Freezes and BSOD, error 0x00000124

[tripleclick]

Hello

My HP notebook freezes again and again. It started a few weeks ago. I have used all the BIOS self-diagnosis tools, but all tests are passed. I even did a completely new installation of Windows 7 with (as far as I know) all the newest BIOS and drivers. Since the problem persists, I suspect a hardware problem. Even more because I also got two bluescreens during the past few weeks and they both mention an "uncorrectable hardware error". I thought it would be easy with the code to find out by googling, what they mean. But I found so many different things it rather confused me. Does anybody know what the following bluescreens mean? Do they clearly point to a specific hardware part?
STOP: 0x00000124 (0x0000000000000000, 0xFFFFFA800516F038, 0x00000000B2000040, 0x0000000000000800)
STOP: 0x00000124 (0x0000000000000000, 0xFFFFFA80051A6038, 0x00000000B2000040, 0x0000000000000800)
If not: What can I do next?

Oh, comes to my mind: It seems that Windows does not freeze as long as I play a video with VLC player. Strange. But of course I am not sure, it is just my impression.

System:
Windows 7 Pro x64
Re-installed about 3 weeks ago; full version (download from MSDAA), not update or OEM
Hardware: HP Elitebook 8530w (2+ years old)

Thanks in advance!

 

[JaidynM]

You have a hardware error (0x124). Read the following thread and see if any of it's fixes work.
Stop 0x124 - what it means and what to try

Among the fixes in the above thread are a number of stress tests. These are tests that will 'stress' a specific hardware component to check for any defects. To make it easier, I'll post the main stress tests below (RAM, Graphics Card, CPU, HDD):

Test your RAM using Memtest86+. Let it run until 6-8 passes have completed or errors have been found.
RAM - Test with Memtest86+

Test your video card using Furmark. Watch your machine's temps and stop the test if it starts to overheat or artifacts appear on the screen.
Video Card - Stress Test with Furmark

Test your hardware using Prime95. Watch your machine's temps and stop the test if it starts to overheat. Let it run for up to 2 hours or until errors have been found.
Hardware - Stress Test With Prime95

Run a chkdsk on the system partition to check for bad sectors or system errors.
Disk Check

 

[tripleclick]

Thanks JaidynM, a few of the suggested tests I've already run. I'll run now the others and hope I'll find something. I assume the BSOD messages I quoted and the attached reports didn't give a clear picture in what direction I should look or which hardware parts I should test first. Is that correct?

 

[zigzag3143]

Thanks JaidynM, a few of the suggested tests I've already run. I'll run now the others and hope I'll find something. I assume the BSOD messages I quoted and the attached reports didn't give a clear picture in what direction I should look or which hardware parts I should test first. Is that correct?

We do need the DMP file as it contains the only record of the sequence of events leading up to the crash, what drivers were loaded, and what was responsible.

If you are overclocking STOP

You may be able to get the DMP files without crashing by booting into safe mode (F8) with networking.

To enable us to assist you with your computer's BSOD symptoms, upload the contents of your "\Windows\Minidump" folder.

The procedure:

* Copy the contents of \Windows\Minidump to another (temporary) location somewhere on your machine.
* Zip up the copy.
* Attach the ZIP archive to your post using the "paperclip" (file attachments) button.
*If the files are too large please upload them to a file sharing service like "Rapidshare" and put a link to them in your reply.

To ensure minidumps are enabled:

* Go to Start, in the Search Box type: sysdm.cpl, press Enter.
* Under the Advanced tab, click on the Startup and Recovery Settings... button.
* Ensure that Automatically restart is unchecked.
* Under the Write Debugging Information header select Small memory dump (256 kB) in the dropdown box (the 256kb varies).
* Ensure that the Small Dump Directory is listed as %systemroot%\Minidump.
* OK your way out.
* Reboot if changes have been made.

 

[tripleclick]

Thank you, zigzag3143. Please excuse my ignorance but I thought the dump files were already included in the attached Windows_NT6_BSOD_jcgriff2.zip above. But you can find the zipped minidump folder now attached to this message.

Is this enough or even too much? I noticed that your instructions suggest a setting of "small memory dump (256 KB)", I had it set to "kernel memory dump" (German "Kernelspeicherabbild"). Is that a problem? Should I change it? (But I guess it would take some time to get another bluescreen, although freezes occur several times a day, which is very annoying.)

Please allow a last question: You suggest to have Automatically restart unchecked, I have it checked. Why unchecked. And what then? I have to reboot and go to work at some point. Can you please clarify?

I am sorry about my questions. They may seem stupid to you. I am just not that computer savvy and am thankful for your support and help.

 

[JaidynM]

If 'small memory dump' is not selected, the dump files can be quite large. Some can even be the size of your RAM!

Unfortunately, the dump files can only efficiently point to a faulty driver or program. If it is a hardware problem it will tell us, but not with specific details. The best thing to do is run all the tests and see if you can find the faulty component yourself.

 

[tripleclick]

Ok, thank you, JaidynM. I keep on running the tests. I guess you haven't found anything special in the dumpfiles so far. (And I will switch to "small memory dump".)

 

[JMH]

Ok, thank you, JaidynM. I keep on running the tests. I guess you haven't found anything special in the dumpfiles so far. (And I will switch to "small memory dump".)

One needs to remember

A "stop 0x124" is fundamentally different to many other types of bluescreens because it stems from a hardware complaint. Stop 0x124 minidumps contain very little practical information, and it is therefore necessary to approach the problem as a case of hardware in an unknown state of distress.

We would love to be able to perform magic...

 

[JaidynM]

Ok, thank you, JaidynM. I keep on running the tests. I guess you haven't found anything special in the dumpfiles so far. (And I will switch to "small memory dump".)

No worries.

But as Jan (JMH) said above, there's not much we can get out of dump files when it comes to a 0x124 error.

 

[tripleclick]

Ok, I finally got it. Sorry, I did not mean to be disrespectful about what you're doing. Not in any shape or form. I very much appreciate your support and help. I'd be lost without you. Going now back to testing...

 

[JaidynM]

That's fine, we didn't take it as disrespect.

 

[JMH]

Ok, I finally got it. Sorry, I did not mean to be disrespectful about what you're doing. Not in any shape or form. I very much appreciate your support and help. I'd be lost without you. Going now back to testing...

It is our pleasure to try to help you.
Awaiting your reply...

 

[tripleclick]

Thank you all! Ok, I'm back. Unfortunately (or fortunately? - no, I'd really be happy if I could finally find the root cause) non of the stress tests was able to reveal any hardware part as the culprit. I've tried everything described here and here except:

• CHKDSK: yes, with /F /V /X after each freeze, but without /R because this HDD is only about 4 weeks old. The problem existed with the old HDD already, that HDD didn't pass a stress test, so I replaced it. I guess the new one is ok. In any case it can't be the root cause because the problem is older than the HDD.
• Re-installation of Windows: Did it about three weeks ago. Just quickly before I had to fly to China where I am stuck now with limited technical equipment. Can't just do a re-installation now and here. It could be though that one of the many drivers, updates and so on that I had to install before my flight is the bad boy. I just don't know. I didn't have the time then to add the drivers slowly one by one, each time followed by an extended testing session.
• Removing/replacing hw items: Not much to remove or replace...

Now, what strikes me is the fact that indeed there seem to occur no freezes (and probably no bluescreens, if we assume both have the same cause) as long as I am playing a video with VLC player. That's what I am doing now constantly in the background (doesn't have to be visible in order to have that positive effect) just in order to be able to work. I know, pretty stupid but still effective. I will need to try playing just sound with VLC player instead. Or playing it with WMP instead of VLC. That might give us another hint. Anyway, does anybody so far have an idea what reason may lie behind this strange behaviour?

 

[profdlp]

I haven't gone through every post in this thread with a fine-tooth comb as it's late, but I did read them all. Based on your last item, I'd look for either a new (or at least different) video card driver and would also check your power-saving settings. I know that power management is important for a laptop, but for troubleshooting purposes I would temporarily disable it and see if the problem goes away. What makes me think this is that the VLC player is both A) Keeping your video card and driver busy at all times, and B) Preventing the laptop from entering a reduced power state.

That's where I'd start, anyway.

 

[tripleclick]

Thanks profdlp, I already restored the System Default Settings incl. default Power Management Settings (provided by HP here). I have now also set the Windows power-saving settings to full power. Let's see...

And I will look for alternate video card drivers on the net. Although at first sight they seem to be up-to-date (at least that's what Windows tells me). I've got an NVIDIA Quadro FX 770M inside. In case anybody knows of any issues with that one I'd appreciate if you let me know. Thanks.

 

[profdlp]

Up-to-date is normally what we shoot for when it comes to drivers, but sometimes the latest release is not the best one. It's worth trying.

As for default power settings, for a laptop that almost certainly means that something is enabled power-saving wise. I'd try disabling it. Yes, your battery life will drop a whole bunch while testing it that way, but if the freezing goes away you'll at least know where the problem is. After that it's just a matter of zeroing in on the exact problem.

Of course, it could be neither of these, but troubleshooting is often just a matter of elimination.

 

[writhziden]

I would also make sure your network and audio drivers are up to date. Along the same lines as the excellent advice given by profdlp, network adapter drivers are among the most notorious for causing blue screen crashes during power saving states. We see a lot of network and graphics related crashes during power saving states on this forum.

The reason I recommend also checking audio is

audio and network often share same resources and I've seen them conflict.

taken from http://www.sevenforums.com/crashes-...-bsod-irql_not_less_or_equal.html#post1829246

 

[tripleclick]

Thanks profdlp and writhziden. I tried all the energy-saving plans in Windows so far (German Windows): Ausbalanciert, Energiesparmodus, HP Optimized. All produced freezes. I am now testing with "Höchstleistung" (full power). If this also produzes freezes I will try to change the grafics drivers to the version before.

writhziden, that's interesting and worth a try. But I have to note that the freezes also happen when I am in the midst of working and the machine is hardly in power saving state. Could these drivers still be the source of the problem?

 

[profdlp]

What writhziden mentioned is definitely worth trying. In one sense, Windows tries to act like the conductor of an orchestra and keep all the players from sounding a note at the wrong time. Sometimes a driver doesn't want to take orders and butts in at the wrong time. This can cause a different device to not get its turn in the piece being played. Imagine if the tuba player drowned out the flute section. You might think the flautists weren't performing properly - when it was the tuba guy all along.

 

[tripleclick]

Hmmm... there seem quite many pieces that I could/should check. Wow, that will take some time. So far I had no freezes while having Windows set to "full power". Even if this stays that way, that actually doesn't tell me that much, right? It could still be either a driver or the hardware (e.g. the NVIDIA grapfics) that causes the problems in energy saving modes. In essence this means I have to change ALL drivers and try (e.g. old) alternative ones; one by one. Only then can I find out that a) it was indeed a certain driver or by elimination that b) it must be the hardware, probably the graphics. D***, that can take weeks. And there's really no shortcut, right? No, I know... no shortcut. But you would start with the graphics, audio and networks drivers, is that correct?