GPU disappeared from device manager after STOP error df

Hey,

Here is what happened: My laptop was overheating, so I disassembled it and cleaned out the dust buildup in the fan. I did not remove the GPU from its socket, I simply applied new thermal paste and reassembled the laptop. Note that in order to gain access to the fan I had to completely separate the motherboard with the GPU attached from the laptop case.

I turned on the laptop and it ran well. I checked for smoke, etc, and I was monitoring the CPU and GPU temperatures and they were normal. I began doing some internet browsing, and after a few minutes of that there was a BSOD. The STOP error codes are below:

Problem signature:
Problem Event Name: BlueScreen
OS Version: 6.1.7601.2.1.0.768.3
Locale ID: 1033

Additional information about the problem:
BCCode: 9f
BCP1: 0000000000000003
BCP2: FFFFFA8007C7BA10
BCP3: FFFFF80000B9C3D8
BCP4: FFFFFA8018148BF0
OS Version: 6_1_7601
Service Pack: 1_0
Product: 768_1





The computer restarted automatically and I tried looking up the code but could not determine the problem. The computer was still running so I thought it might have just been some temporary software issue. I did not realize that the computer didn't see the GPU anymore until I tried playing a video game which the integrated Intel HD Graphics 4000 GPU could not handle. The game shut down, and I noticed that the nVidia notification icon was missing from my task manager. I checked the device manager and the nVidia card is not showing up under any tab. I googled the problem and found someone with a similar problem on this forum.

Link is here: GPU is not listed under device manager

I followed that thread and uninstalled the nVidia driver and tried to reinstall it, but it could not see the GPU so could not fully install. I checked the BIOS version and it's up to date. The user stated that he solved the problem by restoring his BIOS settings to default. I tried doing this and the nVidia card still didn't show up.

I'm guessing it's a hardware problem, but I was really careful when reassembling the laptop. I never removed the GPU from it's socket on the mobo. Does anyone have any other options I could try?

Edit: Added pics of info from dump file.

Hey,

Thanks for replying. I have cleaned a couple of laptops before, and I put plenty of paste on. I did clean out the entire cooling system and I made sure the fan was running. As for the temperatures, Neither GPU-Z nor Speccy are able to detect the GPU. It's a laptop though so I can feel how hot the chip gets through the keyboard. If it was over heating I would be able to tell.

I have an update on the problem. I took apart the laptop again to double check everything, put new paste on again, and still had no luck. I tried re-installing the Intel GPU, because I read it might help, and still nothing. I gave up and shut my laptop off for the night. When I booted it up this morning I checked the device manager and the nVidia GPU showed up! I had already tried a cold restart, of course, so I don't know what changed. I installed the driver through the device manager and restarted the laptop.... and the GPU disappeared from the device manager again. So now I know that the GPU isn't completely fried, but that's about it.

I remember reading about something similar occurring for someone else so I'm looking that up now.

Hey Guys,

ICit2lol, thanks for the help, man. Like I said, I've taken apart a few laptops and I would have noticed if the heat spreader on the GPU was damaged by overheating. Also, I've only ever used Arctic Silver 5 and the cleaning kit it comes with.

Another update:

I ignored the problem for a while until I started getting a new STOP error 116:

[IMG]c2.staticflickr.com/6/5038/14273581703_35b5315c31_h.jpg[/IMG]

Sorry for the image quality. The BSOD said something like "driver reset timeout". After getting the BSOD the laptop didn't restart by itself, so I shut it down manually and rebooted and it ran fine. I checked the device manager after that and still no GPU. The same STOP error happened again today, and after I booted the pc back up the GPU showed up on the device manager. This time since the driver was already installed, the pc seemed to have no trouble with it. The only thing that changed between the two STOP errors was that I brought my laptop to school. The jostling might have caused something to shift back into place?

I'm going to restart the laptop and see if the GPU holds up. If it does I'll mark this thread solved.

GPU disappeared again. Oh well.

Hey ICit2lol, sorry if my terminology wasn't clear. I call the shiny coating on top of the chip the heat spreader. I understood what you were talking about.