BSOD after "Windows is starting up"

[ihacks]

I was getting a bsod after the windows is starting up screen and it was caused by nvlddmkm.sys with stop: 0x00000116

I was using the 295.33 drivers and everything was fine since i got this computer except til now.

I just got this computer recently except for the RAM, PSU, and video card which is from my old computer.

specs:
msi gtx 560ti stock
2500k stock
asus z77 pro
6gb gskill 1600mhz ram
crucial m4
western digital black
650 antec earthwatts psu

I am able to boot into safe mode, and I uinstalled my 295.33 drivers and I installed older drivers 275 and 285 and except this time i can boot into windows but everything is glitchy and artifacty and the screen flashes to black and back.
Also I tried system restore but it doesnt work. One thing i can do is boot into the system fine if i have no nvidea drivers installed.

Can you guys please help me fix this problem thanks.

 

[inzone]

Have you tried the newest drivers ? (296.10) These are not beta drivers as they are the WHQL driver release.

 

[ihacks]

i have used 296.10 drivers and the problem still persists.

 

[inzone]

If you have tried a number of different drivers and you still get problems then the one thing left to try is a complete reinstall of windows to see if there is some file that is not being deleted when you try the different drivers that will be deleted when you format and reinstall windows. I know it's not something you may want to do but you do have to eliminate the possible causes one by one to get to the root of the problem and it could be a defective piece of hardware. So eliminating the software side of the cause will be a start and who knows it could end up being a defective video card or power supply.
Before doing a reinstall of windows you could try a call to tech support at MSI and give them the stop code and they can either eliminate or confirm that it is the video card or the drivers.

 

[ihacks]

okay before i reinstall windows I have a question, on my ssd i have windows and my programs installed, and on the other harddrive i have my games, if i reformat my ssd will i still have my games on my other harddrive?

Also can i have the other harddrive plugged in when i reformat or no?

 

[inzone]

I would unplug the other hdd and when you format you do actually only select the one drive you are formating. You also want to move or save any important files to the other drive because a format will erase all data on the drive your formatting. I would recomend that call to tech support before formatting , it may save you from all that hassel of reinstalling Windows and getting everything setg back up.

 

[ihacks]

i called msi but they are only open mon to fri...

 

[inzone]

Ok , then you can try a program called driver sweeper and it will search your computer for all the files connected to the drivers for the video card.

http://majorgeeks.com/Driver_Sweeper_d6171.html

This way you can try everything before a reinstall and it will be a last resort.

 

[ihacks]

oh i ran driver sweeper each time i did the installations, it didnt help

 

[inzone]

Ok , you never mentioned it so I had no way of knowing , then if your sure you have tried everyhting then it's up to you if you want to go ahead with the reinstall of Windows.

 

[ihacks]

i have an old gtx 260, if i try this and it works does that mean my 560ti is broken

 

[inzone]

It could be the case and that's kind of why I had suggested a call to the MSI tech support , so give it a try and if the same thing happens then it could be a rouge file stuck in the windows directory somewhere or a registry error that needs fixing. You ciould try to put in your Windows disk and do a repair instead of a reinstall and that way it leaves your files alone and just fixes the Windows files.

 

[ihacks]

if i do the repair thing, do i have to reinstall my other drivers (motherboard and lan) and thanks for the help btw

 

[inzone]

No the Windows repair will fix the Windows install only and will leave everthing else alone , that's why it's a good thing to try before doing a full blown Windows reinstall. Of course unless the problem is identified we can only guess and try things at this point and by the time Monday comes and you call MSI then you will have done a lot to attempt to fix the problem and it will shorten the tech support call.

 

[ihacks]

i swapped my gtx 560ti for a 8600 GTS and installed nvidea drivers and the computer works fine

this must mean my 560 is broken?

 

[inzone]

Well it certianly looks that way and now that gives you more to tell the MSI tech when you call and you should be able to RMA the card if it's still under warranty.

 

[ihacks]

if the rma centre is near my house, can i just go there and drop it off instead of mailing it and stuff?