Either big virus or small problem

[mwc547]

I've posted on here before about this but the advice I got didn't really work out for me so here it goes again. When I boot up my computer it frequently restarts and struggles to turn on, giving me boot options when it fails to start up. I get a serious error report that reports these:
C:\DOCUME~1\Family\LOCALS~1\Temp\WER7f76.dir00\Mini122908-06.dmp
C:\DOCUME~1\Family\LOCALS~1\Temp\WER7f76.dir00\sysdata.xml

but when I try to find them I can't locate them. (note I do have hidden files and folders turned on.)
Today I sprayed all the dust out of my desktop with compressed air (compy is a Compaq Presario SR1722X).

The main problem I am experiencing is that the computer will restart at random when I am on it. Mostly when I try and run Warcraft 3. I had a 1gb RAM card installed on it about 1 year ago and am running Windows XP service pack 2. I have done a factory restore and that didn't work either. I will run Hijackthis and post the log when needed.

[crunchie]

If you have done a factory restore and the problem remains, what makes you think this is a malware problem?
There is every chance this is an hardware problem. Maybe your cpu heatsink needs reseating? Maybe your graphics card is getting too hot?
Considering it does it whilst you are gaming, these are the things I would be looking at, as well as the memory.

[mwc547]

Thats what I was thinking when I blew the dust out this morning. Any good tips on how to check these things?

[crunchie]

A software program would be the first thing I would get so that the temps can be checked.
ATItool should be able to check the graphics card temps.
CoreTemp should be able to tell you the cpu temps.

Both should be under load when checking for highest temp.

[mwc547]

CoreTemp says "This is not an Intel "Core" Architecture based processor. This program will not continue." Even though I am running on a Intel Pentium 4 Inside.

I have ATItool running but I am baffled as to how to use it. If I hit load does that make sure the settings dont go above that?

[crunchie]

For ATItool you just need to open the 3D window. That should start driving up the temp. You could also try using the 'scan for artifacts.'
Surprised that your PIV is not supported. Motherboard Monitor should work.
http://majorgeeks.com/download.php?det=311

[mwc547]

Ok so I went to play WC3 again, and I had the ATItool minimized. I started to play and I could see it had maximized in the background and then the computer restarted. If it is a overheating graphics card, how do I go about fixing it?

Edit: I used ATItool to do a heatup and when it reached like 336.52 the computer turned off.

[crunchie]

336.52 what?

[mwc547]

336.52 on the core bar. it doesnt have units.

[crunchie]

Sounds like you tried to find the maximum core speed instead of doing what I said and scan for artifacts?
Scan for artifacts then watch the temperature to see how high it goes. What graphics card do you have? Most cards should be good for 90C and higher, although lower is always better. My 9800GT with the stock cooler ran in the mid 80's before I put a 3rd party cooler on it. It now runs mid 50's.

[mwc547]

It's less that I ignored what you said and more that I'm not that great without seeing pictures and reading tuts. I'll try out what you said but I just thought Id post that when I found the max and set it to lower than that its been working decently better today.

[crunchie]

So, what card do you have?

[mwc547]

I have a ATI Radeon Express 200

[crunchie]

Is that an on-board chipset, or an actual card that you insert into the PCI-e or AGP slot?

[mwc547]

I would assume its an on-board chipset because I bought the computer from CompUSA. It's not a custom job.

[crunchie]

In that case, if it is getting too hot, the only thing you can do is improve the air flow in your case.
Have you managed to get the cpu temperature yet?

[mwc547]

No I havnt really been messing with it because when setting the core to 330 everything has been running w/o restarting the computer

[crunchie]

No worries. Keep us updated.

[mwc547]

Ok so today I hit a snag, the computer has been running fine but today it has not. It refused to start up and frequently froze or restarted. When I did get it going it kept making me log in (something I never have to do) and then proceeded to load in low resolution with bad color settings.

[crunchie]

There is a good chance that your motherboard/onboard graphics is dying. Does your board have an agp or pci-e slot? Can you borrow a graphics card to try out?

[mwc547]

How can I check if I have those slots? I may be able to borrow a graphics card from a friend.

[crunchie]

You will need to take a look on the motherboard. Have uploaded a couple of shots. One on the left is AGP.

[mwc547]

I tried doing that scan for artifacts thing today, and the computer shut off maybe 15 minutes into it. Also I am borrowing a Nvidia graphics card from a friend. I have 3 PCI slots at the back of my computer but I don't know if they are PCI-e

[crunchie]

PCI-e slots are a lot longer than PCI or AGP slots.

[mwc547]

I think I might have a PCI-e slot. I have a big black slot that says PCI express above it, and it has nothing in it.

[crunchie]

Which type of card are you borrowing?

[mwc547]

Nvidia 7600gs

[crunchie]

PCI-e or AGP?

[mwc547]

I don't know. My friend hasn't given it to me yet, but I'll let you know as soon as I get it.

[mwc547]

Ok well I got the nvidia graphics card, and now my screen is all out of wack. It says I am running at 800x600 and everything is too large and well just too large. But it won't let me change my resolution.