Member Avatar for spammer_stan

my pc keeps randomly freezing up, sometimes on startup but only when i have my USB ADSL modem pluged in, but thinking about it, it used to do that with a USB Bluetooth dongle as well. anyone got any ideas, ive tried a clean install of windows and drivers but no joy. only seems to freeze when its plugged in tho.
thanks for your time.
stan.

System info...

ecs elite mainboard (kzvza)
256mb RAM
1.2g amd athlon
geforce4 mx440 128mb ddr
20g hd

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  • Latest Post Latest Post by gn0m3

Dani AI

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Multiple different USB devices freezing the machine strongly suggests a problem at the USB-controller / firmware / power level rather than a single device driver. has already done a clean OS install and still sees the hang; and pointed toward updates, which is useful, but the next checks should focus on hardware and firmware isolation and basic diagnostics.

Common diagnostic sequence that proved useful in similar Win2K-era cases:

  1. Test the modem on another computer to confirm whether the device itself is fault-free.
  2. Use the rear motherboard USB ports (not front-panel or unpowered hubs) or a powered USB hub to rule out underpowered front connectors.
  3. Reset CMOS to defaults and toggle the BIOS USB setting labeled "USB Legacy Support" (try both enabled and disabled).
  4. Temporarily disable onboard USB in BIOS and insert a well-supported PCI USB controller (NEC/Renesas-based cards are commonly reliable for older systems) to see if the problem disappears.
  5. Enable kernel crash dumps and check the System event log around the freeze time for Plug and Play or USB-related errors; those entries help identify a driver or device name causing the hang.

Practical cautions and context: BIOS flashing can fix firmware bugs but carries risk; follow ECS vendor instructions exactly and back up settings. A failing PSU or a flaky motherboard USB host controller often causes symptoms that only appear when a USB device is attached — replacing the PSU or using a PCI USB card is a low-cost way to confirm that.

If the system becomes stable with the PCI card or on another PC, the onboard USB controller or the motherboard is the likely culprit and replacement or an RMA is reasonable. If logs point to a specific driver, capture a memory dump and analyze it with debugger tools for a definitive root cause.

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Member Avatar for Catweazle

Sounds like you would do well to check that all Windows updates are installed, and that any available updated drivers are downloaded and installed from the manufacturer website. In particular, ensure that all motherboard drivers are updated.

I'll move this to the relevent Windows section, by the way. It is not a 'dead machine', simply one with a Windows installation and configuration problem.

Member Avatar for gn0m3

Suggest you update your USB modem driver as well. I remember AOL used to send outdated driver CD's, every one i came accross needed the driver updated!

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