Daily BSODs (Multiple Stop Codes)

burntoast · 21 Nov 2013

Hi there. My PC is custom-made and it has a history of crashing. Lately, these crashes have been happening multiple times a day, so I've decided to stop ignoring them. The Stop message that I'm used to seeing in the past is "irql_not_less_or_equal". Now the messages include "system_service_exception", "apc_index_mismatch", "machine_check_exception", etc.

The BSODs seem to happen at random times: while working in a 3D modeling app, having multiple Firefox tabs open, while listening to .mp3s in Winamp, and sometimes while having no active programs open.

I've given my RAM a quick check using Windows 7's Memory Diagnostics Tool and it turned up no errors. Running Memtest86+ is my next priority.

Attached is my zipped folder created by the SF Diagnostics Tool. I would appreciate any help solving these BSODs. Thank you.

Arc · 22 Nov 2013

Are you overclocking the RAM?

Code:

  Size                          4096MB
  Form Factor                   09h - DIMM
  Device Set                    [None]
  Device Locator                ChannelA-DIMM1
  Bank Locator                  BANK 1
  Memory Type                   18h - Specification Reserved
  Type Detail                   0080h - Synchronous
  Speed                         1867MHz

As you are getting BSODs, you should stop overclocking and run all the hardware components like CPU, GPU and RAM to their default settings.

Also, Daemon Tools, Alcohol 120% and Power Archiver Pro uses SCSI Pass Through Direct (SPTD), which is a well known BSOD causer. Uninstall Daemon Tools at first. Then download SPTD standalone installer from Disk-Tools.com, and execute the downloaded file as guided below :

Double click to open it.
Click this button only:
If it is grayed out, as in the picture, there is no more SPTD in your system, and you just close the window.

Next, Test your RAM modules for possible errors.
How to Test and Diagnose RAM Issues with Memtest86+
Run memtest for at least 8 passes, preferably overnight.

If it start showing errors/red lines, stop testing. A single error is enough to determine that something is going bad there.

Stress test the Graphics Card using Furmark.
Video Card - Stress Test with Furmark

Stress test the CPU.
Hardware - Stress Test With Prime95

Is the computer hot? Report us the heat of the computer after a couple of hours of your normal usage. Upload a screenshot of the summery tab of Speccy. Alternatively, you can publish a Speccy snapshot too: Speccy - Publish Snapshot of your System Specs .

Check if the Power Supply Unit (PSU) supplying adequate power to the computer or not.
eXtreme Power Supply Calculator
Also let us know the wattage of your PSU.

Let us know the results.

burntoast · 24 Nov 2013

Hi Arc, thank you very much for the help - my PC's running quite stable now. I've overclocked my system a bit, but my RAM's at stock timings/frequency. Speaking of OCing, I ran Prime95 and it resulted in a BSOD pretty quickly. I went back to my BIOs, tweaked my CPU settings, and Prime95 runs stable now. Memtest86+ resulted in a pass with no errors and I plan to do more passes if I run into issues again.

My temps seem fine - RAM is around 40'C during full load and my CPU is around 74'C. I haven't checked my GPU yet, but games haven't crashed once during a few hours of playing (they crashed constantly yesterday). Here are my temps from Speccy as requested. This is after about 3 hours of normal usage:

My PSU is a 750W Antec HCG-750 and eXtreme PSU Calculator recommends 389W for my system, so no problems here:

I checked my drivers and noticed that quite a few were outdated. I updated my Intel Chipset, USB 3.0, SATA Controller, Realtek Audio, and my Ethernet drivers. I uninstalled Daemon Tools, SPTD, and disabled Windows Defender since I prefer using avast! Antivirus. I ran CHKDSK and it found no errors.

Once again, my system is running stable for the time being. I'm not sure whether it's the outdated drivers, uninstalled/disabled programs, my CPU, or a combination of these that caused the BSODs, but I'm satisfied for now.

Thanks again and hopefully I don't have anything more to report.

Arc · 24 Nov 2013

It seems good :) And you are welcome.

Let us know for any further issue :)