BSOD playing Borderlands

I've been a Mac user most of my adult life but, as a gamer, decided to build a PC. With the help of online tutorials, I managed to complete the rig two days ago and I experienced my first BSOD today. It happened while playing Borderlands online with a friend. Obviously I'm very sensitive about my new baby, so I haven't waited for it to happen again nor did I hesitate to look online for a solution, which is how I came across your fine site here. As a brand new PC user, I haven't the slightest clue about this sort of thing. Attached is the report. Thanks in advance for your help.

Windows 7 Home Premium x64
Intel Core i5-2500K Processor
ASRock MB-P67E4G3 LGA 1155 Intel P67 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX
Corsair Memory 8 Dual Channel Kit DDR3
Sapphire 11196-00-40G Radeon HD 7950 3GB DDR5
ASUS VS248H-P 24-Inch Monitor (x2)
1920x1080
Crucial 128 GB m4 2.5-Inch Solid State Drive SATA 6Gb/s
&
Seagate Barracuda 7200 500 GB SATA 6.0 Gb-s 16 MB Cache 3.5-Inch
Seasonic 80Plus Power Supply M12II 620 BRONZE
Cooler Master Silencio 550 Silent ATX Mid-Tower Case
NZXT HAVIK CPU Cooler with Dual 140MM Fans
Razer BlackWidow
Razer Imperator 2012
12 Mbps down; 2 Mbps up

Is Windows 7 . . .
- x86 (32-bit) or x64 ? [x64]
- the original installed OS on the system? [Yes]
- an OEM or full retail version? [full retail version]
- OEM = came pre-installed on system
- Full Retail = you purchased it from retailer

- What is the age of system (hardware)? [2 days old]
- What is the age of OS installation (have you re-installed the OS?) [2 days old]

"It's not a true crash, in the sense that the bluescreen was initiated only because the combination of video driver and video hardware was being unresponsive, and not because of any synchronous processing exception".

Since Vista, the "Timeout Detection and Recovery" (TDR) components of the OS video subsystem have been capable of doing some truly impressive things to try to recover from issues which would have caused earlier OSs like XP to crash.

As a last resort, the TDR subsystem sends the video driver a "please restart yourself now!" command and waits a few seconds.

If there's no response, the OS concludes that the video driver/hardware combo has truly collapsed in a heap, and it fires off that stop 0x116 BSOD.

If playing with video driver versions hasn't helped, make sure the box is not overheating.

Try removing a side panel and aiming a big mains fan straight at the motherboard and GPU.

Run it like that for a few hours or days - long enough to ascertain whether cooler temperatures make a difference.

If so, it might be as simple as dust buildup and subsequently inadequate cooling.

I would download cpu-z and gpu-z (both free) and keep an eye on the video temps Let us know if you need help

STOP 0x116: VIDEO_TDR_ERROR troubleshooting

ckonze said:

zigzag3143 said:

If playing with video driver versions hasn't helped, make sure the box is not overheating.

Try removing a side panel and aiming a big mains fan straight at the motherboard and GPU.

Run it like that for a few hours or days - long enough to ascertain whether cooler temperatures make a difference.

If so, it might be as simple as dust buildup and subsequently inadequate cooling.

I would download cpu-z and gpu-z (both free) and keep an eye on the video temps Let us know if you need help

Well, now that you mention potential overheating, I failed to previously admit that while building my PC, I recognized that the 3 pin cable coming from the front chassis fan wasn't long enough to plug into where it was supposed to connect to the motherboard which, for some reason, was located on the backside, side by side with where the rear fan plugs into. I've gone ahead and ordered a 3 pin extension cable so I can get those front fans up and running. I guess I was deluding myself into believing that the intake of cool air from the front wasn't as important as the expelling of warm air from the back. I feel like I already know the answer, but could that be the problem?

Also, what temperature range is safe for the video card during 3D gaming?

edit: To address the other potential issue, my video card drivers are up to date.

You arre going to have to get the Tmax for the gpu from the mfr. BTW drivers do become corruption even if up to date.

Thanks zigzag. You've been a great help. Between the information you've given me and the fact that I've been gaming non-stop at max settings all day since the BSOD and haven't seen it again, I will mark the thread as solved.