Programs like Visual Studio and Google Chrome kind of freeze

3

3

I have this problem for more than 1 and a half year now.

When I use programs like Visual Studio, Google Chrome or Spotify the programs freeze randomly.

Well, the program doesn't actually stop working, it seems like the visual stuff is just freezing. The only 'fix' I found for those freezes is dragging the window to the side/top so it snaps onto the side/top. That is really annoying because I have to do it like 1 time every minute. (I also deactivated Aero effects. Those will freeze my windows almost every 10 seconds...)

I hope someone can help me with this problem, which makes it almost impossible to work properly with the computer.

My Lap Top :

Lenovo
Windows 7 Home Premium (64 bit)
Processor : Intel i3-2330M Dual Core 2.20GHZ
RAM       : 8 GB
Graphics Card : AMD Radeon HD 6370M

Tobi_R

Posted 2015-02-06T16:49:36.490

Reputation: 58

Just a shot in the dark, are you sure you are running the most recent certified drivers for your graphics card? Which version are you running? – ChrisInEdmonton – 2015-02-06T16:51:49.137

Yes, I always keep my computer drivers up to date! The driver version is 8.840.7.0! – Tobi_R – 2015-02-06T16:53:45.610

Errrm, I'm on 14.100.0.0 and I haven't updated since April 2014. The current version is 14.12, though I'm not sure it supports mobile GPU's. https://driverscollection.com/?H=Mobility%20Radeon%20HD%206370M&By=AMD&SS=Windows%207%2064-bit implies 13.9 does, and is only a little over a year old.

– ChrisInEdmonton – 2015-02-06T17:03:51.197

Weird. I cannot find my drivers on the offical AMD webpage. Is that driverscollection page safe ? – Tobi_R – 2015-02-06T17:17:57.230

Well, I'd first try just the latest Catalyst driver from AMD's page. I can't say with certainty that driverscollection is safe, but I haven't heard of any problems. – ChrisInEdmonton – 2015-02-06T17:41:24.633

@Tobi_R No they are not safe – Ramhound – 2015-02-06T17:54:15.853

I know on nvidia control panel you can choose what graphics card is working on a particular program and have had issues with users programs such as illustrator crashing because their laptop tried to use the on board graphics card instead of the discreet graphics card. Its easy to change, however I haven't had the opportunity to try it on a AMD card. Try looking in AMD Catalyst suite. I'm sure there is something there you can configure. – Vdub – 2015-02-06T18:01:57.920

I downloaded an automatic updater from AMD which sais there is version 14.12. I will try to use that updater and see if it helps! – Tobi_R – 2015-02-06T19:25:48.763

For some reason, after installing the new driver it sais that I have a 6300M graphics card. – Tobi_R – 2015-02-06T19:47:30.953

Is it possible you're really low on disc space? You could have other things running like malware that are stealing resources and in return putting other apps on hold when memory or your processor are getting hammered by a different app. – Codezilla – 2015-02-06T19:55:19.083

No, I have 413 GB free on my disc! Also I am scanning for malware every day with malwarebytes and I recently reset my whole laptop. My RAM is almost empty and CPU-Usage is at around 5 % all the time. I can also play games like 'Call of Duty' without any problems. It's just in those programs! – Tobi_R – 2015-02-06T20:01:19.467

A fresh install would 'probably' fix the issues but that solution sucks unless you don't mind reinstalling a few things and don't have a lot to backup. – Codezilla – 2015-02-06T20:16:42.413

Well, I did that once. I restored my lap top to factory settings but it didn't help. I fixed the issue now, you can read the solution in the commands of the answer below! – Tobi_R – 2015-02-06T20:23:00.290

Answers

0

If your laptop has an integrated graphics card as well as that Radeon one [and so many laptops do these days] you might try disabling the smaller one [probably an Intel made power-conscious one] or using your driver utility to force these problem programs to render on the Radeon card.

Go to Run > msinfo32 > Components > Display to see if you have more than one video adapter and use Run > dxdiag to see which one of them you're currently using.

Catatonic27

Posted 2015-02-06T16:49:36.490

Reputation: 611

Thanks, I went to that locations and it shows both of my graphic cards; Intel Mobile Graphics Card and my AMD Radeon card. How do I know which one is activated ? Maybe I've been using the integrated intel one all the time... – Tobi_R – 2015-02-06T19:25:09.723

The 'Display' tab found within Run > dxdiag will tell you which device is currently active. – Catatonic27 – 2015-02-06T20:02:06.677

In that case, the Intel Mobile Graphics Card is active. Already checked the BIOS, no options to set my AMD to default. – Tobi_R – 2015-02-06T20:02:56.540

Blast, the BIOS was going to be my next suggestion. The fact that [as you mentioned in another comment] you can play CoD with no problem indicates that your Radeon card IS working to some extent...It's just not pitching in with programs that the driver doesn't deem worthy of the bigger card. You probably have something like Catalyst Control Center installed that gives you the ability to manually set certain programs to use a specific video adapter.

Slight shot in the dark, but make sure your power settings are set to performance mode and not power-saver mode. – Catatonic27 – 2015-02-06T20:09:33.143

I am also always on performance mode! Appearently the issue is fixed. I updated the Catalyst Center which informed me about a new update for my graphic card driver. After updating the driver, the graphics card is shown as 6300M. But I don't get any freezes anymore, not even with Aero mode. I am really happy I could finally fix that problem, though I am still confused about Windows not showing me available updates for the driver! Thanks for everyones help, fixing that problem really means alot to me, Greetings! – Tobi_R – 2015-02-06T20:20:00.003

Good to hear! Happy to help! – Catatonic27 – 2015-02-06T20:29:54.317

Asked: 2015-02-06T16:49:36.490

Viewed: 362 times

Active: 2015-02-06T19:55:19.083