Second Life Forums Archive - SL crash/PC reboot thingie

Nala Galatea

Pink Dragon Kung-Fu

Join date: 12 Nov 2003

Posts: 335

08-10-2005 11:57

I never have good luck with my computers, so let's have a go at this:

Recently my computer received a major upgrade, allowing great performance of SL with all the options on. However, after playing SL for an indeterminite amount of time (anywhere from 1 minute to 4 hours) SL and the computer will suddenly freeze up and then my computer will reboot itself. I've noticed this problem in other games as well since the upgrade. SL has a better track record of making it happen though. I personally am at a loss as where to go from here, as it's very frustrating to constantly have to reboot my PC in the middle of whatever I'm doing in SL.

System Specs:

AMD Athlon 64 3000+
MSI RS480M2-IL PCI-E Motherboard(ATI SB400 chipset + ATI Radeon XPRESS 200 chipset)
768 MB RAM
MSI NX6600GT-TD128E video card
2x120GB HDD
(Most current drivers for both motherboard and video card)

If anyone's got a clue as to where I should try, that doesn't involve getting particularly messy, to fix this mess before I have to take this system back in for more repair work. Thanks.

Kathmandu Gilman

Fearful Symmetry Baby!

Join date: 21 May 2004

Posts: 1,418

08-10-2005 13:19

Hmm, the usual culprets for this are heat, power supply, poor connection or a component going bad.

How are your temperatures? Open your computer case and maybe set a fan near it to blow on it and see if that helps.

Check your power supply. Don't pay attention to the watts so much as the +12volt amperage, if it isn't at least 20A your powersupply may be too wimpy to run the video card and CPU. Some power supplies, usually the cheap ones, may be rated for 20A but for only short periods of time and will shut down due to overload. Don't depend on your computer repair guy to know this as it hasn't really been an issue in computers until recently. The manual for the motherboard should have recomendations on powersupplies, as should the manual for your video card.

Turn off the computer, open the case and start wiggling and seating electrical connections to make sure there are good connections, especailly the auxillary power connection to the video card. Might also try disconnecting the non booting HD (unless it is a raid array)

Run a memory diagnostic program like Memetest86 and let it run for for a few hours to make sure you aren't getting any memory errors.

My money is on the power supply myself since this is an upgraded computer.

_____________________

It may be true that the squeaky wheel gets the grease but it is also true that the squeaky wheel gets replaced at the first critical maintenance opportunity.

Thili Playfair

Registered User

Join date: 18 Aug 2004

Posts: 2,417

08-10-2005 17:07

I have the same thing and i just finished playing wow for about 9 hours in a row, i log on SL and do things and browse , multiple things i can easy freeze up entire machine when i do to much in SL, no idea why.

But other times it doesnt do that (suspect its my usbtv thing, shoddy old thing)

paulie Femto

Into the dark

Join date: 13 Sep 2003

Posts: 1,098

power

08-10-2005 17:27

Yep, im thinkin power supply. Get a PSU with at least 400W with 18A or better on the +12v. This one is nice:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16817153006

Short of that, Ive been able to fix stability problems in some systems by upping the RAM voltage to 2.7 volts. Most systems set it at a default 2.6v. Try overriding the defaults in the BIOS and set it to 2.7v.

_____________________

REUTERS on SL: "Thirty-five thousand people wearing their psyches on the outside and all the attendant unfettered freakishness that brings."

Malachi Petunia

Gentle Miscreant

Join date: 21 Sep 2003

Posts: 3,414

08-10-2005 17:35

Nala, impotent? Well, okay, his case is

It's the power supply.

Alisa Honey

THE HONEYPOT

Join date: 2 Jul 2005

Posts: 93

08-10-2005 18:02

hmm maybe thats my problem to i was fine before but all sudden keep freezeing even jusat clicking conect freeses whole pc and i have to do a hard reboot or sometimes it just reboots itself try gettign new power supply and see if tht works

Kathmandu Gilman

Fearful Symmetry Baby!

Join date: 21 May 2004

Posts: 1,418

08-10-2005 19:28

What memory are you using? Your motherboard requires either 333 or 400 DDR, you don't have some sort of odd mixing going on do you? Might try removing the odd module if you do.

_____________________

It may be true that the squeaky wheel gets the grease but it is also true that the squeaky wheel gets replaced at the first critical maintenance opportunity.

Sargus Kraken

Registered User

Join date: 27 Feb 2005

Posts: 109

08-11-2005 11:27

Refuses to blindly get on the "bad power supply" bandwagon. I have a wonderful Toshiba laptop that does this too sometimes, but only when SL is up. It doesn't happen often, but once in a while it completely locks up. And no, it's NOT the power supply in my particular case.

Also, two other computers I have will sometimes power off when I leave them running, but only when SL is running. Power supply there too?? I don't think so. They aren't even the same type of computer, one being a P3 and the other an Athlon. And my laptop is a P4, but they all exhibit similar problems. The one thing they have in common is running WinXP and SL, but the problems started after SL, not after WinXP. So, you do the math.

I'm not saying it can't be the power supply in your situation. I'm just saying maybe more testing is in order before you conclude it's the power supply.

Manilow Metropolitan

DJwithSoul

Join date: 1 Jul 2005

Posts: 10

Power Supply

08-19-2005 20:47

are these specs good enough:

Rails EG465P VE FMA
+12v 33A
-12v 1.0A
+5v 35A
+5v sb 2.2A
+3.3v 35A

Catherine Omega

Geometry Ninja

Join date: 10 Jan 2003

Posts: 2,053

08-19-2005 21:00

From: Manilow Metropolitan

are these specs good enough:

It depends on what you're running on it, but honestly, a 33A +12V Enermax PSU should be able to handle just about anything you throw at it, including dual-core CPUs and multiple GPUs.

_____________________

Need scripting help? Visit the LSL Wiki!
Omega Point - Catherine Omega's Blog

Kathmandu Gilman

Fearful Symmetry Baby!

Join date: 21 May 2004

Posts: 1,418

08-19-2005 21:14

As Catherine said, you should be more than fine for just about anything a normal PC user can throw at it . If everybody was playing SL with this powersupply there would be universal happyness and world peace.. well their computers would have good power anyway.

_____________________

It may be true that the squeaky wheel gets the grease but it is also true that the squeaky wheel gets replaced at the first critical maintenance opportunity.

SL crash/PC reboot thingie
Nala Galatea Pink Dragon Kung-Fu Join date: 12 Nov 2003 Posts: 335	08-10-2005 11:57 I never have good luck with my computers, so let's have a go at this: Recently my computer received a major upgrade, allowing great performance of SL with all the options on. However, after playing SL for an indeterminite amount of time (anywhere from 1 minute to 4 hours) SL and the computer will suddenly freeze up and then my computer will reboot itself. I've noticed this problem in other games as well since the upgrade. SL has a better track record of making it happen though. I personally am at a loss as where to go from here, as it's very frustrating to constantly have to reboot my PC in the middle of whatever I'm doing in SL. System Specs: AMD Athlon 64 3000+ MSI RS480M2-IL PCI-E Motherboard(ATI SB400 chipset + ATI Radeon XPRESS 200 chipset) 768 MB RAM MSI NX6600GT-TD128E video card 2x120GB HDD (Most current drivers for both motherboard and video card) If anyone's got a clue as to where I should try, that doesn't involve getting particularly messy, to fix this mess before I have to take this system back in for more repair work. Thanks.
Kathmandu Gilman Fearful Symmetry Baby! Join date: 21 May 2004 Posts: 1,418	08-10-2005 13:19 Hmm, the usual culprets for this are heat, power supply, poor connection or a component going bad. How are your temperatures? Open your computer case and maybe set a fan near it to blow on it and see if that helps. Check your power supply. Don't pay attention to the watts so much as the +12volt amperage, if it isn't at least 20A your powersupply may be too wimpy to run the video card and CPU. Some power supplies, usually the cheap ones, may be rated for 20A but for only short periods of time and will shut down due to overload. Don't depend on your computer repair guy to know this as it hasn't really been an issue in computers until recently. The manual for the motherboard should have recomendations on powersupplies, as should the manual for your video card. Turn off the computer, open the case and start wiggling and seating electrical connections to make sure there are good connections, especailly the auxillary power connection to the video card. Might also try disconnecting the non booting HD (unless it is a raid array) Run a memory diagnostic program like Memetest86 and let it run for for a few hours to make sure you aren't getting any memory errors. My money is on the power supply myself since this is an upgraded computer. _____________________ It may be true that the squeaky wheel gets the grease but it is also true that the squeaky wheel gets replaced at the first critical maintenance opportunity.
Thili Playfair Registered User Join date: 18 Aug 2004 Posts: 2,417	08-10-2005 17:07 I have the same thing and i just finished playing wow for about 9 hours in a row, i log on SL and do things and browse , multiple things i can easy freeze up entire machine when i do to much in SL, no idea why. But other times it doesnt do that (suspect its my usbtv thing, shoddy old thing)
paulie Femto Into the dark Join date: 13 Sep 2003 Posts: 1,098	power 08-10-2005 17:27 Yep, im thinkin power supply. Get a PSU with at least 400W with 18A or better on the +12v. This one is nice: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16817153006 Short of that, Ive been able to fix stability problems in some systems by upping the RAM voltage to 2.7 volts. Most systems set it at a default 2.6v. Try overriding the defaults in the BIOS and set it to 2.7v. _____________________ REUTERS on SL: "Thirty-five thousand people wearing their psyches on the outside and all the attendant unfettered freakishness that brings."
Malachi Petunia Gentle Miscreant Join date: 21 Sep 2003 Posts: 3,414	08-10-2005 17:35 Nala, impotent? Well, okay, his case is It's the power supply.
Alisa Honey THE HONEYPOT Join date: 2 Jul 2005 Posts: 93	08-10-2005 18:02 hmm maybe thats my problem to i was fine before but all sudden keep freezeing even jusat clicking conect freeses whole pc and i have to do a hard reboot or sometimes it just reboots itself try gettign new power supply and see if tht works
Kathmandu Gilman Fearful Symmetry Baby! Join date: 21 May 2004 Posts: 1,418	08-10-2005 19:28 What memory are you using? Your motherboard requires either 333 or 400 DDR, you don't have some sort of odd mixing going on do you? Might try removing the odd module if you do. _____________________ It may be true that the squeaky wheel gets the grease but it is also true that the squeaky wheel gets replaced at the first critical maintenance opportunity.
Sargus Kraken Registered User Join date: 27 Feb 2005 Posts: 109	08-11-2005 11:27 Refuses to blindly get on the "bad power supply" bandwagon. I have a wonderful Toshiba laptop that does this too sometimes, but only when SL is up. It doesn't happen often, but once in a while it completely locks up. And no, it's NOT the power supply in my particular case. Also, two other computers I have will sometimes power off when I leave them running, but only when SL is running. Power supply there too?? I don't think so. They aren't even the same type of computer, one being a P3 and the other an Athlon. And my laptop is a P4, but they all exhibit similar problems. The one thing they have in common is running WinXP and SL, but the problems started after SL, not after WinXP. So, you do the math. I'm not saying it can't be the power supply in your situation. I'm just saying maybe more testing is in order before you conclude it's the power supply.
Manilow Metropolitan DJwithSoul Join date: 1 Jul 2005 Posts: 10	Power Supply 08-19-2005 20:47 are these specs good enough: Rails EG465P VE FMA +12v 33A -12v 1.0A +5v 35A +5v sb 2.2A +3.3v 35A
Catherine Omega Geometry Ninja Join date: 10 Jan 2003 Posts: 2,053	08-19-2005 21:00 From: Manilow Metropolitan are these specs good enough: It depends on what you're running on it, but honestly, a 33A +12V Enermax PSU should be able to handle just about anything you throw at it, including dual-core CPUs and multiple GPUs. _____________________ Need scripting help? Visit the LSL Wiki! Omega Point - Catherine Omega's Blog
Kathmandu Gilman Fearful Symmetry Baby! Join date: 21 May 2004 Posts: 1,418	08-19-2005 21:14 As Catherine said, you should be more than fine for just about anything a normal PC user can throw at it . If everybody was playing SL with this powersupply there would be universal happyness and world peace.. well their computers would have good power anyway. _____________________ It may be true that the squeaky wheel gets the grease but it is also true that the squeaky wheel gets replaced at the first critical maintenance opportunity.

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SL crash/PC reboot thingie