On 04/23/2013 12:06 PM, Joseph Areeda wrote:
>
> On 04/23/2013 11:44 AM, Joseph Areeda wrote:
>> Greetings,
>>
>> I'm having this strange behavior that I think is a hardware problem I
>> can't find.
>>
>> I can usually run for 4-8 hrs without a problem then all of a sudden I
>> get one of the following:
>>
>>   * System freezes, mouse and keyboard dead, sshd unresponsive sometimes
>>   * if the keyboard is alive going to an open terminal I get one of
>>     the following errors about equally probable:
>>       o input out put error
>>       o too many files open
>>       o bus error
>>       o may be others that haven't happened for a while
>>
>> I've run memtest for 10 hrs, no problem.  Fsck shows now problem, disk
>> utility show those with SMART are all fine.
>>
>> I have now found any particular program or operation that causes the
>> failure.
>>
>> Any suggestions on how to find the cause.
>>
>> I'm just about ready to sacrifice a small animal as soon as I find the
>> old gypsy woman who reads the entrails and tells me which part to replace.
>>
>> Thanks,
>> Joe
>>
> Sorry about the typos in my first message.  I wanted to add that
> Einstein at Home runs both CPU and GPU jobs and they validate, so those
> parts don't have any hard failures.
>
> And lm sensors show temperatures in the 30-50 °C range depending on
> what's running.
>
> And the system has been running well for over a year so I don't think
> it's a build problem.
>
> I'm looking for any way to test more.
>
> Joe


Hi Joe,

Don't worry about the typos.  Just wait until you read my stuff!
I went to publik skol and my degree is in engineering anyway.

Figure out if the problem is hardware of software.  Download 32
bit or 64 bit Live CD and run it to see it it crashes.  Make
sure you match what bit version you are using: 32 bit and 64
bit use some different parts on your motherboard.

I like this LiveCD spin: http://spins.fedoraproject.org/xfce/#downloads


Some things to think about:

There was a problem with Firefox 20.0.0 where when started
from a link on Thunderbird everything would freeze (ff 20.0.1
fixed it).  But this did not take time to occur, just a mouse
click.  (I "might" have said a bad word or two.)

Your video card may be overheating.  Check your video
card fan to make sure it is spinning freely.  Give it a
spin with your finger.  You should feel no grinding and
when it stops, it should give a bobble (it will bobble back
and forth between the poles).  Power up only long
enough to start your video fan, then power down.  It should
spin a little while after cutting power and you should
see the final bobble.

It could also be your power supply going dead.  They slowly
degrade, especially the el-cheap-o OEM units.  But, when
power supplies degrade they usually have a bad time
starting.  The capacitors on your motherboard will cause
a power on surge which will trip off a degrading
power supply.  If you can get your unit to start
by pumping your power switch, this is the problem.

And, your fan could be going out on your power supply.
That would be a time issue.  Do the same tests on
your power supply fan as on your video card.

If you replace your power supply, replace it with a good one,
such as PC Power and Cooling.  They rate their units at
operating temperature (70C), not 25C like everyone else.
You will never have to replace a power supply again.
They also weigh twice as much, while means decent
heat sinks were used.

And finally, you could try accusing your computer's
parents of not being married.  It doesn't help much,
be it feels better.

Let us know,
-T