Need some assistance with a CF 29 which keeps restarting

Hello all,

Have been using my new (used) CF 29, and while I am messing around on the web, it keeps on restarting- get a blue screen first, and then restarts itself and I then get the pop up telling me that I recovered from a serious error and that it needs to send an error report, which I politely decline. Anyways, I took a screen shot, and was hoping somebody might get me pointed in the right direction. Thanks to anybody who can help.

Scott

http://www.tcphotos.com/getuserimage.asp?t=n&id=img3729_04012009034218_1.jpg

 

Is this the one I just sent you???

Hmm...this never happened to me when I was using it. Maybe try a fresh restore...

Keep me updated and if it's a HD issue, we can exchange it for another one I have. I definitely didn't know it was having any issues.

To be honest, I haven't used SP3 all that much (personally or professionally) but I have had a few issues with it. If you do a restore, maybe wait on SP3.

 

Hey Adam,

Yeah, for some reason, once I started going on the internet, it would restart itself. It does not give you enough time to read the screen before I flashes off and restarts. I am not really concerned, as you sent me the restore disks. Thought before I went that route, would see if any of the gurus here knew what that error message meant.

Scott

 

I have seen bad memory cause this exact problem. Pull any removable memory modules and see if the problem goes away and hope it's not the onboard RAM.

 

Tough-2Go hit it on the head I think... I'm thinking bad RAM as well. Or maybe improperly seated.

You could try memtest on it later once you figure out that may be the cause. If you haven't loaded a bunch of apps... I would do a check of the hard drive and reinstall the OS anyway....

 

Memtest is a great idea! Hopefully it isn't the onboard RAM.

 

Almost all BSOD problems if you are running xp are ram related
In w2000 it was driver issues



Alex

 

Okay, ran the memtest as instructed, and after pass 50, no errors have been found. That is good, right?? Also, does the memtest ever stop, or do you have to stop it? I mean, is it good to keep it running, or is 1 pass as good as 100?

Anyways, if the memtest is right, then the RAM should not be the culprit, and I should probably reinstall the OS.

Thanks for any input anybody could provide.

Scott

 

You have a driver or drivers that XP don't like it.


ohlip

 

Restore then and check for problems before service pack 2 upgrade and then service pack 3 upgrade and finally all the microsoft updates



Alex

 

More passes are better. I let mine run for 100 passes and no errors but then i let it run longer 300+ and it started giving errors so hard to say. But with 50 it should be ok.

I would suspect there is a driver or corupted file somewhere giving the bluescreen.

Try reinstalling the OS with the restore disks that should do it.

James

 

You most likely have a software issue within windows. I don't believe its the RAM based on your memtest results and the fact that the machine boots. Most RAM issues I run into happen before loading windows, or immediately on startup. The particular error you are getting I believe is referring to a corrupt Profile. To be sure, you should be able to open and view the dumplog and/or sysdata.xml file which will give you more information about what is causing the BSOD. If it is profile related, try the following:

- Save all pertinent files/info first
- boot up in safe mode
- delete the folder "WER1.tmp.dir00" of all the user on your computer
- delete all in c:\windows\minidump\
- go to the DOS prompt and write "chkdsk /f" it will probably ask for doing the scan on the next bootup, select "yes"
- then reboot

IF it refers to anything else, post here and we can help further.


IF this does not solve your problem, then you will have to reformat the drive and reinstall/restore... be sure to reformat first because errors of this kind do not always go away with just a straight Restore from a Restore disk. Just my experience..

~Paul

 

Paul, thank you for the info. So far, I did a restore, and downloaded Service Pack 2. I had it shut down on me once, so I went and downloaded Service Pack 3 and all the updates. It is strange, as it only restarts when I am doing something online. I have downloaded all the service packs, updates, antivirus software, and it has never once shut down. Am going to plug away, and tell you guys the results if and when I have any. Thanks again.

Scott

 

Scott

Leave it on for a while and continue to test

I have a cf-73 with the same problem BSOD

Thats a business class toughbook that seemed to crash after running for 4 or more hours

I thought in its case that the fan was not working and overheating the processer so I wired the processer fan to the 5v usb so it runs always

Its crashed only once since I modded the fan, and I am continuing to test

I will restore and update and run it to confirm that I have fixed the problem


Your cf-29 has no fan, but if the processer is overheading it can have problems

If have had over 20 cf-29's and have had 0 problems with BSOD other than faulty ram



Alex

 

Also... Make sure that you are running the EXTENDED Memtest tests... Don't just start it up and let it go... You have to choose to use the extended tests... Yes... It will run til the cows come home... Let it make a few passes... Let it run overnight! Then arrow back through all the passes and see what you can find. Also check to make sure that the connections are good!

 

The BSOD message would be most helpful too if it does come back after the reinstall. You can turn off the auto-restart feature in order to capture it. This way you have to press a key in order to restart, giving you time to capture it.

Go to Start -> Control Panel -> System
Go to Advanced
Under the Startup and Recovery section, click Settings...
Under System Failure un-check "Automatically restart"

Use a digital camera to capture the screen. I just use my camera phone at work and email myself the picture.

 

Wyrm... That's great advice. I forgot about that... What is old is new again!

I used to get my cell phone ready to snap the pic when I knew it was coming!

 

Thanks for all the help/ input. As per Doobi's advice, could somebody tell me where I can locate the dump log, sysdata.xml the dumplog file, and the WER1.tmp.dir00 file? I am terribly sorry for sounding so ignorant- I found the minidump file, but could not locate the others. In the meantime, I am going to get my cellphone camera ready.

Scott

 

Easiest way is to do a search for it. AFAIR, the .xml file should be in the root directory and the .dir00 will be a hidden file in your root profile directory. Hope this helps.

~Paul

 

The locations should be as follows:

C:\Documents and Settings\<your windows login name>\Local Settings\Temp\werl.tmp.dir00\sysdata.xml
C:\Windows\Minidump

The problem is when I look at my system, I do not see these directories, but perhaps they are created only when the system crashes.

 

ive seen ram fails on the cf-29 take 1 pass or ive seen it take 250 passes. its just weird. this does sound like software to me though.

 

woober! any update? Is it the same problem after the fresh install. Let us know.


ohlip

 

So far, so good! I have so far downloaded sp3, and downloaded all available updates. I have only had the opportunity to go online for about 2 hours now, due to being away from home at school. I have not had a crash yet.....I did as instructed, and set the system to NOT automatically restart, so I can get the error information, but luckily, nothing has happened yet.

Even though I do not have internet readily available, I have been using this Toughbook for many hours doing photo editing, and again, not one problem.

Could it be an update that I installed that may have fixed everything?

I cant tell you guys how happy I am with this laptop- I had it in class the other day, and the teacher saw me tapping on the touchscreen, and he could not believe it. This is the ultimate!

Am going to try finding those files I was instructed to delete, and run another memtest, in the extended version.

Again, thank you everybody for all of your help.

Scott

 

Glad to see that it's working a lot better for you now Scott. I'm relieved! I wish I had one of these when I was in college instead of my stupid Dell Inspiron 300m.

 

Most people didn't even know a touch screen was out there before the Iphone. When I tell people that I used an ATM machine back in the mid 80's with a touch screen and the tech was invented more than 30 years ago they just look at me strange and say "iphone dude started it all" OK whatever.

 

Great to hear Woober. Here's hoping *crosses his fingers* it stays that way!

 

Those are the geniuses who don't use credit or debit cards at Home Depot. On screen hand writing, wonder when Steve Jobs will invent that?
CAP