System recovered from serious error 2

[piratefan]

Today, my system froze on me. Only happened once before. I hit the reset, but no error message appeared. Then later, the screen just "rolls" and it reboots on its own. When it came back up, the shortcuts would not work. Sort of frozen again. I did a shutdown and then when it rebooted, the error message that the system had recovered from a serious error. Now I have had 2 of these messages in the past.
Somebody had instructed me before to do this and I did. System...shutoff system restore. Reboot. Turn on system restore. Reboot.
Is there anything else I can do?
Thanks.

 

[parkc1]

Hey im probley in the wrong part to ask this question, but im 15 and i aint got a clue where to look, can you help i have a laptop and it is compleatly fluffed i was wondering if there is ne way i could get it back to its factory setting or so every thing goes like when i brought it. i have tryed this system restore thing but i never created ne slots so that dont work. PLEASE HELP

PS. Wot eva a vendor is im not one of them!!!

 

[parkc1]

Hey im probley in the wrong part to ask this question, but im 15 and i aint got a clue where to look, can you help i have a laptop and it is compleatly fluffed i was wondering if there is ne way i could get it back to its factory setting or so every thing goes like when i brought it. i have tryed this system restore thing but i never created ne slots so that dont work. PLEASE HELP

 

[piratefan]

1. Click Start.
2. Right-click My Computer.
3. Click Properties.
4. On the Advanced tab, in the Performance section, click Settings.
5. In the Virtual Memory section, click Change.
6. For Paging file size for selected drive, click No Paging File and then click Set.
7. Click Yes after the following warning appears:
Note: If the paging file on volume X: has an initial size of less than xx megabytes, then the system may not be able to create a debugging information file if a STOP error occurs. Continue anyway?
(X is the drive letter and xx is the amount of RAM installed on your computer minus 1 megabyte.)
8. Click System Managed Size.
9. Click OK four times, and then restart the computer when you are prompted.

I tried again. After clicking No Paging File and then Set, nothing happens. I then click System Managed Size. Which I believe is what was set prior to trying at all.
Sorry to be a pain with this.

 

[bcastner]

Now reboot the machine.

You have done all the steps correctly.

Reboot.

Report if the same error message returns.

 

[piratefan]

Thanks very much sir.

 

[linney]

Bill,

Again I am referring to a standalone computer without roaming profiles. Everything I read (including your links) uses the term "that the system pagefile is wiped clean when this system shuts down" there seems to be no mention of a removing, deleting (or rebuilding) of the paging file.

http://www.microsoft.com/technet/tr...technet/prodtechnol/winxppro/proddocs/567.asp

http://msdn.microsoft.com/library/default.asp?url=/library/en-us/gp/567.asp

http://www.winnetmag.com/Article/ArticleID/25095/25095.html

http://www.microsoft.com/technet/tr...prodtechnol/winxppro/reskit/prnb_efs_qyxz.asp

314834 - How to Clear the Windows Paging File at Shutdown

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;314834&FR=1&PA=1&SD=HSCH

http://www.petri.co.il/pagefile_optimization.htm

Where do you get the information that the paging file is removed or deleted if you use Group Policy to "clear" it on Shutdown and Rebuilt on Startup? It does just sound like it is zero filled to its current size?


The normal XP defragment report will show you if you need to defrag the paging file.

Pagefile fragmentation
Pagefile size = 768 MB
Total fragments = 1

If it was just deleting the Paging file at Shutdown then the delay would be minimal, but if it is writing zeros to the used part of the paging file the delay in shutting down would be longer. As it is a security concern one might be led to assume some sort of overwriting would be taking place to prevent reading of data by other means.

 

[linney]

parkc1 (Vendor),

Look for the big box labelled "Start A New Thread" at the bottom of the main XP Questions page. You will get a better response this way, also include details of your system in your post.

 

[bcastner]

darn you linney.

I am going to start a new thread, as pagefile issues are too often asked, and often ill answered.

I include myself in this goup.

I will begin with your quote above: "Everything I read (including your links) uses the term "that the system pagefile is wiped clean when this system shuts down" there seems to be no mention of a removing, deleting (or rebuilding) of the paging file."

 

[bcastner]

linney,

I am not going to start a new thread.
I wish I could.
I cannot.
The best answer I can give is that my posts earlier are a reasonable explanation of the process.

If you have the earlier versions of TwweakUI, and use that in conjuction with the sysinternals tools such as regmon or FileMon, you will notice key differences. What I clamined earlier is not wrong, as there is no "cleaning." The older TweakUI has it right; you also make a registry entry for the MRU service.

The current TweakUI essentially follows the Group Policy / Registry approach: the pagefile is rebuilt (not cleaned).

The real answer to your question requires some of the deep and dark sides of the MRU service, and I honestly cannot answer the question in a public Forum. If I could, I would show you the Shell processes involved. I suspect your reaction would be similar to mine: "Thats it? That is the big dark secret?"

To make the answer less mysterious, you should not in normal settings implement through the registry or Group Policy a clearing of the pagefile. See the earlier links for optomizing this aspect of Win2k or XP.

 

[linney]

Bill,

I don't doubt your reasonable explanations, I'd just like to have read it somewhere to satisfy my curiosity. I admire your expertise in supplying this explanation, off your own back, with the absence of any easily found technical articles.

I might just shovel it all off to Microsoft and see if they know anymore than what they say in their technical posts. By the time I get a reply, paging files will be a thing of the past and this thread (and site) long forgotten.

 

[bcastner]

linney,

The notion of using the filestore for virtual memory is out.

What you really want to do is to be able to control directly the cache and processor priority sides of the operating system.

XP tries more directly than previous OSs to be adaptive. Whistler was not the only OS model considered, and "Longhorn" seems more affirmatively to assert that the adaptive features are OS and not user configurable.

The notion of using the filestore for virtual memory is gone. RAM is as cheap, or cheaper, than hard disk space and a heckuva lot faster, and easier to configure.

But the future of the OS does not include user intervention in the cache or processor priority areas that I suspect you would like to play with. The adaptive sides of XP, using the MRU and idle cycles will, my guess, only be increased in the future. Less standard stick shift, more automatic transmission.

This is for "your own good." As the system will more be more aggressive in adapting core components automaticly.

That is why I suspect that your enquiries are unlikely to bear much fruit. What is done now is quite rough and relatively uncomplicated. If there is enough idle cyles, and enough room, the pagefile placement will be moved on the hard disk drive. Does the pagefile get moved often? No. Can you control it, sort of. But not with native tools, and there is likely little benefit from doing so if it is not fragmented.

 

[linney]

Hell, I'm not playing with "nuffin" just trying to understand and make sense of why on standalone machines (seemingly) boot times are not effected and shutdown times are only marginally effected (when paging file is set to be cleared).

Maybe it's like you indicate (the amount of RAM available).

 

[linney]

This is a reply from Microsoft to the Paging File discussion in "System recovered from serious error"
Thread779-694338



Thank you for contacting Microsoft Online Assisted Support. My name is Peter and I will be assisting you with your case.

"It is my understanding that the pagefile is overwritten with blank data on system shutdown. The file itself is not physically deleted although the information contained within is. Unfortunately I could not find any reference on either the Microsoft website or the internet but I did speak to one of my Technical Leads and he agrees. I hope this has sorted out any disputes you may be having.

If you require further assistance. I will stand by for your response."



Hardly fills you with confidence does it?

 

[piratefan]

I didn't do the defrag of the pagefile, but I guess I better give it a shot. Not lazy, just intimidated by this stuff.
I had the same thing happen last Monday. But since it normally doesn't happen again very soon, I figured I would let it ride by doing the system restore routine. But last night it happened again and when I rebooted, again. Then even a third time.
Now I did notice one thing. It was always accessing a program that seems to be large. And I normally have quite a few windows open all the time.
Can I ask this? My system has 512 meg of memory. Expandable to 2K. Can I have a memory problem or better yet how can I tell?
And last of all. When I bought the system, I just used an old Compaq monitor with it. Could I be having a conflict there of somekind?
Sorry to be a pain with this.

 

[piratefan]

This happened again this morning. I since finally did the pagefile defrag, at least I think so. It goes very quickly upon a reboot. By the way, you can have this done upon every boot. Is this a good idea? I sure hope this works because it's getting a little frightening on my end with the frequency increasing.
I am still wondering if my monitor is not able to "keep up" with this newere system.

 

[bcastner]

You can reduce pagefile defragmentation issues by assigning the Min and Max values for the pagefile to be the same.

. First set it to Zero for both Custom values, OK your way out.

. Then set it to an apporpriate identical MIN and MAX value.

 

[piratefan]

Thanks, I will try it. Hope this works. I feel like I am waiting for lightning to strike me.

 

[piratefan]

Not to show my ignorance too badly here, but I can't find the place to assign the Min and Max values. Thanks.

 

[bcastner]

right-click My Computer, Properties, Advanced, Performance (Settings), Advanced, Virtual memory, Change

 

[piratefan]

Any suggestion for the Min and Max values? Thanks.