ASUS Z170 MAXIMUS VIII RANGER
i7 6700k (factory clock)
GTX 1070
SanDisk SDSSDA240G 240gb hard drive (OS)
Seagate ST2000DM001 2TB SATA III hard drive
Western Digital WD5000BEVT 500GB SATA 2.5
G.Skill 16gb DDR4 2400 RAM
Cooler Master Hyper 212 Evo
Corsair CX 600
Windows 10 Pro Version 1703 OS Build 15063.540
I really need help guys.. my PC is freezing all the time and its stopping me from finding work. I'm hoping one of you guys has a bright idea of what to try.
The story is.. I get back to my flat after a week away, so I can work on my portfolio. I use AutoCAD and InDesign. Whilst working, my machine started freezing/BSOD occasionally (i.e. once or twice a day). The problem got worse over the next few days, freezing usually whilst multitasking/under load.
I was having to restart so many times a day I decided to reinstall Windows. Even after a clean install, deleting my old files, I've found the problem has in fact got worse. The machine is frequently struggling to manage to load to Windows now. I have already disabled everything I can under Task Manager > Startup. Sometimes it freezes at the Welcome screen, a few seconds after the desktop loading, sometimes after a few minutes. It always coincides with noise from the PC case which simultaneously coincides with the mouse cursor slowing down to a flickering stutter before freezing to a crash. Occasionally it'll struggle past this then the PC will run fine for a good while, as it has been doing so as I type. But if I were to start a process that is resource intensive (i.e. launching a game in CEMU emulator) than its now guaranteed to crash.
The noise from the PC case sounds like hard drive access? Although my OS is installed on a SSD and no additional programs should be loading at startup. Worryingly, it sometimes even freezes at the Republic of Gamers mobo welcome splash at the very start. I don't think it is hardware though as my components are barely 8 months old and the diagnostics I've run surely would've indicated this by now?
I've tried the following:
HW Monitor - GPU + CPU temps all normal
Windows Memory Diagnostic tool - RAM Ok
Windows Disk Check - No problems found
SFC /SCANNOW - All Ok
Reinstalling Windows - clean, removing all files
The pattern currently is..
1. Boot pc from power on button.
2. Freeze at Windows welcome screen/desktop at startup
3. Cold boot using power button (held in for 10 seconds to repower)
4. Repeat 2-3 until..
5. PC manages to struggle past the initial stuttering at outset and will run fine until placed under load
I really need to sort this out so I can finish my portfolio and get a job and pay my rent!
Will
I am wondering about your use and if you have new software for classes.
ASUS Z170 MAXIMUS VIII RANGER
i7 6700k (factory clock)
GTX 1070
SanDisk SDSSDA240G 240gb hard drive (OS)
Seagate ST2000DM001 2TB SATA III hard drive
Western Digital WD5000BEVT 500GB SATA 2.5
G.Skill 16gb DDR4 2400 RAM
Cooler Master Hyper 212 Evo
Corsair CX 600
Windows 10 Pro Version 1703 OS Build 15063.540
Did you just start using CAD and InDesign. These are workstation software and need 32-64 gig of RAM. I run software for a HAAS VS2 and no less than 64 for me or I got similar issues. Since you reinstalled, your power savings may have changed to compensate for have a horrible multi core processor coupled with way low ram at slow speed for such demanding software. Your PS may be inadequate if you have settings that try to optimize the Vectoring, 3D software heavy on the cpu and gpu, while using Adobe In Design which uses the whole suite at once. All of this ... to use In Design.
Creative Cloud
Document Cloud and Acrobat Pro DC
Non-subscription
Acrobat
Elements
Creative Suite
Free tools
Flash Player
Acrobat Reader
AIR
Digital Editions
Shockwave Player
Did you kinda freak out and reimage after a few crashes as you had to get you assignments done and you taxed your system really hard ? If so you may have possible let Windows and the Bios adjust settings that just made the system unstable as it was either stacking the cpu and ram, so it lowered some voltages, and you reinstalled all that software and drivers and anti virus and everything else you need and maybe share it with a flat mate who runs other software ? I suspect power conflicts, low voltage under app stress, insufficient ram, selective power disconnect, buggy firmware and drivers conflicting, and ADOBE. I use Adobe but not all of it like you do. It is known in some configurations to just cause problems with windows 10 and apps that are not HD content aware. It's a nightmare. Good luck and get on those university forums and support form vendors.. and get your apps and hardware into high DPI output, get more RAM, and a better PSU, and the right drivers, look for 3rd party.