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Author Topic: losing passwords  (Read 1664 times)

Offline zack1234

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losing passwords
« on: May 18, 2012, 04:02:40 AM »
I have a AMD phenom X4 and 8gb of memory with a HD 6970 :)

Every now and then my PC will freeze up and i have to press the power button to restart it.

When I go into sites that have passwords they all need typing in again, any ideas whats the problem could be? :old:
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Offline guncrasher

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Re: losing passwords
« Reply #1 on: May 18, 2012, 04:08:14 AM »
cookies being deleted?


semp
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Offline Bizman

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Re: losing passwords
« Reply #2 on: May 18, 2012, 07:56:50 AM »
Internet Explorer resetting itself? Or any other browser... Or, even worse, your Windows profile gets corrupted causing the freeze and is rebuilt after a restart. The freeze may be a symptom of some components not getting enough power, so the motherboard capacitors and PSU (and its caps, but opening the PSU might be lethal if you don't know what you're doing!) would be the first to check, followed by a HDD diagnostic if they are intact.
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Offline zack1234

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Re: losing passwords
« Reply #3 on: May 18, 2012, 09:57:57 AM »
What would i be looking for a strange looking capacitor in the PSU?
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Offline Bizman

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Re: losing passwords
« Reply #4 on: May 18, 2012, 10:05:15 AM »


Source: Wikipedia/Capacitor plague

The example above is from an older PSU with lots of free space. Newer ones are more densely packed. Nevertheless, DON'T PUT YOUR FINGERS INSIDE A PSU!

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Offline gyrene81

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Re: losing passwords
« Reply #5 on: May 18, 2012, 10:08:49 AM »
he seems to think the lock ups are a result of a power issue Zack. don't open that power supply unless the warranty is expired.

have you run any diagnostics on your cpu, memory and video card? depending on when the lock ups are occurring, it could be a faulty memory chip, overheating cpu and/or video card, maybe even a driver (soundcard, graphics, motherboard, etc...).
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Offline Bizman

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Re: losing passwords
« Reply #6 on: May 18, 2012, 10:18:35 AM »
Last time I had a case of lock ups it was due to swollen motherboard capacitors. They take care of delivering and modifying power to all motherboard connected components and if there's insufficiency in supplying power, component tests may fail. That's why I prefer eliminating the most significant power issues before doing any other tests.
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Offline zack1234

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Re: losing passwords
« Reply #7 on: May 18, 2012, 10:19:59 AM »
So i would look for a fat looking capacitor?
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Offline Bizman

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Re: losing passwords
« Reply #8 on: May 18, 2012, 10:22:54 AM »
Quote from: zack1234 on May 18, 2012, 10:19:59 AM
So i would look for a fat looking capacitor?
Fat and leaking, yes. If your PSU is still under warranty, try to see inside it without opening it. A flashlight might be handy for that.
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Offline zack1234

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Re: losing passwords
« Reply #9 on: May 18, 2012, 10:39:34 AM »
pc is 4 years old :old:
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Offline gyrene81

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Re: losing passwords
« Reply #10 on: May 18, 2012, 11:21:12 AM »
 :headscratch:  i'm confused Bizman, a bad cap in the psu would have totally different symptoms than a bad cap on the mobo. why are you having him look at the psu instead of the mobo if you suspect a power regulation issue? i'm betting it's a heat issue due to the infrequency.

Zack, grab a copy of cpuid hardware monitor and techpowerup gpu-z. let them run while the system is idle for a while then under load while you're gaming.
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Offline Bizman

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Re: losing passwords
« Reply #11 on: May 18, 2012, 11:24:01 AM »
4 years is a long time in computer years. Hard disks start to fail after three years according to statistics. The lifespan of capacitors depends on quality and temperature: +10*C inside the case will halve their lifetime. Test champion PSU's can fail after a year due to cheap components...

On the other hand, I just met a man who used a laptop running its original Windows98. Numerous are also the totally faultless Compaq Deskpro's I've destroyed for recycling just because they were too old to sell. The biggest problem is, you can't tell the longevity of a computer before it is old.
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Offline Bizman

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Re: losing passwords
« Reply #12 on: May 18, 2012, 11:49:02 AM »
Gyrene, I've suggested looking for swollen caps first on the motherboard, then on the PSU. Oh, and BTW there's caps on the graphics card, too.

As you suppose, freezing often is a symptom of overheating but IMO that doesn't explain the loss of passwords. Overheating just slows the computer down to a lock up.

And a bad cap is always a bad cap. Inside a PSU caps among other components produce 5 and 12 volts DC from 240 volt AC. On the motherboard there are several current regulating circuits to make 1,65 or 3,3 volts etc. I'm not a trained electrician, but I've worked with malfunctioning computers for the last seven years and the strangest symptoms have most often been due to a failing mobo or PSU.

Yet another hint, now that overheating has been mentioned: Look for dust between fans and fins.
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Offline zack1234

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Re: losing passwords
« Reply #13 on: May 18, 2012, 12:00:38 PM »
Yes I agree 4 years is a old for a pc :old:

I might have a look at PSU and board you never know it might be obvious if i have look :salute
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Offline zack1234

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Re: losing passwords
« Reply #14 on: May 22, 2012, 01:42:26 AM »
My PC is now coming up with message USB's ports not being fast enough and lists 2.00 USB ports.

maybe  i do have a PSU issue :old:

Question is should I  bother buying a new PSU for a ageing PC :frown:
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There are no pies stored in this plane overnight

                          
The GFC
Pipz lived in the Wilderness near Ontario
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