Memtest been running for almost 40 hours, but dones't get past test 7!
 

I've been running memtest for HOURS! (40 hours) But it always hits test 7 and it goes back to 3 or 1. Is this a problem with my ram that it cant find? O and I have a good computer, so it couldn't be that.

I believe memtest will run continuously until it is stopped. You want to be sure that it completes at least one full cycle, but unless you have reason to suspect that you've got bad RAM, there would be no real need to run memtest repeatedly.

As I said, this is just my understanding, and is not a statement of fact. If you want your computer back, I'd say you can probably stop it now. -- J.W.

O thanx! That made my day, but why can't it go any further then test 7? I've suspected my ram being the culprit for my linux box to ALWAYS lock up, after a day of use, or playing any game for more then a few hours, or a few minutes. I have used over 6 different distros, from RedHat, to Knoppix, to Mandrake, to now Slackware 10. I've also looked into my Processor over heating, but ppl have said that 140 degrees is stable for an AMD processor. So why is my comp always locking up for random reasons? It rarely goes into swap space, it doesn't always use all my ram up anymore. Doesn't make any sense? Can someone throw me a bone here, and give me something else to look at? It would be much appreciated.

If you PC locks up after a relatively consistent period of time, then I'll bet it's either overheating or you're overclocking, and it just takes your machine X amount of time to reach that critical temp or that critical level of instability. Personally, I think 140 is too high and for comparison, I've got an Athlon 2500+ (Barton) running at the stock speed and it typically runs at about 110 115. That's in one of those little Shuttle boxes too, so there are no fans running either, and instead it's got that finned metal radiator passively keeping it cool. I am reasonably sure it would run cooler if it were in a full size tower with actual fans running.

If you are OC'ing step it back down to it's normal speed, and see if that solves the problem. Alternatively, throw some more fans in there to keep it cooler. If neither of those things work, then perhaps you've got some unusual compatibility problem between the mobo and/or RAM and/or CPU and/or controller. It's really hard to determine, based on what you've written, and in these cases I think it's best to eliminate the obvious scenarios first. Clearly both OC'ing and poor cooling could lead to the condition you describe, so if I were you I'd take all necessary steps to negate those possible issues. Good luck with it -- J.W.

I tried to overclock ONCE, then I stoped. Because it gave a system error, so I just backtracked to where I think I was before. Notice I said I think. So could u give me ur multiplier and stuff for a 2500+ so I can revert mine back to that?