[Slikkie]

Hi,

Recently, I reformatted my Windows XP Home. After the format, I installed some of the drivers needed (VGA driver, Sound and LAN driver). Since I did not get a driver disc with my PC, I downloaded them from the Asus website. (Manufacturer of my MB).

The problem is, I don't know if I installed everything needed for my PC to function properly. After installing all the drivers, I've been getting BSOD errors frequently, and every now and then I get an error message that Windows has to shut down. Also, when I tried to install a simple program like Adobe Acrobat Reader, I got an error saying that there isn't enough memory available.

Here are my system specs,

AMD Athlon 64 X2 Dual Core 3.8ghz
1GB DDR 2
160GB HDD
GeForce 6150 (128MB)

Any help is really appreciated. Thank you in advance!

Slikkie

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To see if you downloaded all the drivers that you need open device manager in control panel > system > hardware. A missing driver is marked with a yellow question mark. A corrupted driver is marked with an exclamation mark.

You can download from Asus everything related to the motherboard with the following exeptions:

1: Do not download or install BIOS update.
2: If you have XP-SP2 you don't need USB 2.0 driver because it's already in SP2
2: If you don't use raid array you don't have to download the raid driver.

[The Skeptic]

To see if you downloaded all the drivers that you need open device manager in control panel > system > hardware. A missing driver is marked with a yellow question mark. A corrupted driver is marked with an exclamation mark.

You can download from Asus everything related to the motherboard with the following exeptions:

1: Do not download or install BIOS update.
2: If you have XP-SP2 you don't need USB 2.0 driver because it's already in SP2
2: If you don't use raid array you don't have to download the raid driver.

[Slikkie]

Here is a list of all the drivers that I'm missing. (Don't know where to find them btw)

PCI Simple Communications Controller
SM Bus Controller
Unknown Device - No clue what this could be?

It's getting worse and worse. I can't install new programs. It tells me my memory is too low or I don't have enough memory. How is this possible? I have 1GB! My virtual memory is set to 800MB-2000MB.

Please any help is welcome,

Slikkie

Edited by Slikkie, 25 May 2007 - 12:52 PM.

[The Skeptic]

None of these drivers is essential. I suggest that you repost this topic in the malware forum (a link in my signature). It's very possible that this is the problem.

[Slikkie]

But I did a clean install of Windows and have NOD32 installed. Just now I tried to install Microsoft Office. In the middle of the installation I got an error message stating that there is not enough memory avaiable to complete the setup.

[The Skeptic]

1: Did the errors started immediately after the format or did you install any applications or hardware before.
2: When you downloaded the drivers from Asus did you have nod32 already updated and running in the background?
3: Go to control panel > system. How much ram is reported there.
4: Download Microsoft memory test utility (a link in my signature) and create a bootable cd or floppy. Run the tool for about an hour and report if there are any errors.
5: Download and install all microsoft updates, if you can.

[Slikkie]

1. Yes. I didn't install any other applications or hardware, just the VGA and Sound driver for my motherboard from the Asus website.

2. Yes. NOD32 was up to date and all protection modules were active.

3. Under the 'General' tab, it reports 992MB of RAM. It's always been this way.

4. I ran the Memory diagnostic test. It failed 2 out of the 6 tests. Does this mean my RAM is faulty? It's hard to beleive since I thought when RAM is faulty, the computer won't even boot up.

5. I'm busy downloading the Automatic updates. I'll install them as soon as their done.

Slikkie

Edited by Slikkie, 26 May 2007 - 01:56 AM.

[anzenketh]

Sad to say but yes your Ram is bad.

[Slikkie]

I'll wait for TheSkeptic to verify that.

I've also noticed another thing. Every time I restart my PC, before it boots up it runs the ScanDisk every time on Drive D:\. This is my backup partition on my hard drive. (I have 2 partitions btw). Could the errors be related to the two partitions? Should I merge them together again?

Edited by Slikkie, 26 May 2007 - 06:45 AM.

[anzenketh]

NO problem

When it comes to hardware it is always good to have 2 people say because it costs money.

I would say no if you have 2 partitions unless the primary is going bad windows should not be affected too much by your secondary partition because usually it only has data and would only cause the problem when accessing the data. That is only if the secondary partition data is corrupted.

Go ahead and download and run HTtune in my signature and give it a run on a slow test.

[The Skeptic]

Hi slikkie.

The ram test doesn't look good neither the checkdisk message. Please do the following:

1: Unplug the power cable and open the box. Take out the memory module(s) and clean the contacts carefully. Use a soft brush to clean the slots. If you have more then module insert just one and run the test . If it fails try to move it to another slot and test again. If it goes well repeat the procedure for every module. We want to see if there is any problem with any of the modules or slots. When you insert the modules please do this carefully but firmly making sure that the side lockers are locked in the slots on the modules.

2: Clear the BIOS: disconnect the power cable from the back of the computer. Open the side cover and carefully take out the cmos battery (looks like a silvery button). Keep it out for about 15 minutes. Reinstall in the reverse order and reboot. You will probably get a checksome error. If you do, enter BIOS by pressing del or F2 repeatedly when starting the computer until BIOS tables show up. Set time and date, save the new values and let the computer boot. There are computers in which other keys have to be used to enter BIOS. You can find the correct key when looking at the screen right after pressing the start button. Look for what key you have to press to enter setup.

3: Regarding the error in partition D: Go to My Computer > right click local disk D: > properties > tools > error checking > check now. Check the two boxes and click Start. Let the process run to the end. If you already run checkdisk, please repeat the process to partition C:. This will locate, repair or isolate bad sectors in the hard disk.

[Slikkie]

Hi TheSkeptic,

The problem is I can't open the case at this stage. If I do that the warranty on the PC will expire. However, I did do the disk check and it fixed alot of errors on Drive D. I also ran it on Drive C. When booting up my PC now, it doesn't bring up the scandisk which is good news.

Any other ideas on what to do with my RAM?

[The Skeptic]

The minimum that you can do is to enter BIOS and set it to default values. For this you don't have to open the box and pull out the battery.

If after that microsoft memory test utility still shows errors then you should approach the seller because memory problems should be covered by the warranty.