I just mentioned it before but worth a repeat…
Try using a different browser. This is just for a test. Use something you never use (or almost never). Do not ever start the browser you usually use. If you download a new browser and install it do a full reboot before testing.
Then do your YouTube test again.
I will test it tonight or tomorrow.
And thank you all for the help.
The cpu fan is spinning, but is dusty. Should i get some canned air and blow it out?
It’s worth doing as general maintenance but it is less about the fan and more about the heatsink being covered in dust.
Hard to say without seeing it but…why not? (make sure the PC is off when you do that)
Also, you may find Resource Monitor to be a better view into what your CPUs are doing (use the CPU tab).
Two questions…
When you say “clean” install did you blow away all the partitions on your hard drive, create them again and install or did you do the one where Windows will keep previous programs and settings?
Did you install drivers you were prompted to or did you just take a list of drivers and install them yourself?
Ok, i decided to order a tube of thermal paste and redo the fan and heatsink. I’m not even going to turn it on till then.
And i installed windows on a brand new ssd. The only drivers i installed were off the cd’s that came with the componets.
That should work but, in the future, try to go to the manufacturer website and download the latest drivers to a USB drive (this assumes you can, if your PC is dead you may not be able to). The stuff on the included CDs can be very old.
I will say Microsoft is remarkably good these days at installing all the drivers it needs if you have an internet connection it can use during the install process. I rarely find a need to install a separate driver (and Windows tells me if I do need one…usually…especially if I need something like a RAID driver to install to a RAID).
Once you have installed windows you can check the Device Manager. It will show clearly with icons if a driver it needs is not right or is not there.
If no problems leave it be (aka if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it).
Any reason why no one has suggested using event viewer and checking the Windows system log? May well show if there are ay errors in drivers leading up to the lock-up
Here’s a little anecdotal (hopefully factual) information for the OP’s benefit and for my own, because I know next to nothing about computers. If anything in this post doesn’t make sense, I hope someone will reply to point it out.
Upthread, I recommended checking the CPU temperature because I’m dealing with that problem now. The green light on the front panel of my desktop started flashing red a few days ago. I saw something online about it possibly indicating a dying battery, so I had a look inside and found at least two years’ worth of dust and grime. I cleaned it up and replaced the battery, but the light was still flashing red, so I took it to a repair shop, where I was told the CPU is overheating because the thermal paste has dried out completely. The technician seemed to be at a loss for words to describe just how dried out the paste has become. He did a more thorough job of cleaning and replaced the thermal paste but didn’t charge me for it because, he said, the new paste isn’t going to solve the problem. He said there’s no solution because I let the paste dry out too much, and all I can do now is to make back-up copies of files and wait for my computer to die. I’ve seen online recommendations of cleaning dust at least once a year and changing the thermal paste every year and a half (more or less), which is about what the technician told me. I knew my computer was overdue for a cleaning, but it’s the first I’ve heard about changing the damn paste.
I’ve installed a program to check the CPU temperature, which is around 40°C to 50°C under a small-to-moderate workload, and the red light is still flashing.
To the OP, since you mentioned that you saw dust in your computer and that the CPU seems to be running hot, you might be facing a similar problem, especially if your computer is a few years old and you haven’t been keeping up with maintenance. I’ve read that crashing is the most common sign of overheating. You should be able to find a list online of the acceptable temperature ranges for your CPU.
Again, if anyone wants to correct anything I’ve written, it will be appreciated.
The thermal paste arrived today, so i removed the heatsink/fan and removed the dried past with rubbing alochol. Applied the new paste and reinstalled the heatsink/fan. I gave it a stress test of playing 3 youtube videos and one on media player for 40 minutes. Cpu temps were mostly in the teens and low 20’s, with a spike to 44 max.
Thank you all for the help!