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XP growing hair - need a barber - how to cut back msconfig-load-everything


glnz

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I'm a BIG fan of this forum's top-notch thread on the POS hack for keeping XP updated through the 24th century.  But, just the last week, my trusty old Dell Optiplex 755 XP machine (4GB RAM) is getting CRANKY.  A few BSODs. 

Various sweeps by Avast and MalwareBytes and last August's MRT don't show anything.  So I ran sfc /scannow, but I saw in Event Viewer that it couldn't check or replace a whole bunch of files.  So I re-ran sfc /scannow after setting msconfig to diagnostic mode.  Twice.  Then, when I returned msconfig to its typical combination of Selective Startup - Process SYSTEM.INI files + Process WIN.INI files + Use Original BOOT.INI, I had more problems.

So I am now rebooting with msconfig set to "Normal Startup - load all device drivers and services and run the dishwasher."

After a few reboots, I am really getting bored.  But I also ran a Boot Log reboot, and its list of drivers loaded is much longer than I remember.  Here it is (or look nearby - I uploaded it).  glnz's latest XP reboot ntbtlog 10-27-16.txt

What do you think?  What drivers (.SYS files) should I turn off, and how do I do that anyway?

PLEASE NOTE that my list of Services has stayed fairly slim.  The numerous services that I changed to Disable or Manual over the years have stayed that way.  (Thanks again to trusty old CodeStuff Starter.)  This is not a Services issue, as far as I can tell.  However, I'm a real estate lawyer, not a techy, so what do I know?

NOTE - Since last year, my hard drive has been a Seagate Momentus XT hybrid HD-SSD that we bought for a different computer in 2013 ±.  I think it's getting a bit skittish, and it might be a source of the BSODs.  However, it passes the Seagate SeaTools for Windows tests.  The Momentus XT is model no. ST95005620AS (500GB).

What do you think about my ntbtlog.txt file?

Edited by glnz
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Do the BSODs say what caused them?
Very often (but not always) they say which file (usually a driver) caused the crash.
Nirsoft's BlueScreenView will allow you to examine the BSODs and it often tells you what the faulting module was even if the initial blue screen didn't.
For even more information, install the Windows Debugger and that will extract information from the minidump file that should have been created, tell you exactly what modules were involved, and suggest a cause.
It's a bit hard to find a standalone version of that as it's part of the Windows SDK, but if you PM me I can help.
:)

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1 hour ago, Dibya said:

Please re install your os.

Dibya, you NEVER suggest someone to reinstall the OS, not before having tried ALL the tricks of the trade (+1), unless you are of the Microsoft support line or a MS MVP on the Microsoft board of course ;).

@glnz

With all due respect :) , as often happens you report vaguely a "too wide" issue.

WHICH (EXACT, SPECIFIC) BSOD STOP Error(s) did you have?

WHICH (EXACT. SPECIFIC) "bunch of files"?

WHAT makes you think that "turning off" any .sys file will change the situation? <- to clarify, IF the BSOD's STOP errors mention a specific .sys file, then MAYBE that specific .sys file is connected to the issue (or maybe not).

If the disk passes the Seagate test, most probably it is fine and not part of the issue.

About your NTboot.log, there is a whole load of third party files in it (that obviously have nothing to do with the POS updates).

Now, we could blindly suggest you to uninstall a given third party (and to that you will object "no, that cannot be it, I had it running since xxxx without problems" or "no I cannot do that, as I *need* that software") , but this thread will become very long and probably won't provide a real solution.

The alternative being that you stop fiddling with the system (you'll have to take a definite position, you EITHER consider yourself an "advanced enough" techie and then CAN fiddle with the system, OR you consider yourself a "normal real estate lawyer" and refrain from doing that :ph34r:) and - next time you get a BSOD, you post the SPECIFIC, EXACT information about THAT BSOD, and we will try to find out the cause of THAT one.

Once (hopefully) we'll find the cause of that one (and fix it), we'll see, if there are no more BSOD's, or, if there is a new one, we will tackle that one...

Unfortunately "magical" solutions (good for all) do not really exist (unless you consider  re-installing from scratch a solution) and problems need to be tackled one by one, it takes time, but usually they can be solved. :)

jaclaz
 

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OK - OK - I get it!  Jeez - talk about touchy!

The first of my two recent BSODs blamed aswsp.sys with a STOP 0x00000050.  That's an Avast file for its own software protection.

The second BSOD yesterday didn't blame any file at all, and I did not shoot a photo of it.  (I remember a lovely shade of blue and a lot of white letters that reminded me of clouds or soft, fluffy cotton.)

There was nothing useful in Event Viewer.  I suppose I could look for a minidump file and maybe attach it here?  (What's its exact file name, and where is it likely to be in XP?)

On one of my recent reboots the last 48 hours after starting to fiddle with msconfig, I saw that Avast was off, so I Repaired it.  I set msconfig to full "Normal" after that, and that's how it's been going since.  No BSODs since.

Yes, a bunch of .sys lines in the ntbtlog are from third party software I've installed over the last 30 years.  From your posts here, sounds like those .sys entries aren't so important.  

One service I shut off the last 24 hours after going to full Normal on msconfig was related to Aomei Backupper - its automatic scheduler, which I never set and never used.  So, even with all the .sys lines, after I'm completely booted up and have a coffee, I have 2.6± GB showing as available RAM (from 4GB installed), which is pretty good.

Well, let's see whether I get any more BSODs or freezes.

I forgot to say at the beginning -- Before I got these two BSODs, my PC has been freezing about once per day the past month or so, requiring a manual reboot.  Again, nothing interesting in Event Viewer.  (I frequently access this PC from my work office using TeamViewer - to check on private emails at home.  The past month or so, about once per day, this PC has shown in the TV list but then won't connect and then drops off the list.)  Well, now that I'm using Normal in msconfig, let's see if that continues as well.

Cheers!

Edited by glnz
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Well it may well be that Avast was the culprit, only time will tell.
The minidump files should be in C:\WINNT\Minidump if your system paths are standard.
The names include the dates they were generated.
Their contents won't tell you anything without the debugger.
:)

 

Edited by Dave-H
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1 hour ago, jaclaz said:

Dibya, you NEVER suggest someone to reinstall the OS, not before having tried ALL the tricks of the trade (+1), unless you are of the Microsoft support line or a MS MVP on the Microsoft board of course ;).

jaclaz

Haaaaaaaaaaaaaa! :D  That's classic!

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Besides software, keep in mind it may also be a hardware issue:
- CPU cooler may get clogged with dust preventing the fan from cooling it properly, or got displaced; blow off the dust, clean old thermal grease between CPU and cooler and replace with new one, attach cooler firmly to CPU.
- A failing power source unit may also lead to random BSODs. Get into BIOS, see if you have a voltage reporting item, check voltages there (depends on sensors) or check physically with a multimeter at the main power socket.
- Even if some proprietary software says the HDD is OK, it may not be. Try some advanced checking tool such as HDAT2, it may find some bad sectors (or hopefully not).
- RAM can also be at fault - blame it on cheap chinese materials or solar eruptions. Try a MemTest86+ scan on the RAM, you may be surprised. I have a 512MB SDRAM that errors out on only one test out of them all, enough to be unreliable.
- Open up the case, get good lighting inside and look for gonflated/leaking capacitors on the motherboard and on videocard; if any, take the unit to an electronics technician to recap it or replace the faulty board.
 

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Well, just in case, there is a setting that allows you to have the computer actually STOP on STOP errors, unlike the  "Autoreboot (before anyone has time to read the STOP ERROR. let alone take a note of it)" action that the good MS guys in their wisdom set as default in XP and later.

http://www.pctools.com/guides/registry/detail/229/


 

jaclaz
 

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28 minutes ago, Dave-H said:

Doesn't clearing the tick on "Automatically restart" in the Startup and Recovery section of the Advanced System Properties tab do that, or is this something different?
:unsure:


 

Naah, it's the same setting, the difference is that knowing directly the involved Registry key allows you to do it also when offline (let's say an unbootable system), by directly editing the Registry from a PE or another bootable instance of the OS.

BTW it can also be reached through F8 "advanced settings" when booting.

jaclaz

 

Edited by jaclaz
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Yes, it's the same thing - my toy just brings together a few settings in a single window, avoiding unnecessary fuss. ;)
It's just that less-knowledgeable people may not even make it to the System Control Panel so it's a convenient alternative for them. :)
Jaclaz does have a point with being able to do it offline by knowing the direct registry address though.

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