Probable Hardware Failure

[Zane C. B-H.]

On Sat, 14 Jan 2012 16:12:24 -0800
Doug Hardie <bc979 at lafn.org> wrote:

> I have a pretty old desktop that has been around quite awhile.  It
> has started periodic crashes.  No log messages.  However, the core
> status files all show "double fault".  I am confident this is a
> hardware issue, but is there any easy way to determine if its power
> or memory related?  Those are the primary candidates although memory
> is also possible.  We really need to replace the entire unit, but
> that might be a bit more salable if I can present convincing evidence
> of the cause of the problem.

In regards to the RAM, I would strongly suggest memtest86/memtest86+.
When you begin seeing odd issues like that, it can be a handy tool to
use for a quick RAM check.