Blue Screen AMD problem? Help?

[shyunatown]

So my laptop new and this only happened once and it happend when I was on google chrome. My screen will black out, then return. I recieve an error message that my AMD display driver recovered, and soon after my laptop will inevitable go to blue screen. It hasnt done this before either.

Acer seem to think this bluescreen problem warrants repair (and the laptop is in warranty) but this doesn't scream repair-worthy to me if it's only happend once. Just what the hell's going on with my machine?

Acer Aspire 7250-0843
Windows 7 Home Premium.
AMD Dual-Core Processor E450 & AMD RADEON HD 6320.
One month old.

 

[kegobeer]

Have you gone to AMD and looked for updated drivers? Have you checked Acer for updated chipset drivers?

 

[shyunatown]

I dont know where to look for, for AMD drivers because i dont just want any, how do you find the updates? (I actually tried updating the driver itself and it said it was already updeted). As for the other one, i dont know where to look that up at. Could you point me the way please?

 

[writhziden]

That is a TDR error. It can result in a blue screen crash. Here is the best info we have on it:

• 
  

  These are all stop 0x116 VIDEO_TDR_FAILURE conditions.
  
  It's not a true crash, in the sense that the bluescreen was initiated only because the combination of video driver and video hardware was being unresponsive, and not because of any synchronous processing exception.
  
  Since Vista, the "Timeout Detection and Recovery" (TDR) components of the OS video subsystem have been capable of doing some truly impressive things to try to recover from issues which would have caused earlier OSs like XP to crash. As a last resort, the TDR subsystem sends the video driver a "please restart yourself now!" command and waits a few seconds. If there's no response, the OS concludes that the video driver/hardware combo has truly collapsed in a heap, and it fires off that stop 0x116 BSOD.
  
  If playing with video driver versions hasn't helped, make sure the box is not overheating. Try removing a side panel and aiming a big mains fan straight at the motherboard and GPU. Run it like that for a few hours or days - long enough to ascertain whether cooler temperatures make a difference. If so, it might be as simple as dust buildup and subsequently inadequate cooling.

  
  The above quote was taken from http://www.sevenforums.com/crashes-debugging/25912-bsod.html#post280172, which is linked to in usasma's thread about this error. Closely follow the first three posts of usasma's thread outlining http://www.sevenforums.com/crash-lo...op-0x116-video_tdr_error-troubleshooting.html and proceed through each step. Let us know if you need further help.

 

[shyunatown]

It seems all too confusing for me, i mean it seems too complex just but one blue screen. It feel excessive, sorta. I am sorry I dont know much about computers..

 

[writhziden]

If it is overwhelming, your best option would be to send it in for repairs. Trying to determine the problem yourself may be too strenuous, and you also do not want to do anything that might void the warranty (like opening up the case).

Before sending it in, make sure to back up any important data onto an external hard drive.

 

[shyunatown]

Yes I could do that! But I am wondering, do I really need to send in my laptop for 'repair' if it was just one blue screen? I mean I feel there may be a more simpler answer like updating my AMD or somthing. Right? Anyway let me know please. I got my Acer a month ago so I am surprised that I need to think of such, and I don't just download anything or throw it around either. Anyway let me know, I appreciate your help.

 

[writhziden]

If you want to focus on the software side of things to see if it helps: The Video TDR Error crash is essentially a DirectX/graphics card related crash. DirectX comes installed with Windows, so this may indicate Windows corruption. It may also be that you have corrupted drivers or a graphics card hardware problem.

• If you are overclocking any hardware, please stop.
  
  
• Check Windows for corruption. Run http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/1538-sfc-scannow-command-system-file-checker.html up to three times to fix all errors with a restart in between each. Post back if it continues to show errors after a fourth run or if the first run comes back with no integrity violations. Use OPTION THREE of http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/1538-sfc-scannow-command-system-file-checker.html to provide us with the sfcdetails.txt file if errors occur.

Follow the steps for Diagnosing basic problems with DirectX. To re-install your display card drivers as outlined in the DirectX link, use the following steps.

1. Download the drivers you want for your display card(s)
2. Click Start Menu
3. Click Control Panel
4. Click Uninstall a program
5. For NVIDIA:
   • Uninstall the NVIDIA Graphics Driver (this should uninstall all NVIDIA software and drivers)
   • Restart your computer
   • Make sure NVIDIA 3D Vision Driver, NVIDIA 3D Vision Video Player, NVIDIA HD Audio Driver, and NVIDIA PhysX System Software are not still listed under Uninstall a program through Control Panel
   • If any remain of the above, uninstall one at a time
   • If asked to restart after uninstalling any of the above, do so, and continue uninstalling any remaining NVIDIA items until all are removed
6. For AMD:
   • Uninstall AMD Catalyst Install Manager if it is listed (this should remove all AMD graphics software and drivers)
   • If AMD Catalyst Install Manager is not listed, use the following method to uninstall the graphics drivers (this applies to onboard graphics, as well):
     1. Click Start Menu
     2. Right Click My Computer/Computer
     3. Click Manage
     4. Click Device Manager from the list on the left
     5. Expand Display adapters
     6. Do the following for each adapter (in case you have multiple display cards)
        • Right click the adapter
        • Click Uninstall (do not click OK in the dialog box that pops up after hitting Uninstall)
        • Put a tick in Delete driver software for this device (if this option is available, otherwise just hit OK) and hit OK
     Alternatively:
     1. Login as an adminstrative user
     2. Click Start Menu
     3. Click Control Panel
     4. Click Hardware and Sound
     5. Click Device Manager (the last link under Devices and Printers)
     6. Expand Display adapters
     7. Do the following for each adapter (in case you have multiple display cards)
        • Right click the adapter
        • Click Uninstall (do not click OK in the dialog box that pops up after hitting Uninstall)
        • Put a tick in Delete driver software for this device (if this option is available, otherwise just hit OK) and hit OK
7. Restart your computer after uninstalling drivers for all display cards
8. Install the driver you selected for the display cards once Windows starts

Remember to try multiple versions of the graphics drivers, download them fresh, and install the freshly downloaded drivers.


Also, can you fill in your system specs? Please fill in your system specs in your profile and not in a post in this thread: http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/180324-system-info-see-your-system-specs.html

 

[decroded]

FWIW, I had a similar problem with a new Acer Aspire 7250-BZ482. I would get constant freezes and often the display would get corrupted. It was getting really bad, about once a day, when I managed to isolate the problem (knock on wood). These freezes were being caused by the outdated drivers shipped with the computer and on the Acer website.

First, I updated all of the drivers from the Acer support site. But this did not fix the problem, as the drivers on the Acer site are not the newest.

Next, I updated the display drivers from the AMD website. This did not resolve the problem either.

Finally, I realized that the hardware device that is almost always in use on my laptop is the wireless NIC, so I googled for the newest version of the Atheros AR5B05 that Windows Device Manager says my laptop has. The driver on the Acer support site is dated July 6, 2011 (version 9.2.0.316), but I was able to find a driver dated March 9, 2012 (10.0.0.45) from this site. This seems to have fixed the problem.

To install this driver, download it and extract the zip file to your hard drive, then open Device Manager through Control Panel, double click on the AR5B95 Wireless Network Adapter, click on the Driver tab, then click Update Driver. Next, click on Browse my computer for drivers and select the directory where you just extracted the zip file.

For this third step, you should probably check Windows Device Manager to see what wireless NIC card you have. The Acer support site also provides a Broadcom driver so probably some versions of this laptop have a Broadcom wireless chipset instead of the Atheros one. Also, make sure not to confuse this with the wired NIC controller.

Hope this helps anyone that was having the same problem as me.