Solved Kernel-Power Event ID41 (Task63) while gaming

[Faalks1]

Hello

I read many threads regarding this issue, but it seems it is really difficult to narrow down the actual problem. Well, since I started playing Dota2 about 6 months ago, my PC randomly freezes for like 2 seconds and then shuts down. I am running the game on its lowest configuration possible, but I still come across this critical error every now and then. When I open the Event Viewer, It shows this Kernel-Power Event ID41. Details of the last one are as follows:

"The system has rebooted without cleanly shutting down first. This error could be caused if the system stopped responding, crashed, or lost power unexpectedly.

- EventData

BugcheckCode 0

BugcheckParameter1 0x0

BugcheckParameter2 0x0

BugcheckParameter3 0x0

BugcheckParameter4 0x0

SleepInProgress false

PowerButtonTimestamp 0



My specs are detailed on my profile, I believe.
Just ask me if you need any further info. I am looking foward to replies
Notify me if I did anything wrong, as I am new here.

 

[Thedoctor44]

I would try updating your graphics driver version to the latest recommended/certified version. You have a lot of graphics driver related issues, and because it's only happening on games it isn't surprising. I would remove all your current Nvidia drivers via control panel, then install the latest version.

 

[Faalks1]

Hello Thedoctor44

Thanks for your reply. I followed your suggestion and, even though I already had the lastest graphics driver version installed (Nvidia 335.23), I uninstalled ALL Nvidia contents via control panel and re-installed the lastest version (clean installation - deleting old profiles) so no old files left I belive. Well, turns out it didn't work out, I entered Dota2 and my pc restarted before the match even started.

Some other information I think may help those willing to further assist me: I read on other thread that antivirus may influence in some way, I have both MSE and Spybot anti malware; One other important thing is that since I bought my PC (3 years ago) I disabled windows updates, so I never updated it.

 

[Faalks1]

Bump, since no answer in almost 2 days

One thing I wanted to clarify = aside from the mentioned game, I also play Path of Exile and sometimes the same kind of error occurs, but not so often ... maybe bacause this game is not as "heavy" as dota2. So I believe it is pretty much triggered but anything that demands too much of my pc. It generally happens after an entire mach or two (about 1 hour gameplay for the first error), and when playing PoE it happens like once or twice a week. This led me to think its overheat, since my PC is a laptop and cooling is not as efficient as a desktop I believe, but the freezing/restart sometimes occurs when I'm just about to start a match ! which means that there wasn't enough time to my pc get so hot, that's why I think it is something else ... well, hopefully all this info helps to get to the problem.

edit: in the meantime, I upgraded windows, no results whatsoever

 

[Thedoctor44]

I would try running furmark stress test.

http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/100356-video-card-stress-test-furmark.html

 

[Faalks1]

Hello again Thedoctor44


Today I had some time and did the furmark stress test, following the instructions of the link you posted.
I was able to run the test for about 12~13 min, and the temperature went from 42ºC to 90ºC (107~194 ºF) but I decided to interrupt the test because I got the felling I was noticing a light smell of burning from the cooling vents, so i clicked "x" to exit that screen. No artifacts appeared on screen. If it helps, it passed through 2200+ frames at a 3FPS rate. The temperature was stable at 90ºC for the last 5 min or so.
Should I do the test again ? I believe i could do the entire test and the temperature wouldn't go up much more, I just wanted to be very cautious to prevent any damage from the test.

 

[Thedoctor44]

hmm 90C is hot. Furmark isn't fail safe so I wouldn't bother anymore. If it was hardware related it would've BSODed. Are there any more dump files since we last talked? I will take a look.

 

[Faalks1]

I did the DM log collector once more and attached it. Is that what you meant?
I actually never got a BSOD, my pc simply freezes for 2 seconds and shuts down afterwards.

 

[Thedoctor44]

Driver verifier would come in very useful then. Please enable it following these instructions and post back the results.

http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/101379-driver-verifier-enable-disable.html

 

[Faalks1]

OK. I will report back in 24 hours as suggested. Thanks for your help so far.

 

[Faalks1]

Well, I tried to use my PC as much as I could to trigger any BSOD ... I played some games and got the error I described = freezing and then shutdown, but no BSOD were shown. In the end a BSOD occured just now, when I was simply browsing on the internet. There was an alert message near the clock that said Nvidia stopped working or something, my screen switched to black a couple of times, then BSODed and restarted. This just happened once, near the end of the 24 hour time.

DM log collector files attached. I believe it is smaller now because I CCleaned my PC.

 

[Thedoctor44]

Hmm, there are no new dump files. Is driver verifier still enabled? If so keep running it and wait for another BSOD. But it definitely seems graphics related. Now I'm not sure whether it's driver or hardware related. 90C is hot for furmark. Mine gets to 77C then levels out. Do you have another computer? You could put the graphics card in the other computer, install the drivers and see if the problem persists on that PC. If not then it's most likely driver related.

 

[Faalks1]

Yes, I disabled driver verifier after I got that BSOD, but I will turn it on again and wait for the next BSOD. I saw somewhere in this forum that there are many kinds of dump, like minidump or complete dump, I didn't really manually enabled them, should I do it? Maybe that is the reason you didn't see any new dump files.

Unfortunatelly I don't have other computer to do this test you mentioned. What I can say about furmark is that my PC got to 80ºC very fast (about 2 min of test) and then slowly increased to 90º in the next 10 minutes. Is it possible that my PC gets so hot because the test was designed maybe for superior computers?


Anyway, I'll enable driver verifier once more and report back as soon as I get a BSOD.

 

[Thedoctor44]

Minidump is the best to go for this situation as it contains the BSOD parameters, the loaded drivers and the kernel stack for the thread that caused the crash.

Hmm, well your GPU won't get that hot no matter the game because furmark pushes your GPU load to 99% but it could be an overheating issue.

 

[Faalks1]

Hi doc
I didn't get any more BSOD since then. I think I'll wait some more, because I didn't use much my PC much.
But let me ask you something : if it, in fact, is an overheating issue, is there an explanation why furmark test didn't trigger it? Since my PC gets way hotter during that test than while playing any game. Actually sometimes my PC is quite silent as the fans are not so fast, meaning the PC isn't that hot, but the error happens anyway.

Well, I appreciate you answers/orientations so far. I'll report back in a few days or as soon I get a BSOD.

 

[Thedoctor44]

Well your GPU does get very hot, however because it didn't crash on furmark and games shouldn't get the temperature anywhere near as high I doubt it's overheating.

 

[Faalks1]

Hi again doc.
Well, I was kinda busy these days and I didn't use much my pc, so I waited a little longer to post. Been a week with driver verifier on and no new blue screens happened. I'm still getting that error while gaming though. Any other insight of what to do next ?
Ty for your help so far.


Edit: I see many related threads that the issue in the end was insufficient power supply. I got 875W one, which came along with my PC when I bought it, but its already 3~4 years old now. Is there any possibility that this is the problem? Just to remember, the Furmark test didn't auto-shutdown my PC.

 

[Thedoctor44]

Right, if Furmark hasn't caused any issues then it probably isn't hardware related (GPU).
Yes, a faulty power supply will cause random crashes. If your PSU is on its last legs then the computer can shutdown as if there is no power at all, it simply switches off instantly.

Hmm, I still have my doubts. Has your computer been running a lot with Driver Verifier on?

 

[Faalks1]

Well Doc, as I told you I didn't use my PC much, so I waited one entire week before I post. I'll be using it more now, so I can turn Driver Verifier on again and test it for a few more days, no problem at all if you think it might help.
I will also try to find a new PSU, since there is a chance to be it. I'll report back if anything comes up


Edit = I just remembered I always use my laptop with battery on. Does this rule out PSU issue?

 

[Faalks1]

Yeah Doc ... no more BSOD while Driver Verifier on. I will just leave it on just in case, even though my PC is kinda slow because of it. I got that old black screen 2 or 3 times within the last few days, though.
I will be waiting for further advice.
Also, my question about PSU remains.