Cold Boot Issues

Morning All,

I am having a slight problem with my new build and im pretty certain that it was after a bios update but i cant role back my bios to the previous version

Here is my system

* Intel Core i7 920 D0 Stepping (SLBEJ) 2.66Ghz (Nehalem) (Socket LGA1366)
* Asus Rampage II Gene Intel X58 (Socket 1366) PCI-Express mATX DDR3 Motherboard
* XFX ATI Radeon HD 4890 1GB Crossfire
* Seagate Barracuda 7200.12 500GB SATA-II 16MB Cache
* Patriot Viper 6GB (3x2GB) DDR3 PC3-12800 (1600MHz) Low Latency Tri-Channel
* Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium SP1 64-Bit
*Corsair 850W TX powersupply

Every time the computer has been off for longer than a couple of hours (so essentially a cold boot) it freezes about 5 mins after it gets into windows. No BSOD or error messages just freezes. I can now power off or press the reset button then choose to start windows normally and it is fine, no freeze.

I thought it might be bios settings so I have set everything back to Auto with no change so I then thought it may be a driver issue so last night I did a full reinstall of windows on a clean disk but again this morning it froze.

I loaded my PC from a long shutdown and just left it in the bios screen to see if it would freeze while in there but it didn't. I left it in the bios screen for about 45mins then continues to load windows, after 5 mins of being in windows it froze.

Since it didn't freeze in the bios it suggests that it isnt power of temperature related.

I also ran memtest from a bootable USB for 5 hours with no errors so although this doesn't completely remove memory as a cause it doesn't condemn it.

I have bought a new Hard drive which i am going to install a new copy of windows on to eliminate the hard drive being the issue but I think that it is the motherboard.

What do you chaps recon???

Ohh and I have contacted ASUS and they are about as much help as a chocolate fireguard....

After a BIOS update you should clear the CMOS RAM. This may solve the problem, worth a try anyway.

Finding the cause of this is not very simple and can be quite time consuming. it looks like conflicting issue.

First of all update the Bios. Then down load the latest drivers for your Motherboard chipsets, Graphics card, sound card. Also download vista service Pack 2 http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us [...] 62148.aspx


Ensure there are no conflicts shown in Device Manager; if so, make sure you install the drivers for the conflicting devices.

if there are no conflicts in Device Manager, then i suggest removing and reinstalling your 3rd. party applications one at a time until you find out the one that makes the system hang. Sometimes, programs running at the background cause system instability.

If the problem persists, then, shut down the system; unplug the power cord, remove all non-basic components, connect the power cord back in and try to boot up the system.
If problem does not take place, try installing the other components one at the time until you find out which is the conflicting one.

If the problem continues, then, remove the RTC (Real Time Clock) battery and leave it out for 20 minutes. After this period of time, insert the battery back in and turn the system back on; if it displays POST messages, go into BIOS Setup Utility by pressing <F2> during the boot process.

Once in the BIOS setup utility, press <F9> to restore BIOS default settings.
Reset any customized BIOS settings.
Clear all DMI event logs, which are located in the Advanced/Event Log Configuration section of the BIOS Setup utility.
and Press <F10> to save the new settings and reboot the system.

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A program like www.memtest.org can be used to test the memory.

Test your HD with Sea Tools , it’s a comprehensive, easy-to-use diagnostic tool that helps you quickly determine the condition of the disc drive in your external hard drive. http://www.seagate.com/www/en-us/s [...] /seatools/

Use Intel® Desktop Boards to make sure the cpu fan is working properly and there‘s no over heating issues. The Thermal Specification for an Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-920 Processor (D0 stepping) is 67.9°C. http://www.intel.com/design/mother [...] /index.htm

Good Luck