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Forum Old Man/Woman's Club : Other BSOD

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Does anyone has a good method to troubleshoot windows blue screens?
The problem is that I can't reproduce them, sometimes they'll happen when I'm listening to music sometimes while transferring files, and the error codes are different each time.

I've downloaded a bunch of error codes but since the error codes are different each time that's not helping at all.

Thanks in advance!

Reply to dunklegend
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- 0 +

PSU or Cable Modem......

Reply to RCPilot

My last one was apparently my HDD!

I got a new HDD (given to me) so I reloaded same OS I had, and they stopped...

Reply to JustPlainJef

My PSU is a Fortron Bluestorm 500W and it worked fine with my old system.
Actually I only changed the mobo the CPU and the RAM because I switched from s939 to AM2.
I also added a NEC DVD burner.

Reply to dunklegend

Cable modem? 8O I had no idea they caused blue screens!

Reply to dunklegend

My HDs are working fine I have 3 320 GB HDs and one little 250 GB HD for the system.

None of them has given me any errors and there are no clicking noises.

Reply to dunklegend
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Quote :

My PSU is a Fortron Bluestorm 500W and it worked fine with my old system.
Actually I only changed the mobo the CPU and the RAM because I switched from s939 to AM2.
I also added a NEC DVD burner.


I'd test the PSU..... Antec makes a tester that's around $10 local here.... I always start at the PSU, if it holds load with the tester & probes within spec., after that is when I look else where...

Reply to RCPilot
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If its on data transfer.. from a CD to HD, then it could be your BIOS having a fault in it. Rare, but happens.
Could be a memory problem.. but I don't trust Memory Checkers myself, I do it the old fashioned way.
Over heating of something.
PSU could be a problem.

What kind of messages are you getting? (Haven't read the whole thread yet)

Reply to riser

God threw Lucifer out of heaven for creating BSOD's....

And he walks the earth today in bad suits & big glasses...Bill!!!!

Reply to AilingBlackLab

I searched newegg and I found these which one do you think is good?

Maybe I'll just go to CompUSA to see if they have the ANTEC testers in stock.

Reply to dunklegend
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CompUSA carries them.. $10.95 last time I saw one there.

Reply to riser

How do you check memory the old fashion way?

I'll post the error message when I get another one.

Reply to dunklegend

Are the actual error codes different or just the memory location they occur? Is there any information to be found in the event viewer under system? Have you set the system to dump the ram to disk on an error? Who is that masked man? Why am I asking so many questions when Dumb Dave will be along soon to give us all a laug.........lesson in diagnostics.

Reply to Tom_Smart
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Switch out memory, run one piece at a time in different slots, etc.
I don't care for the software version of testing it right off the bat.

Reply to riser

The error codes are different.
Here's one that I wrote a few days ago:
0x0000008E (0xC0000005, 0xBF806A93, 0xB1A8249C, 0x00000000)
KERNEL_MODE_EXCEPTION_NOT_HANDLED
STATUS_ACCESS_VIOLATION

Another time I got one complaining about the nVidia display drivers, I uninstalled the video drivers and then I got one complaining about the Realtek audio drivers.

There should be information but I don't know how to check it. I've seen in some of the errors that it gives a message about dumping the RAM.
I think that the masked man is Nacho Libre. :lol:
Who is Dumb Dave?
Where's Wingding? :?

Reply to dunklegend

I did that yesterday and it seems to have worked, I was using the PC for a good while without getting any BSODs but how can I strain the memory to try to make it fail.
Because if I'm not using the memory extensively it could run fine because it's being lightly used but maybe fail in a different environment.

Reply to dunklegend
- 0 +

Download Microsoft's NVidia HCL compatible driver.

It appears to be a Memory Access error you're receiving. At this point, Memory problem or a Driver problem is what I'd look to.

Reply to riser

I downloaded the latest drivers from the nVidia website how can I now if they're HCL compatible.

I know that maybe it's a dumb question but if I don't make it I'm going to continue being dumb.

So here it goes: What's HCL?

Reply to dunklegend

Sounds like Riser is on the ball with this one. He is probably correct. However there is a chance that it is a badly coded Root Kit that is causing the problems with the memory access. The best way to check for such is to disable any/all firewalls and other intrusion devices you may have then PM me your IP address. I'll fix it remotely for you.[/phishing]

Reply to Tom_Smart

Yes I'm still using them. :cry:
I don't have money to buy the Corsair XMS RAM.
And I threw away the packaging so I can't RMA.
I sent an email to epox:

Quote :

I have a MF570 SLI motherboard.

I bought a pair of 1GB G Skill DDR2 800 sticks.

I installed everything on my system but I keep getting blue screens in windows.

At first I thought that it was the high Vdimm voltage that the motherboard had because it was set to 2.38V and my RAM is rated for 2.0-2.1V.

I upgraded my BIOS to the latest one and it let me modify the Vdimm. It’s now set to 2.1V.

I even slowed the memory’s speed to 400 down from the original 800 so now the voltage is 2.1 and the speed is 400. I run memtest for about an hour and I don’t get any errors but I keep getting the BSODs.

I’ve read that there are a lot of compatibility issues with DDR2 and socket AM2 motherboards and maybe this is what’s causing my system to be unstable.

Is there going to be a future fix for the RAM issues with socket AM2 or am I going to be forced to buy the $340+ Corsair XMS RAM.



By the way the blue screen error code changes a lot that’s why I think that it’s a memory issue because I don’t get the same error twice.



Is there a way to diagnose what’s the problem with my system?

I don’t want to buy that overpriced Corsair XMS RAM just to find that the problem is not the memory.



Thanks in advance



And here's their response:

Quote :

Dear Sir
Some of brand's the memory dimm firmware version can not work with AM2 socket mortherboard compatibility.
Please check the memory dimms which can work with AM2 socket motherboard from purchase store.
Please try to set your memory to DDR 533 and in bios setup to step by step to adjust the vdimm voltage and CPU vcore voltage high than default for issue check.

Thank you for your interest in EPoX products and contacting our support
department. If you reply ensure to include all previous E-mail text. It will
prevent unnecessary delays and guarantee the fastest possible response.

Best Regards,



Very helpful don't you think?

If you find which timings do I need to tweak let me know.

Reply to dunklegend
- 0 +

HCL = Hardware Compatibilty List

The MS driver isn't bad at all.. it doesn't have all the other stuff the Nvidia one does but it does the job just as well. The Nvidia driver works and all but the MS one will rid all problems. I'd use it at least for troubleshooting. If the problem is resolved, stick with the driver. If it keeps up, Nvidia driver wasn't the issue.

On a side note, if you have anything overclocked, remove it. Not too much these days like OC'd stuff.

Reply to riser

I'm looking in the HCL but it doesn't have a link to my video card it has some microsoft names for the drivers.


My card is: eVGA Ge Force 6600 256MB

How do I find it?

Reply to dunklegend

I just got 2 BSODs:

The first one complained about the nVidia drivers.
I didn't uninstall the nvidia drivers and I just rebooted.
The second BSOD complained about the USB port.

WTF?

I'm writing this in linux because a relationship with a ninfomaniac hooker is more stable than my windows installation. :(

Reply to dunklegend

When you search an error code the first 2 numbers and the last 2 numbers/letters are all that's important all the zeros are not.

Simply look at this error code as an example

0x00000020

All you need to search the STOP: error code at Microsoft is this part; 0x20

Typing just that in saves keystrokes and will return the exact same error message from the help and support page as the full line of code.

This way you can copy the error messages faster to paper then later search out the various messages you receive at the MS Help and support site with less effort and more information.

Rem multiple error code strings of different numbers mean you have a probable memory problem just power off the PC yank the memory sticks and re-seat just one try it for a bit then swap with the other one if avail and see if you continue to get errors.

Reply to SoDNighthawk

Right now I only have 1 stick of RAM I set the speed to 800 MHz (I had slowed it down to 400 to see if it was more stable) and ran Memtest for a good deal of time. It completed 4 passes without any errors.

I thought that the cause of the BSODs was the memory but I didn't get any errors.

Yesterday I didn't see any BSODs but I was trying to play a game It's not a demanding one It's called Re Volt (RC cars racing) and after a little while playing (not even one lap). The game window just closed without any error messages or anything. I tried it again and it did the same thing.

If it doesn't give me any errors in memtest is it safe to say that the memory is fine?
And if the memory is fine then what could be the problem?

I was going to buy the more expensive Corsair RAM because I really thought that it was the memory since the BSODs were different every time.

Now I don't know what to do.

Reply to dunklegend
- 0 +

List off your brand and model info for your hardware.
How old is your computer?

You might have other issues going on. I doubt it is a memory issue. Sounds more like a motherboard issue.

Reply to riser

LIAN LI PC-V1000BPLUSII W
AMD Athlon 64 X2 3800+
EPoX EP-MF570SLI Socket AM2 nForce 570 SLI MCP ATX AMD Motherboard
G.SKILL 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit
NEC DVD Burner Model ND-3550A
Geforce 6600 256MB DDR PCI Express x16 Video Card
BenQ Lightscribe DVD Burner
MITSUMI 1.44MB 3.5" Internal USB 2.0 digital card reader w/Floppy Drive
3 WD 320GB 7200 RPM 8MB Cache IDE Ultra ATA100 Hard Drive
1 250 GB Sata Hard Drive
Fortron Bluestorm 500W PSU

Reply to dunklegend
- 0 +

Quote :

3 WD 320GB 7200 RPM 8MB Cache IDE Ultra ATA100 Hard Drive
1 250 GB Sata Hard Drive



Are you running any form of RAID via the motherboard?

Reply to riser
- 0 +

Turn computer off. Hold down "Insert" key, turn computer on. Wait until text comes up on screen and let go.

Test it out.

If that doesn't work, reset BIOS to default. Its looking like your having a problem with the SATA/IDE controllers transferring the data. Maybe try a different cable if possible. SATA, if crimped, can cause stange problems in my experience.

Reply to riser

My mobo has 2 PATA controller.
The IDE 0 can handle optical drives and HDs.
IDE 1 can handle only HDs and is a powered by a Micron RAID chipset which means that if I install windows I can't see the HDs in that controller until I install the appropriate driver.

IDE 0 has 2 DVD burners, IDE 1 has 2 HDs, I'm booting from the SATA drive and the 3rd IDE HD is on an PCI ATA controller card.

Reply to dunklegend

[quote="riser"]Turn computer off. Hold down "Insert" key, turn computer on. Wait until text comes up on screen and let go.quote]

Hmmm interesting procedure.

What's the purpose of it?

Reply to dunklegend
- 0 +

Its a little tweak set into your BIOS (select ones only) that will go through and do a reset on things like the FSB, CPU, voltages, etc.

I'm told its the built-in back door to fixing a lot of BIOS problems. Basically, a master reset.

Reply to riser

Did you see my other reply where I tell you how my HDs are configured.
Do you think that the problem could be the second IDE chipset or the ATA controller card?

Reply to dunklegend
- 0 +

I'm thinking you're having a problem with the drivers for the controllers. Either you installed the drivers or used the canned drivers within Windows.. I'm guessing the Windows one.
Have you tried updating the drivers?

Reply to riser

I have the most updated drivers from the nVidia website.
Is this good?
I can do a fresh install of windows what's the best choice?
Should I try it with the generic windows drivers for a while?
Should I install the latest drivers from the Epox and eVGA websites?
Should I install the latest drivers from nVidia?

Also what procedure do you suggest to make the connections of all the devices.
-Remove everything and just try it with one stick of RAM, optical drive the booting SATA HD and the video card (if this is the best and it works what order should I install the remaining devices)
-Install everything at once.
-Other

BTW THANKS for your help riser!! :D

Reply to dunklegend
- 0 +

Use all updated drivers from manufacturers.
Windows XP SP2 if you do a fresh install.
Use latest drivers from Nvidia

I would hook up all the hardware how you want it. At this point it wouldn't hurt to do a format/reinstall and see if it continues to blue screen. At that point, I'd disconnect select hardware if the BSOD keep coming back.

Reply to riser
- 0 +

With everything you've reported happening and testing, I'd suspect you've got yourself a bad M/B, I had similar symptoms that turned out to be the M/B itself, because Thankfully, it finally died period.

But that was after weeks of instability, and OP/SYS reinstallations, that ghosted problems seeming to be memory, HDD, LAN, USB, P/S and CPU related, but in the end it was the M/B itself.

The intermittently failing M/B is one of the hardest problems to diagnose, it can mimick component hardware failures, when the suspected hardware has nothing wrong with it at all.

Heres a Tip: Always keep the packaging of anything you buy online some resellers will not honor an RMA if you don't have the original packaging, thats all the excuse some companies need not to honor a return.

Reply to 4Ryan6
- 0 +

4ryan6 is probably right.

The only other thing I can think of is the nVidia IDE driver. I myself have had problems with it and I've read others have as well. When you install your nForce chipset drivers opt not to install the nVidia IDE driver. The standard Windows XP driver works fine.

Not sure if this is the case, but you never know.

Reply to Anoobis

Quote :

Yesterday I didn't see any BSODs but I was trying to play a game It's not a demanding one It's called Re Volt (RC cars racing) and after a little while playing (not even one lap). The game window just closed without any error messages or anything. I tried it again and it did the same thing.


Dude, ReVolt kicks ass... They need an updated version though... It was released in late 1999, so it was written for Win98. I have seen issues running it on Win2k, and more so on WinXP. There are a few patches / registry fixes and such, and it helps to run it in compatability mode, but it's just an old game...

So don't take that issue as a hardware issue...

Reply to JustPlainJef

Yesterday I checked the memory sticks one by one in 2 different slots and I didn't get any errors but I still had some BSODs.

Then I checked both at the same time and with that configuration memtest gave me one single error, but if I go into windows the BSOD (mostly 8E) appears much faster than with just one stick.

Reply to dunklegend
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