New Dell Vostro 1710 gives blue screen (BSOD)

(This problem is solved, the cause is Norton Ghost 9.0, see my last replay)

November 2008 I bought a Dell Vostro 1710 because I needed a Windows XP notebook with a matte 17 inch screen. Only Dell and HP have such notebooks. The Dell Vostro 1710 is exactly what I need. But I got blue screens (BSOD). It happens complete randomly, sometimes after 1 hour, sometimes after 10 days. Dell’s solution was that I had to reinstall Windows XP and the drivers, which cost me three hours work. After some days the blue screen appears again. Than I had to install Windows update, and new drivers from internet. Two hours work. No result. Than I had to remove the memory modules one by one and test again. No result. Each time I used the Vostro for one or two days before the blue screen appears again. Then Dell replaced the complete motherboard. After some days the blue screen appears again. Then I had to reinstall Windows XP and the drivers again, no result. Three hours work. This al together cost me many days of work. Then I received another new Vostro 1710. I used it without problems for 10 days. Than the blue screen appears again. So there are already 6 weeks gone but I don’t have a functioning Dell Vostro 1710 yet. I’m a programmer and have 20 years experience with PC’s. I never had blue screens on my other PC’s or notebooks. Who has the same problem with a new Dell Vostro 1710?

 

In my experience BSOD's are usually the result of either:

1) Defective memory (most likely)
2) Driver issues. (next likely)

Have you put the notebook into dedicated diagnostics mode and run all the test including memory? Have you checked your event logs for error entries? Have you tried to determine when the BSOD's occur i.e. running a specific program, going in or out of standby, using Firefox etc?

 

Are there any parts from your first Vostro in the second, e.g. the hard drive?
If the hard drive is the same you should run a diagnostic test on it.

If there are no parts from the old laptop in the new one you shouldn't have to worry about memory defects or hard drive errors. Then it is more likely to be unstable hardware and/or unstable drivers.

Örjan

 

Since this is happening on two different notebooks, have you installed something on both machines which is causing the problem.

Diagnostics as recommended above would be a good idea.

Finally, how important is it that you use XP? If Vista is possible, you could install that and see if that cures the problem.

 

Did the laptop come with Windows XP preinstalled? If so, did you have problems before you reinstalled it yourself?

Örjan

 

perhaps your windows is corrupted.....re install it

 

Windows XP was preinstalled.
The 2 Dell Vostro’s 1710 passes all the HW diagnose test successfully.
The BSOD occurs randomly, for instance when inserting a CD or even when doing nothing.
There are no parts switched to the new Vostro.
There are no error messages in the event log.
I have installed almost no software on my Vostro and all software runs on my other PC’s without problems.
There are no viruses.
I need XP. On all my PC’s I have dual boot systems, this requires Windows XP, with Vista this is very hard to realize. On the Vostro I have noting changed, no dual boot.

 

If you got the blue screens on the preinstalled Windows XP without before installing anything by your own this is really Dell's problem to sort out. Talk to them and tell them about all the time you have lost on this. They have to provide you with a solution. Are there any other Dell laptop models you think can work for you? If so, request to get another model. You should not have to be the beta-tester for Dell.

If you didn't get the crashes before installing software on your own it will be harder to blame Dell for the problem. It could be something you installed that is causing the crashes. There are tools available to analyze blue screen errors and you should run one of those tools to see what is causing the problem. If there is a specific driver that is causing all the crashes that is valuable information for further trouble-shooting.
See e.g. http://www.networkworld.com/news/2005/041105-windows-crash.html for information on how to debug blue screen errors.

Edit: I just saw that you got a blue-screen when inserting the CD. Are you running your laptop in native SATA mode (AHCI/RAID/IRRT)? That can cause a lot of problems because of bad drivers from Intel/Dell.

Örjan

 

It is unlikely that the cause is installed software. I only want to know who has the same problem. There have been no changes made in the SATA mode, Bios or anything else. The installed software is Norton Ghost 9.0, Ares, Office Professional 2003 and Open Office. All software runs on my other PC’s without problems.

 

If your laptop is running in SATA AHCI or SATA IRRT mode you might want to try reinstalling Windows XP in ATA/IDE mode. I changed to this mode on my Latitude E6400 and it helped with some DVD drive issues I had.

But I really recommend you to debug the blue screen errors with WinDbg first to get an understanding on where the problem lies.

Örjan