I have an athlon XP cpu and recently my system has been crashing in the middle of playing games or running applications. It just totally freezes up and i have to restart.
I thought it could be a software or driver problem but when i run the SiSoft sandra set of benchmarks, the system always freezes at the same point- when doing the CPU multi-media benchmark.
Does this mean there is a problem with my CPU and i will need to get a new one or could it be a software problem?

I have never overclocked it and the temperatures and voltages all seem to be ok (although the cpu temp does sometimes go up to about 70C when the cpu is at 100% for a while.)

I would really appreciate any help with this as its very frustrating and i don't know what it could be,
thanks in advance

Forgot to mention that I have an Abit KR7A-raid motherboard with the latest bios,
1GB DDR RAM, Geforce 4 ti4600 graphics card and Windows XP PRO SP1

If its going about 70 deg C you are going to have stability problems you need to check your hsf maybe the fan is going out.

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( Quote )
Possession of a powerful computer is no substitute for a working brain.
A working brain is no substitute for possession of a powerful computer.

Thanks but the heatsink seems to be fitted ok. The temperature is normally under 60C and only goes to 70C when it has been running at 100% use for several minutes.

The crashes on the benchmark test occur even when the system has only been turned on a little while and the cpu temp is <60C which is why I don't think its a temperature problem. I haven't got a clue what it could be though or more importantly- how to solve it.

http://www.memtest86.com/' ">http://www.memtest86.com/
Could possibly be memory errors why not test it?

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( Quote )
Possession of a powerful computer is no substitute for a working brain.
A working brain is no substitute for possession of a powerful computer.

I tested the memory with that program (which took hours) and it didn't find any errors.
Im not sure what i could try next

The cold CPU temp of 60°c bothers me, Thats still pretty hot, and is more than likely whats causing your crashing. I'm sure SISSandra has given you a warnig about that. Try running sandra's performance tuneup and see if it doesn't say something about getting a high reading between the cpu and the hsf. My xp2200+ and my 1800 duron never exceed 45°c during sandra multimedia benchmark, and 3d mark. Sounds to me like you need some more cooling or some better heatsink compound. Have you tried it with your side cover off?

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