REALLY SERIOUS PCG-K215B SUDDEN RESTART PROBLEM!

[Kei]

Ok this is a really bad problem. I have a Vaio PCG-K215B, I bought it on the 14th July 2004.
Specs are as follows:
Intel Celeron 2.8ghz
HDD: 40GB
512MB DDR RAM
ATi Radeon IGP 345M

Everythin is updated, Windows all updated (SP1), Norton Internet Security 2004 updated, all drivers up to date. Ad-aware 6 SE installed.

Everything is clean, it's virus free, no worms. I've checked everything on the PC, I've scanned for spy-ware ad-ware, viruses, worms. I've used multiple methods: Norton, Ad-aware, Stinger, Symantec tools.

I randomly get sudden restarts on my PC. It does so without any notification, there's no Blue Screen of Death, even though I've unchecked the Automatically Restart option in the Startup/Recovery settings.
I operate the PC behind a router via wireless PCMCIA card. Drivers for the network card are certified by Microsoft.

I've put up 3 firewalls, 1 hardware from router, 1from Norton Internet, and 1 one from Windows built-in.
I get no error reports after the restart is done, no error dialogs, nothing.

I've carried a system reformat, on my C: drive, leaving the 😧 drive intact.

The problem is nothing to do with overclocking, I run even little programs at once (like Winamp and IE) and it still reboots suddenly. It's nothing do to with the power outlet, I've switched the VAIO plug to another socket and it still reboots.

At first, the problem happened like every 72 hrs or so, but now it's very unpredictable. However, it doesn't restart in loops, i.e. it doesn't restart after seconds or after minutes. It's quite random.

Could it be that some virus/worm is hidden in my 😧 partition in my system volume folders?

I have 2 others PCs, 1 desktop and 1 laptop, and they don't the problem, so I'm not sure whether it's anything to do with a worm, because it'll spread over the network.

Do you think it's all because that the VAIO is defective? Or is it a software issue?

Please anyone help me out here, this is seriously urgent.

[Kei]

Well, before I bought this VAIO I had another laptop which I used the Netgear WG511 to connect to the net. I then bought another Netgear WG511 for this VAIO. Therefore I've actually got 2 Netgear WG511 wireless cards. At first, I used the new Netgear card for the VAIO, then I began to suspect there's something to do with the wireless card, so I tried the old Netgear card instead. As usual, it didn't change the problem at all. Right now I'm using the old one.

Well, the old Netgear card isn't that old, I only bought it at April 2004. The new one I got from July 2004.
The problem is still going on, but for today (20/08/04) I've been running the laptop from 12PM to now 7PM, and it hasn't restarted yet.

However, my old laptop (Toshiba) is also bugging up. The hard drive sometimes get before bootup "Operating System Not Found", and I have to keep turning it on and off to get it to boot up Windows correctly. However this is hard disk fault, so the Toshiba I know is going down. However, this is not all, the Toshiba also suddenyl shuts down by itself spontaneously, not restart suddenly, but shutdown suddenly, and it was using the same card.

How could the wireless connection make the PC suddenly restart, or for the Toshiba, shutdown suddenly?

[kee-lo_]

I think it's more to do with Windows than the laptops themselves.
Something is obviously clashing.

[Kei]

Log for 20/08/04 - 10:15PM
So far there's no restart this evening. Well up to now anway (10:15PM) and the laptop's been on since 12PM today.

I thinking that it'll restart anytime now between 10:30PM to 1AM. Cross my fingers that it won't.

Oh yea.... would Windows Messenger have anything to do with it? Because before I had it on startup type: Manual. Although it does auto logon when I connect to the net. Strange.
Anyway, now, I've set it to Disabled.

And also, I'm using a Netgear wireless card so I have to use the drivers and user interface they provide there. However, preinstalled with my VAIO is a LanExpress application or component. I don't know what the heck that is, some driver for other third-party wi-fi cards?
I don't use it at all, could it be in conflict with Netgear?
Plus, VAIO comes with an ethernet adapter "1394 Net adapter #2" and "RTL8139/810x Family Fast Ethernet NIC". I don't use those, and when the Realtek adpater thing is on there's a connection monitor icon on the taskbar with a cross of course, because I've no ethernet cable wire connected to any router or anything, so I disable both of them.
Could these two (LanExpress and other Ethernet adapters etc.) be conflicting with Netgear? And has Windows Messenger any possibility in conflict too?

[TygerTyger]

The ethernet adapters won't conflict, but the LANExpress I'm 99% positive is the wireless card which comes with your computer in which case it could very well be conflicted. Having said that, conflicting wireless cards is unlikely to cause your computer to restart. Have a dig around in the Device Manager and disable the LANExpress card, if you have a Netgear wireless card plugged in you don't need it. (or vice versa!)

[Kei]

The ethernet adapters are disabled. The LANExpress is only an application or component used for other wireless cards. I don't think it's under process anyway. I don't think it starts up, there's nothing in the Device Manager indicating any LANExpress associated hardware. Also, this K215B has only 1 PCMCIA slot, so I can only plug in one card at a time, and it's only Netgear that I have. I'll uninstall it instead, since it's only a few files, .exe etc.

[rich912]

This may be a long shot but I had a similar problem with my daughter's PCG-F305. At first it restarted every few hours but after a few weeks it happened every few minutes.

The problem was eventually solved by disabling the APM function ¿ since then no problems!.

Good luck.

[Kei]

What? What the hell is the APM function? And where is this located?

[kee-lo_]

Thats usually in the BIOS or Sony Notebook Setup.

Knowing Sony it's probably disabled

[Kei]

Speaking of the BIOS. I've just noticed recently that I can't access changes in the BIOS because it says that I can't alter things when I'm in user mode. What the hell?
I used to able to access this, like the UMA video memory. That stuff is just greyed out now whenever I try to access changing them.
I press F2 at startup, and they're blanked/greyed out.
Plus, I can't find anything like APM in the BIOS.

Oh yeah, I can't find a BIOS update for the K215B, is there one available?

[kee-lo_]

Sounds to me like the BIOS is locked out.
You probably need the admin key.