Dell Laptop Freezes Randomly in NORMAL mode

[bascotie]

Hi guys,

I'm working on a computer that is freezing up in normal mode. Freezes up kinda randomly (after 5 minutes or 15 or whatever).

When it freezes it'll display everything but nothing movies, just a picture of what was there last (cursor does not move).

I've tried:

• Removing malware
• Doing an extended hard drive diagnostic test
• Running chkdsk

Where would you guys go from here? I was thinking it might be a heat issue but then wouldn't it turn off completely?

[allisonsmith]

Dell laptops are facing these problems and I am facing the same with my laptop as well.You should resolve its heating issues and remove all the dust through any proper means.Also check for the memory upgrades.Hope so it will work better.

[JackBauer_24]

Do the fans speed up when and during when the system freezes? Clean all air vents with a can of compressed air. Leave the laptop elevated from couch and bed like surfaces. Go into bios and look into the voltage and temp readings.

[bascotie]

Originally Posted by JackBauer_24

Do the fans speed up when and during when the system freezes? Clean all air vents with a can of compressed air. Leave the laptop elevated from couch and bed like surfaces. Go into bios and look into the voltage and temp readings.

I think I can rule out overheating considering the computer has been on all night from a boot cd and it does fine in safe mode. Only happens in normal mode so I have a feeling it's an OS issue. Tried malware removal and chkdsk and I'm going to backup and reformat to try and save some time.

[spunk.funk]

I was thinking it might be a heat issue

Do as Jack said, and blow out all fans with a can of compressed air. Be sure there is ventilation to the bottom of the laptop.
If this only happens in Normal mode, then try a Clean Boot see if that works.

[bascotie]

Originally Posted by spunk.funk

Do as Jack said, and blow out all fans with a can of compressed air. Be sure there is ventilation to the bottom of the laptop.
If this only happens in Normal mode, then try a Clean Boot see if that works.

Installed Windows 7, no freezes yet. Took a couple hours or more to install SP1 but it's just restarting now :)