[SOLVED] I think turning OFF xmp messed something up, Linux and Win crash after boot now.

Jan 5, 2020
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Specs:
Aorus B450 elite (new)
Ryzen 7 2700 (new)
650W PSU (bronze star, gonna change THAT soon but its brand new)
GTX1080 (used)
GTX1660 (new)
2x8GB GSkill 3200 ddr4

I turned on XMP to see how much faster a specific CPU intensive game would run (ARMA3) and after a day or two I turned it off and everything was fine for a reboot or two then the errors began... I started getting BSOD's in Win10 and they were happening shortly after every boot, I had to hold the power button to hard reset. I tried booting into Linux mint 19 and it ran ok without any interesting things in the boot messages or dmesg and then shortly after opening firefox the darn thing went black screen and wouldn't accept input.

Tried removing the used GPU and reseating the RAM and only have the bare minimum plugged in right now. I'm using ubuntu on my old computer turned server. I've had the BIOS booted for about 8 hours now to see if anything weird happens but nothing weird has happened so I dunno? I booted ubuntu 18.04 on a USB, trying both EFI and legacy and it had just the wierdest boot hangup and kernel panic after like... ten minutes? I WAS able to shift to a different TTY and try to login but I don't know the live disc login if it's even possible to login to it. it seemed to be booted AND yet still booting as TTY1 was still at the networkmanager diagnostic information and hadn't even started the windowing manager yet. It had the ubuntu logo on screen 1 under the GTX1660 and the boot information on screen 2 under the GTX1080... come to think of it, I need to try booting the liveUSB in it now that I've removed the used GPU.

maybe I fried the RAM? I need to get memtest on a USB but I'm currently suffering from serious depression and it was a "problem" getting the initiative to even post this. I'm almost out of spoons for the week after this, y'know?

I can't keep it booted long enough to run a belarc or anything else so I'll just upload pics of the voltages and timings in the bios reporting once I find my phone and eat.

View: https://imgur.com/a/6sr5w8l
 
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Solution
You can't fry the memory by turning off XMP, however, if the memory will RUN at the XMP profile configuration settings without problems then it SHOULD be run at the XMP profile settings.

I'd first make sure you have the MOST recent motherboard BIOS version and be sure to follow any specific instructions that might require you to update to earlier versions or update chipset drivers, before updating to the latest version, if any such notes exist on the BIOS update and download page.
You can't fry the memory by turning off XMP, however, if the memory will RUN at the XMP profile configuration settings without problems then it SHOULD be run at the XMP profile settings.

I'd first make sure you have the MOST recent motherboard BIOS version and be sure to follow any specific instructions that might require you to update to earlier versions or update chipset drivers, before updating to the latest version, if any such notes exist on the BIOS update and download page.
 
Solution
Jan 5, 2020
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turning XMP back on seemed to make it stable... but why did it run without issues before? I went almost a month without it turned on! Also, I just installed ubuntu 18.04 on a spare HDD and this computer is booting it REALLY slow for a fresh install... it should only take about 15 seconds but its taking a minute or two and the programs load slow in the beginning... might just be the HDD failing though. I have to smart check it.
 
Yes, full testing of the drives involved might indicate the problems lie there instead.

As for the BIOS settings, IDK, could be a matter of needing to do a hard reset of the BIOS by removing the battery for five minutes or so. Could be many things. Could be your motherboard simply doesn't want to properly auto configure the memory now for some reason. If you don't have the latest BIOS version, you should update anyhow at some point.
 
Jan 5, 2020
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So, the ubuntu install is running smoothly but windows 10 is giving a BSOD for a kernel service when I leave it overnight with no programs running. I might have to reinstall windows to rule that out as an issue :(.

so, my last WinOS was Win7 and after using 8.0 on my laptop I went to linux and never looked back until now so I'm unfamiliar with pretty much all of the newer stuff in consumer windows software. Are there any "all in one" application profile backup programs or(simple because I never learned powershell) powershell scripts to allow me to quickly save firefox profiles/personal data/random stuff that you have to go hunting down for in the system folders? I just built this computer and never used windows 10 before but I made an account through the menus that changed my login password and said I could use it to "restore windows or reactivate my license in case of hardware changes"... does that do what I need?

I'm on linux right now so I can't look through the menus.
 
Not really. I just individually back up the whole OS, but not effective if you need to get rid of the old installation, and back up my browser favorites and any personal files, documents, etc. that might be on that drive. I export settings for any applications I don't want to have to reconfigure but mostly I don't worry about it when doing a clean install because sometimes those settings or applications could BE the problem in the first place.

When there is a problem, I like CLEAN, CLEAN. Then I worry about stuff after, but if there are settings you need backed up, yes, do it on a case by case basis.

Then, do this, but I don't have the time right now to walk through the dual boot setup if that is what you need to do.