Computer crashes when trying to play a game.

RyanCattuzzo

Reputable
Apr 20, 2014
3
0
4,510
Hey everyone.

A couple day ago I was playing Diablo 3 like normal and all of a sudden my screen flickered and went into a random color, then the computer restarted.
NOTE: I didnt change anything between the day before it was working perfectly and when it started acting up.

Ever sense that happened I can no longer play any game for longer than 5 minutes without my computer either freezing on that random color screen or it just restarting or crashing. I have checked my memory and that didn't seem to be the problem, I downloaded "WhoCrashed" and in the first crash report it told me that the issue was with the "ATI Radeon Kernel Mode Driver" so I tried to uninstall all of my AMD driver and get the latest/older/beta versions with no luck. (One time before the PC crashed I got to see an error in my task bar that said that a graphics driver failed and recovered.)

I have even factory reset my OS drive since its on a separate drive as all of my data.

My PC specs:

MB: Gigabyte GA-78LMT-USB3
CPU: AMD FX - 6100 Six-Core
RAM: 8gb DDR3 RAM
OS: Windows 8 64bit
GPU AMD Radeon 7770 1gb

My most recent crash reports have been a bit different from the first:

On Sun 4/20/2014 9:23:46 PM GMT your computer crashed
crash dump file: C:\WINDOWS\memory.dmp
This was probably caused by the following module: atikmpag.sys (0xFFFFF88007EC4D88)
Bugcheck code: 0x116 (0xFFFFFA8008AEF0C0, 0xFFFFF88007EC4D88, 0x0, 0x2)
Error: VIDEO_TDR_ERROR
file path: C:\WINDOWS\system32\drivers\atikmpag.sys
product: AMD driver
company: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc.
description: AMD multi-vendor Miniport Driver
Bug check description: This indicates that an attempt to reset the display driver and recover from a timeout failed.
A third party driver was identified as the probable root cause of this system error. It is suggested you look for an update for the following driver: atikmpag.sys (AMD multi-vendor Miniport Driver, Advanced Micro Devices, Inc.).
Google query: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. VIDEO_TDR_ERROR



On Sun 4/20/2014 8:52:17 PM GMT your computer crashed
crash dump file: C:\WINDOWS\Minidump\042014-9172-01.dmp
This was probably caused by the following module: ntoskrnl.exe (nt+0x529F81)
Bugcheck code: 0x124 (0x0, 0xFFFFFA800882A038, 0x0, 0x0)
Error: WHEA_UNCORRECTABLE_ERROR
file path: C:\WINDOWS\system32\ntoskrnl.exe
product: Microsoft® Windows® Operating System
company: Microsoft Corporation
description: NT Kernel & System
Bug check description: This bug check indicates that a fatal hardware error has occurred. This bug check uses the error data that is provided by the Windows Hardware Error Architecture (WHEA).
This is likely to be caused by a hardware problem problem. This problem might be caused by a thermal issue.
The crash took place in the Windows kernel. Possibly this problem is caused by another driver that cannot be identified at this time




Any help would be appreciated and I am willing to cooperate with any suggestions. If you need more info please ask.
I was thinking of just getting a new Video Card and Power Supply but I want to be sure that it would solve the issue or I could solve it before I bought them.
I have money to replace hardware if needed so thats no issue. Thanks guys/gals


 
Solution
Does it shut down at certain points in games? I'm assuming that power supply is not enough to power the computer. If your power supply is this one:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817154020

Even if it does not fix the problem, it would be a good place to start for future reliability.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817371045

Something like this would be great for your computer. Even if it doesnt solve your restart problems (it might since lack of power). I'd also look into the drivers. Try to install the latest drivers. If you already have the latest ones and you are still crashing, try some olderones.

RyanCattuzzo

Reputable
Apr 20, 2014
3
0
4,510

Its a 400W power supply made by some company called "Soly Tech"
If I had the option I would have gotten a more reliable. But its just what it came with.

However, the shutdowns/crashes/restarts only occur when I try to play a game such as League of Legends/Diablo 3/ Hearthstone/ect.
If you are referring to how often I shutdown/restart the system then I use it around 10-16 hours a day and shut down at night and when I'm not using it.

 

WorkerAnt

Honorable
Apr 22, 2013
6
0
10,510
If you check the second dump it says a thermal issue may be the problem. Considering it happens a few minutes into a "heavy" graphics task that may be a good thing to check.

You should be able to check the GPU temperature from the Catalyst Control Center (Performance > AMD Overdrive).

As for what kind of temperatures you'd expect I'd say close to 30 idling, about 60-70 loaded isn't uncommon. If your GPU temp goes close to 90, then you're in danger of hardware damage.

If it's overheating check the fan for obstructions.
 
Does it shut down at certain points in games? I'm assuming that power supply is not enough to power the computer. If your power supply is this one:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817154020

Even if it does not fix the problem, it would be a good place to start for future reliability.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817371045

Something like this would be great for your computer. Even if it doesnt solve your restart problems (it might since lack of power). I'd also look into the drivers. Try to install the latest drivers. If you already have the latest ones and you are still crashing, try some olderones.
 
Solution

alz_solstice

Honorable
Jul 3, 2013
364
0
10,960
Hello Ryan,

For the first minidump, the file atikmpag.sys is either missing or corrupted. Download the latest WHQL driver (13.4) in the ATI Site, do not use the Beta driver. Much better to uninstall first the current Graphics driver for a clean installation. Also, make sure that you are using the Dedicated (PCI) Graphics in the BIOS, just check it since your APU is usingn a Integrated Graphics.

2nd Minidump states that there is a problem with your Hardware, normally Thermal Temperature. Since it is stated, can you check your CPU? Try re-apply thermal paste, clean the ATX case if it is dusty, check the cooling fans if they can provide cool temperature.
 

RyanCattuzzo

Reputable
Apr 20, 2014
3
0
4,510


Hey everyone just wanna give an update for anyone having the same problem as I had, I ended up fixing the problem. I replaced my Video card and power supply.
I tested my PC after I installed the new power supply, still crashed, then I installed the new GPU and it hasn't crashed since.
Thanks for anyone's help that posted here