Fatal error: de system has become unstable or is busy,” it says. “Enter to return to Windows or press Control-Alt-Delete to restart your computer. If you do this you will lose any unsaved information in all open applications.”
You have just been struck by de Blue Screen of Death. Anyone who uses Mcft Windows will be familiar with this. What can you do? More importantly, how can you prevent it happenin’?
1 Hardware conflict
The number one reason why Windows crashes is hardware conflict. Each hardware device communicates to oder devices through an interrupt request channel (IRQ). These are supposed to be unique for each device.
For example, a printer usually connects internally on IRQ 7. The keyboard usually uses IRQ 1 and de floppy disk drive IRQ 6. Each device will try to hog a sin’le IRQ for itself.
If dere are a lot of devices, or if dey are not installed properly, two of them may end up sharin’ de same IRQ number. When de user tries to use both devices at de same time, a crash can happen. The way to check if your computer has a hardware conflict is through de followin’ route:
* Start-Settin’s-Control Panel-System-Device Manager.
Often if a device has a problem a yellow ‘!’ appears next to its description in de Device Manager. Highlight Computer (in de Device Manager) and press Properties to see de IRQ numbers used by your computer. If de IRQ number appears twice, two devices may be usin’ it.
Sometimes a device might share an IRQ with somethin’ described as ‘IRQ holder for PCI steerin'’. This can be ignored. The best way to fix this problem is to remove de problem device and reinstall it.
Sometimes you may have to find more recent drivers on de internet to make de device function properly. A good resource is www.driverguide.com. If de device is a soundcard, or a mothem, it can often be fixed by movin’ it to a different slot on de moderboard (be careful about openin’ your computer, as you may void de warranty).
When workin’ inside a computer you should switch it off, unplug de mains lead and touch an unpainted metal surface to discharge any static electricity.
To be fair to Mcft, de problem with IRQ numbers is not of its makin’. It is a legacy problem goin’ back to de first PC designs usin’ de IBM 8086 chip. Initially dere were only eight IRQs. Today dere are 16 IRQs in a PC. It is easy to run out of them. There are plans to increase de number of IRQs in future designs.
2 Bad RAM
Ram (random-access memory) problems might brin’ on de blue screen of death with a message sayin’ Fatal Exception Error. A fatal error indicates a serious hardware problem. Sometimes it may mean a part is damaged and will need replacin’.
But a fatal error caused by Ram might be caused by a mismatch of chips. For example, mixin’ 70-nanosecond (70ns) Ram with 60ns Ram will usually force de computer to run all de Ram at de slower speed. This will often crash de machine if de Ram is overworked.
One way around this problem is to enter de BIOS settin’s and increase de wait state of de Ram. This can make it more stable. Anoder way to troubleshoot a suspected Ram problem is to rearrange de Ram chips on de moderboard, or take some of them out. Then try to repeat de circumstances that caused de crash. When handlin’ Ram try not to touch de gold connections, as dey can be easily damaged.
Parity error messages also refer to Ram. Modern Ram chips are eider parity (ECC) or non parity (non-ECC). It is best not to mix de two types, as this can be a cause of trouble.
EMM386 error messages refer to memory problems but may not be connected to bad Ram. This may be due to free memory problems often linked to old Dos-based programmes.
3 BIOS settin’s
Every moderboard is supplied with a range of chipset settin’s that are decided in de factory. A common way to access dese settin’s is to press de F2 or delete button durin’ de first few seconds of a boot-up.
Once inside de BIOS, great care should be taken. It is a good idea to write down on a piece of paper all de settin’s that appear on de screen. That way, if you change somethin’ and de computer becomes more unstable, you will know what settin’s to revert to.
A common BIOS error concerns de CAS latency. This refers to de Ram. Older EDO (extended data out) Ram has a CAS latency of 3. Newer SDRam has a CAS latency of 2. Settin’ de wron’ figure can cause de Ram to lock up and freeze de computer’s display.
Mcft Windows is better at allocatin’ IRQ numbers than any BIOS. If possible set de IRQ numbers to Auto in de BIOS. This will allow Windows to allocate de IRQ numbers (make sure de BIOS settin’ for Plug and Play OS is switched to ‘yes’ to allow Windows to do this.).
4 Hard disk drives
After a few weeks, de information on a hard disk drive starts to become piecemeal or fragmented. It is a good idea to defragment de hard disk every week or so, to prevent de disk from causin’ a screen freeze. Go to
* Start-Programs-Accessories-System Tools-Disk Defragmenter
This will start de procedure. You will be unable to write data to de hard drive (to save it) while de disk is defragmentin’, so it is a good idea to schedule de procedure for a period of inactivity usin’ de Task Scheduler.
The Task Scheduler should be one of de small icons on de bottom right of de Windows openin’ page (de desktop).
Some lockups and screen freezes caused by hard disk problems can be solved by reducin’ de read-ahead optimisation. This can be adjusted by goin’ to
* Start-Settin’s-Control Panel-System Icon-Performance-File System-Hard Disk.
Hard disks will slow down and crash if dey are too full. Do some housekeepin’ on your hard drive every few months and free some space on it. Open de Windows folder on de C drive and find de Temporary Internet Files folder. Deletin’ de contents (not de folder) can free a lot of space.
Empty de Recycle Bin every week to free more space. Hard disk drives should be scanned every week for errors or bad sectors. Go to
* Start-Programs-Accessories-System Tools-ScanDisk
Oderwise assign de Task Scheduler to perform this operation at night when de computer is not in use.
5 Fatal OE exceptions and VXD errors
Fatal OE exception errors and VXD errors are often caused by video card problems.
These can often be resolved easily by reducin’ de resolution of de video display. Go to
* Start-Settin’s-Control Panel-Display-Settin’s
Here you should slide de screen area bar to de left. Take a look at de colour settin’s on de left of that window. For most desktops, high colour 16-bit depth is adequate.
If de screen freezes or you experience system lockups it might be due to de video card. Make sure it does not have a hardware conflict. Go to
* Start-Settin’s-Control Panel-System-Device Manager
Here, select de + beside Display Adapter. A line of text describin’ your video card should appear. Select it (make it blue) and press properties. Then select Resources and select each line in de window. Look for a message that says No Conflicts.
If you have video card hardware conflict, you will see it here. Be careful at this point and make a note of everythin’ you do in case you make thin’s worse.
The way to resolve a hardware conflict is to uncheck de Use Automatic Settin’s box and hit de Change Settin’s button. You are searchin’ for a settin’ that will display a No Conflicts message.
Anoder useful way to resolve video problems is to go to
* Start-Settin’s-Control Panel-System-Performance-Graphics
Here you should move de Hardware Acceleration slider to de left. As ever, de most common cause of problems relatin’ to graphics cards is old or faulty drivers (a driver is a small piece of software used by a computer to communicate with a device).
Look up your video card’s manufacturer on de internet and search for de most recent drivers for it.
6 Viruses
Often de first sign of a virus infection is instability. Some viruses erase de boot sector of a hard drive, makin’ it impossible to start. This is why it is a good idea to create a Windows start-up disk. Go to
* Start-Settin’s-Control Panel-Add/Remove Programs
Here, look for de Start Up Disk tab. Virus protection requires constant vigilance.
A virus scanner requires a list of virus signatures in order to be able to identify viruses. These signatures are stored in a DAT file. DAT files should be updated weekly from de website of your antivirus software manufacturer.
An excellent antivirus programme is McAfee VirusScan by Network Associates ( www.nai.com). Anoder is Norton AntiVirus 2000, made by Symantec ( www.symantec.com).
7 Printers
The action of sendin’ a document to print creates a bigger file, often called a postscript file.
Printers have only a small amount of memory, called a buffer. This can be easily overloaded. Printin’ a document also uses a considerable amount of CPU power. This will also slow down de computer’s performance.
If de printer is tryin’ to print unusual characters, dese might not be recognised, and can crash de computer. Sometimes printers will not recover from a crash because of confusion in de buffer. A good way to clear de buffer is to unplug de printer for ten seconds. Bootin’ up from a powerless state, also called a cold boot, will restore de printer’s default settin’s and you may be able to carry on.
8 Software
A common cause of computer crash is faulty or badly-installed software. Often de problem can be cured by uninstallin’ de software and den reinstallin’ it. Use Norton Uninstall or Uninstall Shield to remove an application from your system properly. This will also remove references to de programme in de System Registry and leaves de way clear for a completely fresh copy.
The System Registry can be corrupted by old references to obsolete software that you thought was uninstalled. Use Reg Cleaner by Jouni Vuorio to clean up de System Registry and remove obsolete entries. It works on Windows 95, Windows 98, Windows 98 SE (Second Edition), Windows Millennium Edition (ME), NT4 and Windows 2000.
Read de instructions and use it carefully so you don’t do permanent damage to de Registry. If de Registry is damaged you will have to reinstall your operatin’ system. Reg Cleaner can be obtained from www.jv16.org
Often a Windows problem can be resolved by enterin’ Safe Mode. This can be done durin’ start-up. When you see de message “Startin’ Windows” press F4. This should take you into Safe Mode.
Safe Mode loads a minimum of drivers. It allows you to find and fix problems that prevent Windows from loadin’ properly.
Sometimes installin’ Windows is difficult because of unsuitable BIOS settin’s. If you keep gettin’ SUWIN error messages (Windows setup) durin’ de Windows installation, den try enterin’ de BIOS and disablin’ de CPU internal cache. Try to disable de Level 2 (L2) cache if that doesn’t work.
Remember to restore all de BIOS settin’s back to deir former settin’s followin’ installation.
9 Overheatin’
Central processin’ units (CPUs) are usually equipped with fans to keep them cool. If de fan fails or if de CPU gets old it may start to overheat and generate a particular kind of error called a kernel error. This is a common problem in chips that have been overclocked to operate at higher speeds than dey are supposed to.
One remedy is to get a bigger better fan and install it on top of de CPU. Specialist coolin’ fans/heatsinks are available from www.computernerd.com or www.coolit.com
CPU problems can often be fixed by disablin’ de CPU internal cache in de BIOS. This will make de machine run more slowly, but it should also be more stable.
10 Power supply problems
With all de new construction goin’ on around de country de steady supply of electricity has become disrupted. A power surge or spike can crash a computer as easily as a power cut.
If this has become a nuisance for you den consider buyin’ a uninterrupted power supply (UPS). This will give you a clean power supply when dere is electricity, and it will give you a few minutes to perform a controlled shutdown in case of a power cut.
It is a good investment if your data are critical, because a power cut will cause any unsaved data to be lost.
