computer freezes randomly

[Matttaj69]

Hi there,

after a long reasearch, I cannot find a solution to my problem:

When I turn on my computer, nothing unusual happens, except, the BIOS screen stays there for longer than it used to (it is like 10 seconds now). When it turns on and I get into Windows (10 pro, 22H2) everything seems normal, everything functions as it should, the responsiveness is really good, everything I do feels snappy and without a problem. The actual problem occurs when I get into an application of some sort (various games, VS Code, Discord, even web browser and MS Office products sometimes), use it for half and hour or so and then try closing it, the whole computer freezes. At this point, I can still move my mouse around and hear sounds. No other animations can be seen and the hard drive LED indicator is lit constantly. From now on, every click of a mouse button means either a 5 minute long wait (I am not exaggerating), a BSOD or just a black screen. If I cannot turn my PC off normally, I have to kill it with the power supply switch but this is, unluckily, where another problem starts. After the computer is turned on right after it showed the freezing behaviour, I cannot get into Windows and the BIOS canont read my drives. I even get a messsage saying "An operatinig system wasn't found. Press Ctrl+Alt+Del to reboot". If i leave it off for a couple of minutes, sometimes hours, It boots normally into Windows and the whole circus starts again.

 

What has already been tried in an attempt of fixing it:

I re-installed Windows several times, no luck. I uninstalled some of the Windows updates, did not work. I stopped using some of the programs I used to use, to check if they were the cause, they were not. I have had ESET antivirus installed on all the windows installs I had tried, it did not find anything suspicious. I created a Registry backup, rolling it back did not help. I tried swapping the i7-2600 for an i5-2300, behaved the same. Regularly deleted temporary files, disabled almost all of my apps from firing at startup, checked every SATA cable conections, PSU connectors, tried different RAM slots, tried different types of cooling (even pointing a big old desk fan into an opened case), tried using the integrated graphics, nothing has changed. Still, the PC works to the point when I have an app opened for half an hour or whatever. 

 

One thing I did not try is to update the BIOS. I have never done it, so I hesitate a little bit, kinda scared to do so but if that is the only choice I have, I guess I will do it.

 

I already appreciate your willingness to read all of this. I am aware of the fact, that my computer is outdated and all. If I had the money, I would just go and buy a new one. My intention is to somehow and if possible, fix my current computer. Any possible solutions to fixing this problem would be helpful. 

Thanks

[tddk25]

If you're using a hard drive it could just be rly fragmented. Download Glary Utilities and use the disc defragement program to defragment the drive. You may need to boot off of and install it on another drive though.

[Milinko01]

If you open task manager and go to the performance tab you can monitor your HDD there if you notice really high usage even at idle it could be a sign that its on the way out entirely, you can order and SSD from amazon real cheap I usually go for the Kingston A400 in like a 240gb flavor and I run windows from there and just use the HDD as storage when upgrading older systems it makes a HUGE difference in usably and system responsiveness. 

 

https://www.amazon.com/Kingston-240GB-Solid-SA400S37-240G/dp/B01N5IB20Q/ref=sr_1_4?crid=HTA3XT0BP37O&keywords=ssd&qid=1675376783&sprefix=ss%2Caps%2C174&sr=8-4

[Matttaj69]

13 hours ago, Milinko01 said:

If you open task manager and go to the performance tab you can monitor your HDD there if you notice really high usage even at idle it could be a sign that its on the way out entirely

 

13 hours ago, tddk25 said:

If you're using a hard drive it could just be rly fragmented.

I am using a 512GB SATA SSD and also a 1TB mechanical HDD. I can try defragmenting the mechanical one or even not use it at all.

 

Also, S.M.A.R.T. is reporting through HWinfo this: Raw read error rate: 200/51, Worst: 200; Reallocated sector count: 200/140, Worst: 200.

I don't really understand those values fully, so would be nice if you could help me with that.

 

Thanks for the responses so far.

[tddk25]

How old is the hard drive?

[Matttaj69]

12 hours ago, tddk25 said:

I meant the values, but thanks anyway

 

12 hours ago, tddk25 said:

How old is the hard drive?

 

About 5 years old, it's a WD green 1TB 7200 rpm hard drive. It does not make any weird noises, the temps are fine and actually, I am writing this post on the computer I have been experiencing all of this. After defragmenting the drive, everything works fine. I hope it will stay this way.

Massive thanks to you.

 

 

[tddk25]

11 hours ago, Matttaj69 said:

About 5 years old, it's a WD green 1TB 7200 rpm hard drive. It does not make any weird noises, the temps are fine and actually, I am writing this post on the computer I have been experiencing all of this. After defragmenting the drive, everything works fine.

That's good. I hope it continues to run smoothly!