Unexpected log-outs!

**rinse** · December 28th, 2001, 11:07 AM

WTF!!!!!

I'm working, browsing the web a bit.... general computing.

Then, BAMM! the screen goes pale blue and im thrown into my loging screen. Without choosing to log out.

I have OS 10.1.2, IE 5.1 (Omniweb didn't fix the problem, i thought maybe IE was playing crazy games on me), and i recently installed MySQl... I dont know if that would have done anything

Anyone experinecing similar things?

The Console says nothing of the event... how can I find out what is happening? *naive* Am I getting hacked?

this is most distressing.

i am turning off all sharing stuff. maybe that will fix things up.

**TommyWillB** · January 1st, 2002, 08:48 PM

I was having the same exact problem and finally I figured out that the 512MB DIMM I got from Outpost.com was bad. I replaced it with a DIMM from Crucial.com and the problem went away.

**rinse** · January 3rd, 2002, 09:59 AM

killing my windowserver PID does the exact same effect... crap.

i also have a 512 mb module from Outpost... i hope that isn't it. i like having that much ram and can't afford more right now.

are there any freeware apps to run memory checks ? something like techtool pro's memory test but free?

Tommy, have you contacted Outpost about their memory's problems?

**TommyWillB** · January 3rd, 2002, 11:19 AM

Originally posted by testuser
Call up Outpost and describe to them the problems you are having. Tell them that you suspect it is related to their memory module. (You could verify this by removing the module, and running your computer for a while without it. If it does not crash without the memory, then you have a good indication that the memory is bad.) Most vendors have warranties on their RAM, and will be nice enough to ship you a replacement module in return for your defective one.

By the way, software RAM checkers will not necessarily catch all faulty RAM. I would not rely on a software diagnosis. The only way to reliably tell if the RAM is bad is to see how the machine functions with it, and without it.

Yeah... I did that.

I did not mean to imply that Outpost.com gave me a hard time. They didn't. They gave me a refund with no problem.

BTW, with my new G4 I got the 3 year Apple Care. It came with a hardware check CD. That's what identified this as a bad DIMM...

**rinse** · January 3rd, 2002, 12:27 PM

i ran fsck -y .....i had some invalid keys and fixed them.

and then i ran the hardware test cd (which came with my non-apple care G4) and the three memory chips (including the 512 from outpost) all passed.

i haven't experienced the Window Server Crash fro about an hour (whew!)

ill post again at the end of the day to let you guys know if it is stilll messed up.

**genghiscohen** · January 3rd, 2002, 12:37 PM

For future reference, there is a very useful freeware RAM checker available from Versiontracker (and probably several other sites). It's called DIMMCheck, and it's a Classic utility. I used it before running that infamous Destroy-3rd-party-RAM firmware update, and it correctly told me that I had nothing to worry about.

**rinse** · January 3rd, 2002, 03:59 PM

it is still doing it! gah!

i wish there was a way to log Window Manager Crashes.... Console doesn't do it...

im gonna remove that chip and see how it performs over the next day or so.

this is annoying as hell.

**kilowatt** · January 3rd, 2002, 04:35 PM

You can type 'last' in the terminal to see the last few logins to your computer.. if something shows up from an IP you are not familiar with, I'd start to worry.

netstat -f inet
this will show you all your network connections, so try running this directly after you are logged out.

Obviously, disconnecting your network cables will eliminate any external connections better than anything, so you could try that.

Does this happen regardless of the websites you are visiting?

Here's to hoping you get this figured out.