For the past 2 weeks I've been getting an error in the System log under the Event Viewer about the ACPIEC Embedded controller hardware not responding. What made me view the Event Viewer was my computer was coming out of hibernation one night, it was a bit slow and then once windows was up it did a regulart shut down (but I had updates trying to restart the pc before). It froze while shutting down. I noticed I was getting the errors before this occured. I've googled the problem many times looking for answers but my PC isn't having the same symptoms as others like randomly shutting off, rebooting, overheating, or any other error messages. I checked my fans and they're fine, my bios are the latest version for my motherboard. The only thing that changed was my video driver which I already tried going back to the old one. I called the maker of my laptop and after spending an hour talking with them they told me that it wasn't a system problem but with the OS and to talk to Microsoft. I have never come across an error like this and I have no clue what to do about it. The system seems fine though, everything working and no problems other than the error. What should I do to fix this or is it even worth worrying about?The error reads:Event Type: ErrorEvent Source: ACPIECEvent Category: NoneEvent ID: 1Date: 12/17/2010Time: 1:46:27 AMUser: N/AComputer: M15XVISIONDescription:\Device\ACPIEC: The embedded controller (EC) hardware didn't respond within the timeout period. This may indicate an error in the EC hardware or firmware, or possibly a poorly designed BIOS which accesses the EC in an unsafe manner. The EC driver will retry the failed transaction if possible.For more information, see Help and Support Center at http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/events.asp.Data:0000: 00 00 68 00 01 00 be 00 ..h...¾.0008: 00 00 00 00 01 00 05 c0 .......À0010: 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 ........0018: 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 ........0020: 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 ........0028: 99 9e 36 00 14 00 ff ff 6...ÿÿ0030: 74 00 08 00 14 02 18 00 t.......0038: 84 00 9b 01 a4 09 c6 05 ..¤.Æ.0040: 14 02 24 00 44 d0 08 00 ..$.DÐ..0048: 16 08 b7 00 a6 02 53 00 ..·.¦.S.0050: 16 0a 1c 00 a6 01 20 00 ....¦. .0058: 16 1a 26 00 36 81 08 00 ..&.6..0060: 15 18 14 00 10 18 f6 08 ......ö.0068: a0 1c de 5e 10 1a 4b 00 .Þ^..K.0070: 60 00 08 00 90 01 1d 07 `......0078: 70 00 13 00 10 1a 17 00 p.......0080: 80 00 10 00 30 83 0a 00 ...0..0088: 15 10 10 00 21 00 0f 00 ....!...1 person needs an answerI do too

Hi Veeshun, As per the event log, updating BIOS should have fixed the problem. Here is a knowledge base from Microsoft you may refer to which has information on the same:http://www.microsoft.com/technet/support/ee/transform.aspx?ProdName=Windows+Operating+System&ProdVer=5.2&EvtID=1&EvtSrc=ACPIEC&LCID=1033 Regards:Samhrutha G S - Microsoft Support.Visit our Microsoft Answers Feedback Forum and let us know what you think.

Hi Veeshun, As per the event log, updating BIOS should have fixed the problem. Here is a knowledge base from Microsoft you may refer to which has information on the same:http://www.microsoft.com/technet/support/ee/transform.aspx?ProdName=Windows+Operating+System&ProdVer=5.2&EvtID=1&EvtSrc=ACPIEC&LCID=1033 Regards:Samhrutha G S - Microsoft Support.Visit our Microsoft Answers Feedback Forum and let us know what you think.Well the thing is my bios doesn't have any updates, it's the most recent version......Unless there's new ones out there? The maker of my laptop doesn't have newer bios on their site for my laptop....

VeeshunThe report says "didn't respond within the timeout period". It goes on to say "The EC driver will retry the failed transaction if possible." Have you checked to see if there is a subsequent Information report in Event Viewer indicating that a later attempt was successful?How regular is your housekeeping? Put another way are you regularly running cCleaner (or Disk Cleanup if that is your preference) followed by Disk Defragmenter? Your problem could resolve to a simple solution of carrying out routine maintenance more effectively.How much free disk space do you have on your C partition and how large is that partition?Hope this helps, Gerry Cornell

VeeshunThe report says "didn't respond within the timeout period". It goes on to say "The EC driver will retry the failed transaction if possible." Have you checked to see if there is a subsequent Information report in Event Viewer indicating that a later attempt was successful?How regular is your housekeeping? Put another way are you regularly running cCleaner (or Disk Cleanup if that is your preference) followed by Disk Defragmenter? Your problem could resolve to a simple solution of carrying out routine maintenance more effectively.How much free disk space do you have on your C partition and how large is that partition?Hope this helps, Gerry CornellSorry that it took so long to respond, busy with the holidays. No there is some subsequent report that it was successful, just more of the same error. I ran CCleaner before posting this and defragged.I have 121 gigs free on a 232 gig partition.

You have referred to the make of your laptop but not said who it is (I can speculate).Let's see what you've got there by asking some different questions to get the system vital signs (I know some are boring questions).Please provide additional information about your system:What is your system make and model?What is your XP Version and Service Pack?Describe your current antivirus and anti malware situation: McAfee, Symantec, Norton, Spybot, AVG, Avira!, MSE, Panda, Trend Micro, CA, Defender, ZoneAlarm, PC Tools, Comodo, etc.Does the afflicted system have a working CD/DVD drive?Do you have a genuine bootable XP installation CD (this is not the same as any Recovery CDs that came with your system)?Click Start, Run and in the box enter:msinfo32Click OK, and when the System Summary info appears, click Edit, Select All, Copy and then paste the information back here.For video driver information, expand the Components, click Display, click Edit, Select All, Copy and then paste the information back here.There will be some personal information (like System Name and User Name), and whatever appears to be private information to you, just delete it from the pasted information.This will minimize back and forth Q&A and eliminate guesswork. Do, or do not. There is no try.I decided to save up points for a new puppy instead of a pony!

VeeshunWhat is your computer make and model?What is your motherboard make and model?How long ago did you buy your computer?Where did you get your ACPI EC device from? Have you asked them for help?Hope this helps, Gerry Cornell

You have referred to the make of your laptop but not said who it is (I can speculate).Let's see what you've got there by asking some different questions to get the system vital signs (I know some are boring questions).Please provide additional information about your system:What is your system make and model?What is your XP Version and Service Pack?Describe your current antivirus and anti malware situation: McAfee, Symantec, Norton, Spybot, AVG, Avira!, MSE, Panda, Trend Micro, CA, Defender, ZoneAlarm, PC Tools, Comodo, etc.Does the afflicted system have a working CD/DVD drive?Do you have a genuine bootable XP installation CD (this is not the same as any Recovery CDs that came with your system)?Click Start, Run and in the box enter:msinfo32Click OK, and when the System Summary info appears, click Edit, Select All, Copy and then paste the information back here.For video driver information, expand the Components, click Display, click Edit, Select All, Copy and then paste the information back here.There will be some personal information (like System Name and User Name), and whatever appears to be private information to you, just delete it from the pasted information.This will minimize back and forth Q&A and eliminate guesswork. Do, or do not. There is no try.I decided to save up points for a new puppy instead of a pony!Alienware (Dell) M15X 1st versionXP Professional SP3Norton Internet Security, Malewarebytes, SuperantispywareYes I have a working DVD DriveYes I have a bootable XP CDOS Name Microsoft Windows XP ProfessionalVersion 5.1.2600 Service Pack 3 Build 2600OS Manufacturer Microsoft CorporationSystem Name M15XVISIONSystem Manufacturer AlienwareSystem Model m15xSystem Type X86-based PCProcessor x86 Family 6 Model 23 Stepping 6 GenuineIntel ~2493 MhzBIOS Version/Date Quanta vX36 P3, 8/29/2008SMBIOS Version 2.4Windows Directory C:\WINDOWSSystem Directory C:\WINDOWS\system32Boot Device \Device\HarddiskVolume1Locale United StatesHardware Abstraction Layer Version = "5.1.2600.5512 (xpsp.080413-2111)"User Name M15XVISIONTime Zone Mountain Standard TimeTotal Physical Memory 2,048.00 MBAvailable Physical Memory 443.05 MBTotal Virtual Memory 2.00 GBAvailable Virtual Memory 1.96 GBPage File Space 3.85 GBPage File C:\pagefile.sysName NVIDIA GeForce 8700M GTPNP Device ID PCI\VEN_10DE&DEV_0409&SUBSYS_0770152D&REV_A1\4&239D83FF&0&0008Adapter Type GeForce 8700M GT, NVIDIA compatibleAdapter Description NVIDIA GeForce 8700M GTAdapter RAM 512.00 MB (536,870,912 bytes)Installed Drivers nv4_disp.dllDriver Version 6.14.11.8681INF File oem10.inf (Section001 section)Color Planes 1Color Table Entries 4294967296Resolution 1440 x 900 x 60 hertzBits/Pixel 32Memory Address 0xCE000000-0xCEFFFFFFMemory Address 0xD0000000-0xDFFFFFFFMemory Address 0xCC000000-0xCEFFFFFFI/O Port 0x00002000-0x00002FFFIRQ Channel IRQ 16I/O Port 0x000003B0-0x000003BBI/O Port 0x000003C0-0x000003DFMemory Address 0xA0000-0xBFFFFDriver c:\windows\system32\drivers\nv4_mini.sys (6.14.11.8681, 7.60 MB (7,968,448 bytes), 11/17/2008 6:33 AM)

VeeshunWhat is your computer make and model?What is your motherboard make and model?How long ago did you buy your computer?Where did you get your ACPI EC device from? Have you asked them for help?Hope this helps, Gerry CornellAlienware (Dell) M15X 1st VersionIt's Alienware's motherboard I believeDecember 2008Yes I spoke with Alienware who told me "I need to speak with Microsoft because it's not a system issue, it's a OS issue."

VeeshunIs your copy of Windows XP Professional a Retail version, a generic OEM version or a branded customised version? I suspect it is the latter, which places the responsibility with the computer supplier and not Microsoft. However, this point is most likely academic as a computer which is 2 years old would most likely no longer be covered by the warrany given at the time of purchase.You do appreciate that in seeking a solution in these forums you are not directly talking to Microsoft. The forums are merely a place where users of Microsoft software can discuss problems on a peer to peer basis. A few contributors who provide advice are employees of Microsoft but the majority are not. My feeling is that you should check to see that all your drivers are up to date but my enquiries stalled here as I did not want to sign on:http://support.alienware.co.uk/Support_Pages/Restricted_Pages/driver_downloads.aspxHope this helps, Gerry Cornell