loaded when I bought it. I use home premium 32-bit, Proccessor Intel Core (TM)2 Duo CPU T5550 @ 1.83GHz (Toshiba).

I want to get the code by using the event viewer but the even viewer is a word document, so may you help me about the event viewer

the code "Technical information"

0x000000F4 (0x00000003, 0x8c91F208, 0X8C91F354,0X82248400).

Yes I am facing difficulty to use the pc as it is very slow (the screen has not frozen since last post).

It is not freezing anymore but it is extremely slower than before. I do not think it is a problem in the ram as the pc used to work fine (PC is still not 1 year old). A message appears asking me to backup my files and replace my hard desk. Is not there any other solution istead of replacing the harddesk ?

As for the blue screen It appearedm ore than once since the problem started.

I have done a format and the problem still presists. I shall replace the hard drive.

Is it replacing or maintenance?
Should I go to any shop? Should I replace it with a hard drive which has the same characetristics? After replacing the old one with the new when do I have the right to ask for the old one?

I just wanted to echo Peter's concern about your computer's RAM. Most
often, crashes and freezes are simply caused by bad RAM. Microsoft has a
free utility to test memory, which you can access in Vista by entering Run
(Windows Key + R) and typing in %SystemRoot%\system32\MdSched.exe

Also, you can download the Windows Memory diagnostic and burn it to disc.
Though you may have to do it from another computer if yours isn't stable at
the moment. Here are the links:

http://oca.microsoft.com/en/windiag.asp
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/m...spotlight.aspx

From what you posted for the error code, I have the MS KB that goes with this error
number and all matching parameters.
Are you sure it is Random freezes. I can reproduce this error exactly with the exact
same parameters as it is described in the KB article below

http://support.microsoft.com/default...b;en-us;330100

The info you give makes me suspect the RAM or hard drive, as
other have said. Test the RAM first. If it is ok then it might be
time to look for a new hard drive and on how you will migrate
all your stuff from the current drive to the new.

I suggested you do this 3 days ago. Do it now before your drive totally
dies!

No - if you are getting this warning it means you should do exactly what it
says as the hard drive (or hard disk if you prefer that name, but certainly
not hard desk) is getting ready to fail.

We have no clue who you're replying to!

Judging by your question I'd suggest you take it to a computer repair shop,
not Best Buys or any other large store where the employees make minimum
wage. If you need more storage, tell the tech and he can advise you.

1. Googling 'Vista random freezes' will produce Microsoft & related
technical newsgroup discussions going back several years & posted by
countless frustrated users employing a wide range of PC makes and models.

2. Judging from reading/analyzing the posted individual thread discussions -
none indicate that any permanent solution was found - regardless of the
particular circumstances or issues described.

3. Many of the suggestions offered by MVPs or otherwise trained/experienced
techs conclude or assume, without adequate justification, that the problem
is related primarily to hardware, malware, or virus infection origin.

4. Some suggestions offer either: (A) lengthy, detailed, troubleshooting
instructions (B) restoring from Vista backup (C) reinstalling Vista - but
it's extremely doubtful from the evidence that any or all of these measures
will lead to restoring a credible record of Vista performance and
reliability for any one user.

As just one among the countless frustrated Vista users - who has experienced
these random Vista freezes for almost a year now, & who has been a Windows
OS user for almost 20 years, I have drawn my own conclusions & I leave
others to draw theirs.

I can say only with certainty, based upon my experience with Vista
Ultimate - that it has proven 100% reliable to be able, about 85 to 90% of
the time, to reboot normally without freezing, after restarting from Safe
Mode - and then to function A-OK indefinitely - until the next random
freeze - either a few minutes or a few hours later.

Therefore - if your experience is similar - please do not rush to replace
your PC components without first doing some basic diagnostic work (like
removing a component &/or switching it to a different bus) - & please do not
raise your hopes if you decide to replace some hardware - because the odds
are that hardware was never your singlemost problem - unless you want to
consider a Vista/hardware compatibility issue? & really, should you even
think of going there?

Thanks for your attention & my fervent best wishes.

> Is it replacing or maintenance?
> Should I go to any shop? Should I replace it with a hard drive which
> has the same characetristics? After replacing the old one with the new
> when do I have the right to ask for the old one?

If The PC is not a year old, is it still under warranty? If it is, you
should
make use of that warranty. They might charge you if you request a larger
drive, maybe. When a drive fails under warranty, it is usually customary
for it to be sent back to the manufacturer, so they might not be able to
give you the old drive. Lots depends on the warranty's terms.

Of course, if you do not make use of the warranty and take it to a
shop then you can ask for any size drive, they'll charge you and they
should give you the old drive back if you request it. tSaga

Interesting remarks.

When Windows freezes like this, the "culprit" is usually an incompatibility
with existing hardware.

The only way to be sure is to install Win XP and test for a few days to
see if the problem persists. Note: If this solves the problem, it does not
mean that Vista is at fault, as it could still be a compatibility problem
with the hardware. Of course, to do this test you need to have install
discs for Win XP. Note that the Windows NT family has always been
somewhat finecky about the hardware it runs on. All it needs is for the
timing to be a tad off somewhere in the hardware for it to freeze, so
finding this problem might be hard or near next to impossible.

You could also try with Linux, to test the PC for a few days, but now
this involves a different OS and depends on the level of confidence
that the user has in doing this. The OP asked a few questions about
shops and hard drives which made me think that /he might not feel
too comfortable moving stuff inside his PC, so /he might not jump
in to follow your prudent recommendation.