Issue with Dell Desktop Computer

[n2ize]

My father is having some trouble with his older Dell desktop computer (32 bit single core, 2.4 Ghz). On booting the machine I will frequentlly get this message...

"Memory Address line failure at (hexadecimal address) read (hex address) expects (hex address). Decreasing Available memory"

Often at this point it will just hang and do nothing.

Sometimes, if you try to reboot it several times it will display the above message twice and then it will boot. Other times it won't boot at all.

I suspect that it has something to do with RAM memory and I am running "memtest" right now. So far it's been running 3 hours and all tests have passed with no errors.

Any ideas ? Could this have to do with something other than faulty RAM ? One reason I wonder is because the graphics display is a bit funky. On the boot up screen I often see a bunch of small vertical lines that shouldn't be there. Also, on some screen the text displayed on screen will be screwed up. Could the memory error be referring to the graphics adapter ??

I told my Dad to be prepared to buy a new computer as this one may be on its dying days. But, if possible he would prefer not to have to spring for a computer just now. That's why i am trying to troubleshoot this one.

[ad4mg]

My father is having some trouble with his older Dell desktop computer (32 bit single core, 2.4 Ghz). On booting the machine I will frequentlly get this message...

"Memory Address line failure at (hexadecimal address) read (hex address) expects (hex address). Decreasing Available memory"

Often at this point it will just hang and do nothing.

Sometimes, if you try to reboot it several times it will display the above message twice and then it will boot. Other times it won't boot at all.

I suspect that it has something to do with RAM memory and I am running "memtest" right now. So far it's been running 3 hours and all tests have passed with no errors.

Any ideas ? Could this have to do with something other than faulty RAM ? One reason I wonder is because the graphics display is a bit funky. On the boot up screen I often see a bunch of small vertical lines that shouldn't be there. Also, on some screen the text displayed on screen will be screwed up. Could the memory error be referring to the graphics adapter ??

I told my Dad to be prepared to buy a new computer as this one may be on its dying days. But, if possible he would prefer not to have to spring for a computer just now. That's why i am trying to troubleshoot this one.

I've seen this on several Dell machines. Pull the RAM, blow all the dust off the RAM and out of the slots. Re-seat the RAM a few times, inserting and removing them gently. Put the RAM back in and boot the machine.

The computer I'm using right now is a Dell Dimension 8400 that had this problem. The fellow that owned it didn't have time to fool with it, so he gave it to me for the cost of recovering his data from the hard drive. I cleaned the case of all the dust, still had the issue. Pulled the RAM, cleaned them and the slots, and its been as good as new since.

This all assumes you don't have a bad strip of RAM. Do the cleaning thing first ... before you run the test. A poor connection to the RAM is going to cause the same errors during a test.

[W3WN]

What he said.

I've seen similar issues with some HP/Compaq's. Sometimes it's a bad/dirty connection on the memory boards, sometimes it's a bad chip on them. 90% of the time, cleaning and resetting fixes the issue.

[kf0rt]

What they said.

In addition, see if there isn't a place you can put the thing where it's off the floor (if it isn't already).

It's pretty rare for a memory stick to go bad in-place, but dust and poor air circulation can be a killer.

[n2ize]

It is up off the floor and has great circulation. I ran "memtest v 4.20 " on the memory and it is showing no errors. this is what is puzzling me. If it was a bad connection or a bad stick wouldn't the errors show up in memtest ?

[ad4mg]

It is up off the floor and has great circulation. I ran "memtest v 4.20 " on the memory and it is showing no errors. this is what is puzzling me. If it was a bad connection or a bad stick wouldn't the errors show up in memtest ?

Not if the connection issue is intermittent. If there is dust in the slots, on a humid day, they may conduct a very small current, enough to hose the logic. I just did a Dell that only acted up when it was humid. Airflow in the case had deposited a very fine layer of dust evenly on the RAM strip towards the front of the case. Apparently, when that dust soaked up a little humidity, the problem exhibited itself. On dry days, no issue at all.

You need to thoroughly clean the inside of the thing, anyway! Get the dust outta the heat sinks on the chips, and out of the fans for better air flow. Why not pull the RAM and any expansion cards and clean them and the slots as well?

Dell didn't manufacture the machine with it full of dust. That is not a normal operating condition of a computer... ;)

[KC2UGV]

Dell didn't manufacture the machine with it full of dust. That is not a normal operating condition of a computer... ;)

Well... I don't know about that....


lol

[KJ3N]

When we had 3 cats and a dog, dust was the least of our concerns. :lol:

[W3WN]

It is up off the floor and has great circulation. I ran "memtest v 4.20 " on the memory and it is showing no errors. this is what is puzzling me. If it was a bad connection or a bad stick wouldn't the errors show up in memtest ?Not neccesarily.

We had some HP/Compaq's in here for the IT department to test, prior to our settling on the current Dell Optiplex 760's. They flunked, in part because 2 of the machines would spontaneously reboot during the course of the day. MEMTEST and other diagnostics showed no problems. But when we swapped the memory out for other sticks, the problems went away... and now four interns have better machines than all the rest.

[n2ize]

Could be it. I tried cleaning the connections and re-seating the memory several times and no luck. Tonight it was so slow it was unusable. I have a decomissioned system that I think still works. Tomorrow I am going to swap the drives and sound card into that machine and see if I can get it to run. This way he'll at least be able to access his stuff and surf the web until he decides what new system he wants. He is thinking of maybe going for a laptop. If he does then I'll be the last system on the upper floor of the house running on the old hard wired Ethernet. Unless of course he decides to run the laptop on the wire.

[NQ6U]

http://i815.photobucket.com/albums/zz79/gyrogeerloose/how-to.jpg

[n2ize]

http://i815.photobucket.com/albums/zz79/gyrogeerloose/how-to.jpg

That's about the only thing that will work. I guess I'll be reefing that computer soon. Actually I have a few old decommissioned systems that are overdue to be reefed.

[n2ize]

http://i815.photobucket.com/albums/zz79/gyrogeerloose/how-to.jpg

I am afraid that the hammer is not yet an option. before this day is done I have to deliver either a verdict (new machine is needed, new part for old machine) or I have to munge together a working computer. Failure is not an option when dealing with your toughest customer and most demanding...the family.

The good part is that I know I can do almost anything with computers. Part of that stems from my strong mathematical background. Mathematicians tend to be expert at all aspects of computers. My three greatest passions in life are mathematics, computers and the violin. That's one reason when it comes to computers and fine classical music I affectionately refer to myself as a "bit fiddler"... Get it ?? I play the classical violin and I fiddle with the bits and bytes. :-D

[n2ize]

The above is not funny... I know. Anyway, here's the verdict. Time for a new computer. Now the graphics is not working and I'm getting all kinds of crazy errors and probems. For a 5 year old 32 bit single core machine (with hyperthreading) its not worth spending the time or money. A new desktop system will fit the bill.

[kf0rt]

Sometimes that's the best answer.

Does Dell adhere to ATX standards enough that you could get by with a mobo replacement? Never checked, but might save pops some dough - keep the power supply, case and hard drive. This stuff is reasonably inexpensive these days. I've got a "test" computer here that I use for offline tasks like testing Windoze 8 and scanning film (scanner is so old that the SCSI adapter is only supported under XP). Built the whole thing new for about $400 using Newegg parts a couple years ago. If all you need is a new mobo with memory and CPU, that shouldn't cost much.

[n2ize]

Sometimes that's the best answer.

Does Dell adhere to ATX standards enough that you could get by with a mobo replacement? Never checked, but might save pops some dough - keep the power supply, case and hard drive. This stuff is reasonably inexpensive these days. I've got a "test" computer here that I use for offline tasks like testing Windoze 8 and scanning film (scanner is so old that the SCSI adapter is only supported under XP). Built the whole thing new for about $400 using Newegg parts a couple years ago. If all you need is a new mobo with memory and CPU, that shouldn't cost much.

Good idea and along the lines of what I am considering. Not sure how close dell sticks with ATX standards but it is an older machine and looks like a standard ATX form MOBO would work. I already toild him, either I might be able to build upo the same box with a new MOBO or, since we have a MEI Microcenter only a mile or two away, we could probably pick up a barebones box... case + MOBO + Memory + processor(s) and alll the other stuff...hard drives, CD/DVD RW's etc. can be salvaged from the old box. Plus it would make my life easier and save me a lot of reconfig work.

He is going to probably go that route.

[KC2UGV]

With the dell stuff, their cases don't always accept standard ATX stuff, their mobos can always be moved to a new case. The newer mobos can generally be replaced, but there are some outliers.

[kf0rt]

With the dell stuff, their cases don't always accept standard ATX stuff, their mobos can always be moved to a new case. The newer mobos can generally be replaced, but there are some outliers.

Good to know. I'm "supporting" three older Dells now (two belong to my Dad - he's 86 and needs a LOT of hand-holding). One is still mine. The oldest of these is my (screw it, can't read the model from here - Dimension 8400?). They all still work, but I've never attempted a mobo swap. Dell does a lot of proprietary stuff, so not sure. Even a cheap case and PS will set you back a C-note these days, so the scrap has value if it can be used.

You can still build a decent "grandpa" box from Newegg for under 4 bills, but the hard drive prices still haven't come down a lot from the tsunami prices.

[kf0rt]

Good idea and along the lines of what I am considering. Not sure how close dell sticks with ATX standards but it is an older machine and looks like a standard ATX form MOBO would work. I already toild him, either I might be able to build upo the same box with a new MOBO or, since we have a MEI Microcenter only a mile or two away, we could probably pick up a barebones box... case + MOBO + Memory + processor(s) and alll the other stuff...hard drives, CD/DVD RW's etc. can be salvaged from the old box. Plus it would make my life easier and save me a lot of reconfig work.

He is going to probably go that route.

If you could get by with just a mobo replacement, you'd be money ahead. Salvage parts from the old machine. Hell, if it weren't for the form factor, you could go ITX.

I do the same stuff for my Dad. Gave up on "training" a long time ago and have been threatening to switch him to Linux just to get out of the virus crap (dunno where he visits, but...). He's using a 6-7 year old Dell now. Rebuilt basically from scratch (reformat, reinstall) less than a year ago and it's already having problems. All it's used for is web stuff and email. He has more problems in a month than I have in a year.

[n2ize]

If you could get by with just a mobo replacement, you'd be money ahead. Salvage parts from the old machine. Hell, if it weren't for the form factor, you could go ITX.

I do the same stuff for my Dad. Gave up on "training" a long time ago and have been threatening to switch him to Linux just to get out of the virus crap (dunno where he visits, but...). He's using a 6-7 year old Dell now. Rebuilt basically from scratch (reformat, reinstall) less than a year ago and it's already having problems. All it's used for is web stuff and email. He has more problems in a month than I have in a year.

I'm a bit ahead of a game there. I introduced both my Mom and Dad to Linux over a decade ago. They prefer using it to Windows. Saves me a lot of the virus, spyware, and malware headaches. Nice thing about it is they are not being forced to use Linux. All the machines are dual boot and they do use windows now and then but always go back to Linux because they prefer it.