Barton 3000+ XP dead?

[blazin-asian]

ok, so i think my moms 3000+ XP is dead.

during xmas break i was able to install windows and run it fine, but once temps broke 55c, the pc would restart by itself. sometimes it would just be stuck in a reboot loop unless i turned off the pc for a bit.

now that im home for summer break, ive decided to give my moms pc another shot. im trying to install windows.

so i can boot up and the pc detects the CDROM, HD, and cpu fine. it formats the drive and installs the windows files fine. then when it restarts and goes to the next stage of windows xp install, i get the error:

Fatal Error:

An error has been encountered that prevents Setup from continuing.
One of the components that Windows needs to continue setup could not be installed

The parameter is incorrect

Press OK to view Setup log file

when i press OK, i see the following:

Error

Installation Failed: d:\i386\asms Error Message: The parameter is incorrect

ive swapped motherboard, cdrom, hd, and video and still get the same error. i know my mem is good because it passes memtest.

another person who was tinkering with the pc while i was gone was telling me that frequent restarts are a sign of a dying cpu.

what do you guys think?

[Kobalt]

You can't be sure that it's the CPU unless you swap another one out. What are the temps like? It shouldn't be getting to 55C at idle unless you overclocked it. We need some more information.

It could also be the power supply.

That error also looks like somethings wrong with the CD.

[blazin-asian]

it cant be the cd because i used it about 2 days ago to install xp on another machine.

[Nocturnal]

If I had to take a guess I'd say it's the memory. Try running Memtest on those sticks.

[blazin-asian]

i have run memtest already and it passes fine. shiet....i think i will just buy another cpu. this is so annoying. thanks everyone.

[krylon]

I would try another cd. If you can post and run memtest without issues, I would assume your CPU is fine to install Windows.

[wesleys_dad]

I would swap ram first ,even though it tests good thats not the end all to ram being totally good.this does not appear to me to be cpu related.i have been fooled by ram many times.swap out the ram and see.

[InSanCen]

Ditto on the RAM.

Most Installation issues are because of dodgy RAM.
Just stick 256MB of bog-standard stuff in there to install it, then you can test to your hearts content when you're installed

Also, back off any OC's you have...

[Driver]

You used the cd wit he same cable in the other sys?
Perhaps your IDEcable is faulty

[blazin-asian]

ok, well....i ran windows memtest on my memory and 1 stick gives me like 6 errors before 10% while the other one is fine. i let each run at least 400% just to be sure as well.

i think the windows install issue was the cd because i popped another cd in and it works. after windows was installed, i did a sp2004 blend test @ stock speeds with the only good stick of mem and it failed in about 5 minutes.

did blend test again with another 256mb of known good memory and it also failed.

underclocked the cpu from 2.1 GHz to 1.8 GHz and it passed about 1.5 hours of blend testing.

brought it back up to 2 GHz and its been going strong for the past hour now.

is this a heat issue or is the cpu dying?

[STEvil]

could be heat, psu, or even a cruddy motherboard.

[blazin-asian]

well, it passed about 16 hours of prime @ 100 MHz underclock so i think i may just leave it at that. is there a possibility that it might get worse? im positive i wont be able to RMA this CPU since i got it last summer.