Random freezes with windows 7 - 64 bit

Anonymous

I use to run Vista home premium x86 on a acer computer. This summer I downloaded Windows 7 rc x86. A month ago I bought all new parts and since I could use 64-bit system now I installed a 64-bit Windows 7. Then did the problem start. Every new and then the computer freezes, some days over 30 times. I thought it was hardware problem and tried a lot of hardware finders and nothing helped. I also installed windows 7 rc my mothers laptop (The same version I use to have that work fine) that used to run on Vista home basic.. But her computer didn’t freeze it just got a black screen now and then.

The I started to suspect that it was because it was a beta version so when windows 7 were released I bought two of them a 32-bit and a 64-bit. But the problem didn´t go away. It´s still there and It´s kind of frustrating and even more now when I’m trying to write a essay.

I used windows upgrade advisor and it didn´t see any problem with an upgrade to windows 7. What can I do?

original title: Random freezes with windows 7

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Anonymous

Guys,

I might have the answer to your problems. This might fix your sleep/suspend problems and your random freezing problems. Bottom line is that the default and "auto" values in Win 7 and your BIOS might not produce a stable computer...even with a virgin install.

RANDOM FREEZES FIX:

My computer used to freeze randomly until I fixed the memory timings. I suspected bad memory early on and tested it with MEMTEST, but it passed with flying colors. I even tried swaping memory out, trying to eliminate bad memory and/or slots. It turned out that it was a memory frequency/timings/voltage issue. No more freezes! If you have a similar setup, this will most likely fix it. If not, then check your memory and/or power supply.

The "AUTO" settings in BIOS *may not* produce a stable setting. You have to goto the ASUS support website and download the latest memory QVL and lookup the memory settings for your particular brand there. For my memory (OCZX1333LV6GK(XMP)) I had to make the following adjustments in the BIOS:

DRAM Freq:1066 (even though my memory is rated at 1333 frequency, the QVL guide recommended a lower freq!)

7-7-7-16 for the rest of the timings. The other settings I was able to leave in "AUTO"

DRAM BUS Voltage: 1.6

*warning: be sure to consult your memory/motherboard documentation...the wrong value could damage your components!

SUSPEND/SLEEP FIX:

My computer used to hang when coming out of sleep or wouldn't completely goto sleep. This solution may be partially dependent on you fixing a random freezing issue if you have one.

In your "advanced" power settings, disable "Hybrid Sleep". That's it! My motherboard doesn't like hybrid sleep.

*If you have a desktop with a UPS, Win 7 will treat it like a laptop and apply the battery settings....sooo make sure you adjust the "on battery" settings!

My setup:

Processor:Intel core i7 920

Motherboard:Asus P6T

Memory: OCZX1333LV6GK(XMP) (ie. 6GB in 3 sticks)

Harddrive: 3 x WD Caviar Black drives in RAID 5

PSU: X3 1000W

Video card: 2 x NVIDIA 9800 GTX+ SLI

*I have all of the ASUS overclocking/energy savings programs uninstalled

*I have the latest BIOS 0801 and all the latest drivers installed

Nick

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966 additional answers

Anonymous

2010-08-23T22:27:20+00:00

i'd be interested to know how many people in this thread are using a wireless setup with the Ralink RT61 chipset. i was experiencing the exact same issues as the rest of you until i updated to the driver that ONLY microsoft update catalog has - the 3.0.9.1 version of the x64 drivers for the RT61. nobody has mentioned wireless in this thread but that appears to have been my issue - Ralink's driver support is terrrrrrrible.
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Anonymous

2010-08-23T18:06:23+00:00

My computer used to freeze randomly until I fixed the memory timings. I suspected bad memory early on and tested it with MEMTEST, but it passed with flying colors. I even tried swaping memory out, trying to eliminate bad memory and/or slots. It turned out that it was a memory frequency/timings/voltage issue. No more freezes! If you have a similar setup, this will most likely fix it. If not, then check your memory and/or power supply.

The "AUTO" settings in BIOS *may not* produce a stable setting. You have to goto the ASUS support website and download the latest memory QVL and lookup the memory settings for your particular brand there. For my memory (OCZX1333LV6GK(XMP)) I had to make the following adjustments in the BIOS:

DRAM Freq:1066 (even though my memory is rated at 1333 frequency, the QVL guide recommended a lower freq!)

7-7-7-16 for the rest of the timings. The other settings I was able to leave in "AUTO"

DRAM BUS Voltage: 1.6

*warning: be sure to consult your memory/motherboard documentation...the wrong value could damage your components!

I have the same cpu/motherboard/memory setup, this worked to solve the hard freeze/hard boot issue.
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Anonymous

2010-08-17T03:00:07+00:00
Over the past weekend (August 13/14/15, 2010), I took three steps to resolve my problem of Windows 7 64-bit shutting down unexpectedly:
1. When I checked "reliability" (start > type RELIABILITY > enter, click on a yellow warning symbol, look at the technical details), "reliability" indicated that "Update Manager" was having a problem with Corel. I knew that Corel was WordPerfect X3. So, I bit the bullet an purchased WordPerfect Home & Student Office X5 and updated WordPerfect. (I know, why WordPerfect? I need it for court filings.)
2. Checking further, I found that "Update Manager" refers to InstallShield. On my computer, Installshield was checking periodically for updates for some Roxio programs and for WordPerfect X3. I un-clicked Installshield from start-up and removed as much of it as I could find in the computer. I will update the Roxio programs and WordPerfect X5 on my own. Check this URL for more information on uninstalling the Update Manager: http://consumer.installshield.com/faqs\_us.asp
3. I updated the driver for my Nvidia GeForce GTS250 PCI-E 2.0 card to the latest driver available.
I have not had a warning in "reliability" or an unexpected shutdown since 8:05 PM on August 13, 2010, other than when my Uninterruptible Power Supply software stopped working at 12:25 am on August 14, 2010.

My sense is that the problem goes to InstallShield. While I was in the process of determining how to remove it from my computer, I determined that my computer was missing a number of files and the computer was failing to connect to the Internet so as to be able to check properly for updates. This failure to connect might have been the reason for the warnings or for the unexpected shutdowns.
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Anonymous

2010-08-14T10:23:20+00:00

The "AUTO" settings in BIOS *may not* produce a stable setting. You have to goto the ASUS support website and download the latest memory QVL and lookup the memory settings for your particular brand there. For my memory (OCZX1333LV6GK(XMP)) I had to make the following adjustments in the BIOS:

DRAM Freq:1066 (even though my memory is rated at 1333 frequency, the QVL guide recommended a lower freq!)

7-7-7-16 for the rest of the timings. The other settings I was able to leave in "AUTO"

DRAM BUS Voltage: 1.6

I have an ASUS motherboard with G.SKILL RAM - and the auto detect settings for the DRAM timings were incorrect. I entered in manual times after checking what they should be on the G.SKILL website, and all is now fine. Thanks for posting
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