The Official PC building thread -3rd Edition

Russ,

So stop scratching your head and attempt one of the solutions we gave you.

mrk44's link sounds like an easy solution.

 

I just put together A new Comp [ASUS P5Q Premium W/Q9450]..Anyway when I went to load win xp, it stopped at the install screen [enter to install win, F3 to cancel] I could not get past this screen. But fortunately it let me install Vista Lite..Has anyone had this problem & if so how to correct it..Everything was set right in the CMOS
One other thing also NO SOUND

 

sytyguy,
I can't! I'm locked out in DOS, and it won't fully boot from anything. I've tried a bunch from the net as well. I can't even get to where I can use KillDisk! I tried Acronis and Seagates Disk manager too! Each time it asks for the Admin PW! There is no Admin PW at that basic level of DOS! There's only the password in the bios and that has no password set at all!

mrk44,
The first one I tried was the one you linked me from techTrax! The minute you press R for repair, it pops up a window and asks for the Admin PW! Virtually everything I've tried sooner or later dies at the request for an Admin PW. It has to be something in the boot sector of the HDD, or somehow in the bios, as it doesn't exist on any of the boot disks I've tried.

I went ahead and installed XP over it after I did a full format on the drive from the install. So far it's working fine! I'm going to see if I can get Killdisk to boot in the morning. If it does, I'll wipe it clean and start over! I just hope it works, because if it doesn't, I have no ideas from there. In over 20 years of messing with computers, I've never seen anything like this before!

Russ

 

rick5446,

Fortunately?? ROFLMAO!! My guess would be a problem with the CD! Normally it doesn't just stop when something goes wrong at install! You get a BSOD or at least an error message of some kind!

Best Regards,
Russ

 

theonejrs..I just can't see it being the disk, I went back as far as Win 98, Win ME, my XP installs fine on umpteen Comp. Is their another possibility to explore. Like I said Vista Mini installed just fine

 

I tried 3 different HDD

 

It was a virus/Trojan on the hard drive! I installed the drive on another computer as a slave and was able to find it get it removed from the drive. I talked to Kasperski, and gave them all the information. They were the ones that suggested trying it as a slave. It came from Russia according to Kasperski! I granted Kaspersky Labs, remote access to the computer on line as the file was written in Cyrillic Text, and I don't happen to have one of those keyboards lying around handy! LOL!! Once they removed the offending file, the drive worked fine and I could gain access with a boot disk. Once the drive was wiped clean, and XP-Pro installed, everything worked perfect! Good as new!

I want to thank everyone who tried to help me with this problem for their suggestions and links. I'm just glad it all works again.

Best Regards,
Russ

 

Slipped through the net eh? A little worrying...

 

That's one hell of a virus...

 

sammorris,

Not really! Everything worked after the file was removed. I blew the drive down more as a precaution than anything. The file didn't seem to be destructive to anything, more like a prank by some Pratt! I guess it was some sort of Trojan! Kasperski is pretty good but this was something new. They'll analyze in and add it to the updates! Just my customer's luck at that moment I guess!

We rarely ever get a virus here, and we've had none since installing a hardware firewall/router, and that was quite a while ago!

Best Regards,
Russ

 

which is you're best protection. hardware beats software every-time. Kaspersky is good i like Trend Micro PC-cillin a little better

 

ZoSoIV,

I guess it's just a matter of preference. I tried Trend and didn't much like it. I've been using AVG, since my Kaspersky's license expired in March. I had to resolve the internet slowdown it had! Very easy to do BTW! Just go to tools, Add-Ons and disable that part of it, (it's overkill) and it works fine. I don't need everything that I send out to be scanned, since I know I don't have any viruses to begin with! LOL!

I totally agree with you on the Hardware firewall. It does beat the software variety for security, all to hell!

Best Regards,
Russ

 

I used AVG7.5 up until recently when, like with you, it let a virus through that screwed around with my PC, again fairly harmless but annoying. I'm back to using ESET, far superior to AVG - I primarily like it because it doesn't have the 3 second double-click scan that AVG does. When you want to flick through mp3 files, having your media player hang for 3s every time you change a track so AVG can scan it is very tedious.

 

sammorris,

I had used 7.5 for customer builds, and it was OK. When my Kaspersky expired I used AVG 8.0 which was better except for the annoying delay every time you open a file. Thankfully, unlike the difficulty in disabling the delay problem with 7.5, the solution for dealing with it with 8.0 is quite simple. You just open your browser, click tools, click Add-ons, and just disable it! Takes all of 10 seconcs, and makes things much faster. Between 8.0 and a hardware firewall/Router, nothing has gorren through undetected yet! In my eyes it's as good as Kaspersky was, without all the annoying noises Kaspersky decided to put in their AV! I could have lived without the "Pig Squeal"! LOL!!

Best Regards,
Russ

 

I like ESET because it's a streamlined, simple interface, no noise, no giant update boxes, and the database is updated as often as three times a day. Only problem is it's not free, I'm going to need to pay for it soon.

 

Has anybody here used the raptor HDD's? Are they really as loud as they say the are?

 

Thanks for the ideas fellas.... I've been looking at another AV for some time now knowing that AVG was updating. I've heard some negatives about it but I think the settings that Russ gave us might be of some help.

NOW on to some building questions.

As you know I've been sitting on the fence for some time now and I think I've narrowed my selections down to these 3 mobos.

DFI X38/X48 mobos

DFI P45 mobo

Any ideas or users out there that would be willing to stake their rep on it please comment.

....gm

add: here's another DFI mobo but it's P35... ideas here too.. tia fellas....

 

I've had a 150GB one for almost 2 years now, and I never hear it unless I'm doing a backup or my AV is doing a scan, and even then it is not bad.

Of course, Sam is going to say different, but he has a 37Gb drive, so perhaps there is a difference between the two, or he has the most sensitive ears on this forum, J/K.

 

Greeny
leave the P35 board alone. it is the "LT" model. there has been many a problems with that board. a few bios problems,NB problems,and the cpu socket has had a connection problem..

the P45 one you linked to, they guy that built my dads first puter, he has had that one for 2 weeks now and has your E6850 on it and has it OC'd to 3.9ghz with the TRUE 120 @ idle his temps are 32c and load 49-51c (makes me think about shelling out the cash for a TRUE)
he says he can get 4.0ghz but hasnt tried yet. ive heard a few other people sya that board is a beast. kinda big bios to learn but a good one.