Powermac 9600/233 locks up randomly. RAM or HDD test?

[Torbar]

Hi,

I just pulled one of my old Powermacs out of the basement for the first time in like 10 years and booted it up, but it seems to be locking up randomly.  Mouse stops working at all, same with keyboard.  Have to hold down power button to reboot it.  Reinstalled OS9.1 on there, same thing.  Is there a bootable CD or application I can use to check the RAM or harddisk to see if it's an issue with one of those?  Any other suggestions?

 

[slomacuser]

I had the same issues with 7600, tried different RAM, cache, video ram ... probably capacitors on board?  I have somewhere Powermac hardware test CD ... I didn t treid on mine machine as it froze quickly after it loaded up.

I trashed the computer

 

[rsolberg]

Just to confirm, does pressing Ctrl+Cmd+power key on the keyboard do anything when the system freezes?

 

[beachycove]

The 604e runs hot. A duallie at 180 is able to burn your fingers if not treated properly, so a 233 might do the same (never had one). Make sure the side fan is running, and new heat sink compound would be an idea.

Also, if the 233 is not original, there could actually be a logic board issue. Some boards are just not capable of running at that speed.

 

[Unknown_K]

Pull out the RAM and CPU and cache stick and check for corrosion (damp basement?). Put in a good battery and reset the PRAM. Use a meter to check voltages when under load (power plug should work for 5v and 12vdc).

Yes there are a bunch of aluminum capacitors on those motherboards, but I have yet to hear about masses of PPC machines needing recapped (probably will happen I guess).

 

[Macdrone]

cpu cards have a huge heat sink , but i would bet the paste is hard and useless at this point.  Takes a minute or 2 to remove it and re apply paste.  I have done it on a 7500 I have.

 

[Torbar]

Good point.  I have some spare thermal paste, and the basement might have been a bit damp at times, so I'll reseat everything and re-apply the termal paste.  Will also check the caps.  the 233 is all original(my dad had bought it brand new back in the day).  I think it had been happening after the computer was on for longer periods of time, so it probably is just overheating

 

[rsolberg]

As Unkown_K said, It's definitely worth checking the voltages with the system under load - and as it warms up to determine if a failing power supply could be a culprit too. Unknown_K, when you mentioned a power plug, were you referring to a hard drive/optical drive power plug, or another point on the 9600?

My rule of thumb with PC power supply voltages is that each rail should remain ±5% of rated voltage. That means I look for 11.4-12.6v on 12, 4.7-5.3v on 5 and 3.1-3.5v on 3.3. I think my tolerances are tighter than general wisdom, but I've found that 10% can be enough to cause problems in some systems. Is 5% a good rule for PowerMacs, or is 10% safe?

 

[Unknown_K]

Yup, hard drive plug since they are easy to get to while the machine is running.

 

[alk]

If you are still looking for a memory testing tool for System 7.5 to OS 9.2.2, Gauge Pro will do the trick. You'll need to make your own bootable CD with it installed, though. TechTool Pro can do it too, iirc.

Of course, it can't test memory reserved for the System, Finder, or any other loaded applications, so to be thorough you might want to move memory modules around and retest a couple times.