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Display intermittently dies

S

sajurcaju

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Feb 6, 2007
13
0
Maine
We have a Mac Pro, 10.4.11, with four cores. It has a 23" ACD, which will die without any apparent clues as to why. Any guidance of how to troubleshoot the problem *greatly* appreciated. It often happens more than once a day. I have replaced the power supply, with no change in behavior. Some logs are appended below.

When it dies, it seems to be just the display. Skype calls are not disrupted. The only fix is to reboot the machine via the button on the front.

Thanks,
Steve

---------------
First, an extract from /var/log/system.log. This refers to a second log, which follows after the -------------------

Apr 10 21:43:41 Big-Mac configd[34]: posting notification com.apple.system.config.network_change
Apr 10 21:43:47 Big-Mac lookupd[639]: lookupd (version 369.6) starting - Thu Apr 10 21:43:47 2008
Apr 10 21:44:00 Big-Mac kernel[0]: System Sleep
Apr 10 21:46:48 Big-Mac kernel[0]: Enabling XMM register save/restore and SSE/SSE2 opcodes
Apr 10 21:46:48 Big-Mac kernel[0]: Started CPU 01
Apr 10 21:46:48 Big-Mac kernel[0]: Enabling XMM register save/restore and SSE/SSE2 opcodes
Apr 10 21:46:48 Big-Mac kernel[0]: Started CPU 02
Apr 10 21:46:48 Big-Mac kernel[0]: Enabling XMM register save/restore and SSE/SSE2 opcodes
Apr 10 21:46:48 Big-Mac kernel[0]: Started CPU 03
Apr 10 21:46:48 Big-Mac kernel[0]: System Wake
Apr 10 21:46:55 Big-Mac kernel[0]: Intel8254x -- Link Down -- 00:17:f2:08:5c:1f -- called by enableHardware() --
Apr 10 21:46:55 Big-Mac kernel[0]: -- Auto-Negotiation Advertisement Register (04d) = 0xde1
Apr 10 21:46:55 Big-Mac kernel[0]: -- Auto-Negotiation Link Partner Ability Register (05d) = 0x0
Apr 10 21:46:55 Big-Mac kernel[0]: -- Auto-Negotiation Gigabit Advertisement Register (09d) = 0xe00
Apr 10 21:46:55 Big-Mac kernel[0]: -- Auto-Negotiation Gigabit Link Partner Ability Register (10d) = 0x4000
Apr 10 21:46:55 Big-Mac kernel[0]: -- PHY Specific Status Register (17d) = 0x8000
Apr 10 21:46:55 Big-Mac kernel[0]: Intel8254x -- Link Up -- 00:17:f2:08:5c:1e -- called by interruptOccurred() --
Apr 10 21:46:55 Big-Mac kernel[0]: -- Auto-Negotiation Advertisement Register (04d) = 0xde1
Apr 10 21:46:55 Big-Mac kernel[0]: -- Auto-Negotiation Link Partner Ability Register (05d) = 0x45e1
Apr 10 21:46:55 Big-Mac kernel[0]: -- Auto-Negotiation Gigabit Advertisement Register (09d) = 0xe00
Apr 10 21:46:55 Big-Mac kernel[0]: -- Auto-Negotiation Gigabit Link Partner Ability Register (10d) = 0x4000
Apr 10 21:46:55 Big-Mac kernel[0]: -- PHY Specific Status Register (17d) = 0x6f48
Apr 10 21:46:55 Big-Mac kernel[0]: Intel8254X -- Negotiated Speed: 100 Mb/s, Duplex: Full, Flow Control: Receive Paus
e Enabled, Transmit Pause Enabled
Apr 10 21:46:56 Big-Mac crashdump[640]: Exited process crashed
Apr 10 21:46:56 Big-Mac crashdump[640]: crash report written to: /Library/Logs/CrashReporter/Exited process.crash.log

------------------------
Here is the most recent entry in the above file, /Library/Logs/CrashReporter/Exited process.crash.log

**********

Host Name: Big-Mac
Date/Time: 2008-04-10 21:46:56.154 -0400
OS Version: 10.4.11 (Build 8S2167)
Report Version: 4

Command: Exited process
Path: Exited process
Parent: kernel_task [0]

Version: ??? (???)

PID: 548
Thread: Unknown

Exception: EXC_BAD_ACCESS (0x0001)
Codes: KERN_PROTECTION_FAILURE (0x0002) at 0x00000034
(null)
Unknown thread crashed with X86 Thread State (32-bit):
eax: 0xb0488b8f ebx: 0x004502de ecx: 0x01800038 edx: 0x00000000
edi: 0xb0488b88 esi: 0xffffffff ebp: 0xb0488ba8 esp: 0xb0488b30
ss: 0x0000001f efl: 0x00210282 eip: 0x00450684 cs: 0x00000017
ds: 0x0000001f es: 0x0000001f fs: 0x00000000 gs: 0x00000037

Binary Images Description:

This is the end of this log file.
 
sajurcaju
Click to expand...


I had the same problem. I bought a Apple 20" Cinema Display off a guy on craigslist. Of course he assured me that there was nothing wrong with it. After the first day of using it, it started to do the same thing you are mentioning. It would just die. I would have to unplug the power brick and re-plug it back in to get it working again. I used PayPal and finally got them to replace it since I paid the guy with PayPal. Anyway, before replacing the power brick, I took it to the Apple Store and had the people at the Geniusbar help test it to make sure that the power brick was the problem. http://www.apple.com/retail/geniusbar/ set up an appointment before going.

You stated that you already replaced the power supply and are still having problems though. There is one last resort you can try. You could try reinstalling the operating system to see if there is anything installed on the Mac that is causing the conflict. If you still have the problem it sounds like it might be a hardware problem with the monitor. If you need directions on how to re-install I have posted that in other threads.
 
Recommended preventative maintenence for Radeon x1900

Thanks much for your reply macsrules.

I have fixed the problem. It is quite obvious (now).
The Radeon video card has a slim blower on it, with a plastic box surrounding it . It pulls air across a heat sink with many thin fins, spaced maybe 1mm apart. When I finally looked at mine, it looked like the inlet had a felt filter over it. Vacuuming this lint cake off has completely eliminated the problem.

My daughter not only was delighted with the lack of crashes, she also commented that the machine no longer sounded like an aircraft taking off. I suggest people with this card (and probably other video cards) check for trapped lint once and awhile.

Steve
 
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