HP Pavilion Computer Freezing Randomly

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Matthew-san

Matthew-san

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A friend of mine's computer keep freezing at random times and when it does a bunch of horizontal lines that are different colors shoot through the screen. The computer stays frozen until I manually shut it down. I have some theories on why this is happening but am not really sure what the actual problem is. Can anyone help me out?

I believe I know what the system specifications are but the weird thing is that the hardware labeled on the back of the desktop computer is different than what it says on the BIOS.

OS: Windows 7 Ultimate 32-bit
CPU: AMD Athlon X2 3250e Dual-Core 1.50 GHz

I am not sure about the RAM and HDD because the BIOS and the label on the back of the computer say differently. Also, I should point out that this an all-in-one desktop with a screen on it as well not a separate monitor. Thanks for any help!
 
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Start by doing a hard drive test, then a memory test. HP has a built in utility for this. Then if those both pass it is most likely your Power Supply going bad. I wouldn't put too much energy and time into this machine though.
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IamTimTech

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Start by doing a hard drive test, then a memory test. HP has a built in utility for this. Then if those both pass it is most likely your Power Supply going bad. I wouldn't put too much energy and time into this machine though.
 
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Matthew-san

Matthew-san

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I'm afraid the computer isn't even starting up anymore. I was checking some of the hardware specifications in the BIOS when the computer froze and since then I haven't been able to get the computer to boot. If I do get the PC to boot where would I find the HP hard drive and memory test utility?
 
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IamTimTech

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Since you are having troubles even getting it to post let us approach this from a different angle. I would recommend you unplug your HDD and DVD Rom from the motherboard. If you have access to a new PSU or memory that would be good to troubleshoot . See if you can get your machine to boot with no bootable media attached.
 
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Matthew-san

Matthew-san

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Okay, I'll give those suggestions a try. The only problem is that my friend is going back to school really soon and needs a computer ready and working. I told them I'd try and fix their computer for them if I could but if not then I'd sell a working desktop I have for a really cheap price since they can't afford a brand new computer from a store. They're coming by later today to pick up their old computer and if I don't have it working by then then they're just going to buy the other desktop off me. Computer building is my forte though and not repairs but I'll do my best.

I'm not quite sure how to get access to the HDD and DVD Rom because the components are all very compact, it's not anything like a desktop tower it's more like an over-sized laptop. I'll see what I can do though.
 
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IamTimTech

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Considering this is a perbuilt HP man, just sell him the one you have. This may seem vague and not the best solution but with the trouble you are going to put into troubleshooting this machine you will most likely be better off with a non prebuilt (especially if the new machine is NOT an hp)



All you need to do is disconnect the sata cable from the motherboard.
 
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Matthew-san

Matthew-san

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I removed the hard drive and DVD ROM. Is it safe to try and boot up the PC without the hard drive and DVD ROM installed? I only ask because I've never done this before so it's new territory for me.
 
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Matthew-san

Matthew-san

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The computer turned on this time and I actual got an image but every time I tried to enter the BIOS or give it any other command it would just say "Operating System Not Found." I assume that's because the hard drive containing the operating system wasn't installed. Does there need to be an operating system to enter the BIOS? I tried getting into the BIOS using 'delete' and 'F10" which usually works with other computers but it didn't work this time. Is there anything else I should try at this point?
 
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Matthew-san

Matthew-san

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Okay, thank you very much for your help so far. I just heard from my friend and they said they're going to buy the desktop off me and in the meantime I'll try and get a hard drive and OS for a decent price for the computer I'm working on. I have a feeling it'll cost me a pretty penny to buy a Windows 7 or 8 OS. Is it possible that I could use the Windows 7 code on the computer to re-install the OS or will I just have to buy a brand-new one? I'm pretty sure I have to have an actual disk and not just the code but I thought I'd check anyway.

One last question for now, after I've installed the new OS and hard drive would I be able to re-install the old hard drive and still access the data on it or would it be unusable?
 
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IamTimTech

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You don't need anything special to test with, any windows based OS would work. If you can find a product sticker on the side of the machine you can use it. Vista, 7 or 8 would all work for teting purposes. If you have the media but no key, you can borrow one of my OEM keys I have not used on a computer yet for testing, but when you are done I would need you to wipe that drive. PM me if you need it. Once you install the new hard drive it would be like an entirely new computer (in the eyes of that machine) and when you switch to the old hard drive it would be like the old computer.
 
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