Very random BSOD, sudden restarts

Hi guys,

I have a relatively new laptop that has been having very random BSODs and sudden restarts. They are very random. They happen during the day, sometimes back to back, sometimes as soon as I boot the laptop. There is no particular pattern, as far as I can see.

Basic specs:
- I originally bought the laptop around 10/30/2010.
- Windows 7 Professional x64. It is the OS that came with the laptop, so OEM. But they also sent a recovery CD.
- The laptop already went for an RMA and supposedly they changed the RAMs and tested it afterwards; no problems.
- I reinstalled Win7 (from the CD they originally sent me) right after I got the laptop back from RMA (which is last wednesday 05/25/2011)

I followed the instructions and uploaded everything requested in the zip file.

I hope you can help me. Thanks in advance!

madmed said:

Hi guys,

I have a relatively new laptop that has been having very random BSODs and sudden restarts. They are very random. They happen during the day, sometimes back to back, sometimes as soon as I boot the laptop. There is no particular pattern, as far as I can see.

Basic specs:
- I originally bought the laptop around 10/30/2010.
- Windows 7 Professional x64. It is the OS that came with the laptop, so OEM. But they also sent a recovery CD.
- The laptop already went for an RMA and supposedly they changed the RAMs and tested it afterwards; no problems.
- I reinstalled Win7 (from the CD they originally sent me) right after I got the laptop back from RMA (which is last wednesday 05/25/2011)

I followed the instructions and uploaded everything requested in the zip file.

I hope you can help me. Thanks in advance!

Memory corruption caused by an unknown driver. Please run memtest and driver verifier

Download a copy of Memtest86 and burn the ISO to a CD using Iso Recorder or another ISO burning program.

Boot from the CD, and leave it running for at least 5 or 6 passes.

Just remember, any time Memtest reports errors, it can be either bad RAM or a bad motherboard slot.

Test the sticks individually, and if you find a good one, test it in all slots.

I'd suggest that you first backup your stuff and then make sure you've got access to another computer so you can contact us if problems arise. Then make a System Restore point (so you can restore the system using the Vista/Win7 Startup Repair feature).

In Windows 7 you can make a Startup Repair disk by going to Start....All Programs...Maintenance...Create a System Repair Disc - with Windows Vista you'll have to use your installation disk or the "Repair your computer" option at the top of the Safe Mode menu .

Then, here's the procedure:
- Go to Start and type in "verifier" (without the quotes) and press Enter
- Select "Create custom settings (for code developers)" and click "Next"
- Select "Select individual settings from a full list" and click "Next"
- Select everything EXCEPT FOR "Low Resource Simulation" and click "Next"
- Select "Select driver names from a list" and click "Next"
Then select all drivers NOT provided by Microsoft and click "Next"
- Select "Finish" on the next page.

Reboot the system and wait for it to crash to the Blue Screen. Continue to use your system normally, and if you know what causes the crash, do that repeatedly. The objective here is to get the system to crash because Driver Verifier is stressing the drivers out. If it doesn't crash for you, then let it run for at least 36 hours of continuous operation (an estimate on my part).

If you can't get into Windows because it crashes too soon, try it in Safe Mode.
If you can't get into Safe Mode, try using System Restore from your installation DVD to set the system back to the previous restore point that you created.

ALSO IMPORTANT

Please remove any CD virtualization programs such as Daemon Tools and Alcohol 120%.

They use a driver, found in your dmp,sptd.sys, that is notorious for causing BSODs.

Use this SPTD uninstaller DuplexSecure - Downloads

when you're done you can use this Freeware MagicISO Virtual CD/DVD-ROM(MagicDisc) in its place.

Hi,

Thank you for the response!

I already have a memtest disc ready, I will run it all through the night.

I followed the steps for the verifier. After the reboot, I used the laptop normally. When it crashed I had skype video call, windows mail, chrome open. The BSOD only had this:

STOP: 0X000000E1 (some hexadecimals)

After BSOD, I had a skype video conversation, and now I am writing this post on Chrome.

Also, as per your suggestion, I removed Daemon Tools and SPTD.

madmed said:

Hi,

Thank you for the response!

I already have a memtest disc ready, I will run it all through the night.

I followed the steps for the verifier. After the reboot, I used the laptop normally. When it crashed I had skype video call, windows mail, chrome open. The BSOD only had this:

STOP: 0X000000E1 (some hexadecimals)

After BSOD, I had a skype video conversation, and now I am writing this post on Chrome.

Also, as per your suggestion, I removed Daemon Tools and SPTD.

Good start but we still need the DMP file uploaded.

madmed said:

Hi,

Unfortunately, after my post it BSOD again, several times.

First one was
SPECIAL_POOL_DETECTED_MEMORY_CORRUPTION
0X000000E1

Then when I restarted, it crashed with:
IRQ_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL
0X000000A

After the restart, it crashed again with the same BSOD. Then after that, it hang after restarting while Starting Windows.

So, I am now down to my backup laptop. I thought this would be as good time as any to run the memtest.

It is currently trying to run memtest86 v3.5a but it is stuck at Test: 4%. I will let it run for a while, then drop down to v3.4.

After a good run of memtest86, I will restore. If I can boot it, I will attach the minidump files. I thought it already had it in the zip file?

UPDATE: memtest86 v3.5a was stuck so I ditched that CD, downloaded memtest v4 and now it is running that.

New minidumps are all we need

Tested both sticks with memtest86 v4 for around 19 hours. No errors

Unfortunately, after I restored to pre-verifier restore point, the new minidumps were no longer there?