Re: Fresh install, plus personal files, still crashing.

On 2020-08-04 9:17 p.m., micky wrote:
> In alt.comp.os.windows-10, on Tue, 4 Aug 2020 18:21:12 -0500, Rene
> Lamontagne <[email protected]> wrote:
> 
>> On 2020-08-04 6:11 p.m., micky wrote:
>>> My previous thread is pretty far back so to recap, I had had 50+ BSODs
>>> with 5 or more different reasons given.
>>>
>>> I installed the May update over my current win10 and then downloaded a
>>> whole version and installed that over it.  No change.
>>>
>>> Debugging was hard because it sometimes crashes before it fully boots
>>> and sometimes within 30 seconds.   Worked fine in Safe Mode
>>>
>>> So I used that source of media, I forget t he name, and re-installed
>>> win10 keeping my personal files and nothing else, no installed programs
>>> other than what comes with win10 out of the box.
>>>
>>> Then I installed Firefox, nothing else.
>>>
>>> Guess what?  it still crashes with a BSOD. Sometimes before FF is
>>> started.  One reason was less than or equal and another was something
>>> else.
>>>
>>> I thought this should prevent crashes?
>>>
>>> Unless it's hardware.    I had run Memtest86 for 8 hours iirc before
>>> with no errors.  Last nght 17 hours with no errors, 7 full passes?
>>>
>>> What else could be the problem?
>>> Optiplex 755  Win10 Pro 8 Gig RAM    Originally with Vista or 7
>>> installed.  Does that matter?
>>>
>>> Should I try safe mode?   What is the point?
>>>
>>
>> How much  memory do you have? How many sticks?
> 
> 8 gigs.  Two iirc.
>>
>> try running one stick at a time in each used slot.
> 
> So is that 4 possibilities?

Yes 4 trials.

> 
>> If that still fails try a new power supply.
> 
> I have a bunch of power supplies that I took from full-size PC's but
> this PC is one size smaller, 12"x 12 or 13 x 3.5.  So they probably
> wont' fit, right?

Yes a regular ATX supply may not fit.

> 
> I see that ones that do fit are only  ..... not so cheap.   $44 on
> Amazon, $20.55 on ebay, ...less for refurbished, which in this case
> probably means just "used".  What can they refurbish?  They blow out the
> dust?

You do not want refurbished power supplies.

> 
> Any chance the connectors for those other power supplies I have will fit
> and I can just run with one of them (and the cover not on the case)
> until I see if it works better with a better PSU?   Then I'll buy a new
> one. .

The connectors on an ATX drive may or may not be compatible with your 
PC, Can't tell without knowing what brand and model of PC and 
motherboard you have.

> 
> But the advantage is that if there is a hardware problem, and not a
> software problem, I can use the disk clone I made just as the problem
> was starting, and I'll be back where I was.
>>
>> Rene
> 

   Another way to separate software and hardware problems without 
changing hardware is to download a Live Linux distro and install it on a 
DVD or Flash drive and see if it runs fine with that, Any distro will 
do, a Good small distro is Zenialpup 7.5 , If it crashes with that then 
it is probably hardware, If it runs consistently good then it is 
probably your Windows setup or other 3rd party software.
Do Not install the Linux distro to your hard drive, Run it from your DVD 
or flash drive.

Rene