M15x Problem/Technical Question thread

Try (a) updating Adobe Flash Player for your browser (or get Chrome, which builds AFP in and automatically keeps it updated) and (b) right click on a YouTube video, click on Settings and uncheck/disable Hardware Acceleration.

 

ah, i forgot about that. yeah my flash player is updated to the latest version. i was thinking it was the fact that i tried updating Nvidia driver to the latest and it failed 3 times. ill disable it and see if the problem still happens. thanks

 

Lately my dvd drive has stopped reading dvds, both films and games, I tried running this but it only came up with "The disc in drive [D:] is not detected, or is not supported" when trying to play a dvd.

Any help in this matter would be hugely appreciated.

 

Hi all,

I am having a rather strange problem.

Using my MX15 wirelessly, I am having massive copy problems whilst trying to backup large files.
The network device is a NAS WD ShareSpace with 4x1TB drives in Raid 5.

The error i receive is " insufficient quota to complete the requested service"
This is exactly the same syntax as a VMWare error i am aware of, but its just not the case here.

I am using Windows 7 64bit.
I have recently formatted my HDD and receive the same errors afterwards.
I am a full admin user.
There are no quotas set.....

What makes it more odd, is that I also sometimes get this error in UTorrent.
Utorrent is also downloading to my HDD and not the network. I can also hit start again in UTorrent and it gets downloading again.

Im lost to be honest.
Could it be my wireless? But ive had the same setup for a year.... this problem seems to have co-incided preeeettty closely with me getting the NAS but i dont see how that could affect downloads to a local drive either.

I really try to avoid annoying everyone on here with my problems but i just cannot find a solution to this anywhere.

Thanks for your time.
Ben.

 

A bit clueless on the subject so hopefully somebody can help me out here. i've had my current m15x with i7 720 and a gtx 260m for about a year with no problems and yesterday it seems there is an issue with my video card. while gaming i have extreme fps lag. it wont go above 15 fps. hopefully i don't have to replace the card. can somebody give me a starting point on how to possibly remedy this? thanks a lot

 

Stealth mode accidentally activated? AC adapter plugged in correctly?

 

thought it would be one of those 2 myself but nope.

 

Ok, hmm, just from one day to another, this indicates that either a Windows update or malware/virus infection messed up your system.

You can try to use the system restore and set it to a point before it happened for the first time, or make a complete new install.

 

tried a restore and no luck. thanks for the suggestion though i appreciate it.

 

Yeah, I had once a very similar issue, bad performance and sound problems... I guess it was caused by a Windows update, but the only way I was able to fix it was a reinstallation of the OS.

 

The Windows Update software will allow you to display all updates, and date installed. WHile they cannot all be rolled back, a fair number of them can be. You could then roll back anything that was added after the last time your system was running normally.

I'd suggest also running Throttlestop so you can make sure your clock speeds are increasing appropriately on demand.

Also, check the bios to make sure speedstep is not disabled - that would also disable turbo.

Am not sure you need to reinstall OS yet.

Joe

 

Hi. I have a problem with my m15x. I've attempted to troubleshoot it myself, but I'm not as computer inclined as most people on these forums so I've coming asking for some advice.

When I'm using my computer, my computer will often visually freeze (cursor won't move either) for about 30-90 seconds. After that, it'll catch up on its own and continue. This happens roughly once every hour and more often if I'm playing a game.
Recently, my laptop has been slowly degenerating. I purchased this laptop last January and have not been using it that often. I have never opened up the laptop itself. I have updated all drivers (nvidia, alienware, etc.) I've ran numerous different anti-viruses (usually uninstalling after 1 scan).
Last September or so, I was able to run SC2 on the highest settings flawlessly. Now, running sc2 on the lowest setting is just constant choppiness. I'm even getting small spikes while typing this post.

I suspect that it may be overheating. So, before opening up my laptop (which I've never done and am terrified of doing), I ran HWmonitor. Sadly, I don't know what any of these numbers mean. Here's a SS:

(running only firefox, MSN, and winamp)

Willing to try anything. Any advice is greatly appreciated.

 

Download GPU-Z and make a logfile. (Got to the sensor tab and check both boxes, "log to file" and "continue refrshing this screen...)

Then play some games for a while and attach the logfile here afterwards.


The freezing cursor is weird, could be a memory issue, did you already run some of the diagnostic tests which are included on the ressource dvd?

 

alright. i didn't think it could be a memory issue since i usually close all extraneous processes, and the game i play is not much of a resource hog (league of legends).

also, i forgot to mention: when these freezes happen, the audio is still going. i can hear myself dying in-game but the entire display is frozen (no task manager, alt+tab, cursor movement, etc.). usually after the freeze, i see the events of the last minute transpire within milliseconds.

i'm downloading gpu-z now and i'll update later with logs.

edit: i forgot to add, i sometimes get these freezes while playing browser flash games as well.

 

Ok, then it's probably a GPU issue.

Could you also go to the event viewer, choose windows logs and then system and save all events and post the file here?

 

Your baseline temps seem high. All of the Dells - esp Alienware - have a tendency to suck dust into the heatsinks and fans. Turn the computer off, and use some compressed air to blow the dust out. I suspect if you were to log your temps usning HWInfo, you would find the max temps are getting high - that could be causing your freezes.

Joe

 

I don't have enough time to test the game with gpu-z running at the moment so I won't be able to upload those logs until later

here are my event viewer logs
Download asdf.evtx from Sendspace.com - send big files the easy way
seems i have something called iastor erroring every few minutes

 

iastor is a critical file involved in hard disk management - it is also the target sometimes for viruses. In addition to getting rid of any dust and checking temps, I would make sure you have scanned with a good antivirus program. Though the onset is very consistent with accumulating dust and rising temps, it is also consistent with a viral infection.

We'll stay tuned

Joe

 

Please help ! my M15X won't turn on after unscrew ....i've check all the cable again but no hope ..........

It's just won't turn on after i press power button , the keyboard light and LCD screen just suddenly turn on and off again ( 1 sec ) ............ ( ! and only a power button and alien head blinking again & again ....

p/s : i've done a power drain trick but no hope again ( ......please help , i'm running out of warranty about 1 month

 

Have you upgraded some components? Or why did you disassemble it?

Make sure the fans are plugged in, as far as I remember this will prevent the system from booting. Also check that the RAM modules sit properly, maybe try changing them or booting with only one stick.

 

Now my M15X wake up .... but scroll & caps are flashing ..... ( ...... any ideal ( .....i thought this expansives machine must better than my old Sony Vaio ... but maybe i'm wrong (

 

If the Num Lock LED is also on (but not flashing), then I'm afraid that indicates a bad video card. Here is a listing and interpretation of the LED error codes for the M15x. Alienware? M17x and M15x System LEDs - Hot Topic - 358462 | Dell

 

I've got the 15x and all of a sudden when i change the volume, mute, go into stealth mode none of the actions are show on the screen anymore. It happened to me about 6 months ago and I found a fix for it on google, but now that Panda was released and Google's search engine is crap now I'm having a hard time finding that fix again. Anyone know what I need to do to get those actions to start displaying again? Thanks in advance!

 

Performed a BIOS upgrade and in the middle of it the comp just stopped, blue screened, and then won't boot up at all now. I did the power drain thing too and it's completely dead. Sounds like a bad mobo...

 

Sounds bad. Did you already try to remove the cmos battery?
If not, do this (and remove the battery and AC as well), wait for a couple of minutes and then try again...

Don't think it wil help, but it's worth a try.

 

Yes, I already did that. Still no go. I hear it trying to power on but that's as far as it goes. Crap, I'll have to call them.

 

You could try a recovery. There are some files around, for example in the M17x BIOS mod thread, you could try to use the files from their for the recovery, you only need to replace the BIOS file with the M15x BIOS, imo worth a try in case you're out of warranty.

Otherwise call Dell.

 

Didn't exactly the same thing occur the last time your tried to flash the system bios in your M15x?

 

It's the same incident, I just got it back out of storage after my yearlong activation ended.

 

Ah. Call Dell. Good luck.

 

My dimmer buttons for screen brightness stopped working (I think with the latest bios). Does anyone else have this problem? Or know of a solution?

Thanks

 

Did you just update your drivers?

 

Is that a question for me? Which drivers do you mean?

 

i think he means the newest OSD drivers, they are responsable for the buttons

 

Yes, I downloaded them and reloaded them yesterday. But still have the problem.

 

what about the command center? did you installed the newest too?

 

Have you recently updated your display drivers I mean. Are you nvidia or Ati?

 

I have M15x and I upgraded with an ssd drive so I did a clean install, downloaded all drivers and programs from dell site but in the device manager still 1 unknown device! here is a picture : http://kepfeltoltes.hu/110624/unknown_device_www.kepfeltoltes.hu_.jpg
What else do I need to install?

 

Chances are it's the Freefall Sensor, which locks the heads on a disk drive in the event the computer is dropped/falls. Has no practical application with an SSD, but if the Device Manager item annoys you, install it. It will do no harm. Drivers and Downloads. I'm speculating, but without more information about what has been installed, it's hard to identify what hasn't been. But the Freefall Sensor is the usual suspect.

 

Thanks, that was the problem. I did'n installed that because of the ssd but now I installed and set it off in msconfig.

 

the computers been randomly shutting down so i went to investigate! and was upset

 

ettehbrute, That error seems to be related to graphics card or new hardware. Have you plugged in any new USB devices? Are you playing a new game with intense graphix?

 

yes alot, is it the temps? i reach about an 85 playing cod4

 

I have M15x with i7 620M and 1333mhz ddr3 ram, the problem is the rams running only on 1066. I have the newest bios, turbo mod enabled.
Here is a picture :

 

That's right, the Intel Core i7 620m only supports speeds up to 1066MHz. Here you can find the specs of your CPU: Intel® Core? i7-620M Processor (4M Cache, 2.66 GHz)

 

I see, but it's also say it has integrated graphic, so can I change it from 460m to integrated when I just browsing?

 

Not as far as I know.

Maybe you can get it working with the unlocked BIOS, there's a complete IGP menu there, but I have no idea whether it will work or not in the M15x.

 

The PM55 chipset used in the M15x does not support IGP.

 

Oh, yeah... true. Completely forgot this. Thanks!

 

You had to eventually forget something. Rare occurrence.