SL locks mys system up.

I have the same problem too.
OS: Windows Vista Home Premium
PC: Gateway GT5092Bwith a Quad Core CPU Q6600 @ 2.40GHz (4 CPUs), ~2.4GHz
Memory: 3322 avail (4gig fitted)
My graphics card is an Nvidia 8800 GTS with 320mb onboard.
It's more than capable of coping with a lot of things, but not SL from time to time, as my pc freezes up too on occasions.
It turns out that the graphics card overheats, due to the graphics it has to process and then 'locks up' causing the pc to freeze. I bet they didn't test this baby in SL!
It seems that Nvdia are aware of this problem and it would appear that they are working on the problem as well, at least I hope they are, but as to how they can resolve this problem I've no idea, as I can't see how driver updates can resolve what is inherently a physical problem, unless the drivers can be configured to assist in cooling down the card.. or am I way off base on this?
Running with extra fans MAY work, in as much as it helps in cooling the card down. I currently have the side off my pc to allow better air flow, it's marginally better but I get more crud inside though so I don't like to do this too much. I use lower graphics in some sims... if they're busy etc.
Windows didn't have any driver updates for my card, nor did Nvidia either, when I first bought mine about 6 weeks ago. Since then I've had two driver updates, one each from M/soft and Nvidia but I still get frozen out at times.
SL must have a nice longlist of Crash Reports from my ISP now. It was a regular occurrence at one time, but it happens less frequently now. Maybe once or twice per visit, whereas before it was about four or five times a visit, so maybe the drivers have resolved some issues.... partly anyway.
As others have said, go to the Nvidia website, and check out any reports on the Forum there and also see if they have any updates you may want/need as well.

Pretty close to what my system is.......difference is mine is a Lonovo desktop and my video card is a nVidia 8600gt with 256. I don't have any of the the problems discribed in this thread. I don't know if I'm getting confused or not. The OP is complaining of a complete computer lock up. I take from his discription, that that means his computer just stops responding to any input device. It might go to a black screen.....I don't know. But there is absolutely nothing to be done except turning the computer off by manually shutting the power off or unplugging it from the electrical source. When someone says their computer "freezes" it means something else to me.......like everything on the monitor just stops. But you still have control of your computer. You can alt control delete and shut down the program, for instance. Those are crashes. The end result is the same.........the game is unplayable. But the severity of the problem is vastly different. All sorts of things can cause crashes of software, but for the most, part your pc and/or operating system are not going to be damaged or corrupted. Lock ups often do cause damage to the operating system........they also often indicate a potential hardware problem (something physically wrong causing the problem) which can do physical damege.

I still maintain that if your system is locking up (as I defined it) you should take notice before damage occurs....but understand that even one lock up could corrupt your operating system to the point of having to reinstall it. Of course it's possible something software related so searching for updated drivers (especially video) is a good first step. But, due to the potential for more expensive damage I would not spend too many days playing with software to fix the problem if it continues to happen. If something physical in your case is happening and not taken care of promptly your system is at riske........both expensive hardware failure and data loss. No one here (even our resident "expert" can analyze the problem enough to tell you exactly what to do to fix your computer. My advice is to do the obvious to remedy the problem with software replacement, cleaning the case, checking for proper fan operation, etc. If that does not fix it then you have a choice......attempt to find and replace the hardware device that is at fault (most likely by removing and replacing suspected devices......it could be expensive AND unsucessful) or to take it the computer to a compenent computer repair shop.

I don't know about anyone else here but I have nearly !,000 USD invested in this computer (without the monitor) plus $130 in my video card. I would not wait for something to fry and posibly taking out other devices in the process before I did something. A couple hundred bucks spent in a reputable repair shop sure beats buying comparable computer.

That's my advice. The OP has been having this problem for over two weeks now. I'm really afraid he is in for some expensive repairs by now.......unless he's fixed it (I haven't heard from him lately).

Technically, yes, nVidia could fix your issue with a driver or video card BIOS update. The actual fix would be to underclock the GPU and video RAM, which would therefore produce less heat.

In reality, nVidia will not fix your problem as it is simply a case of inadequate cooling. It could be a weak or malfunctioning fan on the video card, it could be dust buildup, it could be lack of airflow in the case, it could be the internal layout of the PC is obstructing airflow to the video card. There are a whole bunch of possibilities.

Possible fixes include an aftermarket video card heatsink and fan, extra (or higher airflow) chassis fans, organizing cabling in a different way, ensuring the PCI/PCI-e slot next to the video card is open, cleaning, etc, can all help. You may even wish to take the drastic step of underclocking the GPU and video RAM yourself, but it will lead to reduced performance.

Always install the nVidia driver if possible. Use the Microsoft driver as a last resort (and nVidia supports your GPU, so you don't need to use any last resorts).


Can't hurt to do this, but it's highly unlikely that nVidia will do anything to solve the issue (as there are many others using 8800's without overheating issues). It's up to you.

Alright, first off, to the two who are arguing (or three, I gave up reading their posts), stop hijacking my topic with your argument.

Now then...
Recently it seems that my computer has been giving me more issues outside of SL. I'm sure part of it was the stress of trying to stream live video from a video-in through my PC to the net. But also, tonight, I decided to watch a bunch of YouTube videos. Long ones. Every few videos, my computer locked up. Is this a result of bad memory, or would something else (maybe something in Firefox 3) be the cause?

@Osgeld, I have one 1Gig stick. I'll try the link you gave me in a little while.
Actually, nevermind on that. Someone recommended it to me before, but it seems to require that I write it to a disk, and I have nothing to write it to.

@Anya, somebody did suggest prime95 and I already tried it. I experienced no problems, and I had it testing for a few hours. I have the best graphics card my power supply can handle. If it's an issue with my power supply, I'm skrewed over. I can't upgrade it on this PC, as my motherboard is too outdated or something like that. I'd have to get a new PC. But I have my doubts it's the power supply, as my previous video card (which had the same problems) I assume didn't require as much power. Also, when I run SL, I set my video memory usage in SL to half what my card provides (card is 256MB, I set to 128MB). It causes issues either way, but I wonder if running it at lower memory means it doesn't work itself as hard. Also, is there any way to check how hot my PC is running? And how hot would be too hot?

@Rorrim, like I said, new card, same problems. Though, this one has a fan built onto it. Dunno if yours does. But I assume the fan is capable of doing its job.

@Peggy, when my computer locks up, only my mouse, my keyboard, and the Start menu are responsive, and the display is still working. Ctrl Alt Del doesn't work. Or at least, it takes forever to come up. I once held it down longer in hopes it'd hurry it up. Wound up getting about 50 or so of them popping up over the course of several minutes. None of them really helped, I don't think. And this has been going on for a couple months, at least. Specifically, first got SL at the end of last December with older video card and memory, locked up often. A month or two later, I figured out that I needed better memory, upgraded it, seemed to fix the problem for a while. But SL (not my computer) still crashed a lot, and it seemed like the crashes were getting worse as time wore on. Ordered a new video card. Two days before I got the video card, this lockup issue started. The day after, oddly enough, I had absolutely no problems at all. (Figured my computer knew it was about to be fixed so decided to stop annoying me. ) Then I got the video card, lock-ups some more, but a little less than before. Tolerated it at first, but as time wore on, my patience wore off, and I started searching for answers. It took a while before I decided to come here to hopefully find answers.

Actually, the more I look at it, the more I'm under the impression my computer is starting to die. Might soon be time to get myself a Mac...

Draygone. I must apologize for my arguement with another poster here...it's a long story but I'll refrain from now on.

Anyway, I hate to be one with bad news. But from all you've discribed and further explained it does, in fact, look like your computer is just had it. As I see from your discription of the problem now showing up with other programs it just points to something dying on you. The replacement of the graphics card after it first showed up is a logical step. But, the problem continuing would point to something else.......could be your memory. But you've run tests that should have shown some indication that that was a problem and apparently it is not. The CPU is a very big target in my mind right now. But again those tests would show some indication in that direction.....they did not.

All tests have tolerances. It could be that one or more devices are within the tolerances but the combination of two or more that are marginal might be causing your issues. I still think heating is a very likely source.......but without spending more time and money with replacing and/or adding fans without any guarantee that it is the problem I can't say for sure it is.

Streaming a video from YouTube should not put any more stress on your system than simply playing a video game from a CD on your computer. I'm just afraid your problem is what you say.......your computer has died on you. Or it will very soon.

Wish I could come up with the magic fix for you..........you've been so patient and persistant.

Good luck.

Okay, so the computer is semi-responsive, just extremely slow?

When this happens next time, please take a look at your hard disk access light (it should be somewhere near the computers power light). What you describe (assuming the computer is just very slow in responding) appears to be a low memory condition. It sounds like your computer is very busy paging to disk, which the hard disk access light will confirm or deny. The light is on when the disk is being accessed, and off when it is not. You may also hear a grinding or chugging noise coming from the computer (but fans can make similar noises at times, so that's not reliable unless you already know what your disk(s) sound like).

There is another possibility, which is overheating. Many processors (probably not the video card, as you had the issue with a previous card) will, upon reaching a certain thermal threshold, begin to throttle themselves, which has a (sometimes severe) impact on performance. This possibility is less likely than what I mentioned above, but it's worth mentioning.

Also, for reference purposes, many people think that holding keys down or clicking something constantly will make something happen faster. It has the complete opposite response. Next time you have to bring up Task Manager, press Ctrl + Alt + Del once, and wait, several minutes if you need to, before trying again.

It is nothing to do with my pc at all. My brother works in the business. He has checked my pc out, which by the way is brand new, also it is functioning correctly. Everything is up to date, drivers etc. also the BIOS settings and all other such items are all 100% ok.
IT IS JUST IN SL THAT I GET THIS PROBLEM. NOWHERE ELSE AT ALL.
My brother has run all sorts of checks/tests and the graphics card is functioning properly. It only 'freezes' in SL and nowhere else.
The only way to recover from this is to turn the pc off and reboot then do a safe restore etc.Occasionally the system catches it and automatically sends a report to SL (I have it set that way ingame to do so) to report a 'crash'. There is nothing at all wrong with airflow either. nothing obstructing the card or fan etc. The layout is uncluttered and clear. The fan on the card works ok. Do you honestly think I'd spend over £200 on a card and use a 'duff' one? If it was faulty I'd be back like a shot to theshop where I bought it!
As I said everything works fine until I run it in SL!
Before I got this graphics card I never ever had problems like this. I'd have to run at lower resolutions because the graphics were 'built in' as it were. If you want to check out my pc fine... it's a Gateway GT5092B. I added more ram... taking it up to 4gig and added this graphics card, nothing else at all. Also I added a new power supply as well, an EZcool 'super silent' PSU (600watt) All the drivers, as I said are up to date and current. There is nothing else wrong, nothing clogging up the fan... no fluff/dust etc. The pc is totally clean.. I keep it that way like everything else in my house... CLEAN! The connections are all correctly seated/fitted etc. As I said my brother works in the computer industry and does this as a job. My own personal engineer as it were. This problem came to light on the NVidia forum it would seem, as others suffer from the same problem with this card as well. (NVidia GeForce 8800GTS with 320mb ram... it has a two year warranty on it too!) I spent good money on it, and it works fine, 100% OK with any other application/game etc and as I never had any problems with NVidia before I got this card I bought it, but now I am wondering.
My lappy, an old one by todays standards, bought in 2003 in the USA, a Gateway 450rog works fine! I had it built to order at the time as well with a larger hard drive, more memory, better graphics, and full wi-fi installed as well. Running on XP Pro and not a problem anywhere at all so I use this if/when I have to go in to SL, if/when my graphics 'freeze' on my pc.
As I said the problem only ever occurs when I use SL
So please don't tell me it is my pc, the layout, cables etc. dirt/fluff build up or anything else like that. I know you're only offering advice, and I appreciate it, but as I keep saying there is nothing wrong with my pc at all, with the exception of this little problem when I go into SL!
So any other ideas... anyone?

ps would it help at all if I posted a DXdiag report for any help, assuming that you have either have the will, or desire, to wade through all the 'techno-babble' that it generates?

Only idea I have is to try a different viewer. You've illiminated all possibilities of anything else.

Funny, though that your laptop works fine and a whole lot of other peoples' computers work fine and you are having a problem with a computer that is "100% ok". Maybe your brother can fix it for you if the viewer switch doesn't work.

What do you mean by viewer?

Participants in this thread are on warning about this behavior, which is not appropriate for the forums.

Kindly do not attack one another, call each other out by name, or use this forum for your personal fights.

This thread will be locked if such behavior continues.

-- Katt Linden

Thanks Katt, although it would be nice to know if moderators can/could send 'personal messages to the people concerned. I am still hunting around for help regarding my problem. No luck yet. I don't see the point of resorting to 'verbal fisticuffs' on here. What's the point? You can't gain from it.

@ Peggy
Persistance, I have. But patience... there are times that when I hit this brick wall, I want to explode.

@ Robot
I'll have to try the waiting game, I guess. But my hard drive is not active when I'm hit.

How do I tell if I'm overheating?

Different viewer... I suppose that's the only option I haven't tried yet, aside from spending money on memory again. Don't really like the idea, myself. Too much delving into SL's personal files.

Oh yes, and I forgot if I mentioned this, but lately Windows has refused to install certain security updates. And just recently, someone suggested I try going back to SP2, so I reinstalled XP. It didn't work, and it fails to reinstall SP3. It doesn't tell me anything about registered product or whatever. It downloads it, attempts to install it, but then tells me that it wasn't installed.

Well, test that patience some more. With what you just said I believe it's holding a phone to your ear for an hour or so waiting for Microsoft Tech support to answer. Not pleasant......been there, done that. But, at least if you are in the US it's a toll free call.

And now my computer's search function doesn't work. -_-

Someone recommended to me one of those alternate viewers (Cool Viewer). I downloaded it, installed it over regular SL. Tried loading SL up, it wouldn't. I figure maybe I needed to start from a fresh install. So I uninstall it, and prepeare to search for the files that aren't included in the un-installation (like the cache and crash logs). All that happens is my computer lags for 15 seconds or so, then it's running fine but with no search popping up. Whether this is a result of Cool Viewer or not, I dunno. Or it could be a virus that's infected my computer and my virus scanner didn't pick it up. Or it could be that my computer or maybe my hard drive is slowly kamikazing itself. Or it could be just a glitch caused by who knows what. Worst-case scenario, I need a new PC. Or maybe a Mac.

Okay, I had my Task Manager open on the side. When I lcoked up, I was able to shift it around and go between its tabs. Trying to "End Task" SL didn't do anything. "End Process" was able to close the window, but the program still showed to be "running". However, no real activity was shown. My CPU Usage was sitting somewhere in the 70-80% range with no fluctuations, and everything in the Performance tab was at a standstill.

Somebody suggested to me that bad sectors in my hard drive might be causing issues. I noticed in previous scans that there was some amount of bad sectors. However, I'm not sure I want to spend money on a new hard drive if it's not guarenteed to solve my problems. Though, it is another thing I've wondered, considering my inability to install security updates as of late. Not to mention how many lock-ups I've had to endure since getting SL. What do you guys think?

Though, it could also be that 1.5Ghz processing power isn't enough, despite what SL's requirements page suggests. I've been having lockup issues when attempting to do live video streams to the net. I assume that's processor power. Well, there's also my network adaptor, which may also be on the fritz, on account I've sometimes been losing connection to the net, remedied by a simple reboot. Though I don't recall if that's been happening outside SL.

You can remove and replace different components that are suspect and eventually you probably will find the problem and "fix" it..........that is a rather expensive and time consuming process. Another, less time consuming process (though could be just as expensive) and that is take it to a reputable computer repair shop. Both these procedures would probably "fix" your problem.............but, when it all comes down, you still have a computer that has a history of failing parts. In my experience, that tends to continue until you finally realize it's time to get a new computer.

I couldn't tell you if your hard drive is the total of your problems..........but it certainly could be. Replacing the hard drive means reinstalling everything from scratch. That is a lot of work and time...........but you are into that like me, then that's really not a big deal. But, having to start over and knowing that you may not fix it is not something I would do. What would I do? Get a new computer.

imo it sounds like it could be a power supply about to keel over mixed with thrashed software, and possible bad sectors

personally if it were me, id ... start with a clean install of windows

but heres some things to try

HARD DISK

goto start -> run, type in CMD, this will open a command console
in that type in chkdsk /R and hit enter, it should give you some error message, asking if you want to run it on next boot, tell it Y

restart the pc, and then goto work or bed because it will take for friggin ever

the /R flag will do the normal checkdisk thing (check and repair the file system) + scan for bad sectors, if it finds one it will attempt to recover whatevers on there and mark it bad so that windows will not use it again

INSIDE THE PC

open that puppy, take it out side with a can (or 2) of compressed air, blow every nook and cranny out, watch the fans when you hit them, they should spin freely and fast making a whisle-siren sound (dont overdo it tho old fans can start to rattle when you whoosh them too much) and a paint brush can be helpful with the fans, just keep it away form the electronics of the computer, any sluggish or frozen ones will need replacing (you just have a heater attached to whatever its supota cool)

while your in there, there should be a big label on the power supply, copy down the relevent info (make model wattages, amperages ect)

also look at the components, see if theres any scorch / burn marks, look at the capacitors (the ones were concerned with look like little cans with plastic labels on them) they should be a cylinder, if they are poofy on the sides or top make a note of it (mines got quite a few around the mainboards power regulator, and runs fine ... my buddies parents computer had one that blew the metal casing clean off and still managed to work for about a week, then the "goop" dried up which killed the circut)

look for corrosion / bugs too (a dead bug tween 2 points makes a erratic semi conductor)

CHECKING VOLTAGES

depending on the make of the computer, you could do this with windows software, in the bios (or worst case a volt meter) we will need more details about your system to point you in the right direction

for your network, try unpluging the cable, getting a cotton swab soaked with rubbing alcohol and clean out the jack and the plug, look for corrosion on the jack and the network cable, inspect the cable for any kinks, cuts or hard twist's .....

1.5 ghz while not a speed deamon these days should be able to run sl (i use a 1.9 ghz chip with quite decent performance considering)

Using the new SL Viewer (Version Number: 1.20.15.92456)

So far it appears to work for me.. not had a freeze/graphics lock up at all last night. I even ran my card on SL's 'Ultra' setting... oh my.......... I breezed through SL! Alright I was on my Island some of the time, only a few people there but I jumped to a few places that I normally go to, some of them casue me problems (I froze up previously) and this time nothing!!
I stayed in them for around 15-20 mins, previously I'd have frozen by then! I'll try it out again later on after I am back from work.
Lets hope this works ok and things have been sorted.

Below is the list of SL Requirements to run SL now.


Your computer must meet these REQUIREMENTS, or you may not be able to successfully participate in Second Life.

Internet Connection*: Cable or DSL Cable or DSL

Operating System: 2000, XP, or Vista XP or Vista

Computer Processor: 800 MHz Pentium III or Athlon, or better 1.5 GHz (XP), 2-GHz (Vista) 32-bit (x86) or better

Computer Memory: 512 MB or more 1 GB or more

Screen Resolution: 1024x768 pixels 1024x768 pixels or higher

Graphics Card for XP/2000**: NVIDIA GeForce 2, GeForce 4 MX or better
OR ATI Radeon 8500, 9250 or better
OR Intel 945 chipset
NVIDIA Graphics cards
6000 Series:
6600, 6700, 6800
7000 Series:
7600, 7800, 7900
8000 Series:
8500, 8600, 8800
GeForce Go Series:
7600, 7800, 7900
ATI Graphics Cards

X800, X900, X1600, X1700, X1800, X1900
x2600, x2900
x3650, x3850


Graphics Card for Vista (requires latest drivers)**: NVIDIA GeForce 6600 or better
OR ATI Radeon 9500 or better
OR Intel 945 chipset
NVIDIA Graphics cards
7000 Series:
7600, 7800, 7900
8000 Series:
8500, 8600, 8800
GeForce Go Series:
7600, 7800, 7900
ATI Graphics Cards
X1600, X1700, X1800, X1900
x2600, x2900
x3650, x3850



So I hope it works for all you people that had the same problem(s) as I had, or similar.

You all go on and on about video drivers, what you fail to realize is most people have a creative sound card. As far as testing for me has been (Audigy 1,2,4) all cause crashes due to sound. Those who crash frequently try muting the sound in SL and see if you stop crashing. It works for me, I just wish they would fix it...or allow us to select the proper sound car in preferences so SL can use that instead of windows autodetect...Creative does not help period in their drivers. The newest release is said to fix some driver crashes with windows and direct sound ac97 etc, However if you install them it uninstalls everything else your card comes with (Surround Mixer, Diag, etc)

Rorrim, I have the same problem, it was worse with Vista, it would lock up at random three or four times a night.. It is ONLY SL, and it is NOT an overheading problem.. It can happen within 5 mintues of booting the PC, or it might run for hours and hours before locking up.. I am quite sure it is something in the SL code.. It only started with the 1.19 code.. If I run the Nicholz old school client it DOES NOT HAPPEN... It is not my drivers, it is not my hardware.. It is some flaw in the SL code that affects the 88 and 98 Nivdia cards.. I have run lots of other programs to test this, and stress tests. The system passes all with flying colors.. Everything but SL...

I just wanted you to know you are not alone..