Sager np8255 laptop has 'hiccups' after being on for a while

Hi all,

This seemed like something simple, but after some troubleshooting, I can't pinpoint the issue.
so, here's what happens. I keep my laptop on 24/7 for various reasons. Recently, it started having these 'hiccups' while playing youtube, downloading a file in chrome, downloading a file via a driver update software, opening a new program, sometimes in-game but not too often. By a 'hiccup' i mean that the mouse freezes, the screen freezes, and the sound skips making a BZZT noise. if a song is playing in vlc, and i'm opening or downloading a file, a hiccup would happen every 1-3 seconds. If I'm playing skyrim, however, a hiccup would be very short and only happen every 30 seconds - 1 minute.

I performed 2 overnight memtest86 tests and found 0 errors. I also checked hard drives with SeaTools and found 0 errors. I checked processor using OCCT, Linpack and GPU:3D in OCCT 4.4.1; i got an overheating issue in linpack after 100 seconds of running; I updated some drivers, retested Linpack, and the issue disappeared.

I should point out that I RMAd this machine twice in the past year, and according to sager and xoticpc, they replaced both motherobard and CPU. I still have a couple of months on my post-replacement warranty of the CPU.

I'm out of ideas on what else to troubleshoot, so any suggestions are welcome.


---- system info---
Operating System: Windows 7 Enterprise 64-bit (6.1, Build 7601) Service Pack 1 (7601.win7sp1_gdr.140706-1506)
Language: English (Regional Setting: English)
System Manufacturer: Notebook
System Model: P15SM
BIOS: BIOS Date: 12/04/13 10:24:57 Ver: 04.06.05
Processor: Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-4710MQ CPU @ 2.50GHz (8 CPUs), ~2.5GHz
Memory: 16384MB RAM
Available OS Memory: 16308MB RAM
Page File: 6849MB used, 25765MB available
Windows Dir: C:\Windows
DirectX Version: DirectX 11

 

Often times this is caused by the hard drive. Thanks for posting the specs, but what kind of hard drive are you using? If its an SSD you may want to check to see if there have been any firmware updates for it.

When you have these issue, do you reboot the system or do you continue to keep it on 24/7. If you reboot how long until these issues come back.

 

I checked the harddrive using SeaTools and found no errors.
I do have an mSata ssd. I found a firmaware update for it, but since I have never done it, i'm not sure what to do with it (it's an ISO, do I just boot from it and it will do everything automatically? Can I lose my data?)

When I have this issue, I reboot the system and it goes away for a couple of hours. I have not timed it, though.

 

You will want to make sure you follow the instructions on updating the firmware as they describe as you can lose your data if not done right. You will want to back things up just in case. They should have provided instructions on exactly how to do it. Can you provide a link or the brand of your mSATA so we can take a look.

 

This could be caused by bad ram as well. Run a RAM test and/or remove 1 DIMM, see if it stabilizes, then try the other DIMM.

 

I updated the firmware. It was at easy as booting from the iso they provided. It didn't, however, fix the problem. Any other suggestions?

 

As I said in my OP, i ran 2 overnight memtest86 tests (check RAM) with 0 errors.

 

This is hard to pinpoint. Memory passing MemTest does not guarantee that the problem isn't memory related. Which mSATA drive do you have?

 

Sorry for the delay.
The SSD is: Plextor M5M PX-256M5M mSATA 256GB SATA III MLC


I did recently purchase an extra 8Gb ram stick. I will try to run the computer without it and see what happens.

 

What RAM did you get, did you make sure it is 1.35 and not 1.5V. Haswell CPU's are designed to work with the low voltage RAM, that could be the cause.

 

I can confirm Plextor is a fantastic SSD. Should cause no hiccup problems.

Also, do you have any HDDs? If so, can you scan them for errors using HDTunePro? It has a trial version that will suffice for checking any mechanical drives for errors.

Also, the RAM stick could be a thing. It's rare, but sometimes mismatched memory sticks can be problematic. Also, as hutslady says, 1.35v is needed for mobile haswell.

 

Good plan. And while 1.35 V is the new standard for Haswell-equipped laptops, 1.5 will still work (just don't mix the two). Hopefully you matched what you had in the system already as far as brand; sometimes mixing those (brands) causes instability.

 

1.5V might work.. And even if it does, its not recommended as the Haswell mobile systems are designed for DDR3-L 1.35V memory... The extra voltage might not be good for the chipset etc in the long term!

 

1.35 is still recommended, yes. No arguments there.

 

so, I performed the RAM test (my new module is 1.35V G.SKill Ripjaws) where I removed each stick and waited for a day for my laptop to destabilize. Well, it destabilized with each stick removed, so I think we can rule out RAM...
I do also have an hdd and have scanned it multiple times with SeaTools. I guess I can give HDToolPro a shot aw well..

Thank you for your help, everyone! but what else would you suggest I test?

 

As funny as it sounds...

Grab knoppix or some other dvd-only OS (Linux, Windows, anything that runs JUST off DVD/Bluray) that can hit your CPU and GPU fairly hard, and run it for a while.

While rare, it could be something wonky with your windows OS itself.

Maybe something as simple as a corrupt driver/library.

I'm reaching here, but I'm quickly running out of ideas.

 

Do you think running ubuntu would work? if it didn't start hiccuping, would it tell us anything meaningful? I'll give it a shot, but I think there would too many variables to just pin it on the OS if things if hiccups stopped..

 

Well, if you use the NVidia drivers with linux (ubuntu is fine), and then find a way to run those for a while with a higher than normal cpu, and after a long period of time and you get no hiccups, it will tend to lead credence that something on the windows install is fubared.

It'll at the very least help you into identifying if it's a hardware or a software issue.

This is more just to narrow down if it's hardware related.

If it duplicates on the linux OS, then it's almost positively pointing to an issue in your hardware.

 

mmm.. I burned a dvd of ubuntu and booted from it. I don't know how to load any drivers on it, but I ran it for a day and got no errors. Is that an indication of anything?

 

If you're used to getting lots of hangs on the window side, especially while not doing much of anything then yes, that's an indication you may have a corrupted drive or maybe a virus or something.

Please keep in mind I'm grasping at straws, but if linux is 100% stable, no hiccups, but windows consistanty pauses/hangs, then it really does seem to point to something messed up at the OS/driver level on Windows.

I wish I could point to a smoking gun, but it gives you some direction.

Others may give better ideas.

 

OP try reinstalling everything... You might have a corrupt OS... it's worth giving it a shot..

 

Finally! I figured out where the problem lies!

It seems to be my wifi module. The problems appear only when I am downloading something! The reason the problem appears all the time is because of background uploads and downloads. Just to check, I decided to disable my wifi module when the problems were occurring and *poof* the problems disappeared.
So, now onto the easy part... How do I fix this?

 

If you have warranty, ask for a replacement wifi module.. Otherwise, go get one yourself... It's $20-30...

 

What wifi card do you have? And what driver version?

 

Play around with the driver (try different versions) first, and if that doesn't resolve anything, you can try resetting a lot of your network configurations by using CompleteInternetRepair (or something akin to that, if you know of something else). Apart from that, if it's not software related, then you can swap the card out as suggested. They're easy to physically remove and install.