[rshaffer61]

Thank you Happyrock for the second set of eyes.
With the drive being so full then the system is working overtime to do the simpliest of tasks.
This is probably what is causing the Assistant to freeze.

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your welcome...

[happyrock]

your welcome...

[amstuart]

"If sfc does not find any errors in Windows XP, it will simply quit, without any message."

No errors were found.

Again, the 3 DVD VOB files are taking up almost 13 GB of space. Once burned, I will again have close to 18 GB of reallocated drive space available.

Anyway, back to my issue, which is still present.

Adam

[amstuart]

Thank you Happyrock for the second set of eyes.
With the drive being so full then the system is working overtime to do the simpliest of tasks.
This is probably what is causing the Assistant to freeze.

I have been in this temporary limited drive space situation before. It is transient, as the DVD VOB files are being removed today. I have had ZERO performance issues and have had ZERO Serach Assistant issues. The drive's present capacity is NOT impacting the Search Assistant to function.

Looking forward to continue exploring what <is> causing the Assistant to FREEZE my system.

Adam

[rshaffer61]

Have you run the sfc/ scannow yet?


Click HD diagnostic in my signature below. Choose the manufacturer of your hd. Download the tool. Running this will tell us if there is a problem with HD itself. If not then we will pursue other hardware or software possibilities




Let's check your memory and make sure there is no issue with it. Download memtest86 from the link in my signature below.


Get the file that is named Download - The one you want is "Download - Pre-compiled Bootable ISO (.zip). When it downloads, it will be labeled memtest86+2.11.iso.zip
Unzip the file once you download it. You should have a .iso file in the unzipped directory. It will look like a zip file in some cases but the file name will now be memtest86+2.11.iso

if you don't have a burning program that will burn .ISO files get burncdcc in my signature below.

NOTE...do not put a blank cd in until burncdcc opens the tray for you
1. Start BurnCDCC
2. Browse to the ISO file you want to burn on cd/dvd ....in this case its memtest86.iso
3. Select the ISO file
4. click on Start

Make sure the bios is set for the cd drive as the first boot device
Put the cd in the cd drive and then boot your computer.

Running the Diagnostic Program:

The basic diagnostic screen has five main sections of relevant information. Three at the top which are labeled, PASS %, TEST %, and TEST #. This will basically show you the total progress of the current test, the overall progress of the diagnostic test, and the test number is currently performing.

On the middle left hand side of the of the program interface there is a “Wall Time” section that will keep track of how long the diagnostic test has been running for. This just gives you an idea if you are not attending the testing process.

The main section to look for is the lower half of the screen which is usually blank. As long as the memory testing is going ok with no errors this section of the screen should remain blank. If the diagnostic program finds any serious faults in the memory you will see it display a memory dump of address’s in this section. This is similar to what is displayed on your screen when you encounter a blue screen of death.

You now have most everything you need to know about setting up and testing your memory with diagnostic programs. This guide should help you get to the source of any intermittent problems related to your memory.


Run memtest for at least 2 hours
If it starts showing any errors during that time then you will have to replace the memory
If there are no errors after 2 hours press Esc and that will end the tests
We will then try other options


If this does not fix the problem then a repair installation of XP will be needed.

Edited by rshaffer61, 08 July 2009 - 06:32 AM.

[amstuart]

Have you run the sfc/ scannow yet?

Please see Post #18 above. Yes, I ran the scan and there were no issues.
I will continue with your instructions but just wanted to report what you overlooked above.


Click HD diagnostic in my signature below. Choose the manufacturer of your hd. Download the tool. Running this will tell us if there is a problem with HD itself. If not then we will pursue other hardware or software possibilities




Let's check your memory and make sure there is no issue with it. Download memtest86 from the link in my signature below.


Get the file that is named Download - The one you want is "Download - Pre-compiled Bootable ISO (.zip). When it downloads, it will be labeled memtest86+2.11.iso.zip
Unzip the file once you download it. You should have a .iso file in the unzipped directory. It will look like a zip file in some cases but the file name will now be memtest86+2.11.iso

if you don't have a burning program that will burn .ISO files get burncdcc in my signature below.

NOTE...do not put a blank cd in until burncdcc opens the tray for you
1. Start BurnCDCC
2. Browse to the ISO file you want to burn on cd/dvd ....in this case its memtest86.iso
3. Select the ISO file
4. click on Start

Make sure the bios is set for the cd drive as the first boot device
Put the cd in the cd drive and then boot your computer.

Running the Diagnostic Program:

The basic diagnostic screen has five main sections of relevant information. Three at the top which are labeled, PASS %, TEST %, and TEST #. This will basically show you the total progress of the current test, the overall progress of the diagnostic test, and the test number is currently performing.

On the middle left hand side of the of the program interface there is a “Wall Time” section that will keep track of how long the diagnostic test has been running for. This just gives you an idea if you are not attending the testing process.

The main section to look for is the lower half of the screen which is usually blank. As long as the memory testing is going ok with no errors this section of the screen should remain blank. If the diagnostic program finds any serious faults in the memory you will see it display a memory dump of address’s in this section. This is similar to what is displayed on your screen when you encounter a blue screen of death.

You now have most everything you need to know about setting up and testing your memory with diagnostic programs. This guide should help you get to the source of any intermittent problems related to your memory.


Run memtest for at least 2 hours
If it starts showing any errors during that time then you will have to replace the memory
If there are no errors after 2 hours press Esc and that will end the tests
We will then try other options


If this does not fix the problem then a repair installation of XP will be needed.

[happyrock]

amstuart...please don't quote everything said...it only slows things down..

[rshaffer61]

I understand the VOB's is temp situation and that you will rectify this as soon as you can.
When did this issue start, before the VOB's were on the system or afterward's?

I understand how you might believe that the HD space has not been a issue before but as Happyrock pointed out the MFT can be corrupted at any time when the free space falls below 15%.
I do not intentionally want to lead you into thinking I am not paying attention to what you are telling me as I am taking steps to determine what exactly the problem is.
Now that the SFC is done and nothing was found then we can move on to the other hardware and programs.
The assistant is part of the OS system but I want to make sure the hardware itself is working correctly before we attempt a Repair Installation.
This is always the last step I suggest in any repair after I have exhausted all other suspected causes of any problem.

If after everything we have suggested and the problem still is happening then myself along with any other Tech Staff that is assisting can see no other cause but the MFT and HD space.

I hope this explains my intentions and course of action I am pursuing. Thank you for your patience and acceptance of the suggestions we are giving you.

[rshaffer61]

One other thing you can do is to turn off Indexing Services

To do this
Go to Start and then to My Computer
Right click on C Drive and then go to Properties
At the bottom of the Genral Window make sure the box next to
Allow Indexing Service to index this drive for fast search is not checked.
Click Apply and then OK

Let us know if this helps.

[amstuart]

Hi:

The above suggestions have not worked. "If this does not fix the problem then a repair installation of XP will be needed."

This I can do myself, but I am not keen on doing this.

Thank you for your time and assistance. I will do more reading and experimenting until I can (hopefully) fix this minor annoyance.

Please close this ticket as unresolved.

Adam

[rshaffer61]

What I would suggest you do is to Backup your Data Files.
For this I would suggest using a External Hard Drive Enclosure. This will allow you to keep your Important Data safe and Separated from the main system in case of problems. The cost for this kind of Backup System has come down a lot. I would suggest a 500 Gig capacity for your needs. Since you will only be Backing Up Data Files Only this should be sufficient to do that for you. Follow the next two links to see examples of the price you will be looking at.
• HERE
• HERE

I suggest going to Microsofts Backup Tutorial and follow the steps to do a Backup to a External Drive and also it will guide you on how to do a Scheduled Backup even at night.

Another way you can do a Backup is by using DVD’s. This method is just as effective and can be done using the same steps as above.


After the above is done then go on to the next step.



Repair Installation Instructions

· Insert your Windows XP CD in your CD-ROM and then Restart your computer.
· At the first post screen start tapping the Del key to enter System Bios
· Find the Advance Options or Boot Sequence screen.
· You will need to change the boot sequence so that the CDrom is first and the HD is second.
· Press F10 to Save and Exit and then press Enter to accept.
· The system will now reboot
· When the "Press any key to boot from CD" message is displayed on your screen, press a key to start your computer from the Windows XP CD.
· When you see the following message displayed on the Welcome to Setup screen, press ENTER
· To setup Windows XP now, press ENTER.
· At this point an option to press R to enter the Recovery Console is displayed. DO NOT SELECT THIS OPTION.

· On the Windows XP Licensing Agreement screen, press F8 to agree to the license agreement.
· Make sure that your current installation of Windows XP is selected and highlighted in the box, and then press the R key to repair Windows XP.
· Follow the instructions on the screen to complete Setup.


You can also go HERE
to read a step by step tutorial with screenshots.

[amstuart]

[quote name='rshaffer61' date='Jul 9 2009, 10:08 AM' post='1577797']
One other thing you can do is to turn off Indexing Services

I turned Indexing Services "OFF" in the Search Companion window (Change Preferences) and the Search function works once again. Does this tweak suggest a root cause of my issue?

Thank you.

Adam