Lock ups on "save"

[iolair]

In the last day or two, when I try to save a file of any sort, my computer locks up for a few seconds. Sometimes it's severe enough to have to open task manager and kill the offending application. I've run scandisk and defrag and a full virus scan. No problems reported. Could this be a failing drive? It's only a year old now.

Iolair MacWalter
Network Engineer

 

[vacunita]

Download the Drive manufacturer's diagnostic utility, and run that on the drive, preferably from outside Windows.

Also what version of Windows is this?

Does it happen in safe mode? That is can you save files in safe mode o.k. or does it also freeze.



----------------------------------
Phil AKA Vacunita
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Ignorance is not necessarily Bliss, case in point:
Unknown has caused an Unknown Error on Unknown and must be shutdown to prevent damage to Unknown.

Behind the Web, Tips and Tricks for Web Development.

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[FredWagner]

Other specifics to check - how big is the file you're saving, does it happen on both large and small files, and how much free space is available on the drive. And can you save to a networked drive ?

Fred Wagner

 

[iolair]

It's either Western Digital or Seagate, I can't remember. I'm running Windows XP SP3 right now. It seems to happen more with smaller .jpgs, but other files as well. Usually small files, less than 50KB. Big files, no problem. I haven't tried it in safe mode, but I will test that tomorrow. Thanks for getting me started in the right direction.

Iolair MacWalter
Network Engineer

 

[FredWagner]

Iolair - Are the filenames very similar in the first sequence of characters ? That can cause odd issues if you try to save a new file where the first 15 or 20 characters are the same as the same part of a bunch of other files already on the system. If this is the case, put the common part of the filename in a foldername, and use shorter, more unique filenames.
Similar issue - how many files already in the folder ?
and how long is the path - string of foldernames - the folder where you're saving ? If you save to a short filename in a short foldername off the root of C:\ rather than under your profile, does the problem go away ?

Fred Wagner

 

[iolair]

Thanks. All good points. Yes, the filenames are similar. I use a code of sorts, and it's numeric, so the filenames are like 10233387.jpg and 10233388.jpg, so on. Not that many files in the folder yet. I once had a folder with over a hundred files and it bogged down, so I didn't do that again. The path is probably fairly long, because I'm saving to c:\documents and settings\my documents\my pictures\folder1, folder2, folder3, etc.

Iolair MacWalter
Network Engineer

 

[goombawaho]

IF there's no hardware problem, think about any disconnected/no longer existent network drives or printers.

I've seen that bog down the folder browse process before, though I kind of doubt it would affect the save process - easy and quick to check though.

 

[iolair]

I ran Seagate's diagnostics, and it passed all tests. I opened up the case and reseated the cables. I haven't had any trouble today, so maybe your suggestions solved my problem. Thanks to all who took the time to help.

Iolair MacWalter
Network Engineer

 

[iolair]

An update, for those that really want to know. I got some more lockups, and after checking with event viewer in Windows, I found that the message I've been getting was telling Windows that I had a bad drive cable between the drive and the controller. I replaced the cable, and all is well. In my 20+ years of computing, I've never, ever encountered a bad ATA cable before.

Iolair MacWalter
Network Engineer

 

[goombawaho]

In my 20+ years of computing, I've never, ever encountered a bad ATA cable before."

You're lucky, it happens and it's tough to diagnose. Thanks for updating.

 

[FredWagner]

Iolair - Glad the hardware is fixed. You might have better long term results if you stored the files in a folder closer to the root - long paths take longer to for the operating system process.
And many of us forget to check Event Viewer - thanks for reminding us of that hidden gem !

Fred Wagner

 

[kjv1611]

Wow, you found THAT in event viewer? I try to always remember and look there, but usually it'll just say something about the hard drive... I guess I've just never seen the event. Glad you got it fixed.

 

[BadBigBen]

I have seen a bad cable or two before (PATA or EIDE), but never ever the said EventID...

good catch...

Ben
"If it works don't fix it! If it doesn't use a sledgehammer..."
How to ask a question, when posting them to a professional forum.
Only ask questions with yes/no answers if you want "yes" or "no"

 

[iolair]

During diagnosing the problem, I looked at Event Viewer and then the "System" subcategory. When I found an error at the time I had a problem, I opened the item and saw:

The driver detected a controller error on \Device\Harddisk2\D.

Underneath that was this link:

http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/events.asp.

Which took me to a MS website that said the cable was bad. Maybe it was just dumb luck, I don't know, but I'm working now.

Iolair MacWalter
Network Engineer

 

[kjv1611]

That explains it - I was assuming the cable mention was directly in the device manager.