Laptop randomly crashes, unless Amarok is running.

[Titaniumwolf]

This is just a weird little issue I seem to have. I'm running Kubuntu 9.10 x64 and my laptop will semi-randomly restart unless the program Amarok is running. The crazy thing is that it will exhibit the same behaviour even when Kubuntu isn't installed, or the x86 version is installed, and when I run it off a live-cd I get the same results.

I say semi-random because it seems to be linked with heat, if I place it next to an open window in a cold room at night it will run longer, and if it has been running for awhile and restarts I'll have to keep it off for a bit or else it will just keep restarting at the BIOS screen.

I've have no idea what's going on but it's odd enough that I thought I should post it.

[Snowhog]

Re: Laptop randomly crashes, unless Amarok is running.

Sounds a lot like a fan/cooling problem. Can you hear your fans running at all?

[Titaniumwolf]

Re: Laptop randomly crashes, unless Amarok is running.

Yep. I even set the fans to run continually in the BIOS. Can't get the sensors to work, but according to the NVIDIA setting thermal monitor I'm running cool enough. I might try to get lm-sensors to work again.

[Snowhog]

Re: Laptop randomly crashes, unless Amarok is running.

Age of the laptop? Do you have ventilation flow under it - on any kind of lifted support at the back so that air can circulate under it?

[Titaniumwolf]

Re: Laptop randomly crashes, unless Amarok is running.

About 1 year old, ventilation doesn't seem to make a difference. I'm really not kidding that running Amarok causes it to not crash/restart. Every time I have Amarok playing it goes until I decide to shut it down which can be hours, something impossible to replicate without it running.