Life isn't worth living without Civ 4...I'm gonna jump...

[pixiejmcc]

Ok, that's a slight exaggeration but I really do love the game and I have a massive problem. Everytime I play Civ, it will be OK for about twenty minutes, then the computer will start making those scrapy noises (i'm very technically-minded!), like it is shutting down or starting up and it will shut down.

To be honest it's making these noises on and off the whole game like it is really struggling.

The problem has got gradually worse over time. I think at first it didn't do it at all. Then it would do it occasionally. Then it would tend to do it in spates (i.e. I would play several games without any problems, then for one game it would shut down three times). Now it happens all the time , o my civving days are over until I get it fixed.

My PC is up to spec as you will see in the enclosed dxdiag. In fact I doubled my RAM and bought a new video card hoping it would help, but no joy. Like I said, things have just got worse. I defragged the hard drive yesterday too, but it's still the same.

Any ideas and suggestions would be much appreciated (but please don't post if your just guessing )

Thank you

 

[pixiejmcc]

btw, I think it's a general problem with the computer. I've never experienced it randomly shutting down at any other time, but it makes those scrapy noises disturbingly often.

 

[auldian]

btw, I think it's a general problem with the computer. I've never experienced it randomly shutting down at any other time, but it makes those scrapy noises disturbingly often.

Sounds like hard disk actually. Have you run a thorough chkdsk?

 

[pixiejmcc]

yup and nothing came up. but i'll try it again

 

[Zanmato]

Back your HD up right now. It sounds like the HD is on it's way out to me. Although if that is the case, the CHKDSK should pick something up. Any kind of unusual noise of the HD is a bad sign in any case.

 

[auldian]

Pagefile usage is a common cause of the drive activity you describe. Some disks are noisier than others as well. Neither of these should result in your computer turning off however. Heat or power supplies are often the culprit. Aside from the hard disk activity, are there any beeps that you hear when it shuts down? There are some discussions here.
You can "stress test" it for a few hours with Prime95 or another demanding application to see if the shutdown can be duplicated outside Civilization IV.
Some other things to check for are viruses or spyware.
Good luck

 

[Zanmato]

When you defragged the HD, did you defrag the pagefile along with it? A fragmented pagefile would put more stress on the HD. The defrag report should tell you how many fragments the pagefile is in. You could try turning the pagefile off then defragging the drive again then put the pagefile back on and it might put most of it in a one contigous block meaning potentially less work for the HD.

 

[Mutineer]

I had a problem civ crashing on wanders movies, no matter what I do.

I switched them off and after that everything seems come right.

 

[wurm657]

Any kind of unusual noise of the HD is a bad sign in any case.

Uhhh...I know this sounds stupid, but computers are not exactly my area of expertise...so I was just wondering after reading this: How much and what kind of noise does a normally functioning HD make? (This is a serious question, I really don't know)
Thanks!

 

[Zanmato]

I've not experienced a failure on a HD yet but any sound like scraping, harsh grinding and high pitch whines usually indicates a problem with the disc and potential future HD failure or crash. That's why I said 'unusual sounds' as it will differ from HD to HD, some are just more noisy than others. Some external HDs now claim to be virtually silent.

 

[wurm657]

Thanks Zanmato!
You've helped me a couple of times in the past on tech stuff too...and I've seen a lot of other Tech-Fu posts from you.
Would you be my Sensei?
Seriously, Thanks to you and all the other knowledgeable community members for taking the time to help us "computin' box" dummies

 

[pixiejmcc]

Thank you so much for all the contributions. That sounds pretty bad Zanmato. You think my hard disk's days may be numbered? And if the end really is nigh, how does one back up a hard disk (I no next to zilch when it comes to computers). BTW, we only bought the PC about a year ago (brand new), is it even possible that it could fail so early.

When I do a check disk I tick scan for and attempt recovery of bad sectors. If I do this will it still tell me if there are any problems? I tried it again and still nothing comes up.

And, Auldian, I looked into prime95. Could you perhaps explain a little more about it?

No, I don't hear any beeps when it shuts down.

I'm afraid I've no idea what you mean when you talk about a pagefile. What is it and how do I defrag it?

Thanks for the google answers link as well audlian. But there's too much information on there. I'm not sure what's appropriate and what isn't

These scraping noises are very disturbing. The computer makes them when it is doing something very undemanding (there was a constant murmur when I was doing the checkdisk). The computer doesnt get used for anything else as demanding as Civ and I suspect that if it did, it would shut down in the same manner.

Oh, I had a couple of games yesterday where the problem wasnt so bad, but then in the third I shutdown four times, much to the frustration of the ppl I was playing with!

P.S. Zanmato, I live in Ingleton, North Yorkshire. You're the closest civver I've come across!

 

[auldian]

When I do a check disk I tick scan for and attempt recovery of bad sectors. If I do this will it still tell me if there are any problems? I tried it again and still nothing comes up.

This is a good indication. Per Zan though, a backup is still prudent.

And, Auldian, I looked into prime95. Could you perhaps explain a little more about it?

It is a stressful program that will generate hardware errors and document them. Most of the errors it will find are in RAM or the CPU. What it is doing is looking for large prime numbers far beyond 3, 5, 7, 11, 13, etc. If it produces no errors then your RAM and CPU are most likely very sound.

No, I don't hear any beeps when it shuts down.

Also a good sign, as it's likely not heat problem

I'm afraid I've no idea what you mean when you talk about a pagefile. What is it and how do I defrag it?

It mimics RAM to a degree and CIV seems to place a huge use on it. Your pagefile is adequate in size, but pagefile use is often heard as hard drive thrashing, similar to your symptom. Zan's advice is sage. There is a process outlined here for defragmenting the drive and pagefile.

The computer makes them when it is doing something very undemanding (there was a constant murmur when I was doing the checkdisk).

Disk activity is expected during chkdsk.
Check thoroughly for a virus or spyware (SpyBot is popular, here).
Good luck

 

[Zanmato]

Thank you so much for all the contributions. That sounds pretty bad Zanmato. You think my hard disk's days may be numbered? And if the end really is nigh, how does one back up a hard disk (I no next to zilch when it comes to computers). BTW, we only bought the PC about a year ago (brand new), is it even possible that it could fail so early.

As far as I know, the average life of HD can vary wildly. I heard they average out at 3-4 years, it really does depend on how often it is used. Even if the worst happens you can still pull data off a corrupt disc by freezing it.

You can backup the disc in a number of ways - it depends on the size of the stuff you really want to backup. If your have the installer discs for the programs you use that you don't really need to back those up, same goes for Windows itself. The easiest way I can think of is to get hold of another HD, an external USB one may be simplier to use if you have alot to backup. If you only have a few gigabytes worth then I would write a couple of DVDs if you have such a drive available or several CDs. Have a look at Overclockers.co.uk, check out their forum too it may offer more insight/recommendations and their products are pretty reasonably priced.

 

[senwiz]

I've not experienced a failure on a HD yet but any sound like scraping, harsh grinding and high pitch whines usually indicates a problem with the disc and potential future HD failure or crash. That's why I said 'unusual sounds' as it will differ from HD to HD, some are just more noisy than others. Some external HDs now claim to be virtually silent.

I used to be a PC tech, back in the day. Yes, fit me for my walker now. LMAO

A scratching or scraping noise points to a broken head on a hard drive. I would back up my important data now, cause that drive is about to die.

 

[pixiejmcc]

Thank you again.

Well I will try every available avenue before I give up hope. If and when it does dies, do you think it is because the computer is poorly built that it died so quick, or could it be some other reason?

 

[pixiejmcc]

I did the spyware check and there was quite a bit of stuff on there, which i removed. I also found a downloadable program which defragments pagefiles on the link you gave audlian. I didn't actually try defragging because I was surprised to find it wasnt fragmented (see attachment).

I set up prime 95. From what I've read it sounds like a long time before it gives you any useful information

So, I think I've tried everything you mentioned. I will back up my hd and hope for the best.

Thank you again so much for your help.

Hm, the picture comes out pretty bad, but you can just about make out the 1s on the right hand side. The top one in the list is the pagefile.

 

[pixiejmcc]

well, i'm pretty sure the hard disk is gonna die. Presumably all I have to do is buy a new hard drive. I figure it would be best to buy an external one, so i can transfer everything from the old one to the new one easily. I checked on ebay and they seem to cost roughly £70. Any advice on what i should get?

 

[Zanmato]

I happened to check out PCWorld the other day for the same thing. There is a new SyGate USB drive for around £90 for a 160Gb of space, perhaps a slight overkill with the size. The only thing I wouldn't recommend in getting is any external drive that draws it's power directly from the USB ports, be sure to get one with it's own power adapter. They cost alittle more but I would say they would be more reliable.

 

[auldian]

If you have only the single internal hard drive, make sure any external drive you consider is bootable. I've not researched it in several years so I may be wrong in thinking that some (if not all) USB and Firewire drives weren't bootable.