Memtest86 crashes

[erfg1]

I have a laptop that has been locking up a great deal lately.

It usually only locks up when playing games like World of Warcraft, but not when the laptop is idle. Sometimes it doesnt freeze for a whole day. It seems very random.

I wanted to see if I could run a memory test to see if the ram is possibly bad.

I ran it with both sticks in. (2, 2 gig sticks) It crashes.

I ran it with just 1, it crashes. I tried it with the opposite stick, still crashes in mid test.

By crashes, I mean the computer shuts itself off in the middle of the testing.

The laptop is plugged in, and the battery charging light is on.

Why is that?

 

[GhislainG]

It most likely powers off because of a heat issue. Is the fan working properly? What's the ambient temperature in the room where the laptop is used?

 

[erfg1]

Temperature in the room is about 78 degrees. The laptop doesn't really get hot, my brother has the same one and his gets really really hot and never freezes or turns off. Strange that memtest would shut down after a very short lived test. Fans are all active and turning.

 

[gamerk316]

Heat, and possibly Power Supply, are the two most likely causes.