failing cpu?

i recently replaced my motherboard and tried to install an OS on it. problem is....whether i try to install xp or 2000, during the setup (copying installation files) it often says that there was an error copying eg. something.dll (i cant remember the actual name), press enter to retry,esc-skip,f3-quit....it does this often with serveral files....(.dll,.swf,etc.)

both OS cds are known working fine as i tried them in differnt computers. it is not the cd/dvd drive...(i swapped cd drives)...all the other components RAM,HDD were working fine before i replaced the m/b.

however, im thinking that because the old m/b and current CPU are around 5yrs old that maybe the cpu might be coming to its last days too.
i was looking to get a new cpu, but when i can afford one.


..is this error a symptom of a dying CPU....ie.maybe not performing as well as it used to??

-Asrock P4VM800
-512MB DDR333
-60GB MAXTOR HDD

 

aPod, Follow PeteC's instruction and also you may want to recheck Your BIOS to see if your Hard Drive is setting in ULTRA DMA. You may not have That particular type of Hard Drive installed. (You may not have made any changes to your BIOS settings, But.....it doesn't hurt to check)

Been there Done that

 

The RAM is compatible. Each time i try to install, the error comes up at diff times ...for example, it might come up the first time at 30%, then after starting again 12%.....

I did manage to install 2000 now (after trying over and over)....although i would've preferred XP.
..oh well, i'll try to remove the last of the old thermal paste (if i find any)...although I'm not too sure how that affect it

 

After you get a good layer of thermal compound installed (the instructions for applying ArcticSilver 5 have all the details, www.arcticsilver.com), if you find you still have instability or want to try installing XP again, I suggest you get the Maxblast and Powermax utilities from the Maxtor website. The drive may have errors in the boot sector. Do a low-level (zero) format on it. Use Maxblast to partition and format the drive, but do not install EZbios (that could possibly be what is causing your current problems if was installed at some time in the past).

Matt

 

i removed any remaining old paste and reapplied the new.
after reseating the RAM i started installing again.
when i try to install i keep getteing the error ...\i386\asms parameter is incorrect

 

Have you tried a different IDE cable to your CD-ROM drive? I've had two go bad in the last year.

I'd create a Memtest86 boot floppy/CD and let it run for several hours to check your RAM.

Is there any way you can check to see if your hard drive isn't flaking out? Is it freshly formatted (full not quick)?

Gary

 

i swapped the IDE cables for both primary AND secondary....even used diff hdds and cd drives....
..no luck!!!


... an asrock p4vm800 is compatible with a PC3200 (400MHz) DDR Ram, right? both the m/b and ram are new....so i am starting to suspect the cpu....am i wrong?


....sometimes it BSODs when trying to install an OS too.

 

Is it brand name RAM or generic. Some motherboards are very fussy about RAM. Have you tried different RAM? You should be able to borrow some from just about any modern computer, just check that it is DDR (PC2100 or 2700 will run, but will just be slower). Some IBM machines I have will run just about any RAM, some equivalent Asus based computers won't run half of those. Even the major brand manufacturers have questionnaires on their website asking which type of RAM is compatible with the user's motherboard, they are not completely certain themselves.

CPU or motherboard, one won't run without the other so there is hardly any way to tell without swapping them. I wanted to test a motherboard recently. I contacted a local parts dealer and asked it I could get a CPU, but return it if it did not work. I was able to have it for 1 week then returned it because the motherboard was faulty (no skin of their nose, they just clean off the thermal compound and put it into one of the systems they are building). See what your motherboard/RAM supplier or local parts dealers say.

Matt

 

aPod, I may be wrong but........see my post #3, did you check your Bios as I suggested?

Somewhere in the Bios it lets you select the newer type of drives, Ultra DMA, again which you may not have.

This causes an NTFS System to "burp" on Installation, and yes I have had some PC's I worked on experience this condition. (New MB older HDD's)

 

i have checked the BIOS and found that:

Device :Hard Disk
Vendor :Maxtor 6Y060L0
Size :61.4GB
LBA Mode :Supported
Block Mode :16Sectors
PI0 Mode :4
Async DMA :Multiword DMA-2
Ultra DMA :Ultra DMA-6
S.M.A.R.T.:Supported


....32Bit Data Transfer [Enabled]


...hmmm...is that ok?

 

Yes, it is running in Ultra DMA mode 6.

Check the jumper configuration of the CD drive. If it is jumpered as CS (Cable Select), reset the jumper to either Master or Slave (in accordance with any drive on the cable). Me, I would set it to master on the secondary IDE controller cable.

Matt

 

aPod, Thanks for that Info.
The Maxtor 6Y060L0 is a Ultra ATA/133 7200RPM Hard Disk.

My past experience with a WD1200jb Ultra ATA/100 was that this would not let Win XP load with the BIOS set at ULTRA. Sorry, I do not know why......but, when I deselected the ULTRA selection in the BIOS Windows installation loaded normally.

Lastly: What type of Cable is being used? 40 Conductor or 80 Conductor?

 

im using 80 conductor...

...what is actually happening is that at the text-base portion of the installation i keep getting the message xxx.xxx has not been copied ( "xxx.xxx "....file varies everytime)...press enter to retry, F3 to quit and ESC to skip.......






im starting to suspect the m/b...even tho it is new.....

i have tried a diff cpu, diff ram, diff drives........
the BIOS settings have been left as default..
the xp cd is not corrupt as it works fine on a diff comp.

i noticed that the ASROCK p4VM800 m/b says Prescott 800MHz DDR 400 on the box and manual.

i have DDR400 RAM but it reads 333MHz in the BIOS....if i put it to 400MHz then there becomes problems.
i only have 2 P4 cpus (1x 2.0GHz and 1x 1.8GHz)................i dont know if they are "prescott" ........could that be the problem???

if any1 else has the same m/b could you let me know if the m/b works fine with a slower cpu?

 

aPod,
Thanks for the comeback.
BTW I had previously stated:

I failed to insert in that statement that this was with a 40 conductor cable installed, and when I realized that, I next installed the correct 80 conductor and it loaded fine, and I did change the BIOS settings to ULTRA DMA prior to reinstallation of XP.

I have no experience with this MB, but hopefully someone will help you with this problem, so hang in there.

 

...i came across this to try and solve the prob....

im in the process of getting my hands on a new p4 psu....

 

Here is the CPU Support list:
http://www.asrock.com/support/CPU_Support/show.asp?Model=P4VM800
I am not familar with P4's so you may have to do some investigation to see which core they are at Intel (Identify the chip by the model number, or if you can get into Windows use Everest or Sandra in my signature).

Here is the main webpage for you motherboard:
http://www.asrock.com/product/P4VM800.htm

Try changing the FSB to less than 333Mhz, that may give you enough stability to install Windows (Hi Rockster2U )

Matt