Shortly after upgrading WordPress to 2.0.3, I had a number of entries I wanted to write, but first I decided to reload my main desktop computer because it was periodically freezing on me. I wasn’t able to leave it on during the day to download files or leave a scheduled job to run because I couldn’t rely on it staying stable. Thinking Windows was the problem, I reinstalled. Naturally, 21% into formatting the harddrive, the computer freezes. It appears that Windows was in fact not the culprit. This means it was a hardware issue. Man down.
The Gateway is currently on the operating table, guts exposed. I’m inclined to think the issue can be localized two one of two different areas, the power supply or the memory. Due to the odd nature of the freezing, its hard to say which. When it freezes, it just stops doing anything. You’re still looking at the screen, but you can’t move the mouse or type any commands in. No blue screen of death, no restarting on its own. I’m inclined to think that the machine may be overheating due to the temperature of my new room in the house we just moved into. If the RAM is to blame, that is an issue. I have RAMBUS RAM in there and thats pretty old by today’s standards and not as easy to come by. It would really be better to upgrade, but new RAM leads to new motherboard. New motherboard leads to new chip and new graphics card. The question is if this is practical. I’ve started rounding up specifications and prices on new hardware and it looks like its going to be expensive, but not out of reach. I’ve had my Gateway for about 5 years now and its been very strong right up until now. I have a certain level of urgency, though which is making me lean in the direction of the new hardware. I need a main computer ASAP and troubleshooting the Gateway will take time and might be costly.
So here’s what I’ve put together:
- Intel Pentium D 930 Presler 800MHz FSB LGA 775 Dual Core Processor Model BX80553930
- Intel BOXD945PSNLK Socket T (LGA 775) Intel 945P ATX Intel Motherboard
- ATI 100-437601 Radeon X1300PRO 256MB GDDR2 PCI Express x16 Video Card
- CORSAIR ValueSelect 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 533 (PC2 4200) Unbuffered Dual Channel Kit System Memory
- And the same case as my server, but in a different color
By getting a new case, I can also keep the Gateway on the side to work on and get back up and running as a subsidiary machine which is a promising aspect.
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