Computer Restarting During Far Cry

[revolution2718]

So randomly during Far Cry 3 my computer is shutting itself off and restarting. This is the first game this has happened with, I have been able to run skyrim, startcraft, battlefield 3, etc at high settings with no issue.

Specs are:

Intel Core i5-2500 3.3GHz
Gigabyte GeForce GTX 560 Ti
8GB G.Skill Ripjaws X DDR3
Mushkin Enhanced Chronos 120GB SSD
1TB Seagate Barracuda // ASRock Z68 PRO3

The PSU is a Silverstone 500W linked below.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817256061
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I have already updated to most recent drivers. Also have measure the temp, it was at 66C last time it restarted.

Is the PSU just not putting out enough juice?

 

[Ramzzz2936]

it isnt a problem but i have to say 66°c is at high temp adn about the problem that could be any i can tell u some tests to do
1. run prime95 and stress the cpu at least 20mins
2. run hdd test with windlg or any other hdd testing software
3. run memtest86 put it on a usb restart the computer and boot into the software
4. run 3d mark if all the tests up go well and the computer shutsdown when doing the test that means the psu isnt able provide enough power for the cpu and gpu when they are stressed together
good luck

 

[Nedal0]

Do you see a BSOD before it restarts ?

Please follow these step and hopefully we should have an idea what the main issue is :

Go to Win 7 Action Center => Expand "Maintenance" Tab by clicking on the Down Arrow => Then select the "View Reliability History" Tab

Look on there and click on any Red Circle with a White X in it around the Date and Time your PC restarted and post back that information.

Also it will be a good idea to be monitoring the PC Temps whiles Playing Far Cry 3 again just so we know what temp the PC is shutting down at.

 

[revolution2718]

No bsod.

The X's say:
3 for windows not properly shut down
2 for Nvidia Update Components 1.10.8.0, under summary it just says stopped working.

The X's are under application failures and misc failure.

I'll try it again with the temps, but last time when i logged it and it restarted it was at 66C.

 

[Nedal0]

I strongly believe the issue is with your Nvidia Driver. Is your Motherboard updated with he latest BIOS firmware ?

How do you normally update Graphics drivers ? Directly from Nvidia Website or Other Sources ?

You might also want to check the Nvidia website for Far Cry 3 optimized Graphics Drivers if you haven done so already

 

[revolution2718]

The BIOS is still stock, whatever came with the motherboard.

I just updated the drivers from Nvidia, but I just ran their software to upgrade them which I usually don't do. Do you think doing a full uninstall/reinstall of the drivers would be a good idea?

This is the driver I'm using (yes 64 bit os)

http://www.nvidia.com/object/win8-win7-winvista-64bit-310.90-whql-driver.html

 

[swifty_morgan]

the 560 gets very, very hot. especially back by the power circuitry.

you can't run FC3 maxed out on the 560. card can't handle what's being thrown at it.

clean card of dust/lint. clean and replace thermal compound.

reduce game settings.

 

[revolution2718]

I feel like 66 isn't that hot though...

 

[swifty_morgan]

I feel like 66 isn't that hot though...

so?.................

 

[Nedal0]

66°C is not too bad and should not even cause your PC to restart. But the cooler the better for your PC and Hardware. You need to really check their website to make sure your current Graphics card is even supported on the Mobo.

It is definitely a Driver Issue. You will first have to update the BIOS if there is a newer version than what you currently have. The latest BIOS on their site is 2.10 released on 5/10/2012.

Then you can Uninstall and Reinstall any new Graphics Drivers

 

[revolution2718]

Here is the link to the BIOS download

http://www.asrock.com/mb/overview.asp?cat=Download&os=BIOS&Model=Z68%20Pro3%20Gen3

Should I download the 2.10, or the newer versions 2.20 or 2.30? Do I need to do it 3 times, or do just the most recent one, or is the 2.10 fine?

Also for those required drivers they list, do I need those before I update or after or not at all? (I'm using sandy bridge).

 

[Nedal0]

Get Version 2.30.

Version 2.30 already includes fixes from Version 2.20 so you only need to do it once.

Those required drivers I believe are for Intel 3rd Generation CPU's so there is no need for them at the moment unless you are planning to use an Ivy Bridge CPU any time soon or just want to have your motherboard ready to support Ivy Bridge for the future.

Install the required drivers after the BIOS update.

 

[sluggercz]

Get Version 2.30.

Version 2.30 already includes fixes from Version 2.20 so you only need to do it once.

Those required drivers I believe are for Intel 3rd Generation CPU's so there is no need for them at the moment unless you are planning to use an Ivy Bridge CPU any time soon or just want to have your motherboard ready to support Ivy Bridge for the future.

Install the required drivers after the BIOS update.

I second what he said; I also believe you should use DriverSweeper to completely remove any Video Drivers you have (especially if you switched from a ATI card to a NVIDIA) then doing a clean install of the latest NVIDIA drivers.

 

[revolution2718]

So I'm gathering that BIOS updates are cumulative, so I can just do the most recent one correct?

Also before I flash I'm gonna give the video drivers one more try by getting rid of them completely then installing fresh.

 

[swifty_morgan]

no, that always isn't true. and seeing how old the board is, you may have to do prior ones before you can get to the one that provides what you are looking for in an update.

 

[Nedal0]

With regards to the contents of each BIOS update, I would say we go with what "swifty_morgan" said, as it is true in certain cases but normally the release note should state mandatory update with previous updates before the latest. There are no release notes in this case hence my initial suggestion to go ahead and update with Version 2.30.

To make sure we get everything done properly and as there is no harm in updating with each version, I will suggest you update BIOS Version 2.20 first and then 2.30 after that.

Please suspend any Graphics driver updates until after the BIOS update is done as both BIOS versions include Graphics patches to "Improve discrete VGA card vBIOS compatibility"

 

[revolution2718]

Best answer selected by revolution2718.