upgraded processor and hdd; cloned ide to sata and now getting random crashes

[zszoke]

Hi,

my problem is basically described in the title. i went from a P4 to a PD processor and added a SATA drive. I have two other HDD currently installed (both IDE.) here are some of my specs:

Mobo: Gigabyte 8vm800m 775
CPU: PD 2.67
HDD: 250GB Seagate SATA
IDE HDDs: a 120 seagate and a 160 wd
RAM: 2GB 533MHz
GPU: nvidia 7300gt
OS: XP Pro SP2
PSU: Ultra 500w

one ide drive is slave to cd/dvd and other is by itself. i put a jumper on the SATA drive to make it run at 1.5 because i think that is all my mobo can handle. the jumper looks bigger than it needs to be though; not sure if that is my problem. XP is seeing the SATA as an IDE but i have read several places that this is not a problem.

The computer crashes during games (sometimes immediately, other times I play for an hour or two) and when my wife runs Roxio Blackberry to put music on her phone. I want to avoid a fresh install of XP if possible. Thanks.

[Atomic Rooster]

How are the temps on that system? Check to see that the CPU and video card fans are clean and spinning properly.

You could also try updating the motherboard chipset drivers and video card drivers.

[zszoke]

Originally Posted by Atomic Rooster

How are the temps on that system? Check to see that the CPU and video card fans are clean and spinning properly.

You could also try updating the motherboard chipset drivers and video card drivers.

I don't have a temp monitor, but the fans are working fine. I didn't put any new paste on when i switched processors, but there seemed to be plenty left on the heat sink.

I'll try updating drivers and see what happens. If that isn't the prob, though, I won't know til it decides to crash, so if anyone has any other suggestions they are welcome.

[Atomic Rooster]

Originally Posted by zszoke

I didn't put any new paste on when i switched processors, but there seemed to be plenty left on the heat sink.

That may the cause of your problem.

It's always best to clean any old thermal paste off and then reapply new thermal paste whenever your remove the heatsink to avoid any problems.

[zszoke]

Originally Posted by Atomic Rooster

That may the cause of your problem.

It's always best to clean any old thermal paste off and then reapply new thermal paste whenever your remove the heatsink to avoid any problems.

Oh, does it not work as well after you break the connection? Or is it just because it might be dirty from sitting in there? The inside of my computer stays pretty clean, but I won't argue.

I did just finish updating drivers. One that was out-of-date was one for communication between cpu and gpu. I am thinking that this may have been the culprit. What do you think? The others seemed innocent. I'll try running it for awhile, and see what happens. If I crash again, the first thing I will do is clean off the old thermal paste and put new on. Do you think I should do this even if I don't have any more problems?

Thanks for the help so far!

[Atomic Rooster]

Yea, by removing the heatsink and then reinstalling it causes too many gaps in the coverage of the old paste and that may in turn cause higher temps. If your temps are within reason, I really wouldn't worry about applying new paste at this time. But if you remove the HSF in the future for any reason, be sure to clean and apply fresh thermal paste.

Here's a nice little program that will tell you your current temps: HWMonitor

Hopefully, your driver update may have done the trick. Let's see how it goes.

[zszoke]

Okay, I will post back again after I have gamed for awhile and my wife tries to do her phone stuff again. If it doesn't crash after all of that I will feel confident. Thanks again!