Windows 7 Recurring BSOD, zip file attached

[PlutonB]

Have been getting BSODs more and more frequently over the last week. Can't think of anything special that triggered the behaviour though. It mostly happens when the computer idles and I'm doing other stuff, and doesn't seem to relate to computer load etc.

Did a bit of digging myself and used WhoCrashed to identify Comodo Backup and Daemon Tools as possible culprits. They are both uninstalled now. Installed drivers for the bluetooth which were missing and giving an exclamation mark in device manager. After that no exclamation marks or errors there.

Today I did a full memorycheck with Memtest86+, which passed all runs.

Got another BSOD couple of hours ago (0x00000124), with no lead from WhoCrashed on the root cause so now I resort to asking the gurus. Have attached the zipped analysis files and screenshots here, and hope for some ideas!

Thanks in advance!

 

[PlutonB]

The computer have actually stayed fine for 4 days now, since uninstalling Daemon Tools and Comodo, fixing the device manager and updating all drivers (I think..). Haven't been on as much though. Today I got another bluescreen, but with a new .dll failing - ntoskrnl.exe


Please find attached the latest log files and minidumps below. I only included the latest minidump in this file, previous minidumps are in the last zip. Hope someone has the will and time to look into it.

New file: Link Removed

 

[kemical]

Hi,

your bsod was caused by hardware namely your cpu. Please update your motherboard bios to the latest version: Link Removed Also some of your drivers like Realtek HD driver are old please update all drivers to the latest versions.

Make sure the above is correct for your motherboard so you download the correct bios.

 

[PlutonB]

Thanks for your reply and suggestions!

I have installed the latest BIOS and chipset drivers from ASUS webpage now. Updated the soundcard with drivers for Realtek HD Audio from Realteks web site. Can't find any other components with updates, so hopefully the problem is solved now.

I also turned off the power management for the hard drives, as I read elsewhere that the intel SSD-harddrives sometimes have caused BSODs.

Will let the computer stay on for a couple of days now and report back.

 

[kemical]

Fingers crossed!

 

[PlutonB]

Thanks for crossing your fingers! And more importantly finding the probable cause of my recent blue screens. Haven't had one since doing the recent update of the BIOS.

I reckon I will enable the hard drive power management again to prolong the life of my regular drives. If the problem returns I know what to do...

Thanks again for your help! Hope I haven't jinxed it with this reply...

 

[kemical]

Great news! Thank you for updating your thread..

 

[PlutonB]

As one could fear I spoke too soon. Got another BSOD today, ntoskrnl.exe again. This time while working via Remote Desktop. Zip-file attached with the latest minidump and logs etc.

I looked in the app log and noticed that there's something going on with SQL-server before many of the BSODs, including the last one. Coincidence, cause or effect of the BSOD??

Anyway, if theres anything else to be interpreted from the logs I'm grateful for every suggestion.

(Didn't enable the Power Management yet, so that's not the cause).

Link Removed

 

[PlutonB]

For some reason it just took an hour for the next BSOD. Feels like a hardware issue more and more...

Attaching the latest minidump and the last part of the app-log. SQL-server was active just before the crash again, maybe should try deactivating all SQL-server services and see what happens?

Link Removed

 

[kemical]

Hi,

your cpu caused the dmp file. Tell me, have you been overclocking the system? Also since the bios has been updated can you please go through your system settings and make sure everything is as it should be..

 

[PlutonB]

Hi again, and thanks for looking at the latest dumps!

I haven't overclocked as far as I know. Have loaded "optimized defaults" (as ASUS calls it) now in Bios, which I guess should be OK?

Also, as I was in the BIOS I noticed I had put my HD and DVD on slot 1, 3 and 5, rearranged it to 1, 2 and 3 which seems to make more sense somehow... Finally I've disabled all startup programs and services, except Microsofts (maybe overkill, but rather remove as many factors as possible and then add those needed again, if it works all right again...)

Another wait and see game now.

 

[PlutonB]

Been good for three days, and suddenly two BSODs with only 5 minutes or so in between. Attaching dump files. If the pattern is like previous time I will have a blue screen in half an hour.

Will run another virus and malware scan. If nothing comes up maybe it's time to do a clean install? If there still are errors I guess it's a hardware issue...?

Link Removed

 

[kemical]

Hi, thanks for posting the dmp file. Can you follow the instructions given on this web page and then report back how your running..

Microsoft Support: Reinstall TCP/IP protocol driver on windows 7

 

[PlutonB]

Thanks for hanging in there! I've followed the instructions on the provided link, will report back in a couple of days. Thanks again!

Edit: Forgot to mention, there were no more bluescreens after the two with 5 minutes in between. Whatever that means...

 

[Trouble]

[B]BugCheck 124[/B], {0, [B]fffffa8007878028[/B], be200000, 5110a}
[COLOR=#ff0000][U][B]Probably caused by : hardware[/B][/U][/COLOR]
WHEA_UNCORRECTABLE_ERROR (124)
A fatal hardware error has occurred. Parameter 1 identifies the type of error
source that reported the error. Parameter 2 holds the address of the
WHEA_ERROR_RECORD structure that describes the error conditon.
Arguments:
Arg1: 0000000000000000, Machine Check Exception
Arg2: [U][COLOR=#ff0000][B]fffffa8007878028[/B][/COLOR][/U], Address of the WHEA_ERROR_RECORD structure.
Arg3: 00000000be200000, High order 32-bits of the MCi_STATUS value.
Arg4: 000000000005110a, Low order 32-bits of the MCi_STATUS value.
BUGCHECK_STR:  0x124_GenuineIntel
CUSTOMER_CRASH_COUNT:  1
DEFAULT_BUCKET_ID:  VISTA_DRIVER_FAULT
PROCESS_NAME:  System
CURRENT_IRQL:  f
STACK_TEXT:  
fffff800`04fe4a98 00000000`00000000 : 00000000`00000000 00000000`00000000 00000000`00000000 00000000`00000000 : nt!KeBugCheckEx
STACK_COMMAND:  kb
FOLLOWUP_NAME:  MachineOwner
MODULE_NAME: hardware
IMAGE_NAME:  hardware
DEBUG_FLR_IMAGE_TIMESTAMP:  0
[B]FAILURE_BUCKET_ID:  X64_0x124_GenuineIntel_[COLOR=#ff0000]PROCESSOR_CACHE[/COLOR]
BUCKET_ID:  X64_0x124_GenuineIntel_[COLOR=#ff0000]PROCESSOR_CACHE[/COLOR][/B]

Common Platform Error Record @ fffffa8007878028
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Record Id     : 01cd74c2b2d2c7c3
Severity      : Fatal (1)
Length        : 928
Creator       : Microsoft
Notify Type   : Machine Check Exception
Timestamp     : 8/7/2012 17:39:32
Flags         : 0x00000000

===============================================================================
Section 0     : Processor Generic
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Descriptor    @ fffffa80078780a8
Section       @ fffffa8007878180
Offset        : 344
Length        : 192
Flags         : 0x00000001 Primary
Severity      : Fatal

Proc. Type    : x86/x64
Instr. Set    : x64
Error Type    : [COLOR=#ff0000][B]Cache error[/B][/COLOR]
Operation     : Generic
Flags         : 0x00
Level         : 2
CPU Version   : 0x00000000000206a7
Processor ID  : 0x0000000000000000

===============================================================================
Section 1     : x86/x64 Processor Specific
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Descriptor    @ fffffa80078780f0
Section       @ fffffa8007878240
Offset        : 536
Length        : 128
Flags         : 0x00000000
Severity      : Fatal

Local APIC Id : 0x0000000000000000
CPU Id        : a7 06 02 00 00 08 10 00 - bf e3 9a 1f ff fb eb bf
                00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 - 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00
                00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 - 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00

Proc. Info 0  @ fffffa8007878240

===============================================================================
Section 2     : x86/x64 MCA
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Descriptor    @ fffffa8007878138
Section       @ fffffa80078782c0
Offset        : 664
Length        : 264
Flags         : 0x00000000
Severity      : Fatal

Error         : [COLOR=#ff0000][U][B]GCACHEL2_ERR_ERR[/B][/U][/COLOR] ([B]Proc 0 Bank 5[/B])
  Status      : 0xbe2000000005110a
  Address     : 0x000000002436f6c0
  Misc.       : 0x000000d086014086

This can often be the result of over clocking, or......
Less than optimal Power Supply conditions. Faulty or failing PSU, under powered PSU incapable of meeting the current power demands.
We often ask people to fill out their system specs in their profile page on the site Link Removed which provides some answers in advance for these types of questions.
In lieu of that can you please provide the specs for the PSU you are currently using (usually on a tag on the side of the unit) or a link perhaps to the vendor including a specific model name and number.
Thanks
Randy

 

[PlutonB]

Hi, and thanks for your reply! I have filled in most of the specs now.

The PSU is a Fractal Design Tesla 550W, Tesla 550W, 80 PLUS - Fractal Design

I reckon 550W should be enough for my system? You might be on to something anyhow. I live in a rural area, with not the highest quality of the electricity line. The lights can for instance flicker a couple of ms or so from time to time. Maybe this would be enough to cause system instability? Is there any way of testing this? Getting a UPS and testdrive for a week?

 

[Trouble]

I reckon 550W should be enough for my system? You might be on to something anyhow. I live in a rural area, with not the highest quality of the electricity line. The lights can for instance flicker a couple of ms or so from time to time. Maybe this would be enough to cause system instability? Is there any way of testing this? Getting a UPS and testdrive for a week?

Well it looks like a pretty nice power supply, but your concern should be what amperage is available on the 12volt rail which looks to me like 20 amps.
Then you need to determine the needs of your system, specifically your GPU, in your case an AMD Radeon HD 6800 Series (can't tell specifically which one). You may be able to determine from the packaging or from the vendor or manufacturer as to the actual requirements, but it looks like you may be a little light in the umph department on your 12 volt rail(s)
Power Supply (PSU) Tech Guide looking at ATI / AMD single card, but you need to sort this out to your satisfaction.

EDIT: Perhaps even reverting back to you integrated graphics card for a while. Remove the addon card(s) associated software and drivers and test for a while and see if you experience any additional x124 HARDWARE stop errors (Blue Screens)

 

[PlutonB]

Thanks for the link, and info! I've just assumed that 550W is good enough on a quality PSU and never thought about that the amperage could differ so much. The GPU is a Radeon HD 6850 and need 500W/30A according to the list.

When I look at the specs of the PSU it seems it has four +12V-rails powering with a combined total of 510W/42.5A, 20A on each rail. I wasn't aware of this though, so I will have to look how I have put the power cables in the computer. If I guess right, I should make sure I power the GPU from two different rails and then the rest of the system from the other two rails?

At the same time, I reckon two rails combined will not be able to deliver 500W (rather 480W if I do the math correct?). Would it be better to have a PSU that deliver more power on a single rail than this setup? The system have never had a BSOD while gaming though, just while idling or while programming/web-browsing.


Clever idea with the integrated graphics card. As it is now, I could use the system with only that one anyhow. I bought the better graphics card just in case I felt like gaming, but the last half year I've hardly played any game...

I think I will wait a couple of days more before doing this as to evaluate the last update suggested by Kemical though.

 

[PlutonB]

SOLVED: Recurring BSOD, zip file attached

First the good news: The computer has been completely stable with no BSODs for the last week. Feels like the problem is solved.

The embarrasing news: A day after the last post about the PSU and graphics card I had CPU-Z open to look for specs. By coincidence I noticed the processor suddenly jumping to 4.3Mhz, then back again. I looked further and noticed that the multiplier also would jump up and down.

So long story short, it turned out that the "Load optimized defaults" that I used in Asus BIOS doesn't do what I thought (loading a default setup). After choosing a standard setting in another menu, and going back to CPU-Z, the processor now peaks at 3.4 Mhz which is more what you would expect.

I didn't even know processors behave like this nowadays. Back in the days when I was tinkering with my PCs, you couldn't do squat in the BIOS. You had to move physical jumpers and tape some of the processors connectors to boost the voltage and so on...

Anyway, I believe that many of the things you have recommended in this tread helped. Then after the BIOS update and sneaky "Load optimized defaults" combined with my lack of knowledge, the system continued to be unstable.

Thank you both for your help and time! Can't find a way to mark the thread as solved, but it can be considered solved.

 

[kemical]

Re: SOLVED: Recurring BSOD, zip file attached

That's great news! Thanks for updating your thread.