ntoskrnl.exe BSOD Randomly every few days

[Broken Hyoid]

Also I haven't installed any windows updates yet. I am just leaving it as clean as possible and monitoring it for 2 days and seeing if there are any BSODs. If there aren't then I'll start installing the updates, however if there are we can be sure it is a hardware problem.

 

[essenbe]

You need to install the updates, They were made to make your system better protected, resolve problems in the OS, and to make it more stable. They will also install drivers for most hardware that has been tested to work with windows. Just watch what you install, particularly the hardware drivers and make sure they are for your particular system. I would also install the graphics driver from Nvidia that you download from them., If you make sure the driver is WHQL. It will say that in the driver name. It means windows hardware tested. It means it has been tested to run with windows 7. Use this tutorial, forget the first part about uninstalling the old drivers, you don't have any. Use the second part about hanging windows update settings and do the custom install and check the clean install box, and uncheck everything except the display driver and the PhysX driver (http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/327414-nvidia-drivers-avoid-problems.html). Those are necessary. The rest of them you don't need. You will probably have to install the Lan driver. Windows never has a lan driver for my machine and the USB Hub and the USB XHCI driver. Only install the important updates, and watch them. You don't need the Bing toolbar or the BING desktop, just uncheck them. Install all of the ones that say security update and the malicious software removal. Only watch out for the hardware updates and install them if they are for your system. Do not install the graphics driver from Windows update, install the one you download from Nvidia. If you have doubts, don't install it. but most of the security updates and definition updates for security essentials need to be installed. Security essentials has never caused a bsod. It is designed to run well with windows. It has never been known to cause any problems with windows. That is why we always recommend it. It is extremely stable.

 

[Broken Hyoid]

I would also like you to run your hard drive manufacturers diagnostic test for DOS again, both the short and long test.

Okay well before I tried to do all the updates I did the Seatools Hard drive test again. Short test was passed. However upon doing the long test it gave me the following error:

''Error reading from drive H...sector not found'' (I cant make out what the rest says)

I tried to re do the long test and 3 times this same error occured(at 66%, 3% and 10% respectively)
The first two times doing the long test, after the error appeared, the PC completely froze and I was not able to press R in order to retry. However on the third test I was able to retry for about 10-15 times giving me the exact same error before it locked up again. Only solution when it froze was to reboot.

I have a spare hard drive, with which I could try to use for a couple days to see is any BSODs occur to confirm whether it was my HDD causing the BSODs or whether this is a crazy coincidence. I find it really weird because when I originally did the SeaTools test it passed both the short and long tests, but now after you mentioned to do it again it fails each time.

Can you advise on the best way to test out whether the HDD was the only cause of the errors. Thanks.

 

[essenbe]

I asked previously if you bought the OS from Amazon or a Vendor, because a lot of the vendors sell bad drives. I need an answer on that. We asked about that and testing the hard drive. We asked because in the dump files, it keeps telling me that the kernel symbols are wrong. On a clean install, that is not possible unless your DVD is cracked edition or your hard drive is very bad and giving the wrong info to the dump. Those are the only way possible to not have the correct symbols. so, either your OS is a cracked version or your hard drive is quite bad, or some combination of both. No other options that I know of. All through this, we have not been able to get the info we usually get from dump files. Even with driver verifier, we should have been given which driver is crashing. That is what driver verifier is for and what it does. We never got the name of a single driver. So, I need to know whether you have a correct copy of the windows OS and I need you to try another drive. I would run the tests on the other drive first, then do a plain vanilla install. just windows, windows updates and the Nvidia driver you download from their site.

 

[Broken Hyoid]

I asked previously if you bought the OS from Amazon or a Vendor, because a lot of the vendors sell bad drives. I need an answer on that.

Okay the deal with the installation is as follows:

-Original first install of windows 7 was using a windows 7 Home premium 64bit installer ISO which I had burned to a CD, as outlined by this microsoft post: Windows 7 Home Premium 64bit ISO Download? - Microsoft Community. (this was the exact link I followed). This was because the Windows 7 Home Premium 64bit which I had bought off a vendor on amazon UK came with a windows 7 Professional CD(but still a Home Premium Activation Key). So I sent the Windows 7 Professional CD back to the seller, and he sent me the right Windows 7 Home Premium CD, which I have used for re installing Windows. However I must reiterate that when using both the ISO from microsoft forums, or the CD provided by my seller to install windows, I have had the exact same BSODs with the exact same error code/driver information.


I am going to use the replacement HDD for now and do a vanilla install on it. I also must say that I did use Seatools for checking the integrity of my Hard drive a few days ago, and it passed both short and long tests without errors. So I do not know if it I had just gotten a false negative, or if the corruption just didn't show up on SeaTools until today. I have tested my replacement Hard Drive with Seatools, twice, and it has passed(so we can be almost sure the replacement hard drive is not faulty therefore if any BSODs occur they shouldn't be Hard Drive related)

 

[essenbe]

OK, sounds good. That is a Digital River download. They are good and are the Official Download site from Microsoft. So, unless the file was simply a bad download, which does happen, the ISO should be good. So, do the plain vanilla install, install the Important Windows updates and driver from Nvidia and Microsoft security essentials only. All the definition update for it will come through windows updates, so be sure to install them. Do not install the Nvidia driver from Windows update. If you do a plain vanilla install and have BSODs, it is a certainty you have a hardware problem.

Please use the ISO you downloaded from Digital River. The vendor from Amazon, is very suspect as far as I'm concerned. The Installation disks are sealed in a package and the activation code is inside the sealed package and is a sticker affixed inside the packaging.

 

[essenbe]

I updated my post above.

 

[Broken Hyoid]

Ok so my PC bsod'd 3 times overnight(a youtube video was running in a loop in the background). I was using the replacement HDD so now we can assume that my original HDD being corrupt was a coincidence(or maybe not) and not the cause of my BSODs. I have attached the dump files now.

We asked about that and testing the hard drive. We asked because in the dump files, it keeps telling me that the kernel symbols are wrong. On a clean install, that is not possible unless your DVD is cracked edition or your hard drive is very bad and giving the wrong info to the dump. Those are the only way possible to not have the correct symbols. so, either your OS is a cracked version or your hard drive is quite bad, or some combination of both. No other options that I know of.

So, what I did notice was that when I did do a vanilla install of windows on the PC with the replacement HDD I had used the vendor's CD to install it. I am now reinstalling windows using a Digital River Download from the microsoft website in the hope that as well as the original HDD being corrupt the windows copy was also bad and was causing the BSODs.

So, do the plain vanilla install, install the Important Windows updates and driver from Nvidia and Microsoft security essentials only.

I would just like to clarify this, I have an AMD GPU therefore Nvidia drivers are not for me. So can I install my AMD drivers for this vanilla reinstall? or I shouldn't since they are not part of the windows updates and I do not know if they are WHQL. (unlike nvidia drivers which are part of windows updates)

 

[Boozad]

The dumps are still 0x124s. Given the the CPU, GPU, and RAM have flown through stress tests and a new HDD has been fitted I can only assume it's the motherboard. The last thing I can think of trying is remove the GPU to eliminate that PCIe slot.

I've also only just noticed that you have HyperX Beast RAM. Can you boot into BIOS and confirm the frequency it's running at please, or you can check with Speccy.

 

[essenbe]

yes, I'm sorry, you should install the AMD drivers, not Nvidia. Download it from AMD. Install the most stable version.

 

[essenbe]

Frequency, timings and voltage from Bios as well as the Manufacturer's specs for your ram. Let's try to keep this a vanilla install for as long as possible, until we think it is resolved or it isn't. But we need to make sure your ram is set to Manufacturer's specs.

 

[Boozad]

Steve I've just taken a look at the manual for the motherboard and this is the info given regarding the RAM.

View attachment 323610

Seeing as the HyperX Beast is capable of 2400MHz I'm just wondering if that could be causing problems? I've read a few times that Beast RAM can cause stability issues when used with a stock clocked CPU.

 

[essenbe]

You may be correct, but it certainly 'should' be able to run 1333 @ 9-9-9-24-2T 1.5V. As that is usually the start settings for any ram. Maybe have him set it at that. All ram I am aware of will run at that. That is the typical startup settings encoded into the ram when first startup is set (JEDC Settings). A CPUz screenshot of SPD will tell us.

 

[Boozad]

Yeah my HyperX Genesis was running at 1333MHz when first installed and I had to set it to 1600MHz via X.M.P. so yeah the Beast should definitely be able to run at that too. We'll see when the screenshot is posted. Just an idea as something else to rule out.

 

[essenbe]

Yea, that was a good catch. It could very well be causing the problem if he has it set to a frequency the board can't deal with.

 

[Broken Hyoid]

Here are the Speccy and CPU-Z readings:

I would also like to add that when carrying out the MemTest+ on the RAM it showed that my RAM was running ad 1333 mHz(one at 666 and one at 667).

http://www.amazon.co.uk/HyperX-1600...d=1404061519&sr=1-2&keywords=hyperx+8gb+beast

This is the exact RAM I have and it says it should run at stock 1600mHz but I think it is running at 1333mHz. I do not know if this is a problem or just how all RAMs have their stock speed set to.

 

[Broken Hyoid]

The BIOS didn't give much information it all just said ''Auto''. Here are the screenshots anyway:

 

[essenbe]

Click the arrow next to dram timing configuration

 

[Broken Hyoid]

 

[essenbe]

set the memory clock speed to 1333 (667 if it is listed that way) set the first 4 timings to 9-9-9-24. save and exit.