Computer reboots randomly when playing CIV

[Shaftoe]

Hi, all. I'm hoping someone can help here. I have been having this issue with all versions of Civ IV, from Vanilla up to BtS with the 3.02 patch applied.

At random points during gameplay, usually 15-20 minutes in but sometimes as long as 2 hours, my system reboots. I have tried what feels like everything and cannot figure this one out.

I've gone through the CTD/Reboot thread and modded the ini file appropriately to no avail. I even tried some additional changes in the ini, such as MemSaver=1 and GUIManagedTextures=1. No luck.

I've reinstalled the game several times. I've formatted the system twice. I've tried 32bit and 64bit flavors of Windows XP. No difference. (which is what leads me to suspect hardware)...

So, I've tried new memory, no change. Ran memtest86 for 40 hours, no errors found (figured I should test it, even with different RAM, just in case the problem was on the MoBo when communicating with the RAM). I've tried manually setting the timing of the RAM, underclocking it, and adding extra cooling to the case (on the off chance the memory was overheating). No luck.

I've tried several different video drivers. Currently I'm running the nVidia 91.47 drivers on the advice of a friend, but I've tried the most current drivers 93.71 and the beta drivers 93.81. I've also tried a few of the other, older driver sets from nVidia. No change. I've scaled the graphics down to their lowest levels and locked the frame rate at 20 in the ini. Still reboots.

I've tried 2 different drivers for audio. Would've tried more, but can't really seem to find many out there. Crappy onboard audio. But still, no change. Even went ahead and disabled sound, just in case. No luck.

I've installed the latest drivers for the MoBo and the processor (an Athlon 64 X2 3800+), as well as the dual core optimizer. No luck. I tried setting Civ's affinity to a single core (tried isolating on each core) with no luck.

I've monitored temperatures during play and I'm not looking at a heat issue on the proc. The GPU does indeed get a bit hot, at around 80 degrees celsius, but the monitoring prog from nVidia claims it's good to 120. Seems high to me, but I dunno. I've run with the case open and a good strong fan blowing in, but still the reboots continue.

Please, someone, guide me in the right direction here. I'm going insane!

DxDiag info to follow, assuming I don't botch the attachment.

 

[SirBeavis]

I have the exact same problem. I have updated everything possible (patches, drivers, bios), reinstalled 4 times, still reboots my system every 20 minutes or so.

Temps and everything are ok.

Any help would be appreciated.

 

[GVBN]

Right-click on My Computer > Properties > Advanced > Startup and System Recovery Settings > uncheck Automatically Restart

Next time it crashes it should give an error message

 

[SirBeavis]

Thanks for the info, I will give it a try on the weekend.

 

[Shaftoe]

Thanks for the reply, GVBN. I forgot to mention that I'd already tried turning off Auto-Restart. For whatever reason, I'm not getting a BSOD. Even with Automatically Restart unchecked, the system just reboots. Given a STOP error, I might have had a shot at figuring this one out. But my system seems intent on making this as difficult as possible to troubleshoot.

 

[Shaftoe]

Sorry for posting twice in just a few minutes... Didn't notice SirBeavis jumping in...

Post a DxDiag if you could. While normally we shouldn't "share" a support request thread, you might be able to help me figure out if one of my many suspicions is on target or not. No one I talk to who plays Civ has any of the same hardware that I do. I've been harboring a thought that, barring some bad hardware, that it could be one of those wacky compatibility issues. I'd be interested to see if we share a common hardware component, such as the proc or video card.

 

[SirBeavis]

Sorry for just jumping in.

Anyways here is my system specs if it helps.

DxDiag text file attached

 

[scooby0110]

Sorry for just jumping in.

Anyways here is my system specs if it helps.

DxDiag text file attached

I have almost the same system as you. Mine has no issues. What kind of power supply do you have in your machine. Most of the time games will shutoff and auto restart if you are having power supply issues with every component getting the proper voltages.


I also don't have the x64 version of windows. That might be an issue also.

 

[Shaftoe]

Well, looking at your DxDiag, SirBeavis, it looks like the only common factors we share are Windows XP x64 and a dual core processor. A scan through the forums shows that while people had some issues with x64 early on, it looks like things are running relatively smooth now. And since scooby there has practically the same specs as you, I don't think it's a hardware incompatibility for either of us.

As for my power supply, I'm running a PowMax 500W. The link to it is here:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817163031

It's sort of a crap PSU, but it should be giving me enough power to run this rig. I link to the product page on NewEgg simply because of the terrible reviews it's gotten. Maybe someone knows a bit more about this than I do, and can say with some authority that the PSU isn't giving me the advertised output and I might not be getting enough power. I got the PSU for free from a friend when I was putting this system together.

If the power supply isn't the issue, I'm wondering if it could be a combo issue between x64 and dual core processors? Anyone out there running 64 bit XP or any 64 bit system with a dual core proc having issues?

 

[SirBeavis]

Made a bit of progress last night.

After turning off the auto restart in the System Recovery I managed to get the error message. My system went Blue Screen and it seems I have a problem with my video card driver.

The nv4_disp.dll is causing a Page Fault. Doing some research I have found that other games cause the same error on quite a few machines. There seems to be an issue with Nvidia 6 series video cards.

I am trying several different solutions that have been posted on different forums without any luck yet.

Not sure if you have an Nvidia card but could be a similar issue with other cards as well.

If I find something that works I will post it.

 

[Shaftoe]

Glad to see you've got a possible solution in sight, SirBeavis. Unfortunately, it doesn't help me, since I don't get the same error nor do I use a 6 series card. I get no blue screen, even with Auto-Restart turned off and run a 7 series card.

Anyone have any other ideas? I suspect the issue is hardware, but I just can seem to nail down what piece. I don't want to spend money on a new PSU or video card and find that the problem was elsewhere. Any ideas?