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Old 01-30-2016, 09:12 AM   #1
killingthemonkey
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How to Troubleshoot a Hard Freeze


MY Fedora install has started freezing on me. It will not respond to anything.

I've installed nmon and had it running, taking two second slices during the last freeze, but I have no idea what I'm looking at.

Can someone point me in the correct direction? What am I looking for?

My box is a Dell Inspiron 11 3147.
I'm running Fedora 23 that the software installer tells me is up to date.

Output of uname -a:
Linux opensourcegort 4.2.8-300.fc23.x86_64 #1 SMP Tue Dec 15 16:49:06 UTC 2015 x86_64 x86_64 x86_64 GNU/Linux

Last edited by killingthemonkey; 01-30-2016 at 09:36 AM.
 
Old 01-30-2016, 09:54 AM   #2
pan64
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at first I would go into /var/log to check if there was anything suspicious.
 
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Old 01-30-2016, 10:29 AM   #3
camorri
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This kind of problem can be caused by hardware problems, such as over heating. I would suggest you get a live distro, and run it for a while. If there are no problems, then you probably have a software problem. If it does freeze, then you know its hardware related.

Run memtest, it available for most distros. Look for some way to display the temperature
of your CPU(s). Some systems can do it in BIOS, and there are tools you can install in software to monitor the heat.

When was the last time you had the covers off to clean the fans and heat sink?
 
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Old 01-30-2016, 02:49 PM   #4
killingthemonkey
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Camorri, is that memtest86? There doesn't seem to be a memtest in the dnf repositories.
 
Old 01-30-2016, 03:45 PM   #5
huffdad
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memtest86 download page
http://www.memtest86.com/download.htm

memtester (a memory tester designed to run in the terminal)
http://pyropus.ca/software/memtester/
 
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Old 01-30-2016, 04:23 PM   #6
camorri
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Quote:
is that memtest86?
Yes. I don't run Fedora, so I do not know if they supply a copy, or have it in their repos. I have seen it included on a lot of installation dvd's and on some live distros.
 
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Old 02-05-2016, 03:28 AM   #7
killingthemonkey
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I was able to get memtest86 working from Hiren's Boot CD. Ran it for 12 hours with no errors. I guess in the AM, I'm going to crack the case and reseat the memory. CPU as well, if it's not soldered on.
 
Old 02-05-2016, 04:25 AM   #8
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Most of the hard freezes I've had were X locking up. Although not really frozen as you could ssh into the machine and kill X to recover. Assuming that you're running an ssh server and have another machine on the same network.

You could monitor your system if the crash is predictable. RAM usage, temperatures and such. There might already be helpful log entries in the /var/log/ files. If there is you might have a terminal open running "tail -f /var/log/syslog" and another running "tail -f /var/log/dmesg", which might provide on screen insight when the system does it again. Unless it is a hardware issue.
 
Old 02-05-2016, 04:29 AM   #9
pan64
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Yes, X can be put into deadlock without any log. OP can check if it was the case or not.
 
Old 02-05-2016, 06:34 AM   #10
Soadyheid
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Quote:
My box is a Dell Inspiron 11 3147.
...which is a laptop so hardware wise it's likely to be an overheating issue as camorri has indicated above. This is caused by dust and fluff blocking the fins of the heat exchanger, you may be able to clear this using an air can spray but if you've already decided to open the case and dig down to the CPU, remove the heatsink/heatpipe/exchanger fin assembly and give it a good clean. Clean any old silicon heat paste from the heatsink and CPU and renew it before reassembly. Clean the fan and check it spins freely as well.

A point to watch... When you remove the screws from the case, they may not all be the same length so beware! Fitting a long screw where a short one should be could cause shorts on the motherboard or damage the case when replaced and tightened.

My

Play Bonny!

 
Old 02-05-2016, 05:06 PM   #11
killingthemonkey
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Well, I cracked the case and reseated the RAM. Also took the chance to blow it out. Look at the pic. Think it needed it?

(Not sure if it attached. Working from an iOS device and it's a disconcerting feeling.)
Attached Thumbnails
Click image for larger version

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Old 02-06-2016, 05:45 AM   #12
Soadyheid
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Nice one! All that crap in the heat exchanger fins certainly wasn't going to help matters!

And how's the patient behaving now... ?

Play Bonny!

 
Old 02-07-2016, 05:17 PM   #13
killingthemonkey
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Well, Soadyheid, the patient is still on life support. I thought things were going swimmingly, but then... Frozen. Locked up tight. Couldn't SSH into it either.
 
Old 02-07-2016, 05:46 PM   #14
rokytnji
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A

Code:
dmesg|tail
may be of some use after a reboot on a hard freeze as will as

Code:
cat /var/log/dmesg
The readout will be long and all you want is the ending lines.

Code:
harry@harry-Latitude-XT2:~$ cd /var/log
harry@harry-Latitude-XT2:/var/log$ ls
alternatives.log       dmesg.4.gz       ntpstats
alternatives.log.1     dpkg.log         pm-powersave.log
alternatives.log.2.gz  dpkg.log.1       pm-powersave.log.1
alternatives.log.3.gz  dpkg.log.2.gz    pm-powersave.log.2.gz
alternatives.log.4.gz  dpkg.log.3.gz    pm-powersave.log.3.gz
alternatives.log.5.gz  dpkg.log.4.gz    pm-powersave.log.4.gz
alternatives.log.6.gz  dpkg.log.5.gz    pm-suspend.log
alternatives.log.7.gz  dpkg.log.6.gz    pm-suspend.log.1
alternatives.log.8.gz  dpkg.log.7.gz    samba
alternatives.log.9.gz  dpkg.log.8.gz    speech-dispatcher
apt                    dpkg.log.9.gz    syslog
auth.log               faillog          syslog.1
auth.log.1             fontconfig.log   syslog.2.gz
auth.log.2.gz          fsck             syslog.3.gz
auth.log.3.gz          gpu-manager.log  syslog.4.gz
boot                   hp               udev
boot.log               installer        unattended-upgrades
bootstrap.log          kern.log         upstart
ConsoleKit             lastlog          user.log
cups                   lightdm          wicd
daemon.log             llupdates.log    wtmp
debug                  lpr.log          wtmp.1
dmesg                  mail.err         Xorg.0.log
dmesg.0                mail.info        Xorg.0.log.old
dmesg.1.gz             mail.log         Xorg.1.log
dmesg.2.gz             mail.warn        Xorg.1.log.old
dmesg.3.gz             messages
harry@harry-Latitude-XT2:/var/log$
If you copy and paste dmesg.1.gz and unpack in /home/killingthemonkey and read it with a text editor. The last few lines also. You may get lucky and find what is killing your gear also.

I went through this on my dead asus micro atx box after a brownout and had to use a live cd to access my logs on what happened. The brownout killed my cpu. I turned that box into a parts box instead of fixing it. Because after replacing the cpu. The problem moved on to the mobo.
Yhe unit was not worth fixing for me as I get free computer replacement desktops from the city.
 
Old 02-08-2016, 03:46 PM   #15
killingthemonkey
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As soon as she freezes again, I'll take a look at that log and come back here. It shouldn't take too long.
 
  


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