Im running opensuse 11.2 on Linux 2.6.31.5-0.1 64Bit, KDE 4.3.1 with 4GB RAM, Intel duo core processor with Intel graphics card. I initially had opensuse 11.1, which i removed and installed 11.2. Initially everything ran smoothly and i updated the distro a couple of times.
Then came the problem, the system starts up fine but then after a few hours freezes, monitor powers off and it wont accept commands from the keyboard or mouse. Meanwhile the lights (caps lock, numeric and scroll) on the keyboard blink. The power light is still on and i can hear the hard disk turning…
I have to forcefully turn the power off and restart but can freeze again after random periods. Please help.
Ps: I do lengthy and demanding computations and its common for the PC to run for weeks without turning it off.
Tall Penguin wrote:
> Initially everything ran smoothly and i updated the distro a couple of times.
in the last two or three weeks there have been patched kernels
released…it might be that you are having problems with that new
kernel…i thought the latest patch would be out by now…maybe
someone watching closer than i am can tell you the status of that…
did you look in /var/log/messages and find any clues?
and, you know it could be a heat problem also…when was the last time
you cleaned out the cat hair, etc…
meanwhile:
> Meanwhile the lights (caps lock, numeric and scroll)
> on the keyboard blink.
this is most often associated with a kernel panic, which in turn is
very often due to bad/dying RAM…
> I have to forcefully turn the power off and restart but can freeze
> again after random periods. Please help.
random periods…hmmmm, that tends (in my mind) to decrease both temp
and the new kernel as the problem and increase the probability of it
being a RAM problem
i’d suggest you boot from 11.2 install media and run memtest, at the
very least over night…it takes a good bit of time to fully test 4GB…
> Ps: I do lengthy and demanding computations and its common for the PC
> to run for weeks without turning it off.
i assume the software doing the computing hasn’t been changed?
On 02/22/2010 11:26 AM, Tall Penguin wrote:
>
> Im running opensuse 11.2 on Linux 2.6.31.5-0.1 64Bit, KDE 4.3.1 with 4GB
> RAM, Intel duo core processor with Intel graphics card. I initially had
> opensuse 11.1, which i removed and installed 11.2. Initially everything
> ran smoothly and i updated the distro a couple of times.
>
> Then came the problem, the system starts up fine but then after a few
> hours freezes, monitor powers off and it wont accept commands from the
> keyboard or mouse. Meanwhile the lights (caps lock, numeric and scroll)
> on the keyboard blink. The power light is still on and i can hear the
> hard disk turning…
>
> I have to forcefully turn the power off and restart but can freeze
> again after random periods. Please help.
When the lights blink at a 1 Hz rate, you have had a kernel panic. When it takes
a variable amount of time to happen, it usually is a hardware failure. The first
thing to do is to test memory for an error. Boot the installation medium, select
the memtest option, and allow that to run for 24 hours. If that does not show a
problem, then reboot your system, and switch to the logging console
(ctrl+alt+f10). When the system fails, the traceback, etc. will be on the
screen. You will have to write it down, or photograph it. Post what is showing
on the screen. BTW, ctrl+alt+f7 will get you back to the GUI.
Thanks a lot for the replies. It might be a RAM issue, i needed to expand the RAM of that machine and put a total of 6GB. The capacity is 4GB and the redundant 2GB, (which i left there for safe storage really) might be causing me the pain. I’d be ****ed if thats the problem.
The computers get air-blown frequently, cant be dust. The software too is inhouse and we haven’t changed anything of late.
I will arrange downtime and do the memory test after removing the redundant RAM blocks. Then also the CTRL+ALT+F10 in case the problem persists.
suggest you dig out the motherboard documentation and make sure the
RAM meets requirements themselves and that they are installed
exactly as specified…for sure i’d put the ones you wanna “safe
store” in a couple of anti-static envelopes and then i don’t know
what, maybe tape to a nice spot inside the machine…but NOT stored in
a RAM slot (unless the board doc recommends that)…
i’m gonna GUESS if you make sure that 4GB meets specs and is
installed correctly you won’t need to run memtest, just put the box on
line and if i burps, then you can run the test…
@Global moderator: The mother board has 4 slots. I installed 2x2GB that I expected the system to use and then ‘stored’ 2x1GB in the free slots. Now I realise my system is as dumb as myself.
Thank you everyone for the help, i removed the 1GB RAM blocks more than 36 hours ago and the problem has not reoccurred. I also ran the memory test afterwards and I got a pass.
I hope I’m not speaking too soon…