Question My ongoing problems with my GPU or entire PC ... odd behaviour?

[RagnaSE]

So, i had recently posted a question about the installation of a new GPU - and while not solved, we kind of got around the problem - but not really. We ran into something that we were simply not able to find a real explanation of .. so i will leave it here - maybe people experienced it, too (i mean the same, not similar) - and simply know what the problem was.. (caution, this is me recounting in detail)

the situation:

Due to complications with switching graphics cards - we decided to not only DUU the old drivers - but entirely wipe the old system drive and reinstall windows 11. Upon doing so - we ran into unexpected problems

We had the correct drivers downloaded prior to the reinstallation process on a thumb-drive. (version 525 i think) - downloaded from the official Nvidia site. When trying to install the new software and drivers .. the installer regularly crashed with a CRC error - an odd behaviour indeed as the very same thing happened when we tried the exe file to install the new driver. After more than 10 attempts, we removed the new GPU and stuck the old GPU in again .. and the very same file installed flawlessly (despite not being the correct card .. sort of).

So we had a fresh installation of Windows with a fresh installation of Nvidia drivers. We shut down the PC and swapped the GPU again. The PC booted up without a problem .. and the new GPU was accepted. It passed all tests (memory tests, authenticity tests, stress tests etc.) It showed acceptable scored in 3DMark Time Spy as well as Firestrike. Furmark stressed the GPU but showed compatible results according to Internet benchmarks. - We then updated the drivers to the latest Nvidia driver (version 528) at that time .. which installed without problems (it did not show another odd CRC error).
At that time, the PC ran on a PSU too weak for the GPU (in theory) at 750w. A week later, we swapped the PSU with a new 1200w, making sure that the GPU requirements were met. At the same time, we updated the BIOS to the latest version.

That is when new problems happened. Flashing the BIOS worked without apparent problems. The PC booted up and everything worked fine.... but about a few days later - upon booting up and/or restarting the PC .. i got blue screen error messages.

File: \windows\system32\ntoskrnl.exe
Error code: 0xc0000221

with the option to restart, repair or something else UEFI or so.

I cannot imagine Windows to be corrupt .. as we had just freshly installed it. The BIOS had also worked fine for days. The GPU settled and worked as expected. The system does not overheat (CPU temperatures are between 37c (idle) to maybe high 50s (under load) - with a 280mm Arctic freezer AIO.
The GPU remains at around 45c (idle) up to a max of high 60s under load.


It all started with the new GPU. We did test the GPU in another PC - and it ran perfectly fine - so I think one can rule out a faulty or corrupt GPU (thankfully) .. but on the other hand, i do not know why the rest of the system should not be working.


And the one thing that is odd is still that i was unable to install the driver with the new card installed - but had to resort to replace the GPU with the old one. The driver DOES recognize the GPU (so its not a fake or so .. also the benchmarking kind of proofs that it is a genuine 4090 and not some fake - as well as putting it into another system) - the BIOS might be the culprit, BUT .. the problems with the installation of the new driver happened BEFORE the BIOS update. So there must be something fishy.

I do not know what the error message is all about... but windows just does not like to boot up properly. IF it is the BIOS .. can the BIOS cause a corrupt windows system file?



More context:
We are actually taking the PC to a "PC doctor" (electrician that fixes computers) by the end of the week ... so i expect professional feedback on the problem. We (my friend and i - well rather my friend) has built PCs many times before - and i do not consider myself totally ignorant of PC stuff neither.

We checked everything when it comes to compatibility. Everything should work.




PC specs are:

• Ryzen 7 3700x
• Asus Tuf gaming B550m+ motherboard
• 4090 Founders Edition
• 4x 8GB Corsair Dominator Platinum system ram at 3200 (i think 2000 and something by default though, so 3200 is overclocked)
• Asus Thor 1200w
• Windows 11 (fresh installation) on m.2 NVME on board (checked and it is not faulty)

So my questions are:

• can a GPU cause CRC errors?
• what is up with the windows boot up blue screen?
• are my PC parts really compatible? or am i missing something here.

And sorry if it sounds like my last post .. it is just an ongoing problem .. and i am completely out of my waters here. Otherwise, i would try to fix it myself - but that time, i will gladly give the PC to a professional to check it over (and pay for it) .. to find out why it is not working properly.

Also - i currently have another .zip file that does not want to unzip - showing a CRC error, too. But i am 100% certain that the file is NOT corrupt, because i have unpacked it in the past.


edit:
things done

• reseating the GPU
• reseating RAM
• BIOS flash (tried to flash it again, but it does not want to - tells me my .cap file is NOT a valid BIOS file)
• removed battery from the motherboard and reset it
• removed all bloatware (RGB programs and so)
• double checked cables - tried the GPU with 3 cables as well as 4

things NOT done

• i have not replaced the riser cable (some people said that not all riser cables are good enough for a 4090)
• i have not put the GPU into the motherboard directly, because there is no room (the AIO is in the way)

 

[CelicaGT]

You don't mention whether or not you installed the latest AMD chipset drivers or if you even installed them at all. If you have not, do so.

 

[RagnaSE]

that might be a problem ... what drivers are those? .. does a CPU need a driver?

Also, is that not part of the BIOS? (it is after all an AM4+ motherboard) - and why was that never a problem with the old GPU?

edit: i cannot say if i did install those - certainly i did not do it specifically ... but i downloaded everything that was offered as an update for my motherboard and installed it. Some things could be installed while being in windows, the BIOS was flashed - well, while being in the BIOS.
So i MAY have installed chipset drivers "by mistake"

 

[RagnaSE]

If someone reads this and has had similar problems. As i said - i took the PC to a specialist (expensive) - and got it fixed .. the result:

• the hardware is flawless, no problems there (phew..)
• cables, connections, power delivery - everything is fine

so what was wrong?

• apparently i had corrupted boot sectors in my windows installation, which is odd .. because i had done a fresh installation of Windows, but apparently .. that can happen!
• i had also caused a corruption in the motherboard BIOS when i flashed the up-to-date one .. the repair guy was surprised, because the BIOS that was flashed had 2 not exactly compatible parts .. one for the B550m+ and one for the B550+ .. how did that happen? i have no idea .. and neither did he.

Once all that was fixed .. the PC now boots up without problems or any glitch



I am not sure i could have fixed those issues myself, even with Internet forum help .. repairing windows sure would not have been a problem, but meddling with the BIOS would have been harder. (also, i had no idea windows was corrupt, because why would you assume it is, when you had just freshly installed it from the official microsoft web page.

 

[OmniaMorsAequat]

Reading your topic, from personal experience, it seems that Windows creates corruption when turned off, perhaps caused by fast boot.
You can try to disable fast boot in BIOS and Windows and see what's the behavior is.

One thing I always say to everyone, avoid arriving at drastic solutions already, check the operating system, look at the Windows log in order to understand what happens to the system in which moments, and if available, upload the Minidumps to Google Drive, if present, so that we can help you more efficiently.