[townie2]

hello everyone. i have been having a few strange problems lately and hope you can help, i don't know if they are all related or not.
Windows 7-32 bit, HP Compaq, 4GB RAM, 1 TB Hard Drive.
WinRAR files (7 out of 7 different files) all show corrupted files and won't open even though the senders verify they work properly. i updated WinRAR, and tried 7 Zip, still didn't work. Desktop Icons blink when i first open some programs to run (but my Desktop is nearly completely covered with icons). files that are (and show up on Computer as), say 1.6 GB, when i try to burn them will show up as, say 4.9 GB and won't burn (on a DVD 5). ConvertXToDVD says "out of memory", and Nero 9 shows 4 GB+ but starts to convert it but freezes up partway through. i noticed lately a few programs will freeze up occasionally, but put it off at the time as just a little quirk.
the things i tried are virus scans with Comodo Internet Security Pro 2012, and MalwareBytes, nothing (plus scanned the files before trying to burn), ran chkdsk, and Memtest_86 (8 passes), no problems there, and i have disabled on startup pretty well everything not crucial. maybe a registry problem? am i looking at a re-install?
Thank You for any advice.

townie

Edited by townie2, 21 November 2011 - 04:50 PM.

[Advertisements]

Sounds like you may have defective memory. Download Memtest86+ (you want the 2nd one Download - Pre-Compiled Bootable ISO (.zip)). Unzip it then create a CD from the iso file using your CD burning software. There is a good freeware burner called ImgBurn which will do this easily.

DO NOT burn the .iso file directly to CD. It must be used as input to a program that knows what to do with it, like the one I mentioned above.

Boot the CD and run for at least 3 complete passes unless it shows errors sooner than that.

[Ztruker]

Sounds like you may have defective memory. Download Memtest86+ (you want the 2nd one Download - Pre-Compiled Bootable ISO (.zip)). Unzip it then create a CD from the iso file using your CD burning software. There is a good freeware burner called ImgBurn which will do this easily.

DO NOT burn the .iso file directly to CD. It must be used as input to a program that knows what to do with it, like the one I mentioned above.

Boot the CD and run for at least 3 complete passes unless it shows errors sooner than that.

[townie2]

thanks for your reply Ztruker. i followed your advise before posting back (so i wouldn't have to double post). i ran Memtest86+ for just over 12 hours, 7 passes, no errors.

[Ztruker]

Some kind of malware is a possibility, but try this first:

How does it behave if you boot to Safe Mode with Networking? If better then something is starting at boot that is causing the problem.

Advanced startup options - XP
Advanced startup options - Vista
Advanced startup options - Windows 7

Use msconfig to determine what is causing the problem

These are good tutorials on using msconfig in XP, Vista or Windows 7:
How to use msconfig in Windows XP
How to use msconfig in Windows Vista
How to use msconfig in Windows 7

Click on Start then Run, type msconfig and press Enter.
Click on the Startup tab, record what is currently starting then click the Disable All button.
Reboot and see if it runs better.
If yes then use msconfig to enable several items at a time till you find the culprit.

If no, start msconfig and click on the Services tab.
Check the Hide All Microsoft Services box, record what is currently starting then click the Disable All button.
Again, do a regular boot, see if it runs normal.
If yes then use msconfig to enable services till you find the culprit.

Once you've found the culprit, uninstall it or find out how to eliminate it from your system. Simply disabling it in msconfig is a temporary fix at best.
Enable everything else you disabled.

[townie2]

well, this is certainly a weird one. in Safe Mode with Networking, the heavy use programs like Nero 9, CovertX,DVDsanta (all legit) etc. started faster and the Desktop Icons didn't blink. next a(after rebooting into normal start), i ran msconfig>Startup, and there were only 4 programs i had checked to run, 2 for my wireless mouse,1 for network indicator, and 1 for Comodo Antivirus Pro 2012. next i went to Services, and after hiding Microsoft Services, there were quite a few there so i disabled them all. the previous mentioned programs still loaded faster with no blinking icons (but my antivirus was going crazy with warnings of all the services trying to connect and run) but the weird thing is, all files i highlight, whether 700MB, 1GB, or 3GB, will show up as around 4.63GB in all burning programs when i know they aren't. both ConvertX and Nero 9 show a 700MB file as 4.7GB, so it can't be a fault/driver for one burning program when their all doing it. this just started in the last week or less, maybe i should see what happens with a system restore from a few weeks ago? Thanks for your patience Ztruker.

*PS i still haven't re-activated any of the Services (msconfig) except approx. 6 i know are safe that my antivirus prompted were trying to start.

[Ztruker]

System Restore is a good option to try for sure.

[townie2]

Thanks Ztruker, I'll give that a try