Hard drive not the issue, now video? [ Resolved? ]

[vinnywright]

Re: What is eating up space on my hard drive?

I read how to access the grub boot menu but do not remember off-hand.

IF legasy grub ....keep taping the esc key wile starting the box.

IF grub2 hold down the shift key wile starting the box.


VINNY

[rick001]

Re: What is eating up space on my hard drive?

I read how to access the grub boot menu but do not remember off-hand.

IF legasy grub ....keep taping the esc key wile starting the box.

IF grub2 hold down the shift key wile starting the box.


VINNY

Greetings Vinny,

I have but one question: Do I have control over whether the legacy GRUB or GRUB2 is on my system? I haven't a clue which one I have. I know that GRUB is the boot loader and that the word "grub" is an acronym for "(G)rand (R)epository of (U)nworn (B)oots. lol No, I'm just kidding. I do know that it is an acronym though.

Thanks Vinny!

Rick

[rick001]

Re: What is eating up space on my hard drive?

@ dibl

Greetings dibl,

Ok! I ran the Bit Fade Test last night, because it takes 3 hours to run, before going to sleep and the standard tests over night. Here's what I have found:

Upon the initial run yesterday, memtest-86 reported that there were 19 errors for the module in slot 0, test #7, Random Number Sequence. I inadvertently restarted the tests and after about 8 passes, no errors were reported.

The Bit Fade test reported 29,529 errors for the module in slot 0.

I ran the standard tests over night, running 14h 6m right now. No errors are reported.

I have a virtually unused pair of modules that I will install in a while, (I buy my DIMMs in matched pairs for dual channel purpose). I will mark the module, currently in slot 0, so that I know there is a potential problem with it. I had read, on the memtest-86 website, that just because errors are reported, it doesn't necessarily mean that the memory is bad. They can be errors that can be corrected with ECC enabled. Or something like that anyway. Or it can be an incompatibility issue such as not getting matched pairs. Or, as in my case several years ago, may work in one system and not in another. I believe, though, that since errors have been reported, I will just replace the modules with fresh ones.

And to think that this all started because I had determined my HD was going bad. Which, still, is not outside the realm of possibility. Let's see what replacing the memory modules will do.

Loosing memory bit data in Mid-West, U.S.A.

Rick

[dibl]

Re: What is eating up space on my hard drive?

Don't you just hate an intermittent error on hardware? :P

Yes, I would swap in a pair of new DIMMs. Make sure the slots are clean -- no fuzz allowed! I once RMA'd a motherboard, after swapping memory modules and still having failures, only to be embarrassed by the discovery that the problem was a bit of fuzz in the memory slot.

Then run memtest-86 again.

And never forget that dodgy power to the motherboard from the PSU can make all kinds of funny things happen .....

[rick001]

Re: What is eating up space on my hard drive?

Don't you just hate an intermittent error on hardware? :P

-[ snip ]-

Greetings dibl,

Yep, that's the truth!

Now, you ready for this? Here goes:

I put the "new" memory in and got address errors on one module, somewhere in the vicinity of 1, 250, 000 errors and counting! I shut it down and put the "old" memory back in. Oh crap! No video! Pulled the cover, checked connections and tried again. No video! So, I pulled the card and used the time honored trick of cleaning the golden fingers with a pencil eraser, cleaned out any dust and reinstalled it. Tried it again, no video!

Now I am in the process of doing a complete heart, lung, soul, brain, etc. transplant. I dug out a box with a newer MB, and 4 memory slots and will be building my "new" Linux PC. Wish me luck!

Rebuilding my PC in Mid-west, U.S.A.

Rick


ADDENDUM:
Well, I could be wrong about this, I have been known to be at least once in my life.

I believe I have narrowed the problem down to a, ahem, faulty PSU. I changed the MB, CPU, video card, added 1 gig of RAM for a total of 2 gig and still, I get no video. Since the video card is powered from the MB, I suspect that the section of the PSU that powers the MB is at fault.

Looks like I had better start shopping for a new PSU.

That still doesn't explain, fully, why I ended up with a HD that is 99.8% full!

Frustrated in the Mid-West, U.S.A.

Rick

[dibl]

Re: What is eating up space on my hard drive?

I believe I have narrowed the problem down to a, ahem, faulty PSU.

That still doesn't explain, fully, why I ended up with a HD that is 99.8% full!

It is always possible to have two problems at once, and to think they are related.

Sounds like it is on the road to getting better.

Happy Thanksgiving!

[rick001]

Re: What is eating up space on my hard drive?

-[ snip ]-

That still doesn't explain, fully, why I ended up with a HD that is 99.8% full!

It is always possible to have two problems at once, and to think they are related.

Sounds like it is on the road to getting better.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Greetings dible,

Happy belated Turkey Day to you!

I'm avoiding going ANYWHERE today! It IS Black Friday after all.

I believe I'll be going to Best Buy tomorrow for a new PSU.

The MB replacement is my ASUS P4S800D-X. I don't believe it is a 64 bit MB so I will have to install the 32 bit version of Kubuntu I have on CD. I'll be running memtest-86 first off to verify the DIMMs. I also have an ASUS P4P800 Deluxe MB. I believe there may be a problem with it though. I do remember having to replace a MB that died. I believe that is the one. Every other MB I have is from the 20th century and I would like to stay in this century, if you know what I mean. Both of those boards only support the old AGP video cards too.

I have an A-Open full tower PC I found that someone left outside the hangar I worked in when I lived in San Diego a few years ago. It has a multitude of drives in it. I was checking to see if the PSU could be used on my Linux box. It's only 300w so that's a no go. And the MB, believe it or not, is an ASUS P2 MB. Talk about 20th century! It has an old IDE HD, size unknown. I love the case, that thing is built solid, very heavy gage steel. Weighs a TON too!. It's not like the cheap paper thin aluminum boxes they make now-a-days. I doubt anyone makes cases like that anymore.

I just love taking things apart and putting them back together. That's one reason why I build my own PCs. That and the fact that the PC is built to MY specifications and I don't have to settle for someone else's.

I believe the integrated sound, on my WinXP Pro box has ceased functioning. I have a sound card in my "new" PSU-less box I can pull to remedy that. That MB has integrated sound too, but I don't care much about whether it has sound or not, it's basically for my science projects and there is no sound involved. Now I know why I save ALL my computer parts. I can swap bad for good when something goes wrong.

Well, I had better get going. Have a great rest of the holiday weekend, that is if you didn't have to work today.

Being nostalgic about my old computer parts in the Mid-West, U.S.A.

Rick

[rick001]

Re: What is eating up space on my hard drive?

-[ snip ]-

-[ snip ]-

It is always possible to have two problems at once, and to think they are related.

Sounds like it is on the road to getting better.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Greetings dibl,

This is starting to get me riled. My previous posts explains what I have done. To recap:

• Hard drive ended being 98.8% full
• Replaced HD with an an identical one known to work properly
• All went well for short time, then memory became an issue
• Memory worked satisfactorily, then no video
• Replaced MB, CPU and video card, all else the same. Same thing, no video
• Replaced PSU with a new one, 550w, same thing, no video
• Unplugged peripherals one at a time, no change
• Unplugged all but video, mouse and KB, still no change
• Starting to see weird stuff with WinXP Pro box

What can go faulty with a UPS? That is the last thing common to both PCs. Does power get drawn from the battery(ies) when UPS is under power, or is house power redirected past the battery(ies)? I'm not sure about that.

I just cannot think of anything else that can be cause my Linux box to not have video.

Frustrated in the Mid-West, U.S.A.

Rick

[dibl]

Re: What is eating up space on my hard drive?

What can go faulty with a UPS?

I personally just had the joy, about 3 weeks ago, of replacing the batteries in my old DRS-600 UPS. I'm pretty sure the crapped-out batteries were new in 2003. The DRS-600 is so old that it doesn't switch fast enough to keep a new computer up, but it is built like a battleship and at least it keeps the spikes and sags at bay. So, it can happen. Or possibly the switching circuit is going bad.

So, for testing purposes, plug your Linux box into the wall outlet, and let it run awhile. (Of course we're assuming a very stable circuit THERE, aren't we?). If the UPS is the bad boy, this will prove it.

I like the sound of your A-open full tower. You should gut it, and then you could put in a standard ATX motherboard (like with a new i7 CPU and 6GB of RAM on it) and a bigger PSU, like 650W, and a big SATA drive and you'd have something pretty good. Maybe need to add a fan or two at strategic points. I've been known to cut a new hole (violating the h*ll out of the FCC certification) in a case, and put an 80mm fan there to help get the heat out. But that one might have some internal places to move the air.

[rick001]

Re: What is eating up space on my hard drive?

-[ snip ]-

-[ snip ]-

So, for testing purposes, plug your Linux box into the wall outlet, and let it run awhile. (Of course we're assuming a very stable circuit THERE, aren't we?). If the UPS is the bad boy, this will prove it.

I like the sound of your A-open full tower. You should gut it, and then you could put in a standard ATX motherboard (like with a new i7 CPU and 6GB of RAM on it) and a bigger PSU, like 650W, and a big SATA drive and you'd have something pretty good. Maybe need to add a fan or two at strategic points. I've been known to cut a new hole (violating the h*ll out of the FCC certification) in a case, and put an 80mm fan there to help get the heat out. But that one might have some internal places to move the air.

Greetings dibl,



You are not going to believe this! I got that puppy RUNNING! I don't know for how long, but it does keep rebooting, such as when I had to reset the CMOS.

I hooked up all my peripherals and did a boat load of research on the Internet. I found a forum where a guy was having exactly the same problem I was. Every solution given, was already performed by yours truly. Guess I learned something about PC troubleshooting over the years. I could not find any definitive reason for the symptoms this PC was having.

I had read that one thing could be done was to clear the CMOS, so I did. Then I kept swapping out pairs of DIMMs until I put the originals back in, was expecting the same results, watched the screen and it went into the POST! WOOHOO!!!! I even went so far as to swap out my KVM switch last night, went from 4 port to 2 port. Hey it was just a thought.

I have memtest-86 running right now. It's about to finish its first pass... "Pass complete, no errors, press Esc to exit". I'm going to let it run for a bit, just to see what "may" show up.

I would love to test to see if the UPS is at fault or not, but... This old house did not come equipped with 3 prong outlets. I've been thinking about looking into whether I could change it over or not. I do have experience changing outlets, even with the power STILL ON! Haven't killed myself yet! There are 3 prong outlets elsewhere in the house, but not where these PCs are at.

I'd love to build an i7 screamer, but money's a bit tight. I could always just buy one piece at a time. Yeah, that would work. But, it will have to wait until I'm back to work next year. Work is quite slow this time of year, so I'm sitting at home for a few weeks. But, yeah! That A-Open case would be ideal, and yes, it has many spots to install fans. Since I have determined that the PSU wasn't, or at least doesn't appear to be, the problem, I can reinstall the 450w and use the 550w in the A-Open box. But then, a 650w may be better for the i7.

The Linux box has a factory hole in the top with a fan that I had to relocate so the new PSU would fit. So that hole is wide open right now. But then, there's a BIG gaping hole in the side, where the side panel has not been replaced yet.

I'll keep you posted on what transpires. Oh, by the way, I will need to re-install Kubuntu right?

Much happier now in the Mid-West, U.S.A.

Rick

[dibl]

Re: What is eating up space on my hard drive?

Oh, by the way, I will need to re-install Kubuntu right?

Good -- sounds very positive.

It strikes me that a tough midwesterner like yourself could figure a way to run a ground wire from the nearest real ground point in the house to where you need a 3-prong outlet for your 'puter, and get it done that way. Where there's a will, there's usually a way.

Yeah, let memtest run overnight -- you don't want to wonder about the RAM.

Then, since you never had a chance to do a lot of configuration ... yeah, I think a clean installation is the best way to start over with it.

[rick001]

Re: Hard drive not the issue, now video?

*** UPDATE *** UPDATE *** UPDATE ***
_________________________________________________

Since this MB/CPU are not 64 bit, I installed the 32 bit version of 9.10 All seems to be fine right now. I will leave the machine run (do a burn in) before I attempt anything really intensive like installing BOINC again. I have noticed one minor improvement: The boot/re-boot/shutdown times have decreased.

Thanks for the moral support and very helpful hints/tips/suggestions.

No more multiple PC withdrawals in the Mid-West, U.S.A.

Rick

[rick001]

Re: What is eating up space on my hard drive?

Oh, by the way, I will need to re-install Kubuntu right?

Good -- sounds very positive.

It strikes me that a tough midwesterner like yourself could figure a way to run a ground wire from the nearest real ground point in the house to where you need a 3-prong outlet for your 'puter, and get it done that way. Where there's a will, there's usually a way.

Yeah, let memtest run overnight -- you don't want to wonder about the RAM.

Then, since you never had a chance to do a lot of configuration ... yeah, I think a clean installation is the best way to start over with it.

Greetings dibl,

I let memtest-86 run about 2.5 hours and all was well. What I will do, before sleep time, is start running memtest again and let it run overnight.

Before I installed the 32 bit version, I ran PartedMagic and checked a few things, even ran a benchmark. Everything looks good so far.

Don't know what the problem was, I guess I just chased away some gremlin trying to take up residence in the box.

I'll keep you posted.

2 computers running Linux, again, in the Mid-West, U.S.A.

Rick

[dibl]

Re: What is eating up space on my hard drive?

Don't know what the problem was, I guess I just chased away some gremlin trying to take up residence in the box.

> I never liked a "mystery cure" -- it's hard to be confident with a "fix" you don't understand. But, I'll cross my fingers.

[rick001]

Re: What is eating up space on my hard drive?

-[ snip ]-

> I never liked a "mystery cure" -- it's hard to be confident with a "fix" you don't understand. But, I'll cross my fingers.

Greetings dibl,

Yeah, I have never been too keen on problems mysteriously fixing themselves either. But, I may have an explanation, if what I read on the Internet was valid. I have never heard of this until I read it yesterday.

Seems that the CMOS can be corrupted (settings over-written) by outside sources other than using the firmware setup program. I had read that viruses or even the OS have the possible ability to do this. I did clear my CMOS back to factory defaults just before I got the video back.

But! That still doesn't explain why I had the exact same problem on 2 completely different MB/CPU/video card configurations. One is 64 bit, the other 32 bit. One CPU is PGA while the other LGA, both have different size cache and different speeds. One video card is PCI-Express while the other AGP. The only things that were common to both setups was the KVM switch, which I did swap out, the case, the UPS, the "new" hard drive, the CD-ROM drive and the floppy drive. I pretty much ruled out all but the case and UPS. I really cannot see how the case would affect anything, unless there is some interaction I don't know about other than its function of packaging everything.

I'm thinking that if the UPS was at fault, I would have been having the same or similar problem with my Windoze box as well. The weird thing I alluded to yesterday, with regards to the Windoze box, cleared up long before I got the Linux box going again. It was just one of those things about Windoze.

Oh, I forgot about BOINC which has run on both of these MB/CPU/video card configurations...

I ran memtest over night and all is well, no errors reported. I pulled the CD and Esc-ed out of it and it booted right into Kubuntu. All I can do now is to keep an eye on it and watch for anything anomalous happening.

Dreaming about building a new box in the Mid-West, U.S.A.

Rick