memory problem

HI, i have a ram problem with one of my corrsair value 512mb dimms. everytime i click the finish button at the end of my driving theory test it has a memory read error and cant continue. for a strart its annoying because i cant see what i got wrong so i can get it right next time. but anyway back to the point now. my pc is making a lot of noise so tomorrow im gonna do clean out all the dust completely. could it be that the ram has come a bit lose or the computer is over heating a bit so it cant read the memory?
I would like to know so i can check it when i clean out my pc.
i want to do the easy things like checking the ram is in properly before even thinking about buying new ram.

thanks in advance
lodore

 

slight update, i did the cleanup of the dust and my pc is really quiet now.
but even after cleaning the dust of the ram chips it still has the memory problem with the driving theory test. i guess i must be unlucky and have a ram problem but i dont know on which ram chip.
lodore

 

What you will need to do is pull 1 stick of ram at a time to narrow it down. Normally DIMM one will always need to be populated. So it will require some shuffling of sticks to check both. Once you know which one it is you can check the Manufacturers web site to see what their return policy is. Kingstons for example is Lifetime.

 

the problem is due to f-secure using 100mb of ram i normaly use over 512mb of ram even not doing much.
update i have just posted a message on the corsair forums and i hope they can help me out.
some people still might be able to help me here thou.
lodore

 

Guess it is then up to you sense this seems to be a software issue and not hardware related.

 

no because thats not the program that has memory read errors.
driving theory test has the memory read errors.
i hope my dad orders kaspersky this weekend anyway.
lodore

 

To rule out hardware issues you can try this as well. -> http://www.memtest86.com/

 

I will try that if corsair ask me to.it might be its a bit out inside the pc, it looked ok but i didnt really check it that much.
lodore

 

Keep us posted. In the mean time some one else may jump in with an idea or 2.

 

Why do you need corsair to tell you to use Memtest ? just use it.

Here's the Official Corsair support forum if you need it http://www.houseofhelp.com/forums/index.php?

 

ram guy is helping me now.
he says they will replace it and i just need to follow the procedure
lodore

 

if you're in England, you can do practise theory tests online. THE QUESTIONS IN THE TEST ARE EXACTLY THE SAME AS THE ONLINE ONES

EDIT actually, maybe i was thinking of the questions on the disc, either way, have a look online to see if the questions are the same, you can get the answers that way.

 

thanks.
is there any links?
lodore

 

i think this is the site -
http://www.2pass.co.uk/35test.htm

just use all of the links on that page that apply to you.

 

thanks
lodore

 

I just had a blue screen. this is normaly because of spysweeper as other people have said once they got rid of spysweeper no more blue screens. but also it could be my bad memory. but im guessing a bit of both.
lodore

 

When you get popup messages talking about memory read/write errors, exceptions, and such, that's usually software issues. Hardware memory problems result in sudden reboots (without blue screening), entire system freezes, blue screens with errors about page fault in non-paged area or stop code 0x0000008E.

If I remember right you were talking about the room being warm and the computer running hot.. this can cause a lot of various problems as well, including memory issues, as it will cause errors in the hardware, whether memory, CPU, graphics card, or something else. Make sure your fans spin freely (turn the system off and give each fan a spin, it should rotate a few times freely.. if it goes just one rotation or less and then just stops, you'll want to replace the fan). Heat is a major killer of computer parts, you want to get rid of as much of it as possible. Try to get some software to check up on temperature readings from the motherboard, or just boot into the BIOS and look in the section for "hardware monitoring". Put the system in a cool place where it can expel hot air, if the temperatures are high then consider adding more fans and/or replacing the ones you have for ones that move more air.. there are some pretty powerful case fans out there that don't cost a lot. I just got a couple of THESE fans that force air out pretty darn well (52 CFM or so, times two fans) for about $6 each. Although they are noisy, they reduced the temperature in the case by over 5 degrees celsius. 120mm fans can typically move even more air, especially if you can find a particularly powerful one. You can also get fans that sit in an empty PCI slot, empty drive bays, ones that clip on to your memory or other parts of the case, and so on.

 

thanks Notok
ive got a fan that big in the back of my case but its been there for nearly two years and is covered in dust so im gonna try and clean most of the dust of it.

i can clean most of the fans but the power supply fan is hard to access and is covered in dust as well. any ideas of getting the dust out of the powersuppy fan?
lodore

 

If the case fan is old, make sure it spins freely. It may not be going as fast as it should. Fans are cheap, and are very definitely worth replacing if they're not performing as they should.

For the power supply it depends on where the fan is. I use a can of compressed air to blow air away from the fan while using a vacuum cleaner to grab the dust from the other end. So if the fan is on the back side, blow the air in through the back with the vacuum hose on the inside to collect the dust. As long as you're not blowing dust into the fan it should be OK, the vaccuum will help to prevent this as well as it will suck the dust away from the fan.. Of course you could also open up the power supply and use the air can. Of course you want to let it cool down all the way and avoid spraying the freon (or whatever they're using these days).