Member Avatar for fld2000

Hi,

I'm running Windows XP on a 2 year old Fujitsu laptop, Athlon processor, 512 MB RAM. When I have a Olitec USB Wireless Adapter connected the computer freezes randomly, sometimes a few minutes after startup, sometimes after hours of trouble-free run, frequently at night between 03:00 and 04:00. I have already tried the following:

- re-installed Windows and Adapter as the only connected device (so that I can use Windows Update), freeze after a few hours
- used Windows and not the provided software for setting up connection
- verified RAM (computer freezes with either of the two 256MB chips), a first run of Memtest showed an error in RAM, but subsequent runs found everything ok
- it is definitely not a heat problem
- I have run checkdisc, there is nothing in the event log, I have checked for spyware and viruses, XP is up to date
- I have new drivers for the video card (Radeon 9000), the graphic tablet and everything I could think of. Anyway the computer freezes when nothing is connected (excepted the adapter).

If anybody has any idea, please let me know. Thanks

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has covered the obvious steps (clean XP install, two different USB Wi‑Fi sticks, RAM and driver checks) and still gets full-system hangs only when a USB wireless dongle is attached. 's driver suspicion is reasonable and 's Event Viewer idea is a good start, but a hard hang often leaves no log entries. The checklist below prioritizes quick isolation first, then shows how to gather kernel-level evidence so the true cause can be identified.

  • Quick isolation: test each USB adapter on a different PC and boot the Fujitsu from a Linux live CD (Knoppix or similar) with the adapter attached. If the freeze moves with the dongle, the adapter is bad; if it only happens on the Fujitsu, the laptop USB subsystem or firmware is suspect.
  • Power and ports: try every physical USB port and a powered USB hub. Laptop ports can share controllers or power rails; a powered hub removes power-draw as a variable.
  • Firmware and chipset: install the latest chipset/USB-host drivers and BIOS from Fujitsu before deeper driver sleuthing—USB controller fixes often arrive there.
  • USB power settings: in Device Manager, for every "USB Root Hub" remove the check from "Allow the computer to turn off this device to save power" on the Power Management tab.
  • Time correlation: since hangs often occur between 03:00–04:00, check Scheduled Tasks and any nightly antivirus or update scans for correlation.

To capture the hang rather than guess: set Windows to write a kernel or complete memory dump (Control Panel -> System -> Advanced -> Startup and Recovery -> Settings -> Write debugging information -> Kernel memory dump) and ensure the pagefile on C: is at least as large as physical RAM. Use verifier.exe to stress third-party network/USB drivers (select non-Microsoft drivers); Driver Verifier often converts a silent hang into a dumpable BSOD—have recovery media ready and use verifier /reset from Safe Mode to disable it. Use Sysinternals Process Monitor/Process Explorer to log activity (filter and save to disk) and a USB enumeration tool to watch hub resets. For microsecond-precision capture, kernel debugging with WinDbg on a second PC (1394/serial) is required—this is advanced and usually done by a technician.

If the fault reproduces on another host or under Linux, the adapter hardware is at fault. If it only occurs on the Fujitsu under any OS, suspect the laptop’s USB controller/firmware or motherboard and consider professional hardware diagnosis or using a different form factor (PC Card/ExpressCard or internal Wi‑Fi) as a workaround. Back up critical data and have recovery media before running aggressive tests or BIOS updates.

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Member Avatar for billythehamster

Hi

It sounds to be like a problem with the Wireless Adapter most likely the driver. Have you checked for either a new driver from the manufacturers website or tried a different Wireless Adapter?

Member Avatar for fld2000

There are no newer drivers on the manufactorer's webpage. But it is definitely the adaptor or the driver that causes the problem. Without the adaptor the PC does not freeze, with the adaptor connected it may last a few hours but might as well freeze after only minutes. So I guess I'll have to buy a new adaptor but how can I be sure to really buy another one. I suppose that somewhere there is a factory that builds the electronics for one kind of adaptor and puts various plastic shells around them and they get sold under all kinds of brand names. What are my chances of simply buying the same adaptor over and over again?

Member Avatar for billythehamster

You will probably find that it is just that one adapter that has a fault or a bad batch, if there was a design fault then they wouldn't be allowed to keep making them.

I would buy a new adapter from a known manufacturer and you should be fie.

There are no newer drivers on the manufactorer's webpage. But it is definitely the adaptor or the driver that causes the problem. Without the adaptor the PC does not freeze, with the adaptor connected it may last a few hours but might as well freeze after only minutes. So I guess I'll have to buy a new adaptor but how can I be sure to really buy another one. I suppose that somewhere there is a factory that builds the electronics for one kind of adaptor and puts various plastic shells around them and they get sold under all kinds of brand names. What are my chances of simply buying the same adaptor over and over again?

Member Avatar for fld2000

Ok, I bought another adaptor, uninstalled the Olitec, installed the new one (Peabird WIFI 54 G), easy installation by the way, and it IS another device, other drivers, went online, after 1/2 hour computer freezes, bad mean hardware freeze.

Is there a way to somehow monitor what the pc does, anything that logs whatever happens, preferably also the last few microseconds before the feeze?

Member Avatar for DMR

Is there a way to somehow monitor what the pc does, anything that logs whatever happens, preferably also the last few microseconds before the feeze?

You may be able to find some clues in your System and Application log files, which can be reviewed with the Event Viewer utility in your Administrative Tools folder/Control Panel.

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