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Random BSOD after new processor install 000000007F
Hello all,
I thought I'd breathe a few more years of life into my old 775 rig and install a new quad-core processor. Unfortunately, this has turned into a much bigger hassle than I expected. Long story short, currently I'm able to run for several hours, but then unexpectedly I'll get a BSOD with stop code 000000007F (unfortunately I keep missing the first parameter, next time I see it I'll post with that detail.
Here are the steps that lead me to this point, as best I can recall:
-Original processor: Intel Core2 Duo E4500 @ 2.20 GHz. As far as I know, everything was working fine.
-New processor: Intel Core 2 Quad Q9400 Yorkfield 2.66GHz LGA 775 95W Quad-Core Desktop Processor AT80580PJ0676M installed. Computer did not boot, no beep code.
-Determined problem was my motherboard, ABIT FP-IN9 SLI, was several BIOS versions behind. Updated BIOS from 12 to 16.
-New problem: ABIT is no more latest BIOS is unable to accurately detect my CPU temp. First time I booted, it mistakenly read the processor temp at 92 C and shut down while Windows was booting and corrupted something.
-Switched back to E4500, attempted to boot again. BSOD during boot (the very first dump you'll see is from this event). Ran boot recovery to restore Windows. Did my best to make sure everything was OK again, even did some stress tests and made sure I wasn't getting any more BSODs. Without really thinking about it, I think I installed drivers for a Wacom Bamboo Create within this period (1/1/2013, date verified from Programs list)
-Switched back to Q9400, along with a new CoolerMaster fan just in case my old stock fan couldn't cut it. Disabled auto-shut down in BIOS. Once Windows booted again, I installed CoreTemp as a backup to monitoring my CPU temp (1/3/2013, date verified from Programs list)
-Started seeing blue screens every 30 minutes (at first it seemed like they only happened when viewing YouTube videos, but I'd also seen them happen at totally random times - often, immediately after clicking a button. On one occasion, I let Verifier run for longer than 30 minutes idle on desktop, and then as soon as I tried to open Chrome I hit another BSOD) I've also noticed other abnormalities, such as new icons added to desktop not immediately respecting auto-sort orientation) - I'm pretty certain the stop code at that time was F7, not 7F, but since those are pretty close I could be mistaken.
-In response to the above, I updated my Realtek HD sound card. No change to BSOD behavior.
-Next, I thought it was the tablet, so I uninstalled drivers for my Bamboo Create.
-Ran some stress tests after that, and it seemed like the problem was gone. Computer could be on for several hours, I could run Minecraft on the highest settings for a while, watched many Youtube videos (important since that was a suspected culprit), I even left it on overnight while uploading some videos to Youtube. Woke up and everything was peachy. I was convinced everything was fine. And then, it happened again while watching Youtube - but this time the stop code was definitely 7F.
-Uninstalled CoreTemp, as that was the next likely suspect (i.e. only other thing I can recall installing during this experience). Same behavior as above, another 7F BSOD hours later.
I'm currently in the state described in the last step. I can run for several hours and perform quite a lot of work, but inevitably I'll see it crash with 7F. It's not just Youtube either, last time it happened while playing 'I Wanna Be The Guy' (a Shockwave app for those unfamiliar) and recording with Afterburner simultaneously. However, there was a second BSOD immediately following that one, as Windows was rebooting it seemed like the monitors went into power saver mode before showing me the login screen. I moved my mouse, and oddly enough it did bring back the login screen - though obviously corrupted. It looked like certain graphics hadn't loaded and fonts were in a console plaintext. I only saw it for a moment before another BSOD replaced it (I don't think these last two got logged - the dates in the last files from the Grab All are 1/12)
I'm not sure where to go from here, short of returning the processor/buying a new motherboard. I just ran Memtest86+, all four RAM sticks passed all tests at least twice. There are too many unknowns for me right now to justify another purchase just yet. Did the boot recovery totally fix the system corruption from the forced shut-down? Did the Wacom drivers corrupt something that wasn't entirely cleaned during uninstall? Is there more wrong with my BIOS than simply misreading the temperature (note: I've already considered flashing to Beta 18, but I've heard reports that Windows 7 users see frequent BSODs with that version so I don't think that's an option)? Any help would be greatly appreciated.