Halo 1 & 2 for PC
This topic has moved here: Subject: HELP!! My PC reboots!!
  • Subject: HELP!! My PC reboots!!
Subject: HELP!! My PC reboots!!
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Hi, whenever i play Halo (single and multiplayer modes) and Halo CE, after 20 t 50 minutes of playing, my pc reboots, i've tried reinstalling Halo, Ce, did several virus scans and i get nothing..

What should i do!!?

  • 10.25.2005 6:51 PM PDT
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Most times, restarts are a result of program incompatibility. In Halo, the primary culprit is your video card. If your card--or more specifically, the software that interfaces with the rest of your PC--is in some way not compatable with the game, it will lock up, shut down, and restrat the system. Try updating your drivers (sense of deja vu) or, if the problem persists, consider buying a newer, more compatable card for your PC. Just make sure you can get the card IN your PC. a lot of computer manufacturers no longer put AGP slots on their boards, and PCI standard, not PCIe, is not going to give you gaming level performance for a video card.

Another posibility is OS. Running halo in an older OS like Win 98 or ME is not really recommended. the game is just too robust for the system to handle. It can be done, but learn to expect crashes.

if it always restarts within a specified time limit, the culprit may be heat. Specifically (you guessed it) your video card again. Disable overclocking (if its enabled) and use ff or use11 to lower video quality for the game. This will help it run smoother longer, and keep your parts from overheating as much.

to to do this, right click the shortcut on your desktop for halo PC and CE, depending on the one you want to modify. then left click the choice at the bottom of your screen called properties. you will have three tabs to choose from. If not automatically selected, choose "shortcut." the third line down on this window should read "Target" and have a small text window containing

"C:\Program Files\Microsoft Games\Halo\halo.exe"

or something simular if you didn't put it into your C drive. This is what you want to modify. its very simple. just type a space and then -useff or -use11 onto the back. It should look like this when you're done:

"C:\Program Files\Microsoft Games\Halo\halo.exe" -use11
"C:\Program Files\Microsoft Games\Halo\halo.exe" -useff

-use ff will look really bad, but run REALLY well on weaker systems. -use11 won't look as bad, but if your system is close to minimum spec for running the game, you may still get the occasional crash.

And remember; you'll have to do it for both shortcuts for this to effect both programs. halo PC and halo CE are different programs, written differently. Also, play from the shortcut. Not sure on this, but if you pop in the disc and play from the load screen that comes up, I doubt the changes will have any effect. If someone knows for certain, please respond.

I know you've been having problems for a while now Elricsw. Final suggestion: consider investing in a new computer. Hope this helps.

"-" Minus Sign

[Edited on 10/25/2005]

  • 10.25.2005 11:24 PM PDT
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I think the problem is overheating (i bought an ATI Radeon 9250 about 3 weeks ago), no way the drivers screw the game.

I' made the "use11" change to both shortcuts, ill just have to try and see, thanks for the help!!

  • 10.26.2005 2:48 PM PDT
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Ok, Ok, i'm going to freak out!!!

I tried the use11 method and it still reboots!! any other method i can try??

at first, my pc didn't have problems with HALO (when i bought the video card, i played for 4 hours non-stop and it did not reboot)

  • 10.26.2005 3:33 PM PDT
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EDIT: your drivers CAN screw the game. Go to support.ati.com and DL the catylyst control center for their Radeon ATI cards. it includes a bundle of drivers. I've got a 9600 XT and IT has problems without upgraded drivers. ATI chipsets suck and they aren't built for long term gaming sessions. Get nVidia next time. Live and learn lesson for the both of us...

Anything else you can do? Yes, but its tedious. Hit Ctrl+Alt+Delete to open Task Manager and click "Processes". shut down any program that says "user" that you aren't using. Start small, write down what you've shut down, and if the computer restarts, shut down some more stuff. Don't shut down explorer.exe as that will close windows (and restart your PC). These programs will restart when you click their short cut or restart your PC. Some will restart no matter what you do; no matter how many times you shut it down, the process will come back up. These are typically Windows required systems or junk the PC manufaturer is "certain" you can't live without. When you attempt to shut down a Windowns critical system, it should warn you first, or not allow you to. Try doing this without administrative access to your PC first. that will keep you from turning off the wrong stuff.

If your Pc does crash, don't freak out. You're doing some weird stuff to the poor thing. It may not like it. Just remember to write down the process you shut down. That way, you know what not to touch next time.

You've run antivirus. Stupid question but, is your antivirus up to date. you'd be surprised how many people think that their PC is safe because they bought Norton a year and a half ago...while never updating their subscription or running a virus definition update. A year old anit-virus, firewall, or antispam will only stop viruses and spyware that are a year old. newer viruses have been designed to slip through these defenses. And they do so with impunity.

Also defrag defrag defrag. Not only does your PC run faster because it finds files more quickly, it runs smoother because it finds the whole bloody file. You should defrag your PC monthly at least or when you upload and install large files (like a couple gigs of gaming software). If I sound repetitive, that's because...I'm stalling.

there's one last thing you can try. But i'm extremely hesitant to suggest it, as it can seriously mess up you PC if you do something wrong.

You can reconfigure Windows to make it run smoother; shut down un-needed applications runnng in the background. I mean completely turn them off so they never come on when your PC starts. Beginners using Windows XP should click here for directions and a list of things they can shut down or try to make Windows XP (Pro or Home) run better.

many of these steps are quite advanced though. I would suggest taking your PC to a liscensed programer whenever you alter the registry. If you are insistent, you will need to have administrative access for the system.

Shutting down extra resources properly will improve performance, reduce used resources, and in general make your PC run faster; and be less suceptable to attack (if the resource they use to backdoor into your system isn't on, it's like locking a door on a hacker).

Doing it wrong can result in a system that cannot start up. Make sure you have system restore enabled before messing with this (though, that is one of the programs they talk about disabling).



[Edited on 10/27/2005]

  • 10.27.2005 1:04 AM PDT
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Thanks for the info!!

I do the proccess killing thing always i play HALO, it works fine for about 30 minutes....

My Pc is safe, i have Pc-cillin, its updated daily.

By i think i have a virus, 'cuz there's a lot of "Scvhost.exe" (like 6 on the running proccessses), whenever i shut any of them, my pc reboots, it sucks!

It's just that my dad used this Pc before, i was a master in Windows 98, but XP is new to me, so i don't know wich proccesses are part of the system and wich don't.

I'll try the advanced stuff you wrote (i've got enough knowledge/experience to do it myself).

I have full access to the registry (i have administrator privileges), i think i screwed it up (i edited some of the software in HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE, it runs faster, but the system has a lot of errors (D'OH!).

  • 10.27.2005 6:19 PM PDT

Java is coffee...
Jave is perfection.

I had the same problem with my old computer. My bro opened up the computer looked inside and there was mold in it. he vaccumed it out and I didnt see if it didnt have the problem anymore because i went to bed but it probably will work. Maybe you should check for something like that.

[Edited on 10/27/2005]

  • 10.27.2005 6:31 PM PDT
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svchost.exe is a normal Windows process. I, myself, have four running right now. If you really think you have a virus, sort by name and look at all six svchost.exe. If one or more of them is sCVhost.exe, then you probably do have a virus. Contact your virus vendor and tell them about the situation. They can better assist you. Gratz, you may have gotten yourself an undefined virus. Most running viruses try to hide themselves inside needed programs or disguise themselves as real processes.

Have you DLed the catylyst yet? Please try that option before messing with your registry. If you already have and believe it has caused problems, consider running a system restore to revert back to a fresh install of Windows, and go from there. You'll have to re-DL any programs you didn't originally have on your system, remove files that were installed that you have since removed. Back up your data on hard copy so you won't lose it (CD, DVD, Diskette).

EDIT: if your PC is still under warranty, do NOT open the case, even to spray it out with canned air. Opening the case for any reason by anyone without A+ certification will void all parts warranties.

If it's out of warranty, go nuts. Spray with "Air Duster" and complete the cleaning process with "Blue Shower" (smells like WD-40 but it does a great job cleaning off electronics). wipe off fan blades with a Q-tip (Dust does get a little sticky on those moving parts) but leave rub-down cleaning to a professional for cards and Mboard. Keep yourself grounded to avoid static charge zapping your PC. To do this, either hold the metal sides of the box (and mean grip onto METAL sides) or use the braclet. Ask someone at your local Radioshack for a grounding brqaclet, explaing what you intend to do. They should give you a little brackelt with a short wire and a pair of alegator clips on the end. Clip the braclet onto metal (unshilded, unpainted metal to ensure proper ground) and you can pretty much touch whatever the heck you want.

But keep in mind. Once you crack the case, you've entered the world of ameteur PC repair enthusiast. Next thing you know, you'll be building your own systems from scratch, grousing about "pixels" on your ATI card and drooling over processors like said Charlie in that Chocolate Factory, and taking night courses to get that A+, Networking certificates, all that good stuff.

it can become an extremely expensive hobby.

[Edited on 10/27/2005]

  • 10.27.2005 6:37 PM PDT