Solved BSOD several times, analyzer points to ntoskrnl.exe and hal.dll

[Revys]

I have gotten the BSOD about 15 times over the past month or so, and I am not sure why. I used the program BlueScreenView to lok at my dump files, and it said the causing drivers were either ntoskrnl.exe, hal.dll, or usbhub.sys each time. I have no idea where to turn, so I posted here. Attached is my data from the SF Diagnostic Tool. Thanks in advance

 

[Revys]

Sorry, I posted before it was finished uploading.

 

[Arc]

Hi Revys.

Your BSODs over last 7 months are stop 0x124, supposed to be a hardware error.

*******************************************************************************
*                                                                             *
*                        Bugcheck Analysis                                    *
*                                                                             *
*******************************************************************************

[COLOR=Red]WHEA_UNCORRECTABLE_ERROR (124)[/COLOR]
A fatal hardware error has occurred. Parameter 1 identifies the type of error
source that reported the error. Parameter 2 holds the address of the
WHEA_ERROR_RECORD structure that describes the error conditon.
Arguments:
[COLOR=Red]Arg1: 0000000000000000, Machine Check Exception[/COLOR]
Arg2: fffffa80085b58f8, Address of the WHEA_ERROR_RECORD structure.
Arg3: 0000000000000000, High order 32-bits of the MCi_STATUS value.
Arg4: 0000000000000000, Low order 32-bits of the MCi_STATUS value.

WHEA - Windows Hardware Error Architecture

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

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 the PSU.

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: http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/311593-speccy-publish-snapshot-your-system-specs.html .

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.

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

Stress test the CPU.
Hardware - Stress Test With Prime95

Let us know the results.
http://pcsupport.about.com/od/fixtheproblem/tp/clearcmos.htm

 

[Revys]

I'm not overclocking.

My PSU has a maximum wattage of 750W and the recommended amount was 650 if I did it correctly.

My computer itself does not get hot to the touch, but it has an old case with not much ventilation. During use, Speccy shows that my CPU can get up to 65°C. During my CPU stress test, it reached a temp of 79 °C after less than ten minutes, so I turned it off. Could it be a problem with my CPU overheating?

The GPU temp in the stress test went up to about 88 °C before stabilizing, and I saw a few artifacts.

I have run the RAM test before and it found no errors, but I will run it again tonight.

 

[Arc]

Apparently heat is not the issue as it seems.

Let us know how memtest goes

 

[Revys]

I figured that it was overheating, given that the problems didn't really start until recently after my fan broke. I have been using a fan outside the case with the side open since then until the replacement arrives. So I opened up my case and cleaned the dust out, and noticed my heatsink was filled with dust. After cleaning that out, I have had my computer running the same programs and tests as it has for the past few weeks without incident, so I think that heat was the problem. If it comes back in the future, I will keep running tests, but I think it's solved.

 

[Arc]

It is strange that the heat is not reflected in Speccy.

If you see that the issue is really over, please mark this thread as solved.