Question I'm out of ideas on troubleshooting...

[h89_]

Hey folks,

I'm in a bit of a bind and could use some wisdom from those more experienced. I'm facing a relentless series of BSODs on startup, and my attempts to reinstall Windows are immediately met with another BSOD at the 'install' click.

System specs:
Windows 11 Pro
CPU: Intel Core i9-13900K
Motherboard: ASUS ROG Maximus Z790 Hero
GPU: NVIDIA RTX 4090FE
RAM: 2 x Corsair 32GB (2x16GB) DDR5 6200MHz CL36 Dominator
Storage: 2 x Samsung 990 PRO M.2 NVMe SSD 2TB
PSU: MPG A1000G PCIE5
Cooling: NZXT Kraken Z73 AIO Liquid Cooler

I assembled the PC myself, and it's been about a year since it was built.

The trouble started with a sudden freeze during Red Dead Redemption 2, followed by 3DMark crashing twice. Afterward, my PC began to loop into BSOD errors at startup, blocking any access to the system. The errors vary widely, including:

SYSTEM_SERVICE_EXCEPTION
PAGE_FAULT_IN_NONPAGED_AREA
KMODE_EXCEPTION_NOT_HANDLED
DRIVER_OVERRAN_STACK_BUFFER
SYSTEM_THREAD_EXCEPTION_NOT_HANDLED
PAGE_NOT_FOUND_IN_PAGED_AREA
CRITICAL_PROCESS_DIED

Often pointing towards ntfs.sys, ACPI.sys, and ntoskrnl.exe.

Here's everything I've tried:

• Replaced the PSU.
• Removed the GPU, relying on my motherboard's integrated graphics.
• Swapped RAM sticks around (all clear on Memtest86) and tried different slots.
• Tested each SSD one at a time, even removing the Windows drive completely
• Updated the BIOS and cleared CMOS.
• Unplugged all peripherals and tested with a new mouse and keyboard.
• Attempted a fresh start with a different USB stick for the Windows Media Creation tool.
• Checked the CPU for physical damage and re-applied thermal paste.

Even after trying all these fixes, the BSODs keep coming right after the BIOS screen, making it impossible for me to reinstall Windows (BSOD error upon clicking 'install') or get into safe mode as I'm running into an error called cfmon.exe - unknown hard error.

Just an observation: Even after removing both the GPU and the SSD with Windows installed, the BSOD errors keep happening. As a novice, I'm puzzled because this seems like it might not be a software issue at all. Any thoughts on what might be causing this, considering these hardware changes didn't make a difference?

Appreciate any help or tips

 

[Ralston18]

Update your post to include full system hardware specs and OS information.

Include PSU: make, model, wattage, age, condition (original to build, new, used, refurbished)?

Disk drive(s): make, model, capacity, how full?

Will the system boot into Safe Mode without BSODs?

Try a new CMOS battery.

 

[h89_]

Update your post to include full system hardware specs and OS information.

Include PSU: make, model, wattage, age, condition (original to build, new, used, refurbished)?

Disk drive(s): make, model, capacity, how full?

Will the system boot into Safe Mode without BSODs?

Try a new CMOS battery.

Thanks Ralston. I've added some more info to the post.

To answer your questions:

• I replaced the PSU with a new one specifically to see if it would resolve the issue.
• My SSDs are pretty roomy, with about 1.2TB to 1.5TB free on each. I've tried them one at a time and even removed the one with Windows on it, switching their slots too, but I still hit a BSOD when I try to hit 'install.'
• Every time I try booting into Safe Mode, I get this "cfmon.exe - unknown hard error."
• I've cleared CMOS twice with a button at the back of my motherboard.

 

[Ralston18]

First: cfmon.exe

https://www.howtogeek.com/840/what-is-ctfmonexe-and-why-is-it-running/

At the next successfut boot try running "dism" and "sfc /scannow".

FYI:

https://www.windowscentral.com/how-use-dism-command-line-utility-repair-windows-10-image

https://www.lifewire.com/how-to-use-sfc-scannow-to-repair-windows-system-files-2626161

Thought being that some crash or bug corrupted files and that subsequents crashes are just making in all worse.