This section provides general guidelines for analyzing software problems. See
"Finding Information and Assistance"
for a list of software resources available to you from Dell, including drivers,
utilities, documentation, and operating system backups. For detailed
troubleshooting information on a particular application program, see the
documentation that accompanied the software or consult the support service for
the software vendor.
If your computer is behaving erratically, back up your files immediately. If
your computer has a tape drive installed, see the documentation that came with
the tape backup software for instructions on performing a backup operation.
Otherwise, see your operating system documentation for information on backing up
data files.
Basic Checks:
Ensure that the application program is compatible with the operating
system installed in your computer and that your computer meets the minimum
hardware requirements needed to run the software. For more information, see
"Operating System Compatibility."
Ensure that you properly installed and configured the application program.
Reinstall the program if necessary.
Consult the software documentation or contact the software
manufacturer for detailed troubleshooting information on a particular
application program.
Ensure that you have not made an error while entering data.
Ensure that problems are not caused by a virus Use a virus-scanning
application program to check the software installation disks or CDs before
using them.
After you have checked the software installation disks or CDs with a
virus-scanning application program, you should disable the virus-scanning
application program before installing the software. You should also disable
any other application programs that are "hidden," or operate in
the background.
Verify that the program's device drivers do not conflict with certain
application programs. For more information, see "Device
Drivers."
Confirm that a problem is software-related by running the Dell
Diagnostics. If all tests run successfully, the error condition may be
related to a software problem.
Ensure that the use of TSR programs has
not resulted in a memory conflict.
Remove or confirm the possibility of a program conflict by rebooting your
computer.
Ensure that the computer's operating environment is set up to accommodate the
application programs you use. Whenever you change the operating environment
parameters, you may also affect the successful operation of the application
programs. Sometimes, after modifying the operating environment, you may need to
reinstall a program that no longer runs properly.
If a specific key or set of keys is pressed at the wrong time, a program may
give you unexpected results. See the documentation that came with your
application program to ensure that the values or characters you are entering are
valid.
Error messages are produced by the operating system, an application program,
or the computer. "Messages and Codes"
discusses error messages that are generated by the operating system. If you
receive an error message that is not listed in "Messages
and Codes," check your application program documentation.
Programs that use specialized subroutines called device drivers can
also cause problems with your computer. For example, a variation in the way the
data is sent to the monitor may require a special screen driver program that
expects a certain kind of video mode or monitor. In such cases, you may have to
develop an alternative method of running that particular programthe creation
of a boot file made especially for that program, for example. Call the support
service for the software you are using to help you with this problem.
Many utilities and supplementary programs load either when the computer boots
or from an operating system prompt. These programs are designed to stay resident
in computer memory and thus always be available for use. Because they remain in
the computer's memory, memory conflicts and errors can result when other
programs require use of all or part of the memory already occupied by these TSR
programs.
Typically, your operating system's startup files or folder contain commands
to start TSR programs when you turn on your computer. If you suspect that one of
these TSR programs is causing a memory conflict, remove the commands that start
them from the start-up file. If the problem you were experiencing does not
recur, one of the TSR programs probably created the conflict. Add the TSR
commands back into the start-up files one at a time until you identify which TSR
program is creating the conflict.
Some programs may leave portions of their setup information behind, even
though you have exited from them. As a result, other programs cannot run.
Rebooting your computer can confirm whether these programs are causing the
problem.
Memory address conflicts occur when two or more devices try to access the
same address in the upper memory blocks. For example, if a network expansion
card and an expanded-memory page frame are assigned an overlapping block of
addresses, a memory address conflict arises. As a result, when you try to log in
to the network, the operation fails.
To resolve this type of conflict, you can change the address of one of the
devices. For example, in the case of the network expansion card and
expanded-memory page-frame address conflict, you can move the network card to an
address block in the range of CC000h through D0000h. To reassign the expansion
card's address block, refer to the documentation for the card.
Problems can arise if two devices attempt to use the same IRQ.
To avoid this type of conflict, check the documentation for the default IRQ
setting for each installed expansion card. Then consult the following table to
configure the card for one of the available IRQs.
NOTE: The following
table lists default IRQ settings. In computers with Plug
and Play capabilities, you can modify the defaults. If you install a
Plug and Play card in a Plug and Play computer, the computer automatically
selects an open IRQ if any are available.
IRQ
Used/Available
IRQ0
Used by the computer timer
IRQ1
Used by the keyboard to signal that the output buffer is full
IRQ2
Used by interrupt controller 1 to enable IRQ8 through IRQ15
IRQ3
Used by serial connector 2
IRQ4
Used by serial connector 1
IRQ5
Available
IRQ6
Used by the disk/tape drive controller
IRQ7
Used by the parallel connector
IRQ8
Used by the real-time clock (RTC)
IRQ9
Available
IRQ10
Available
IRQ11
Available
IRQ12
Used by the mouse connector
IRQ13
Used by the math coprocessor (if applicable)
IRQ14
Used by the primary/secondary IDE controller (if enabled)
IRQ15
Used by the primary/secondary IDE controller (if enabled)
