Curse

Drag0nseye · Jan 06, 2006, 06:16 PM // 18:16

Okay, this is really ticking me off. I can play GW for about 15-30 minutes and then all hell breaks loose. After this time, here is what happens... about every 15-35 seconds whether I'm just running, in combat, or just standing there, first my video will freeze up, 5-7 seconds later the mouse and sound will stop, another 5-7seconds after that the mouse and sound will come back, about 5-7 seconds after that the video will unfreeze and I can play again. Or, in most cases, I'm dead. There are times though when it will just straight up freeze and I have to do a hard reboot.

As you can imagine, after 20 minutes of this, I'm pretty irate. This has been happening since I started playing last week.

Here's the kicker though.... I can play World of Warcraft, FFXI, EVE, F.E.A.R., and Half Life 2 with the same hardware listed below without ANY problems.

Here are my computer/network specs...

Windows XP Home w/ SP2
Pentium 4 3.0 GHz 800MHz FSB
1 GB PC3200 RAM
80GB 7200 RPM HDD
Nvidia GForce 4 256MB Vid card (also tried ATI Radeon X800 256MB)
C-Media Integrated sound
D-Link DWL-520 Extreme G Wireless network card
Cable Internet through Midcontinent Communications

As you can see, my computer more that beats the "recomended" system requirements. All of my drivers are up to date as of this past Monday. I also do not have any of the drivers for the other vid card installed, just the GForce I'm currently using. I did have a firewall installed, but have since removed that as I thought it was the cause; however, it wasn't. I have also played with my antivirus turned off, still freezes on me.

Please, any suggestions? Please keep the facetious remarks to yourselves.

FoMoCoStang · Jan 06, 2006, 06:26 PM // 18:26

Man, dont see any probs with hardware.

Happened to me, and i uninstalled, and re-installed and it worked fine. I dunno what it was. Kinda gave up on the game. Then re-installed to try again. And for some reason it was fine.

Just a suggestion, not sure whats wrong with yours. Doesnt take long to install game.

aretziel · Jan 06, 2006, 06:56 PM // 18:56

check so you don´t got any virus and/or spyware ...

some games are more sensetive to this then other.

then the regular stuff:

No virusprog running checks with 20min intervalls? same for spyware scanners.

changed (upgraded) drivers for anything lately? some games can´t handle the newest (or older) drivers etc.

and then the booring checks ... uninstall and re-install the game (as mentioned) and then the big one ... re-install windows ...

ahh, windows auto update may piss the puter of as well =)

Drag0nseye · Jan 06, 2006, 07:36 PM // 19:36

I just re-installed Windows about 2 weeks ago. One of my semi-annual re-installs. I scanned for viruses... none. I scanned for Spyware, found some and elimitated them, except for a DSO Exploit... can't seem to get rid of it using SpoyBot or Outpost. I did update all of my drivers when I reinstalled Windows. I'll see if I can get the previous versions and try those. I'll also try to re-install the game.

Thanks a bunch, hopefully this works.

aretziel · Jan 06, 2006, 08:18 PM // 20:18

Ad-Aware is a good and free anti spyware prog that I use often myself ... it hasn´t failed me yet ... maybe that can solve the tricky spyware issue for you =)

EternalTempest · Jan 06, 2006, 08:38 PM // 20:38

I would do what other have suggested completely remove guild wars and re-install it.

Drag0nseye · Jan 07, 2006, 06:38 PM // 18:38

Well, that didn't work. I removed Guild Wars and re-installed. Now it is even worse. The freezing happens more frequently. Oh, I'm so confused.

Are there any other suggestions as to why I can run every other high-end game, but I can't run this one that requires roughly half the resources the other games require?

I'm going to attept to roll-back my video drivers and see if that helps... grrr, so annoying.

Lerxst_of_Syrinx · Jan 08, 2006, 04:13 AM // 04:13

This happened to me just after doing a BIOS upgrade. I had to go into my BIOS and slow my RAM a bit. I had no problems with other gamesjust GW.

I went from 2-3-3-10 to 2-4-4-10 and now it works fine. For a quick test just raise your RAM to CAS 2.5 and raise the other numbers (2.5-5-5-10). If this works, slowly take them down until you get problems again.

Drag0nseye · Jan 08, 2006, 05:05 AM // 05:05

I contacted Guild Wars Technical support directly. After running a few diagnostic programs, they figured out that it was a tempurature problem. Sure enough, when I opened my case, the fan on my Video card had stopped working. I put the X800 back in and left the side of the case off and presto!

If nothing else, the ideas you all gave me cleaned up my system a bit

Thanks again.

Drag0nseye · Jan 08, 2006, 06:14 AM // 06:14

Okay, I got a little over zealous. It worked for the first 45 minutes I played. When I went back on 2 hours later the same problem happened, but with a twist. Now my entire system freezes about 3 minutes after I start to play.

Wow, this is irritating.

Anyone have any other suggestions?

UseLessPuppet57 · Jan 08, 2006, 06:30 AM // 06:30

umm...maybe it is the DSO Exploit? I don't know, but if you want to try getting rid of it with Spybots[I use it too=D]I'll send you a link.

MegaMouse · Jan 08, 2006, 03:10 PM // 15:10

Sounds like a heat issue. How many fans do you have pulling air in and out of you computer. you need at least 2 pulling in and 2 pulling out not counting the psu ones. Also try to straighten out the cables in your computer they may be blocking the airflow in side. I have 8 fans inside my case due to my specs.
Intel d925xe2 mobo
intel 650 3.4 ghz proc
ati X1800 XT PE video card
Creative X-FI sound card
western digital raptors 2 raid 1 (mirrored)
HP dvd dual layer burner
enermax 480 watt power supply
coolermaster aquagate water cooling for the cpu internaly mounted
4 of the fans are vantec tornadoes (very loud but the cfm of airflow is worth the noise)

If this doesnt help then there may be some other issue causing the prob. hope you get it fixed. happy hunting.

Drag0nseye · Jan 08, 2006, 05:28 PM // 17:28

I believe the heat issue is resolved. I am running my computer with the side of the case off and a house fan blowing into the case at an angle. This was suggested to me by the game developers. It worked for a bit yesterday. They also said I may have to take my PC to a shop and have them look at it as the high tempuratures from my video card may have damaged another component in my computer. I haven't tried the game yet today. We'll see what happens.

Kaguya · Jan 08, 2006, 05:49 PM // 17:49

Quote:

Originally Posted by MegaMouse

you need at least 2 pulling in and 2 pulling out not counting the psu ones.

Not true.

Most low spec computers do fine without any at all (not counting PSU and CPU fans), add in a high-end CPU and vidcard and you'll need atleast 1 case fan, 2 recommended. 2 is just fine, although it depends entirely on your case design, some cases might need more than others.

I got AMD64 3200+, GF6800GT and 4 HDDs, so that's a ton of heat as well (luckily AMD procs run lot cooler than Intel ones atleast), powered by 2 case fans, and the entire system is cool still. 2x 120mm case fans do a lot, and with a fan controller their voltages can be turned down for low noise operation when the computer isn't doing any heavy duty stuff.

What it comes to the OP's problem, yeah, could very well be vidcard throttling (too much heat -> stop operating for few seconds so the chip cools down -> resume work -> gain too much heat again -> wait for cooling -> rinse & repeat)

leeky baby · Jan 08, 2006, 06:08 PM // 18:08

..........

Kirbie · Jan 09, 2006, 10:12 PM // 22:12

You sure it is heat problem?
If he can play Half Life2, FEAR and other graphics intensive games...his computer obviously can run Guildwars without problems.

I noticed you post this message on "Jan 6th"...the day when ArenaNet released de-wintersday update.
I noticed similar problem like yours after Jan 6th patch. Everything was working fine before.

I posted similar problem on 'The Riverside Inn' section of the forum called "Am I the only person who is having this issue"
http://www.guildwarsguru.com/forum/s...d.php?t=104914

Furthermore...I see similar issue on 'Technician's Corner' section of the forum called "lAGGGGGG!" which is also dated Jan 6th..the patch day.
http://www.guildwarsguru.com/forum/s...d.php?t=103812

So...a question I have for you is...
Did your guildwars work perfectly before Jan 6th update?

Vana The Everyoung · Jan 12, 2006, 02:29 AM // 02:29

Same
Prob No1
Games Crash sent for repair and found that the fan on the back of the computer was damaged
Solution replaced fan

Prob No.2
Games still crash and other programs found that because the fan was damaged it also caused permeant damage to my hard drive and Ram.

Solution replaced hard drive and ram with new 80gig hard drive and 1000mb ram.

Prob No.3
Games still crash
Once this work was done I had problems with all my games crashing so in frustration I took the computer back to the company and found that when replacing my ram they had put 2 dif types in, with the result of making my system crash.
Solution abuse the company for 10 min and then had ram replaced free and now have no probs

Dex · Jan 12, 2006, 02:57 AM // 02:57

Quote:

Originally Posted by Vana The Everyoung

Same
Prob No1
Games Crash sent for repair and found that the fan on the back of the computer was damaged
Solution replaced fan

Prob No.2
Games still crash and other programs found that because the fan was damaged it also caused permeant damage to my hard drive and Ram.

Solution replaced hard drive and ram with new 80gig hard drive and 1000mb ram.

Prob No.3
Games still crash
Once this work was done I had problems with all my games crashing so in frustration I took the computer back to the company and found that when replacing my ram they had put 2 dif types in, with the result of making my system crash.
Solution abuse the company for 10 min and then had ram replaced free and now have no probs

I'm glad you posted that. The moral of this story? There are lots of things that cause freezing and crashes. It's not always heat, ok? Every single freeze/lockup/hang/reboot post on this site gets a bunch of replies saying that it's a heat problem. Well, heat problems aren't really the most common causes of system hangs and reboots unless you're overclocking.

"At least" 2 intake fans and 2 exhaust fans?!?!? Seriously? Why not just take the side panels off your case, hang your PC out your car window, and have someone drive you around while you play GW? Did you know that 2 mid-rpm fans properly placed in your case can cool it better than your 8 case fans working against each other? Case cooling is about constant air flow, not how many total cf/m of air your fans can collectively move. Too many fans can actually make your case hotter by working against each other and allowing hot pockets of air to form in certain areas in your case. As was mentioned above by Kaguya, the design of your case and placement of your fans are more important than the number of fans you have. There's nothing wrong with having 4 case fans if you have thought out and tested the reasoning behind the placement of the fans, but simply stuffing your case full of fans accomplishes nothing.

Sorry for the 'tude, guys. Just had to rant there for a sec...

Vana The Everyoung · Jan 12, 2006, 05:14 AM // 05:14

Some more ideas

It could also be a Program issue eg I had zone alarm on my computer and the program would cause my computer to crash every 10 min. Once I removed Zone Alarm all was good with the world.

Or

It could be that your hard drive is on the way out, a normal hard drive is only guaranteed for 1 year after that they slowly start to corrode.

Or as I said before it could be that the ram that you have is not 100% compatible with your motherboard

also found on the net

http://www.jrwhipple.com/computer_hangs.html
J.R. Whipple & Associates

Why Does My Computer Crash,
Freeze or Hang All The Time?
Do you see a lot of messages like, "This program performed an illegal operation and will be shut down" ? Or do you find that your mouse often freezes and you have to reset your computer to regain control?

This is a very common complaint for many computer users. Why this happens can be due to a number of things. The most common causes of these troublesome problems will be covered here. They fall into the following general categories:

Hardware: Defective or mismatched components in your computer.

Aluminum Migration & ESD: Premature ageing and “Electro Static Discharge” can make a computer very intermittent.

Operating System: Some versions of Windows have bugs that can cause these problems.

Drivers: Buggy or down-level drivers can cause many problems.

Software: Some programs have bugs in them that can cause these problems.

Memory Fragmentation: Do you often see the message, "System is dangerously low in resources" If so you are probably suffering Memory Fragmentation.

CMOS Settings: Improper CMOS settings can cause many problems. Changing CMOS settings can also be used to help diagnose some hardware problems.

Loading Order: The order in which the software components of your computer are loaded into memory, at startup each day, can cause a multitude of odd problems.

A Combination of the above: Defects in any of the above may only show up under specific circumstances.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

hope this helps