[Pepper Jack]

i did the sfc or whatever and it quit without any errors, i was about to do the longer test but then i saw a reply to this thread and we kinda got engaged in conversation lol. should i try the chkdsk now? i did a chkdsk for the external last week and it claimed to fix some errors but i'm still getting the same problems. that was back when i thought that the problem was most likely the external, now i'm 99% sure it's something to do with windos explorer

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Yes do chkdsk for both main and external. If errors found on either drive rerun chkdsk on that drive till it doesn't find anything to fix.

[rshaffer61]

Yes do chkdsk for both main and external. If errors found on either drive rerun chkdsk on that drive till it doesn't find anything to fix.

[Pepper Jack]

ok i'll do that, last time it took like 12 hours or something just for the external, i went through the right click menu and went to tools and clicked "check disk now" i checked the box that said "scan for and attempt recovery of bad sectors" which is what i think made it take so long. should i do it through the same method again or do it through dos or however you stated in post 10? if i'm doing each drive twice each (provided there are errors on both) it could take a couple of days :s

[Pepper Jack]

just got yet another random BSOD while i was in the middle of watching a tv show, i'm really losing patience with this now

at least that blue screen view program has something to show now, i'll edit this posts with the results in a sec

EDIT:

==================================================
Dump File : 021910-27175-01.dmp
Crash Time : 19/02/2010 22:24:19
Bug Check String : MEMORY_MANAGEMENT
Bug Check Code : 0x0000001a
Parameter 1 : 0x00041284
Parameter 2 : 0x01c12001
Parameter 3 : 0x00000000
Parameter 4 : 0xc0802000
Caused By Driver : ntkrnlpa.exe
Caused By Address : ntkrnlpa.exe+dce10
File Description : NT Kernel & System
Product Name : Microsoft® Windows® Operating System
Company : Microsoft Corporation
File Version : 6.1.7600.16481 (win7_gdr.091207-1941)
Processor : 32-bit
Computer Name :
Full Path : C:\Windows\minidump\021910-27175-01.dmp
Processors Count : 2
Major Version : 15
Minor Version : 7600
==================================================

Edited by Pepper Jack, 19 February 2010 - 04:35 PM.

[rshaffer61]

we need to check the memory out.

If you have more than one RAM module installed, try starting computer with one RAM stick at a time.

NOTE Keep in mind, the manual check listed above is always superior to the software check, listed below. DO NOT proceed with memtest, if you can go with option A

B. If you have only one RAM stick installed...
...run memtest...

1. Download - Pre-Compiled Bootable ISO (.zip)
2. Unzip downloaded memtest86+-2.11.iso.zip file.
3. Inside, you'll find memtest86+-2.11.iso file.
4. Download, and install ImgBurn: http://www.imgburn.com/
5. Insert blank CD into your CD drive.
6. Open ImgBurn, and click on Write image file to disc
7. Click on Browse for a file... icon:



8. Locate memtest86+-2.11.iso file, and click Open button.
9. Click on ImgBurn green arrow to start burning bootable memtest86 CD:



10. Once the CD is created, boot from it, and memtest will automatically start to run. You may have to change the boot sequence in your BIOS to make it work right.

To change Boot Sequence in your BIOS
Reboot the system and at the first post screen (where it is counting up memory) start tapping the DEL button
This will enter you into the Bios\Cmos area.
Find the Advanced area and click Enter
Look for Boot Sequence or Boot Options and highlight that click Enter
Now highlight the first drive and follow the directions on the bottom of the screen on how to modify it and change it to CDrom.
Change the second drive to the C or Main Drive
Once that is done then click F10 to Save and Exit
You will prompted to enter Y to verify Save and Exit. Click Y and the system will now reboot with the new settings.


The running program will look something like this depending on the size and number of ram modules installed:




It's recommended to run 5-6 passes. Each pass contains very same 8 tests.

This will show the progress of the test. It can take a while. Be patient, or leave it running overnight.



The following image is the test results area:



The most important item here is the “errors” line. If you see ANY errors, even one, most likely, you have bad RAM.

[Pepper Jack]

i downloaded the memory test and will run it later while i sleep

what do you mean by "run 5-6 passes"? and how do i do this?

also will this just fix my blue screen problem? or the problem with explorer too?

Edited by Pepper Jack, 19 February 2010 - 07:42 PM.

[rshaffer61]

The program will continue to run till you stop it so if you let it run all night that will be fine. If it finds any problem you will know.
If it is a memory problem then it would mean replacing memory and yes it could be the cause of the issues you are having.

[Pepper Jack]

ok thanks very much, i'll let you know tomorrow how it goes

[rshaffer61]

[Pepper Jack]

6 passes, no errors

[rshaffer61]

Great then you have no memory problem.
We are now at the point of checking the OS itself.
We have two options which are Repair installation or Parallel installation
Repair will attempt to fix any missing or corrupted files in the OS and leaves your data safe.
Parralel installs a second windows OS on your system and you move the data over and you would have to reinstall most if not all your programs.
Either would need the OS installation disk to be performed.

Edited by rshaffer61, 20 February 2010 - 09:11 AM.

[Pepper Jack]

i think repair is the only option, i've had to reinstall windows lately and lose files/programs/customisations and i really don't wanna have to go through all that again

[rshaffer61]

You will have to Perform a Repair Installation For Vista...guide is here...
This will allow you to repair your Vista installation and keep all of your personal user account files, settings, and programs.

[Pepper Jack]

i switched to windows 7 earlier this year, my profile only says vista because i signed up to this account about a year ago over another problem that was distressing me (turns out that zone alarm was causing it all this time, when zonealarm got a new update the problem stopped)

[rshaffer61]

You will have to Perform a Repair Installation For Vista...guide is HERE
This will allow you to repair your Win 7 installation and keep all of your personal user account files, settings, and programs