Curse

Sacratus Ignis · Jun 21, 2009, 02:44 PM // 14:44

Hey guys,

Rumor has it you are some of the best people out there for fixing comp bugs

Here's my problem.

As of a few months ago, I started getting an occasional blue screen of death when I play guild wars. It occurs at random intervals and in random places. Sometimes it happens twice in five minutes, sometimes it doesn't happen for days. I know that it only occurs when I am doing processor/graphics intensive things. Playing the Aion beta for example makes the error happen more frequently, and it never happens when I play Warcraft III.

The error says NMI Memory Parity Check Error. Memory hardware failure.

I am running a Dell XPS m1210 on the highest specs basically, was the best laptop money could buy 3 years ago.

I've done a few things on my own to try to figure out what's wrong...

1) formatted computer, reinstalling windows xp
2) reinstalled video drivers (I have a Geforce Go 7200)
3) replaced RAM chip with one my little brother had from an old laptop

None of those stopped it, making me think it might be a video card or processor problem.

What else can I do to get to the bottom of this? Ideally if I have to buy new hardware, I would spend less than $500.

Thanks very much!

Lord Of Blame · Jun 21, 2009, 03:35 PM // 15:35

I haven't had blue screen issues since I switched from XP to Vista.

samerkablamer · Jun 21, 2009, 04:33 PM // 16:33

It may be the dedicated graphics memory because the geforce go 7200 only has 64mb of dedicated video memory which is insanely low to try and play games with.

Bob Slydell · Jun 21, 2009, 05:05 PM // 17:05

Could overheating be the problem? Old laptops usually overheat a lot.

Tarun · Jun 21, 2009, 05:49 PM // 17:49

What's the blue screen error?

Sacratus Ignis · Jun 21, 2009, 09:10 PM // 21:10

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chrisworld

Could overheating be the problem? Old laptops usually overheat a lot.

No it's not that. I have it on a cooling pad.

Re the what's the error, it says hardware malfunction, NMI memory parity error. I have to force shutdown and reboot it every time

Brett Kuntz · Jun 22, 2009, 01:12 AM // 01:12

Your laptop doesn't use parity memory as it is expensive, for workstations/servers, and not laptops!

Download this tool:

http://www.ocbase.com/perestroika_en/index.php?Download

It will check your system for stability. You can first check your processor for an hour, then your memory.

You can also download a tool called MemTest86+ and burn it to a bootable CD, and run that when your laptop first boots up. MemTest86+ is free, and the most comprehensive memory tester available.

Test your CPU first, then your memory, as a bad CPU can't properly test any other parts.