BSODS, constantly...

Please remove any CD/DVD virtualization software, such as Daemon Tools/Alcohol 120%, as they use a driver called sptd.sys that is known to cause BSODs. Use add/remove programs to remove the software. After removing the software, use the sptd.sys uninstaller to remove sptd.sys from the system.

I prefer TotalMounter as my CD/DVD virtualization software as it allows me to burn images to a virtual CD/DVD if I just want an ISO file instead of a disc, and it is free.

Many use MagicISO - Convert BIN to ISO, Create, Edit, Burn, Extract ISO file, ISO/BIN converter/extractor/editor as well, which is also free.


Remove any Sonic or other 3rd party CD/DVD burning software you may have installed. You can try ImgBurn instead; it is the preferred free software on these forums for the same tasks.

Ok so I deleted Daemon Tools, and alcohol 120% was not installed on my PC.

I have never had Sonic or any other third party burning software on my computer, and a search comes up with nothing except those .sys files I listed. There is nothing under the programs and features tab to uninstall, and a search again comes up with nothing but the .sys files.

Regarding the SPTD uninstaller, I ran it and it came up saying "there was an old version found on your system" and gave me the option to UPDATE, UNINSTALL, or CANCEL. I selected uninstall, was this correct?

Also, regarding the other two files that list pxHLpa64.sys... What should I do with that? do I delete the .sys file? The only thing that came up for a search was a folder called NIT in my windows/system32 folder that had nothing but several of these .sys files. What do I do with them? And what do I do with the pxHLpa64.sys file itself?

Just for futher clarification: The NIT folder itself from system32, I have since deleted. No BSOD's upon deleting it, rebooted my PC just fine. Now all I have is the pxHLpa64.sys file in my windows\system32 folder. Not sure what I do with that one..

You were correct with the uninstall selection for sptd.sys. For the other file, PxHlpa64.sys, go to C:\Windows\System32\Drivers and rename it to PxHlpa64.sys.bak and see what program complains. Remove that program if you do not use it. If you do use it, you can rename PxHlpa64.sys.bak to PxHlpa64.sys after we have determined the actual cause of your crashes.

Re-enable Verifier after the above steps using the Verifier settings outlined in post #2.

Okay, renamed the pxHLpa64.sys file to what you said, and upon renaming it, nothing happened and no errors popped up. I opened up verifier, and of course pxHLpa64.sys was no longer listed (due to the rename), but I enabled everything I could and my PC booted up normally without any BSOD.

It looks like it's fixed so far? So what to do with that pxhl file.. Not sure if any component of windows requires it.. Should I just get rid of it altogether or leave it as is or rename it back to .sys?

Leave it as is for now. You may discover what needs it later when you try to run a program at some point. For now, leave Verifier enabled and post back if you have any crashes over the next few days. Looks like we cleaned up the boot problem with Verifier. Now to test for any driver conflicts. May take a few days for another crash to show itself that is Verifier enabled. :)

I think we are on the right track now, and if your problem has not yet been solved, it hopefully soon will be.

Thanks so much for helping me this far. I was getting really aggrivated, especially when doing work on my PC and having a crash, resulting in a loss of 2-3 hours work.

I am guessing if I get another BSOD with verifier enabled that does not list the file name I'll have to do the process of elimination again...

Will keep updated if anything happens. I am also going to buy some more cleaner so I can dust out my PC just in case that is causing some issues as well.

You will only have to go through the process of elimination again if you get a crash that does not generate a .dmp file. Typically, if Windows runs fairly well even with Verifier enabled, it means it will generate a .dmp file. Since it was unable to start before, the .dmp files could not be generated.

Is your system still under warranty?

A long, continuous beep usually means bad RAM or a bad graphics card. It could also be as simple as your graphics card is not seated properly or memory modules are not seated properly in the motherboard. Given that you already replaced the graphics card, it could be the motherboard is faulty, as well.

Before proceeding further, I need to know if the system is under warranty.

Unfortunately no the system is no longer under warranty. It is only 2 and a half years old though (did not get the extended warranty past 1 yr).

Memtest came up with 0 errors after 7 passes, and yeah I have two graphics cards and I get the error with both of them. However my computer is extremely dusty, I have yet to dust it out but it is very hot. I also have an extra power supply should that be the issue..