Does a low CMOS battery cause Kernel panic?
 

Hello LQ family,*

I've been experiencing a problem causing my system to freeze. Originally I blamed my refurbished 160GB IDE HDD but after removing that from the equation the problem persists. This may be in the wrong forum but I'm just digging to find some kind of resolution. Currently it happens in any version of Linux & Windows XP.

Scenerio: I can plop in the Slackware ISO disc & setup my partions using fdisk or cfdisk. After entering setup & selecting my swap partition to add to fstab the problem starts. The part when the other partions are added causes issues. If I choose Slow Format with bad block checking the screen goes black with white text saying a bunch of different errors & one being unable to sync or something or other. Sorry I am away from the system until the weekend so I am unable to post the exact codes displayed on screen. When I choose quick format it gets through about 1/3 then the same problem happens.

In other distros during installation an error will occur due to files missing from the install disc. Multiple distros same issue. Even when trying to install a fresh copy of XP it says files are missing. I know its not the discs because they are all new and its not my optical drive because I have 2 & both have the same results.

I guess I could have just put in a new CMOS battery but I didn't think of it at the time & I'm away from my system until the weekend.

Anyone experience anything like this? I believe it's a hardware issue but not sure what exactly.

Any input would be appreciated.

Might try other tests like oem hard drive diags and memtest.


In some very rare cases a cmos battery may have or is causing your problems. Change it and see.

So far I think it is the HDD. Burn the UBCD and it has memtest for RAM and plenty of HDD tests:
http://www.ultimatebootcd.com/
I recommend running a SMART long test.

I have 4 HDD's in my system & eliminated all but 1 and the problem persists thats why I don't think that is the issue. The one that remains only holds data; music, pics, movies, etc. Even when I use a Live disc and run off of it the problem persists. I will try your recommendation though.

Thanks for the reply, will try more diagnostics when I get home.

Check your RAM!
 

I think that your RAM is probably the problem. Run Memtest, and, even if the results show nothing wrong I would still try changing out your RAM sticks because Memtest isn't fullproof. This is the perfect excuse for a RAM upgrade! ;)

I agree with what every ones says, seems some type of hardware issue or maybe a lose cable :)

Also, on an old 486 I had over 10 years ago, it had a dead CMOS battery and I hand no issues with it ran it like that for years. So as long as your BIOS can auto-detect hardware on boot I doubt the battery is the cause.

John

Wow the RAM? I never would imagine that just going bad all of the sudden. LOL! I mean it just sits there not bothering anyone and not being bothered. What are the chances? Don't answer that, life is full of surprises that sometimes cant be explained; or can it? Bmmm Bmmm Bmmmmm.

Thank you all for your responses, I'm anxious to get home and resolve this issue or at least try and resolve it. Might have to just unscrew everything take it apart and put it back together, that works sometimes you know!

I have seen some odd issues with in-between cmos/rtc clocks batteries. Dead they seem OK, good they seem OK, in-between ,good and bad, may cause an issue. If you suspect it then change it.

New battery same issue
 

I have successfully installed a new batter unfortunately that didn't solve my issue. I have attached a pic of the screen.

What about memtest and other diagnostics tests ?

Memtest
 

Running a memtest now. Its been going on for quite some time. It's on test 3 now. I have 2GB of RAM DDR400 installed. Not sure but the error column to the right keeps increasing so does that mean I need new RAM?

Yes, I think you should go with the RAM replacement. Buffers are in the RAM, and they are mentioned in your kernel panic. In RAM a buffer is something used to store data for a program that needs an uninterrupted flow of information. You should replace your RAM with the exact kind and size of RAM that your system has had up till now; if your system has too much RAM or the RAM sticks are a different size than each other your computer won't be stable. I wish you success!

My ram is identical.

Specs:CORSAIR XMS 2GB (2 x 1GB) 184-Pin DDR SDRAM DDR 400 (PC 3200) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model TWINX2048-3200

But I guess it's time to replace them. I may go with PC 2700 ram next go round. Theres an issue with the memory controller on this motherboard & cpu.

Yes, one or both of the RAM sticks are failing. You can take one out and re-run memtest to see which one it is, or you can replace both if you can't find another stick like these.

Yea looks like one of my Corsair sticks was failing. I removed it and so far so good. Definitely have to invest in another module asap.

Thanks all for your help!

You can't exactly test some ram in single stick. If the ram is supposed to be run in pairs, it needs to be tested in pairs.

When I run memtest on stick x & y I get errors. Removing y and running memtest gives no errors. Removing x & reinstalling y then perform another memtest gives errors. From process of elimination I can tell y is the bad egg. I would almost think it was the DIMM bank but after the bad stick is put into a different DIMM the same errors occur. If I can find my older sticks I can test them both but as of now I only have 1 stick & its holding up. All the previous problems I was having are gone & I'm again able to use my system as normal.

Currently installing Debian squeeze after already installing Slackware & Windows XP.

You should probably get another pair of sticks because it will work better if the sticks are the same (dual channel), and the good stick will likely fail as well in the near future.

That's not true, the only reason to pair RAM sticks is for dual-channel ... or for newer systems triplets for triple channel.

Your RAM is running at a non-standard speed, 'DDR358'. If you are using 166/333 MHz FSB or 200/400 MHz FSB you should have 'DDR333' or 'DDR400'.

Try moving your RAM back to DDR333.

Initially I was using DDR 400 but I'm limited to a maximum of 2GB due to the lack of a memory controller. Now I will step down to DDR 333 but at the same time step up to 3GB. My M/B is an A-Open AK86-L and has certain limitations.

Thank you'll again.

I recommend checking your manual to see about dual-channel configurations. You cannot use dual-channel with 3GB of RAM, you need either 2GB or 4GB, and they need to be plugged in such that the sizes match for each DIMM bank.

hehe, I've actually seen where one of the (capacitors? resistors?) physically fell off of the ram stick in one of my laptops causing the stick to fail, fortunately I got a replacement on warranty, but still, ram can fail for one reason or another, it's when ram sticks repeatedly fail that you might have a problem.

unless of course you are running legacy hardware with 8-bit ram on a 16 bit channel as they often did with SIMMs, but that's so far out of date as to be irrelevant these days :P

I have never seen such a machine, but I suppose they still exist somewhere.

Got my new memory sticks and system isn't having any of the previous problems. Large data copies are able to complete without errors and my machine is running good again.

Thanks again!