Question BSOD After a few minutes ?

[d4rkman]

My PC randomly started getting a BSOD a few days ago. It will BSOD with CRITICAL PROCESS DIED error typically. One time it was the SYSTEM SERVICE EXCEPTION, but that's not typical. What happens is the PC will boot, I will be able to use it for 5-10 minutes, and then first the desktop and anything open will freeze, but the mouse will still move. It will be in that state for a minute or so before it gets to the BSOD. The computer will then power off and attempt to start but get stuck on the BIOS screen. I can then restart it again, and it will boot back up and the entire sequence will repeat.

I ran a memtest which didn't find anything wrong with the memory. I have been trying to do an update repair to reinstall Windows but I get the BSOD before it is able to make it far enough in the process. I have attached my minidump file here. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1aVAkNsvkvu99-fDUFZxHfCgHXNLP-OFr/view?usp=sharing

 

[d4rkman]

Here is the dump analysis:


************* Preparing the environment for Debugger Extensions Gallery repositories **************
ExtensionRepository : Implicit
UseExperimentalFeatureForNugetShare : true
AllowNugetExeUpdate : true
NonInteractiveNuget : true
AllowNugetMSCredentialProviderInstall : true
AllowParallelInitializationOfLocalRepositories : true

EnableRedirectToV8JsProvider : false

-- Configuring repositories
----> Repository : LocalInstalled, Enabled: true
----> Repository : UserExtensions, Enabled: true

>>>>>>>>>>>>> Preparing the environment for Debugger Extensions Gallery repositories completed, duration 0.000 seconds

************* Waiting for Debugger Extensions Gallery to Initialize **************

>>>>>>>>>>>>> Waiting for Debugger Extensions Gallery to Initialize completed, duration 0.016 seconds
----> Repository : UserExtensions, Enabled: true, Packages count: 0
----> Repository : LocalInstalled, Enabled: true, Packages count: 41

Microsoft (R) Windows Debugger Version 10.0.27553.1004 AMD64
Copyright (c) Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.


Loading Dump File [C:\Users\Student\Documents\Crashing\080624-14343-01.dmp]
Mini Kernel Dump File: Only registers and stack trace are available

Symbol search path is: srv*
Executable search path is:
Windows 10 Kernel Version 22621 MP (12 procs) Free x64
Product: WinNt, suite: TerminalServer SingleUserTS
Edition build lab: 22621.1.amd64fre.ni_release.220506-1250
Kernel base = 0xfffff807`08800000 PsLoadedModuleList = 0xfffff807`09413510
Debug session time: Tue Aug 6 22:02:09.072 2024 (UTC - 4:00)
System Uptime: 0 days 0:07:32.755
Loading Kernel Symbols
...............................................................
................................................................
................................................................
......................
Loading User Symbols
Unable to read LDR_DATA_TABLE_ENTRY at 000001c2`c46048f0 - Win32 error 0n30

Loading unloaded module list
............
WARNING: .reload failed, module list may be incomplete
For analysis of this file, run !analyze -v
nt!KeBugCheckEx:
fffff807`08c15df0 48894c2408 mov qword ptr [rsp+8],rcx ss:0018:ffffb881`88a69bd0=00000000000000ef
8: kd> !analyze -v
*******************************************************************************
* *
* Bugcheck Analysis *
* *
*******************************************************************************

CRITICAL_PROCESS_DIED (ef)
A critical system process died
Arguments:
Arg1: ffffe30e28057080, Process object or thread object
Arg2: 0000000000000000, If this is 0, a process died. If this is 1, a thread died.
Arg3: ffffe30e28057080, The process object that initiated the termination.
Arg4: 0000000000000000

Debugging Details:
------------------


KEY_VALUES_STRING: 1

Key : Analysis.CPU.mSec
Value: 1640

Key : Analysis.Elapsed.mSec
Value: 5854

Key : Analysis.IO.Other.Mb
Value: 6

Key : Analysis.IO.Read.Mb
Value: 0

Key : Analysis.IO.Write.Mb
Value: 31

Key : Analysis.Init.CPU.mSec
Value: 280

Key : Analysis.Init.Elapsed.mSec
Value: 28109

Key : Analysis.Memory.CommitPeak.Mb
Value: 95

Key : Bugcheck.Code.LegacyAPI
Value: 0xef

Key : Bugcheck.Code.TargetModel
Value: 0xef

Key : CriticalProcessDied.ExceptionCode
Value: 299962c0

Key : CriticalProcessDied.Process
Value: csrss.exe

Key : Failure.Bucket
Value: 0xEF_csrss.exe_BUGCHECK_CRITICAL_PROCESS_299962c0_nt!PspCatchCriticalBreak

Key : Failure.Hash
Value: {3093b5a9-1c21-2e45-ad3b-d59bc9867649}

Key : WER.OS.Branch
Value: ni_release

Key : WER.OS.Version
Value: 10.0.22621.1


BUGCHECK_CODE: ef

BUGCHECK_P1: ffffe30e28057080

BUGCHECK_P2: 0

BUGCHECK_P3: ffffe30e28057080

BUGCHECK_P4: 0

FILE_IN_CAB: 080624-14343-01.dmp

PROCESS_NAME: csrss.exe

CRITICAL_PROCESS: csrss.exe

ERROR_CODE: (NTSTATUS) 0x299962c0 - <Unable to get error code text>

BLACKBOXBSD: 1 (!blackboxbsd)


BLACKBOXNTFS: 1 (!blackboxntfs)


BLACKBOXPNP: 1 (!blackboxpnp)


BLACKBOXWINLOGON: 1

CUSTOMER_CRASH_COUNT: 1

STACK_TEXT:
ffffb881`88a69bc8 fffff807`091b1469 : 00000000`000000ef ffffe30e`28057080 00000000`00000000 ffffe30e`28057080 : nt!KeBugCheckEx
ffffb881`88a69bd0 fffff807`090a5c9b : ffffe30e`28057080 fffff807`08a0cfd9 00000000`00000000 fffff807`08a0c6ab : nt!PspCatchCriticalBreak+0x119
ffffb881`88a69c60 fffff807`08e8134b : ffffe30e`28057080 00000000`c0000006 ffffe30e`28057080 00000000`00000001 : nt!PspTerminateAllThreads+0x2248e3
ffffb881`88a69cd0 fffff807`08e81121 : ffffffff`ffffffff ffffe30e`28057080 ffffe30e`299962c0 ffffe30e`28057080 : nt!PspTerminateProcess+0xe7
ffffb881`88a69d10 fffff807`08c2b405 : 0000001d`00000354 ffffe30e`299962c0 ffffe30e`28057080 fffff807`091370b7 : nt!NtTerminateProcess+0xb1
ffffb881`88a69d90 fffff807`08c1b8e0 : fffff807`08cbec0f ffffffff`ffffffff 0000001d`a7641470 00000000`00000001 : nt!KiSystemServiceCopyEnd+0x25
ffffb881`88a69f28 fffff807`08cbec0f : ffffffff`ffffffff 0000001d`a7641470 00000000`00000001 ffffb881`88a69f60 : nt!KiServiceLinkage
ffffb881`88a69f30 fffff807`08c2be7c : 00000000`00000000 00000000`00000000 00000139`8f73edde 00000000`00000000 : nt!KiDispatchException+0x20e2cf
ffffb881`88a6a800 fffff807`08c27163 : 00000000`00000003 000001c2`c46646d0 0000001d`a76417d0 ffffe30e`299962c0 : nt!KiExceptionDispatch+0x13c
ffffb881`88a6a9e0 00007fff`14e70762 : 00007fff`120fb52c 00007fff`12111000 0000001d`a76423b0 00000000`00000000 : nt!KiPageFault+0x463
0000001d`a7641720 00007fff`120fb52c : 00007fff`12111000 0000001d`a76423b0 00000000`00000000 00007fff`12111000 : 0x00007fff`14e70762
0000001d`a7641728 00007fff`12111000 : 0000001d`a76423b0 00000000`00000000 00007fff`12111000 00007fff`120f0000 : 0x00007fff`120fb52c
0000001d`a7641730 0000001d`a76423b0 : 00000000`00000000 00007fff`12111000 00007fff`120f0000 000007c8`00025000 : 0x00007fff`12111000
0000001d`a7641738 00000000`00000000 : 00007fff`12111000 00007fff`120f0000 000007c8`00025000 0000001d`a76423b0 : 0x0000001d`a76423b0


SYMBOL_NAME: nt!PspCatchCriticalBreak+119

MODULE_NAME: nt

IMAGE_NAME: ntkrnlmp.exe

IMAGE_VERSION: 10.0.22621.3880

STACK_COMMAND: .cxr; .ecxr ; kb

BUCKET_ID_FUNC_OFFSET: 119

FAILURE_BUCKET_ID: 0xEF_csrss.exe_BUGCHECK_CRITICAL_PROCESS_299962c0_nt!PspCatchCriticalBreak

OS_VERSION: 10.0.22621.1

BUILDLAB_STR: ni_release

OSPLATFORM_TYPE: x64

OSNAME: Windows 10

FAILURE_ID_HASH: {3093b5a9-1c21-2e45-ad3b-d59bc9867649}

Followup: MachineOwner
---------

 

[ubuysa]

The 0xEF BSOD is almost always caused by bad hardware. In this dump the failed process is csrss.exe (the client-server runtime process). ..

FAILURE_BUCKET_ID:  0xEF_csrss.exe_BUGCHECK_CRITICAL_PROCESS_299962c0_nt!PspCatchCriticalBreak

In the dump we can see a page fault in user-mode code and during the handling of that page fault we get a second exception which results in csrss.exe being terminated and the BSOD.

What are you full specs, including the PSU that you have? From the dump this looks most likely to be bad RAM, but from the other symptoms you describe I'm wondering whether it could be the PSU...

It will be useful to see more troubleshooting data, so can you please download and run the SysnativeBSODCollectionApp and upload the resulting zip file to a cloud service with a link to it here. The SysnativeBSODCollectionApp collects all the troubleshooting data we're likely to need. It DOES NOT collect any personally identifying data. It's used by several highly respected Windows help forums (including this one). I'm a senior BSOD analyst on the Sysnative forum where this tool came from, so I know it to be safe.

You can of course look at what's in the zip file before you upload it, most of the files are txt files. Please don't change or delete anything though. If you want a description of what each file contains you'll find that here.

 

[d4rkman]

Good Morning,

Thank you for the reply. Here is the output file from the collection app:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1DFlFLHJfZOM3CApDHttWLHgyM7xiaonS/view?usp=sharing

 

[d4rkman]

I also just got the SYSTEM SERVICE EXCEPTION again. Here is the minidump analysis:

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

SYSTEM_SERVICE_EXCEPTION (3b)
An exception happened while executing a system service routine.
Arguments:
Arg1: 00000000c0000006, Exception code that caused the BugCheck
Arg2: fffff80168db8212, Address of the instruction which caused the BugCheck
Arg3: ffffa806469b6290, Address of the context record for the exception that caused the BugCheck
Arg4: 0000000000000000, zero.

Debugging Details:
------------------

*************************************************************************
*** ***
*** ***
*** Either you specified an unqualified symbol, or your debugger ***
*** doesn't have full symbol information. Unqualified symbol ***
*** resolution is turned off by default. Please either specify a ***
*** fully qualified symbol module!symbolname, or enable resolution ***
*** of unqualified symbols by typing ".symopt- 100". Note that ***
*** enabling unqualified symbol resolution with network symbol ***
*** server shares in the symbol path may cause the debugger to ***
*** appear to hang for long periods of time when an incorrect ***
*** symbol name is typed or the network symbol server is down. ***
*** ***
*** For some commands to work properly, your symbol path ***
*** must point to .pdb files that have full type information. ***
*** ***
*** Certain .pdb files (such as the public OS symbols) do not ***
*** contain the required information. Contact the group that ***
*** provided you with these symbols if you need this command to ***
*** work. ***
*** ***
*** Type referenced: ExceptionRecord ***
*** ***
*************************************************************************
*************************************************************************
*** ***
*** ***
*** Either you specified an unqualified symbol, or your debugger ***
*** doesn't have full symbol information. Unqualified symbol ***
*** resolution is turned off by default. Please either specify a ***
*** fully qualified symbol module!symbolname, or enable resolution ***
*** of unqualified symbols by typing ".symopt- 100". Note that ***
*** enabling unqualified symbol resolution with network symbol ***
*** server shares in the symbol path may cause the debugger to ***
*** appear to hang for long periods of time when an incorrect ***
*** symbol name is typed or the network symbol server is down. ***
*** ***
*** For some commands to work properly, your symbol path ***
*** must point to .pdb files that have full type information. ***
*** ***
*** Certain .pdb files (such as the public OS symbols) do not ***
*** contain the required information. Contact the group that ***
*** provided you with these symbols if you need this command to ***
*** work. ***
*** ***
*** Type referenced: ContextRecord ***
*** ***
*************************************************************************
*************************************************************************
*** ***
*** ***
*** Either you specified an unqualified symbol, or your debugger ***
*** doesn't have full symbol information. Unqualified symbol ***
*** resolution is turned off by default. Please either specify a ***
*** fully qualified symbol module!symbolname, or enable resolution ***
*** of unqualified symbols by typing ".symopt- 100". Note that ***
*** enabling unqualified symbol resolution with network symbol ***
*** server shares in the symbol path may cause the debugger to ***
*** appear to hang for long periods of time when an incorrect ***
*** symbol name is typed or the network symbol server is down. ***
*** ***
*** For some commands to work properly, your symbol path ***
*** must point to .pdb files that have full type information. ***
*** ***
*** Certain .pdb files (such as the public OS symbols) do not ***
*** contain the required information. Contact the group that ***
*** provided you with these symbols if you need this command to ***
*** work. ***
*** ***
*** Type referenced: ExceptionRecord ***
*** ***
*************************************************************************
*************************************************************************
*** ***
*** ***
*** Either you specified an unqualified symbol, or your debugger ***
*** doesn't have full symbol information. Unqualified symbol ***
*** resolution is turned off by default. Please either specify a ***
*** fully qualified symbol module!symbolname, or enable resolution ***
*** of unqualified symbols by typing ".symopt- 100". Note that ***
*** enabling unqualified symbol resolution with network symbol ***
*** server shares in the symbol path may cause the debugger to ***
*** appear to hang for long periods of time when an incorrect ***
*** symbol name is typed or the network symbol server is down. ***
*** ***
*** For some commands to work properly, your symbol path ***
*** must point to .pdb files that have full type information. ***
*** ***
*** Certain .pdb files (such as the public OS symbols) do not ***
*** contain the required information. Contact the group that ***
*** provided you with these symbols if you need this command to ***
*** work. ***
*** ***
*** Type referenced: ContextRecord ***
*** ***
*************************************************************************

KEY_VALUES_STRING: 1

Key : Analysis.CPU.mSec
Value: 2218

Key : Analysis.Elapsed.mSec
Value: 6288

Key : Analysis.IO.Other.Mb
Value: 0

Key : Analysis.IO.Read.Mb
Value: 0

Key : Analysis.IO.Write.Mb
Value: 0

Key : Analysis.Init.CPU.mSec
Value: 234

Key : Analysis.Init.Elapsed.mSec
Value: 18559

Key : Analysis.Memory.CommitPeak.Mb
Value: 97

Key : Bugcheck.Code.LegacyAPI
Value: 0x3b

Key : Bugcheck.Code.TargetModel
Value: 0x3b

Key : Failure.Bucket
Value: 0x3B_C0000006_nt!HvpGetCellPaged

Key : Failure.Hash
Value: {68f3db38-ae8e-4bae-c37a-85819946495f}

Key : WER.OS.Branch
Value: ni_release

Key : WER.OS.Version
Value: 10.0.22621.1


BUGCHECK_CODE: 3b

BUGCHECK_P1: c0000006

BUGCHECK_P2: fffff80168db8212

BUGCHECK_P3: ffffa806469b6290

BUGCHECK_P4: 0

FILE_IN_CAB: 080724-11281-01.dmp

CONTEXT: ffffa806469b6290 -- (.cxr 0xffffa806469b6290)
rax=0000023941020000 rbx=00000000709896d5 rcx=ffffb20388730000
rdx=0000023941021000 rsi=0000000001080f78 rdi=0000000000000f78
rip=fffff80168db8212 rsp=ffffa806469b6cb0 rbp=ffffa806469b6df0
r8=ffffa806469b6d8c r9=0000000000000080 r10=ffffb20388730000
r11=000002394120a024 r12=000002394120a204 r13=ffffb20388730000
r14=ffffa806469b6d88 r15=0000000000000000
iopl=0 nv up ei pl nz na po nc
cs=0010 ss=0018 ds=002b es=002b fs=0053 gs=002b efl=00050206
nt!HvpGetCellPaged+0xa2:
fffff801`68db8212 8b0417 mov eax,dword ptr [rdi+rdx] ds:002b:00000239`41021f78=????????
Resetting default scope

BLACKBOXBSD: 1 (!blackboxbsd)


BLACKBOXNTFS: 1 (!blackboxntfs)


BLACKBOXPNP: 1 (!blackboxpnp)


BLACKBOXWINLOGON: 1

CUSTOMER_CRASH_COUNT: 1

PROCESS_NAME: Registry

STACK_TEXT:
ffffa806`469b6cb0 fffff801`68db5f6c : 00000000`709896d5 00000000`9c26c3d0 00000000`9c26c3d0 00000000`00000000 : nt!HvpGetCellPaged+0xa2
ffffa806`469b6cf0 fffff801`68de72cd : ffffb203`87910890 ffffa806`469b7070 ffffa806`469b6f50 ffffa806`469b7090 : nt!CmpWalkOneLevel+0x72c
ffffa806`469b6e40 fffff801`68deb4e5 : ffffb203`a0865030 00000000`00000006 00000008`00000000 ffffc608`c1b27010 : nt!CmpDoParseKey+0x17bd
ffffa806`469b7290 fffff801`68ded534 : fffff801`68deb200 ffffc608`00000000 ffffc608`c1b27010 fffff801`68839101 : nt!CmpParseKey+0x2e5
ffffa806`469b7480 fffff801`68debee2 : ffffc608`c1b27001 ffffa806`469b76a0 00000000`00000040 ffffc608`b05c54e0 : nt!ObpLookupObjectName+0x1104
ffffa806`469b7610 fffff801`68debba4 : ffffc608`00000000 ffffc608`b05c54e0 00000000`00000000 00000000`00000000 : nt!ObOpenObjectByNameEx+0x1f2
ffffa806`469b7740 fffff801`68d048b8 : 00000024`f8b7ef68 00000000`00000000 00000000`00000001 00000000`00000000 : nt!CmOpenKey+0x2c4
ffffa806`469b7990 fffff801`68a2b405 : ffffc608`c2a4e080 00000000`00000000 0000017c`fceea620 ffffc608`00000000 : nt!NtOpenKeyEx+0x48
ffffa806`469b79e0 00007ffb`88b724b4 : 00000000`00000000 00000000`00000000 00000000`00000000 00000000`00000000 : nt!KiSystemServiceCopyEnd+0x25
00000024`f8b7ef48 00000000`00000000 : 00000000`00000000 00000000`00000000 00000000`00000000 00000000`00000000 : 0x00007ffb`88b724b4


SYMBOL_NAME: nt!HvpGetCellPaged+a2

MODULE_NAME: nt

IMAGE_NAME: ntkrnlmp.exe

IMAGE_VERSION: 10.0.22621.3880

STACK_COMMAND: .cxr 0xffffa806469b6290 ; kb

BUCKET_ID_FUNC_OFFSET: a2

FAILURE_BUCKET_ID: 0x3B_C0000006_nt!HvpGetCellPaged

OS_VERSION: 10.0.22621.1

BUILDLAB_STR: ni_release

OSPLATFORM_TYPE: x64

OSNAME: Windows 10

FAILURE_ID_HASH: {68f3db38-ae8e-4bae-c37a-85819946495f}

Followup: MachineOwner
---------

 

[ubuysa]

If you continue to get BSODs please run the Sysnative file collection app and upload the new output.

You seem to be missing several drivers...

SM Bus Controller    PCI\VEN_8086&DEV_43A3&SUBSYS_43A31849&REV_11\3&11583659&0&FC    The drivers for this device are not installed.
Unknown USB Device (Device Descriptor Request Failed)    USB\VID_0000&PID_0002\5&244075AE&0&14    43
Base System Device    PCI\VEN_8086&DEV_1911&SUBSYS_19111849&REV_00\3&11583659&0&40    The drivers for this device are not installed.
PCI Device    PCI\VEN_8086&DEV_43A4&SUBSYS_43A41849&REV_11\3&11583659&0&FD    The drivers for this device are not installed.
Dell Diag Control Device    ROOT\SYSTEM\0002    48

These look mostly to be chipset related and they may not be related to your BSODs, but these drivers should be installed.

I rather think that RAM may be the issue here, but I'd still like to know what PSU you have?

The best way to test RAM is to remove one stick and run on just the other for a few days, or until you get a BSOD. Then swap sticks and run on just that one for a few days, or until you get a BSOD. Ensure that the one stick that's installed is in the correct slot for just a single stick.

 

[d4rkman]

I tried running off each stick of RAM earlier this morning and had the same issue, BSOD after a few minutes. Doing sfc scannow finds corruption every time, I don't know if that's related. And I can't do dism because I get the bsod before it finishes. Very strange.

I'm not home right now but I'll get you my PSU info in a little bit. It's the same PSU I've been using for a couple years.

 

[johnbl]

pci device was intel Tiger Lake-H SPI Controller, you should install the chipset driver for this from dell.

not sure what the bogus usb device was. just make sure you install the drivers from dell.

you might also want to remove any hidden usb drivers (from devices that have been removed but the driver is still installed)

 

[d4rkman]

If you continue to get BSODs please run the Sysnative file collection app and upload the new output.

You seem to be missing several drivers...

SM Bus Controller    PCI\VEN_8086&DEV_43A3&SUBSYS_43A31849&REV_11\3&11583659&0&FC    The drivers for this device are not installed.
Unknown USB Device (Device Descriptor Request Failed)    USB\VID_0000&PID_0002\5&244075AE&0&14    43
Base System Device    PCI\VEN_8086&DEV_1911&SUBSYS_19111849&REV_00\3&11583659&0&40    The drivers for this device are not installed.
PCI Device    PCI\VEN_8086&DEV_43A4&SUBSYS_43A41849&REV_11\3&11583659&0&FD    The drivers for this device are not installed.
Dell Diag Control Device    ROOT\SYSTEM\0002    48

These look mostly to be chipset related and they may not be related to your BSODs, but these drivers should be installed.

I rather think that RAM may be the issue here, but I'd still like to know what PSU you have?

The best way to test RAM is to remove one stick and run on just the other for a few days, or until you get a BSOD. Then swap sticks and run on just that one for a few days, or until you get a BSOD. Ensure that the one stick that's installed is in the correct slot for just a single stick.

My PSU is a Corsair SF600 80+ Gold PSU. Here is a link to the new output:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1DFlFLHJfZOM3CApDHttWLHgyM7xiaonS/view?usp=drive_link

I also noticed I am getting an error every time I boot that has to do with my ram RGB utility. It pops up and says 0xFFF0 This MCU is empty. From research it looks like the solution is to re-flash the firmware. I wonder if that has something to do with what is happening.

 

[d4rkman]

pci device was intel Tiger Lake-H SPI Controller, you should install the chipset driver for this from dell.

not sure what the bogus usb device was. just make sure you install the drivers from dell.

you might also want to remove any hidden usb drivers (from devices that have been removed but the driver is still installed)

I'm not sure what this is. Is there a reason there would be Dell drivers on here from a custom built machine?

Edit: Doing some research, all of these except the bogus USB device are related to my ASRock motherboard. Installing the INF driver should fix it, which I will try tonight.

 

[ubuysa]

Indeed, those are all motherboard chipset devices.

It's not a RAM problem then if it BSODs with each stick out.

I'd like you to try starting Windows in Safe Mode. In Safe Mode a stripped-down Windows system is loaded, with only critical services and drivers loaded. Typically no third-party drivers are loaded. This does mean that you won't be able to do any useful work in Safe Mode, or play games, and many of your devices may not work properly (or at all) because their drivers have not been loaded. Your display will be low resolution for example, because you'll be using only the Windows basic display driver.

The usefulness of Safe Mode is that because it's s stripped-down system consisting only of Microsoft services and drivers it's very stable, so if you get BSODs or crashes in Safe Mode you have a hardware problem. On the other hand, if it's stable in Safe Mode then your problem is with a third-party driver or service that wasn't loaded in Safe Mode. There is another technique we can use in that case to locate the problem service or driver.

 

[d4rkman]

Indeed, those are all motherboard chipset devices.

It's not a RAM problem then if it BSODs with each stick out.

I'd like you to try starting Windows in Safe Mode. In Safe Mode a stripped-down Windows system is loaded, with only critical services and drivers loaded. Typically no third-party drivers are loaded. This does mean that you won't be able to do any useful work in Safe Mode, or play games, and many of your devices may not work properly (or at all) because their drivers have not been loaded. Your display will be low resolution for example, because you'll be using only the Windows basic display driver.

The usefulness of Safe Mode is that because it's s stripped-down system consisting only of Microsoft services and drivers it's very stable, so if you get BSODs or crashes in Safe Mode you have a hardware problem. On the other hand, if it's stable in Safe Mode then your problem is with a third-party driver or service that wasn't loaded in Safe Mode. There is another technique we can use in that case to locate the problem service or driver.

I tried safe mode and get the BSOD also. Also worth mentioning, the Windows Recovery Environment works and I'm able to be in the command prompt without crashing. I'm not sure if that is normal or if that should also be crashing with a hardware issue.

 

[ubuysa]

A BSOD in Safe Mode indicates a hardware cause. That just confirms what I said earlier about the 0xEF BSOD typically being hardware.

The acid test will be to use another PC to download a Linux distro (Mint is good). Most of these can run off the USB drive without installing anything. Boot the Linux distro on your PC and select to run off the USB. Play with Linux for a bit and see whether it's stable. If it's not then it's 100% hardware.

 

[d4rkman]

A BSOD in Safe Mode indicates a hardware cause. That just confirms what I said earlier about the 0xEF BSOD typically being hardware.

The acid test will be to use another PC to download a Linux distro (Mint is good). Most of these can run off the USB drive without installing anything. Boot the Linux distro on your PC and select to run off the USB. Play with Linux for a bit and see whether it's stable. If it's not then it's 100% hardware.

Okay thank you, I'll try that. Also, I ran CHKDSK and the drive with Windows had some bad sectors. Could a failing SSD cause the 0xEF BSOD?

 

[d4rkman]

A BSOD in Safe Mode indicates a hardware cause. That just confirms what I said earlier about the 0xEF BSOD typically being hardware.

The acid test will be to use another PC to download a Linux distro (Mint is good). Most of these can run off the USB drive without installing anything. Boot the Linux distro on your PC and select to run off the USB. Play with Linux for a bit and see whether it's stable. If it's not then it's 100% hardware.

To add - I have been running Mint from a USB drive for over half an hour now with no issues. I'm starting to wonder if it is my SSD that Windows is installed on. What do you think? If so, any way to confirm that without completely reinstalling Windows and losing my files?

 

[d4rkman]

A BSOD in Safe Mode indicates a hardware cause. That just confirms what I said earlier about the 0xEF BSOD typically being hardware.

The acid test will be to use another PC to download a Linux distro (Mint is good). Most of these can run off the USB drive without installing anything. Boot the Linux distro on your PC and select to run off the USB. Play with Linux for a bit and see whether it's stable. If it's not then it's 100% hardware.

To confirm - it's been several hours and no crash with running Linux off of the USB. Do you think that means my OS SSD is bad?

 

[ubuysa]

Well it does indicate that your basic hardware is good.

And now I look at that system drive I can see that you don't have enough free space on there. Only 8.9GB free on a system drive is not enough - that could well be your problem. You shouldn't have any user data on that drive, that should all be on your D drive, the C drive should contain only Windows and apps.

I notice too that your pagefile is on the D drive, that's not ideal, it should be on C but now I see why it's not.

You really need a bigger system drive TBH, 120GB is woefully inadequate. I would suggest 512GB at minimum.

 

[d4rkman]

Well it does indicate that your basic hardware is good.

And now I look at that system drive I can see that you don't have enough free space on there. Only 8.9GB free on a system drive is not enough - that could well be your problem. You shouldn't have any user data on that drive, that should all be on your D drive, the C drive should contain only Windows and apps.

I notice too that your pagefile is on the D drive, that's not ideal, it should be on C but now I see why it's not.

You really need a bigger system drive TBH, 120GB is woefully inadequate. I would suggest 512GB at minimum.

Yeah I agree, I definitely need a new drive. I think this one is on its way out, I used the disk tool in Mint which said my other two drives were good but that my windows drive was damaged. Not sure if that means physical damage but I'm going to get a new one anyway.

Thank you for your help!

 

[johnbl]

I'm not sure what this is. Is there a reason there would be Dell drivers on here from a custom built machine?

Edit: Doing some research, all of these except the bogus USB device are related to my ASRock motherboard. Installing the INF driver should fix it, which I will try tonight.

sorry I assumed you had a dell device from this
Dell Diag Control Device

 

[d4rkman]

Just wanted to thank you both for your time and help. It was a failing SSD. Reinstalled Windows on a new drive and all is good.