HP Spectre 15-BL012DX Completely Freezes Momentarily

[tcramer]

This is my second 2017 Spectre 15-BL012DX and both have had the same issue, which is really confusing me since I can't find a pattern of what causes it nor have I been able to reproduce it.

Seemingly randomly (anywhere from 0 - 10 times/day), the computer will just feeze.  The cursor freezes and no actions can be done for a few seconds, then it will be ok for a second before freezing again, rendering the system useless while this occurs.  Sometimes this will just go away after a few minutes but sometimes I need to reboot to make it stop.  It is incredibly annoying when it happens...I'd rather have an app crash than deal with this.  

I have tried restoring the system to default and ran a few memory, processor and hard disk tests after contacting HP support but they revealed nothing.  I'm also not seeing anything in the event viewer logs that jumps out, granted I'm not too sure what to look for.  I also don't see any processor spikes and typically running under 30% memory utilization.  All updates are current and the BIOS is on the latest firmware.

There is hardly anything extra installed on the machine, as I don't want to bother until I figure this out.  After uninstalling bloatware games and apps, the only things I've installed are Chrome, Symantec VIP, Citrix Receiver and MS Office Professional 2013.

Does anyone have any clue what might be causing this or seen anything similar?  I love this laptop otherwise (solid battery life, nice display, great keyboard and trackpad etc,  nice design), but I can't keep it if I don't get this resolved.

[Chimney_83]

Greetings @tcramer, 

Welcome to HP Forums and Thanks for the post. 

I understand that you are facing an issue with your computer freezing randomly. Don't worry, I will be glad to assist you. 

Firstly, kudos to you for trying a lot of troubleshooting steps on your own. 

Have you checked the startup items on your computer

Recommend you to perform a reset on your computer and check. 

To perform a reset, please click on the Windows button and click on settings. 

On the settings window, click on update and security. 

On the Update and Security window, click on Recovery and select Reset this PC and follow the on-screen instructions. 

Please refer to this HP Article for assistance. 

If the issue persists, please perform a recovery on the computer. 

As you have performed most of the troubleshooting steps, please check task manager to check the applications that are running when the issue occurs and uninstall the programs that might have caused the issue. Please refer to this HP article for other troubleshooting steps. 

Let me know if this helped. 

If the information I've provided was helpful,

Please give us some reinforcement by clicking the "Accepted Solution" and "Kudos" buttons,

That’ll help us and others see that we’ve got the answers!

Good Luck.

[waldeck]

I am also on my 2nd Spectre 15 inch. The 1st one would randomly freeze for 10-30 seconds or so and then all would be okay. This also happened periodically while the machine was on. I got fed up with it and returned it and got another one. I really like this laptop and want to keep it.

Now here is what I have found out. With the 1st Spectre, I had a notification of a bios upgrade. I applied it. It seemed once the bios was upgraded is when it began freezing. My 2nd Spectre, I have not applied the bios upgrade as that seemed to be the only difference between the two machines. I have had the new laptop for 5 days now and now freezing at all.

It could be something in the bios upgrade is causing the periodically freezing. Maybe HP can investigate this to see if the bios upgrade could be the culprit.

[DavidSMP]

Hi @waldeck,

As @Chimney_83 is out of the office today, I am replying to this post today.  A very good day to you. 🙂 I read the post regarding freezing issues of your first notebook after a bios update. It will be a delight to assist you. 🙂

Superb description and very smart diagnosis of the issue before posting. Kudos to you on that score. 🙂  .  You are an important HP customer and it is a privilege to share this platform with you. 🙂

For now, the exchanged notebook seems to be working fine. Please do not apply the bios update as of now. It is not mandatory. Only if the computer has issues is when a bios update helps to correct the situation. The feedback is also taken regarding the bios.

Please make sure to update all the other Microsoft Windows updates and other driver updates for your computer except for the bios.  That should keep the computer in healthy. Link for updating the other drivers: http://support.hp.com/in-en/drivers/selfservice/HP-Spectre-15-bl000-x360-Convertible-PC/13823372/mod...? Please update the chipset, display, network and audio drivers from this link. It should help a great deal.

Hope this helps.  Let me know how this goes. I genuinely hope the issue gets resolved without hassles and the unit works great. 🙂  Please reach out for any issues and I'll be there to assist you. 🙂

To simply say thanks, please click the "Thumbs Up" button to give me a Kudos to appreciate my efforts to help.

 If this helps, please mark this as “Accepted Solution” as it will help several others with the same issue to get it resolved without hassles. 🙂

Take care now and have a splendid week ahead. 🙂

[cm2785]

Hi there, I have this same exact computer and issue. I am about to return this $2000 computer because of this.. Has anyone figured this out?? Thanks

[tcramer]

I always keep my machines updated.  I changed nothing and it hasn't happened in nearly a week?  Strange, but so far so good.  Absolutely no changes.

Hopefully it stays this way.  I wouldn't think it to be needed nor have I ever heard of it, but maybe something about this machine requires a break-in period.  Who knows.  I'm not going to mark this as resolved quite yet.

[waldeck]

Cm2785 - did you update the bios on your machine? If so ,this may be the problem. On my original machine, it began locking up after  I updated the bios. I returned the machine to Best Buy and got another one. I really liked this laptop and didn't want to get something else. It with the new machine, I  elected to not update the bios. It has not locked up once in the 2 weeks I've had it.

I have also noticed the update for the bios disappeared from my machine several days ago. HP must have removed it.

[waldeck]

I to have always kept my computers updated with bios, drivers, etc. After returning the 1st one which kept locking up after updating the bios, i decided to not update the bios on the 2nd one. Two weeks later and no lockup. 

As I mentioned in a previous post, the option to update the bios is no longer showing on my machine. I can't say for sure if the bios upgrade caused the lockups but the fact the 2nd machine has not locked up once leads my to think so.

[cm2785]

Thanks guys! Which spot are you talking about looking for updates? Nothing has asked me to update.. I did check last night on one of the HP help programs but it said there were no updates.. I haven't done any that I can tell.. besides Windows automatically updating.. maybe this system already had the bios updated? I'm hoping that it is an update that fixes it like it seems to have done for tcramer..

[DavidSMP]

Hi @waldeck,

I reviewed the post comprehensively. Please ensure to keep checking for windows updates and update them on a regular basis. If you visited the HP support site from my previous post and found that the bios is up to date, then there are no further updates available as of now.Please check if the other drivers like, chipset, graphics, and network are also up to date. If they are then it is great and there should be no cause for concern.

You've been simply fabulous to work with, considering your technical expertise and exhaustive technical skills. 🙂  It has been an absolute privilege to share this platform with you. 🙂 Trust me, I've done all I can to assist you, by keeping your best interest in mind. 

If the freezing recurs again, then please contact HP phone support to get the situation corrected. I genuinely hope the unit works great and stays healthy for a long time to come. 🙂

Step 1. Open link: www.hp.com/contacthp/

Step 2. Enter Product number or select to auto detect

Step 3. Scroll down to "Still need help? Complete the form to select your contact options"

Step 4. Scroll down and click: HP contact options - click on Get phone number, Case number and phone number appear.

They will be happy to assist you immediately. If the unit is under warranty repair services is taken care of by the manufacturer’s warranty

This link to work with the task manager could be useful when the system freezes: http://support.hp.com/us-en/document/c03671001

To simply say thanks, please click the "Thumbs Up" button to give me a Kudos to appreciate my efforts to help.

If this helps, please mark this as “Accepted Solution” as it will help several others with the same issue to get it resolved without hassles. 🙂

You take care, stay healthy, keep smiling big and do have a blessed year ahead. 🙂