Moved: Misc tasks, screen freezes, video driver unloads, BSOD atikmpag

Misc tasks, screen freezes, video driver unloads, BSOD atikmpag.sys
Okay, this is going to be long and drawn out, so let me start with my sincere apologies.

Description of the issue:
I rebuilt my entire machine a couple months ago, after purchasing a TechNet Plus subscription, new ATI Radeon 5870 2GB video card, and new AMD PhenomII X4 965 CPU. I promptly installed Windows 7 Ultimate x64 and started loading all up-to-date drivers and applications. Then, the problems began. I would be playing WoW and the game would freeze, the screen would turn gray, then black, then the fan on the video card would spin up to 100% throttle (Windows unloaded the video driver), then about 60-90 seconds later, I would get a BSOD with either atikmdag.sys or lately it has been atikmpag.sys. This would also happen while watching video clips in either Windows Media Player or VLC, and sometimes even when watching YouTube videos (both in IE or Firefox).

System Specifications:
Asus Crosshair II Formula motherboard
AMD PhenomII X4 965 CPU
4 GB Patriot RAM
Sapphire ATI Radeon 5870 2GB
AHCI Controlled Hard Drives and CD-Drives
Windows 7 Ultimate x64 (Technet)

Attempts at resolution:
1. Reinstalled Windows 7
2. Reinstalled Windows 7
3. Took system to local computer shop and received a replacement video card from stock
4. Reinstalled Windows 7
(while reinstalling Windows, attempted to use ATI Catalyst Drivers version 9.12 (from original CD), 10.1, 10.2, 10.3, 10.4, and finally 10.5 installed on 6/3/2010)
5. Attempted changing ATI Performance Profiles XML
Changed CoreClockTarget and MemoryClockTarget for Want_0 and Want_1 to be higher than
default, so the card would not have to increase speeds as much (recommended via ATI
forums)
**started happening like clockwork when I installed RollerCoasterTycoon3, crash guaranteed within 30 minutes of starting a scenario, this began on 6/1, so the following entires are from this past weekend to today**
New Drivers from ATI, 10.5, installed. No change in behavior.
6. Disabled Aero within Windows (no effect, re-enabled)
7. Uninstalled Catalyst Suite, leaving bare drivers only (current config with version 10.5)
8. Attempted to use verifier.exe to diagnose the issue, system would only BSOD while booting, very soon into the splash screen, then reboot
9. Attempted Window Repair, unable to find a solution, no changes, rebooted
10. Booted Safe Mode in order to execute verifier.exe and remove current running values
11. Rebooted Windows normally
12. Called Microsoft Support (Case number available upon request by PM) 6/7/2010

Microsoft Support technician controlled my computer for a few minutes, and I showed him the minidump file using dumpchk.exe, but he said that it looks to be just a video card driver issue. I have a very very difficult time believing that after 3 re-installs and 5 different versions of the drivers. I am going to attempt to contact ATI support tomorrow. I figured that someone on this site might be able to assist me with analysis of the minidumps and possibly find the real root cause of this issue. I am going to upload DxDiag.txt output, the minidumps, and the full memory.dmp file (compressed with winrar on best setting, but still had to split into two files because of the 50MB restriction) to my skydrive public folder, linked below:
http://cid-44caa82b00d80af9.office.live.com/browse.aspx/Public

If there are any items that I have left out, or questions, please ask and I will answer as quickly as I possibly can. I really want to resolve this issue so I won't have to format and downgrade to a different OS.

This is a duplicate of a post on the Microsoft Social Answers Forums: http://social.answers.microsoft.com/Forums/en/w7hardware/thread/5f0aebb6-b9b6-4a5d-a622-97c62dbb3d66
All "results" will be posted in both locations ...

I accidently placed this thread in the Hardware & Devices forum instead of the Crashes and Debugging forum. I am linking to this new thread with all the replies, questions, and answers. Original Thread: http://www.sevenforums.com/hardware...s-video-driver-unloads-bsod-atikmpag-sys.html

Ageeb said:

Since you didn't mention it, and seemingly things start hapenning under load, is your PSU pulling it's weight? Maybe the CPU/Vid card upgrade is putting it over the edge?
Have you ran memtest?
Have you primed95 or stress test of your choice for cpu?

- Ageeb

Click to expand...

Good catch, Ageeb. I completely forgot to mention that.

I used Ubuntu to completely test all my RAM, and none of the tests "failed." I know that doesn't mean that the memory is "good," but rather that it was just able to pass the tests acceptably.

I also did a burn/benchmark in with Sisoft Sandra for the CPU, and FurMark for the GPU. Two days ago, I left FurMark running on the machine for over 4 hours, and the GPU temp never passed 81 degrees C. At that time, I did not check the CPU temperature, as it wasn't on that screen, and the CPU wasn't being taxed at that time.

I will note one other observation. I can play World of Warcraft for 5 hours plus and have no crashes what so ever now. I can also play StarCraft II Beta for more than 5 hours without a crash. But if I fire up Roller Coaster Tycoon 3 and start a scenario, it takes less than 30 minutes for the system to crash, every time. I cannot forcibly replicate the crash while watching movies or video clips at this time, that is still completely random, maybe once or twice per week. RCT3 is the sure-fire way to make this occur.

Ageeb said:

sounds like it may be game specific rather than system...

are you overclocked?
are the games fully patched?
are AV's disabled during play?
have you tried them in compatibility mode?
were you using on-board video, before the upgrade? (getting at making sure it's disabled in BIOS, if so)

-Ageeb

Click to expand...

But the issue has also occured outside of games entirely. I have had the same crash happen while watching YouTube videos in Internet Explorer or Firefox. I have also had crashes while watching video clips made on my camera playing in Windows Media Player or in VLC. It is more random than the single game, it just happens that Roller Coaster Tycoon 3 causes more crashes than anything else, and it crashes in a shorter timeframe. Also, extremely rarely I have crashed while playing World of Warcraft and Starcraft II. It has not happened within the past couple weeks for those particular games, so I tend to forget about those crashes.

are you overclocked? -- No overclocking. I have tried UnderClocking (per some forum posts) but that did not make a difference.

are the games fully patched? -- Yes, all games are fully patched and Windows Update is always being checked and I am applying all optional/important/critical updates.

are AV's disabled during play? -- I use Avast, so it is in silent mode when I play games. I have never disabled Avast, but I can give it a try. I am careful online, so I wouldn't mind even removing Avast entirely for a few days ... I don't get viruses/spyware on my computers as I don't visit websites that harbor to them.

have you tried them in compatibility mode? -- I have not turned on compatibility mode for RCT3 as the issue can occur outside of the game. I can try that this evening when I get home.

were you using on-board video, before the upgrade? (getting at making sure it's disabled in BIOS, if so) Crosshair II is a "Republic of Gamers" edition board, there is no on-board video.

mpcrsc562 said:

I have read in another post that certain vendors tweak the drivers for their hardware and it was suggested to download the Catalyst suite from the manufacture, rather than from AMD/ATi.

The 10.5 version has caused many people heartache--however, when I read that about getting the drivers from the card manufacturer, I did as such and have not had any problems with the 10.5.

In my opinion, it makes much sense--especially if the card in question is a non-reference card.

So, my suggestion is to see if the Sapphire drivers would do you better.

Click to expand...

mpcrsc562 said:

And, if this is something you are already aware of, fogive me

Before installing the new driver package, uninstall the old one first. Also, I suggest as it works for me, download Driver Sweeper and when you reboot, go into Safe Mode and run Driver Sweeper. Click the ATi Display check box, click Analyze, then Clean. Reboot again to install the new driver package.

Hope you get this problem remedied quick.

Click to expand...

Thank you for the recommendations, and I will see if this makes a difference when I get home from work. I have already downloaded the drivers and the Driver Sweeper. I will uninstall the drvier, reboot to safe mode, run Driver Sweeper, and then install from the Sapphire Website's driver package. I will let you know if this makes the difference.

Copying this information to the other thread ...

EDIT: The drivers downloaded as a zip, but when I unzipped the file, it was the exact same name and byte size as the original ATI driver, including the logo. I don't believe there is a difference between them. But, I am going to complete the attempted fix as stated above.

Another Edit:
I could understand that the Card Manufacturer Drivers could be different, but then I would not have had the same exact issues when I used the 9.12 drivers that were included on the CD with the video card. I think these are just the identical ATI Drivers, nothing special about them.

I did as suggested.

Uninstalled current 10.5 Catalyst Drivers (downloaded from ATI directly)
Rebooted into Safe Mode
Executed Driver Sweeper
Rebooted into normal Windows
Installed Catalyis 10.5 Drives (downloaded from Sapphire Website for my model video card)
Rebooted for Installation
Opened Roller Coaster Tycoon 3, and within 10 minutes of gameplay ...
Screen Froze, changed to solid Brown (primary color at the time), then black, display lost signal while driver unloaded, GPU Fan shifted to 100%, then BSOD on atikmpag.sys
Upon reboot into Windows, the normal window appeared stating the BlueScreen error, LocaleID 1033, BCCode 116.

Also, I found new and additional crash information with the Problem Reports (Start, and type Problem, Click View All Problem Reports).

Description
A problem with your video hardware caused Windows to stop working correctly.
Problem signature
Problem Event Name: LiveKernelEvent
OS Version: 6.1.7600.2.0.0.256.1
Locale ID: 1033
Extra information about the problem
BCCode: 117
BCP1: FFFFFA8003ACD010
BCP2: FFFFF8800417267C
BCP3: 0000000000000000
BCP4: 0000000000000000
OS Version: 6_1_7600
Service Pack: 0_0
Product: 256_1
Bucket ID: X64_0x117_Tdr:2_IMAGE_atikmpag.sys
Server information: 96af7d28-e309-4ed9-a5a6-1b6686e75b9e
Then immediately after that ...

Problem signature
Problem Event Name: BlueScreen
OS Version: 6.1.7600.2.0.0.256.1
Locale ID: 1033
Extra information about the problem
BCCode: 116
BCP1: FFFFFA8003ACD010
BCP2: FFFFF8800417267C
BCP3: 0000000000000000
BCP4: 0000000000000002
OS Version: 6_1_7600
Service Pack: 0_0
Product: 256_1
Bucket ID: X64_0x116_TdrBCR:2_Tdr:2_IMAGE_atikmpag.sys
Server information: e091807e-61b1-464a-b6f9-b47e4e28efcb

I am uploading these additional crash files from the LiveKernelEvent to the Skydrive linked in the primary post.

Just because I don't believe I referenced this information.

Prime95 Stress Test - Executed 6/8/2010 for 6 hours+. CPU Temp never passed 60
FurMark Burn-In - Executed 6/6/2010 for 5 hours+. GPU Temp never passed 80
Memtest86+ - Executed 6/1/2010 for 5 hours+. No "failures" found.
(also used Windows Memory Diagnostic, no issues found)
Si-Soft Sandra Burn-In (Multiple Components) - Executed a few months ago for 5 horus+, no issues

During these processes, there were no crashes. The system performed exactly the way I would expect.

Well, does anyone have any ideas? Any at all? I am getting desparate at this point.

I would really love some assistance with this issue, if anyone has some time.

Thank you very much!!

I was looking though other posts, and I have heard the legends about usasma. So, I went to his website, www.carrona.org, and found the errors that are being reported in my system, but I am lost as to a resolution.

I get two 116 Errors = VIDEO_TDR_ERROR
BSOD Index
Then a 117 BSOD = VIDEO_TDR_TIMEOUT_DETECTED
BSOD Index

Now, I have read both of these error reports on his website, and I cannot figure out what the real issue is ...

I can run benchmarks for 5+ hours and have Video Card temps around 80 degrees C with no issues. But sometimes when I am not really taxing the video card, like playing back videos and playing older games that will not stress the video system, it crashes. I can play WoW for 5 hours and not have issues. I don't understand.

If I was having an overheating issue, you would begin to think that it would occur after 5 hours of Starcraft II, not after 30 minutes or less of Roller Coaster Tycoon 3.

I have tried 6 completely different versions of ATI's drivers, and still have the same issue.

I have updated the Motherboard BIOS just back in February (when I got the Phenom II Processor and the new video card).

I also purchased a new 750W OCZ power supply when I installed the new components. I have a power supply tester, and it shows that the leads going to the video card are within the acceptable limits.

I have also changed physical video cards. I purchased my Radeon 5870 at a local store, so they swapped cards with me, and I still had the same issues.

Any recommendations or suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!

After reading a little more on an ATI forum that usasma linked to from the BSOD 116 error page listed above:
AMD Game Forums - ATIKMDAG.sys problems and TDR FAQ

I went through and ran CHKDSK on every drive that I have in the system. No errors.

But, this got me thinking, I did run VERIFIER.exe, but it caused the BSOD before any type of boot up (about 5 seconds into the Windows Splash Screen), thus it was not logged. So I reset Verifier and went back into Windows normally. Perhaps I should select 5 items at a time and keep rebooting until I find the culprit. I realize this will take some additional time, but it seems that I am running out of other options without some assistance.

When I get home, I will get started on this, and see if I can find the real culprit.

I was reviewing other BSOD posts (http://www.sevenforums.com/crashes-debugging/89920-bsod-help-2.html#post776626), and I saw ZigZag recommend that the user run System File Checker. Just to help save time, I have executed sfc /scannow and the verification completed in a few minutes. Windows Resource Protection did not find any integrity violations.

So I know that the Windows files are fine. Now I just need to find out exactly what IS causing the issue.

I still plan to run Verifier when I get home, only selecting a few items, and then rebooting until I get the BSOD upon startup like I did previously. Once I find the culprit, I will post it.

Another suggestion from the ATI Forums was to download CCleaner (Registry Cleaner). So I completed that as well. It did clear out some items that were unrequired. I will see if there is any difference when I get home.

I went through Verifier ... I did find a single driver that caused the BSOD on boot up. FSProLabs mprifl.sys This was for a program that I used called MyLockbox, a basic folder hiding/encryption software. I have uninstalled this software.

However, this did not resolve my issue. After removing the MyLockbox software, I deleted the Verifier settings, checked all non-microsoft Verifier drivers, and the system rebooted successfully. I then removed the verifier settings and restarted. I then opened Roller Coaster Tycoon 3, played for about 15 minutes, and then the game froze, the screen went black, the video card driver unloaded, then reloaded, and then BSOD atikmpag.sys.

I have attached the files that were listed in the three problems. Two problems with files occured first, then the ShutDownUnexpected Minidump. I have also uploaded these new files to my SkyDrive linked in the first post.

You've done most everything that I would do.
This is definitely a video issue - but it I don't recall if you've tried any other cooling solutions (pointing a house fan - on high - into the case at the video card).

Also, when it crashes, unplug it from the wall, grab hold of the metal of the case with one hand, and then CAREFULLY poke around inside the case looking for hot stuff (you may burn yourself if not careful!).

Have you scanned the Prime95 screen output when the test runs to see if there were any errors/failures listed in the output (it won't always crash the system)?

Will check back this afternoon with any more suggestions I might think of.
Good Luck!

I believe the system has plenty of airflow, as this is a CM Storm Sniper case. There are 4 120mm fans, and one of them points directly at the video card. Yesterday afternoon, I sat down and tried to "tune" my fan settings to reduce the heat signature a little bit, so my video card does not surpass 75 degrees C.

Immediately following making this change is when I started up Roller Coaster Tycoon 3, and it crashed on me. Also, last night happened to be raid night for my guild, and I was able to play WoW for 3 1/2 hours solid without anything bad happening at all. We downed 5 bosses and made attempts on Lich King, so if something was going to stress out my machine a little, that would have been it.

When I ran Prime95, I did not notice any errors within that application. Everything appeared to be normal within the output files. It has been a few weeks since I tested the RAM, today I am going to setup my system to run memtest while I am at work ... it should be able to make about 10 passes during the day. Maybe that will result in something different.

Thanks for the help!

Hmm ... I just read something that really made me think. When I am playing RCT3, there is one major difference between doing much of anything else ... I am using Daemon Tools to run the game without the disk. I bought this game years ago, and, like most games I purchase, I make an archival backup just in case something happens to the original ... well guess what ... something happened to the original disk. So, I am using the image running on my hard drive loaded through Daemon Tools. I read another post that some people have experienced many unusual issues with Daemon Tools, and I am starting to think that this might be my issue. At this time, I think I am going to head out and purchase a new Platinum Edition to replace my RCT3 set. Then I will completely uninstall Daemon Tools and try playing off the new game disk. If I don't crash, then I will know that the issue has been Daemon Tools this whole time. *sigh*

Y'know, most BSOD's are solved by the owners - not by us analyzing things.
This may be the clue that we need.

If you've already uninstalled Daemon Tools - try running a copy of RCT3 from the CD/DVD to see if that'll cause a BSOD. Try this both with and without Driver Verifier running (using the settings outlined below)

If you haven't uninstalled Daemon Tools, run Driver Verifier and then run RCT3 to generate a crash (unless the 061010-23197-01.dmp file was caused by doing that). FYI - that dump file is a Verifier Enabled Minidump and it blames the ATI driver again.

Also, if it's still crashing on you, let's try looking at your MSINFO32 report:

MSINFO32:
Please go to Start and type in "msinfo32.exe" (without the quotes) and press Enter
Save the report as an .nfo file, then zip up the .nfo file and upload/attach the .zip file with your next post.

If you're having difficulties with the format, please open an elevated (Run as administrator) Command Prompt and type "msinfo32 /nfo C:\Users\Public\Desktop\TEST.NFO" (without the quotes) and press Enter. Then navigate to the C:\Users\Public\Desktop directory to retrieve the TEST.NFO file. If you have difficulties with making this work, please post back.

Click to expand...

And the Event Viewer log files:

Event Viewer Log Files
Please provide us with copies of these 2 logfiles:
- Go to Start and type in "eventvwr.msc" (without the quotes and press Enter
- Expand the Windows Logs category by clicking on the arrow/+ sign to it's left
- Right click on the Application log and select "Save all events as" and name it Application
- Then, right click on the System log and select "Save all events as" and name it System
- Zip up the log files and upload/attach them with your next post.

NOTE: If the log files are too big to upload to the forums, please upload them to a free file hosting service and provide us with the link to the files.

Click to expand...

In the end, it's usually the sptd.sys file (located in C:\Windows\System32\drivers) that causes the BSOD's.

I'd suggest running Driver Verifier again using these settings:

Using Driver Verifier is an iffy proposition. Most times it'll crash and it'll tell you what the driver is. But sometimes it'll crash and won't tell you the driver. Other times it'll crash before you can log in to Windows. If you can't get to Safe Mode, then you'll have to resort to offline editing of the registry to disable Driver Verifier.

So, 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).

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).

Reboot into Windows (after the crash) and turn off Driver Verifier by going back in and selecting "Delete existing settings" on the first page, then locate and zip up the memory dump file and upload it with your next post.

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.

If that doesn't work, post back and we'll have to see about fixing the registry entry off-line:

Code:

Delete these registry keys (works in XP, Vista, Win7):
        HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Session Manager\Memory Management\VerifyDrivers
        HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Session Manager\Memory Management\VerifyDriverLevel

More info on this at this link: Using Driver Verifier to identify issues with Windows drivers for advanced users

Click to expand...

Looking at the memory dump files I found this driver:
A google search revealed nothing about it. This is either a suspicious entry (malware) - or it's related to something that a program like Daemon Tools does (makes a driver to mount the file(s))

Thank you for the great recommendations!

I just got home, and after running MemTestx86 for 9 hours, it made 7 complete passes over the RAM and it was 88% complete through an 8th pass with no errors whatsoever. I rebooted into Windows and came here first to read.

I have completed creating my restore point.

I have the System Info, Application Log, and System Logs all zipped up, but I am getting a failure to upload message from the forums. Instead, I have uploaded to my skydrive.

SystemInfo_AppLog_SysLog.zip - 2.75MB - Public - Windows Live

I have NOT removed Daemon Tools yet, as I thought about another test while I was at work. I am about to enable Verifier again, per your instructions, and when the system crashes, I will upload those log files. Also, I plan to load an ISO DVD movie file and play that in Windows Media Player. If I get a crash from that as well, then we know that the issue stems from Daemon Tools.

Daemon Tools version 4.35.5.0068
SPTD Version 1.62 (was listed on the DT About Screen as well)

I will message back after the Verifier tests ...

I turned on Verifier. I played the RCT3 for a little bit, and the computer did freeze, but I did not have the crash that I usually have.

This time, the screen just went black. The video driver did not unload, and I did not get a BSOD. I did not get any issues listed in the Action Center / Problems area, nor did I get any minidump. There was also nothing in the System or Application Logs of note. I know the system locked up completely, but I have no idea what caused it, and I don't appear to have any logs that help me in this case.

Should I proceed with uninstalling Daemon Tools? I ordered a brand new copy of RCT3 from Amazon today, and it should arrive at my house tomorrow. That should replace my "archival backup" and I won't need Daemon Tools in order to play (only sucks because I have paid for the game twice now LOL).

Anyway, I also ran a DVD movie from Daemon Tools for about 3 hours, and nothing bad happened. No crashes, but for some reason Windows Media Player wouldn't play the audio ... played video just fine, but no audio. I switched over to VLC Media Player, and the movie ran perfectly.

I also found one other item that was causing a little trouble.

Log Name: System
Source: Microsoft-Windows-Kernel-PnP
Date: 6/11/2010 6:08:45 PM
Event ID: 219
Task Category: (212)
Level: Warning
Keywords:
User: SYSTEM
Computer: XavierSysWin7
Description:
The driver \Driver\WUDFRd failed to load for the device Root\SIDESHOW\0000.

I periodically got two of these Warnings in my System Event Log. This was apparently from my Logitech G15 Keyboard and an incompatibility with Windows SideShow (Monochrome) and Windows SideShow (Color) programs within the G15 LCD Manager. I have disabled these programs (uncheck BOTH boxes on either side).

Well, I tried something unconventional ... Before any of this, I disabled Verifier, as when the game crashes, it only freezes and never goes to a BSOD, nor does it log anything in any log that I am able to locate. So, I downloaded a NO CD executable in order to by-pass Daemon Tools. I have not yet uninstalled DT, but I was not using it with the game or in any other capacity. The game still crashed after about 15-20 minutes of gameplay with the normal driver unload/BSOD. I have attached this dump to the post in a zip file - 061110-20623-01.dmp

I also right clicked the game file, and I asked it to troubleshoot compatibility. This requested that I execute the game, which I did, and it crashed with the usual driver unload/BSOD but this time was faster than the other attempts, probably within 3 minutes of starting the scenario. This dump is also in the zip file - 061110-19656-01.dmp

Both list atikmpag.sys as the likely issue, but I just don't understand how can this be the issue when Driver Verifier doesn't state it as being the issue, or having any issue with much more complex games and stress test/benchmarks!

Is there something other than a stress test for video cards? Something like MemTestx86 that will verify components on the physical card and test them directly? I have a very difficult time believing that 5 completely separate driver versions have the same exact error and that ATI has not done anything about them yet.

You know ... something else just came into my head. Maybe it is the PCI-E slot on the motherboard. Maybe it is having an issue. I have three separate PCI-E slots, and there are two that are x16 ... I am going to shut down and move my card to the other slot on the motherboard (that is, if there is enough airflow and space between that slot and the power supply). I will try that really quickly.