Question Possible Failing OS Drive

[Nix0735]

So recently I have been experiencing freezes while gaming, despite some titles not experiencing the same issues (Division 2, R6S, Rouge Company, and FGO). Usually my crashes/freezes will occure anywhere between 60-70C and I only started running an XMP profile two days ago because my ram was only running at 2133mhz,I was only able to boost my ram to 2666 mhz.
Also, the freezing does not respond to shortcuts like alt+ F4 or ctrl+alt+del. I have to hard reset whenever it occurs. I have lost progress multiple times even ruining a completed run through of Bullets per minute (I finally beat the final boss when it happened)...

There are some days where it won't happen at all and other days it'll happen everytime I run a title for more than 10 minutes. Just today my pc ran a disk check on my boot drive on startup.

My question is should I replace my Boot Drive?

My specs:
I7 9700k Intel processor
Phanteks PH-DC12DX
ASUS Z390-PRO motherboard
2x ViperSteel 16GB 4133mhz
2x Ironside 16GB 2666mhz
(Patriot apparantly as advertised by Ironside computers website)
NVIDIA RTX 2070 SUPER
ASUS ROG STRIX 850W PSU
2x 2TB SSHD Firecudas (Seagate)
1x 120gb SSD Patriot Burst (This is my boot drive)
1x 1TB Viper NVME Drive (model VPR100)

Note: I have the other sticks of ram only for editorial purposes I will be getting another set of Viper Steel to match the set I have currently. I know I am bottle necking my fast ram with the slow ram.

 

[Darkbreeze]

I can't say if having your power plan set to balanced would cause any problems but the Power Options are only useful for saving battery power in a laptop. In a PC they should always be set to High Performance.

No, this is not correct. AMD specifically intends for most if not all Ryzen processors to be run on either balanced or AMD balanced power plans. Running them on Performance power plans, due to the intricate nature of the design, results in unwanted beyond limit behaviors on some voltage and power readings, and potentially also severe throttling.

This is a well known, well documented fact. Even running those platforms with Performance with a 5-8% minimum processor power state does not resolve the issues specific to Ryzen platforms. There are even user created specific power plans dedicated to refining these configurations even further. So, unfortunately, that is an untruth in this regard.

 

[rocktalkrock]

No, this is not correct. AMD specifically intends for most if not all Ryzen processors to be run on either balanced or AMD balanced power plans. Running them on Performance power plans, due to the intricate nature of the design, results in unwanted beyond limit behaviors on some voltage and power readings, and potentially also severe throttling.

This is a well known, well documented fact. Even running those platforms with Performance with a 5-8% minimum processor power state does not resolve the issues specific to Ryzen platforms. There are even user created specific power plans dedicated to refining these configurations even further. So, unfortunately, that is an untruth in this regard.

My PC has a Ryzen processor and a Samsung boot drive. The 4 power options i have are Balanced, High performance [Active], Power Saver and Samsung High Performance. Which option would better for me to choose, Balanced or Samsung High Performance?

 

[Darkbreeze]

AMD recommends balanced or Ryzen balanced for Ryzen systems.

There are a LOT of threads out there that broach this subject. Like this one for example.

View: https://www.reddit.com/r/Amd/comments/coyjgk/what_power_plan_do_you_use_for_ryzen_3000/

 

[Nix0735]

Actually, you problems are MOST likely from running a mixed memory configuration. It would not be advisable to add another set of DIMMs, even if they are exactly the same model number. ESPECIALLY at that very high frequency, it is unlikely (But certainly possible) that an unmatched second set of DIMMs is going to play nice with your existing set of 4133mhz sticks, at that speed.

First thing I'd try is removing the Ironside sticks, and making sure the two Vipersteel DIMMs are installed in the second and fourth DIMM slots over from the CPU which will be the A2 and B2 slots.

Power off, change the memory population as explained, then boot up and see if you still have any issues.

Probably not a bad idea to download Seatools for Windows and run the Short DST (Drive self test) and Long generic (Extended) tests on those SSHD drives just to be sure they are ok, and also one of the SSD testing utilities to test that as well.

Then, if you still have problems, run Memtest86 to test your memory configuration. It's possible one of those DIMMs is faulty. I'd be willing to bet if you test all four DIMMs at the same time as you have them now, you'll see a slew of errors in Memtest, and with either memory kit individually, you probably won't.

Memtest86​

Go to the Passmark software website and download the USB Memtest86 free version. You can do the optical disk version too if for some reason you cannot use a bootable USB flash drive.


Create bootable media using the downloaded Memtest86. Once you have done that, go into your BIOS and configure the system to boot to the USB drive that contains the Memtest86 USB media or the optical drive if using that option.


You CAN use Memtest86+, as they've recently updated the program after MANY years of no updates, but for the purpose of this guide I recommend using the Passmark version as this is a tried and true utility while I've not had the opportunity to investigate the reliability of the latest 86+ release as compared to Memtest86. Possibly, consider using Memtest86+ as simply a secondary test to Memtest86, much as Windows memory diagnostic utility and Prime95 Blend or custom modes can be used for a second opinion utility.

Click here to download Memtest86 USB package​

Create a bootable USB Flash drive:

1. Download the Windows MemTest86 USB image.

2. Right click on the downloaded file and select the "Extract to Here" option. This places the USB image and imaging tool into the current folder.

3. Run the included imageUSB tool, it should already have the image file selected and you just need to choose which connected USB drive to turn into a bootable drive. Note that this will erase all data on the drive.


No memory should ever fail to pass Memtest86 when it is at the default configuration that the system sets it at when you start out or do a clear CMOS by removing the CMOS battery for five minutes.

Best method for testing memory is to first run four passes of Memtest86, all 11 tests, WITH the memory at the default configuration. This should be done BEFORE setting the memory to the XMP profile settings. The paid version has 13 tests but the free version only has tests 1-10 and test 13. So run full passes of all 11 tests. Be sure to download the latest version of Memtest86. Memtest86+ has not been updated in MANY years. It is NO-WISE as good as regular Memtest86 from Passmark software.

If there are ANY errors, at all, then the memory configuration is not stable. Bumping the DRAM voltage up slightly may resolve that OR you may need to make adjustments to the primary timings. There are very few secondary or tertiary timings that should be altered. I can tell you about those if you are trying to tighten your memory timings.

If you cannot pass Memtest86 with the memory at the XMP configuration settings then I would recommend restoring the memory to the default JEDEC SPD of 1333/2133mhz (Depending on your platform and memory type) with everything left on the auto/default configuration and running Memtest86 over again. If it completes the four full passes without error you can try again with the XMP settings but first try bumping the DRAM voltage up once again by whatever small increment the motherboard will allow you to increase it by. If it passes, great, move on to the Prime95 testing.

If it still fails, try once again bumping the voltage if you are still within the maximum allowable voltage for your memory type and test again. If it still fails, you are likely going to need more advanced help with configuring your primary timings and should return the memory to the default configuration until you can sort it out.

If the memory will not pass Memtest86 for four passes when it IS at the stock default non-XMP configuration, even after a minor bump in voltage, then there is likely something physically wrong with one or more of the memory modules and I'd recommend running Memtest on each individual module, separately, to determine which module is causing the issue. If you find a single module that is faulty you should contact the seller or the memory manufacturer and have them replace the memory as a SET. Memory comes matched for a reason as I made clear earlier and if you let them replace only one module rather than the entire set you are back to using unmatched memory which is an open door for problems with incompatible memory.


Be aware that you SHOULD run Memtest86 to test the memory at the default, non-XMP, non-custom profile settings BEFORE ever making any changes to the memory configuration so that you will know if the problem is a setting or is a physical problem with the memory.

Ok so I finally tested my sticks after two days and my ironsides and Viper steel all pass memtest86. Surprisingly I crashed on Titanfall 2 while doing a run-through of the campaign. One interesting thing i noticed is when it crashed I unplugged my controller and plugged it back in and my controller wouldnt power on. As stated before my screen would freeze completely and I can do anything besides power my pc off and turn it back on. My reset button also wont work as it also doesn't flash.
I was able to play 2 full runs of bullets per minute.

So to recap I have tested my RAM, I also authenticated my processor with Intel's software, I ran tests with Hard Disk Sentinel, and I ran my pc with each set of RAM separately. I even went as far as to test a third set of RAM I have as backup should my ViperSteel or Ironside sticks crap out.

PS: I made the mistake of thinking I had an ASUS motherboard, I in fact own an MSI Z390A-PRO

Other than that the only other thing I could think of that would cause this issue is it being an Intel issue, my motherboard has some sort of problem itself or the slot for my RAM sticks have an issue.

I apologize should this have found the solution faster... I assumed it was ASUS since that was board which was advertised by Ironside initially, yet after further discussion with customer support it was actually a mistake as it was due to my ignorance to check myself and Ironside not clearly specifying which it was..

 

[rocktalkrock]

The last 2 BIOS updates for the MSI Z390-A-PRO were issued for "Improved memory compatibility", no other reason.

 

[Darkbreeze]

Now that you know you have a different motherboard, it would be VERY advisable to check that you have the most recent BIOS version installed, FOR THIS BOARD.

 

[Nix0735]

Now that you know you have a different motherboard, it would be VERY advisable to check that you have the most recent BIOS version installed, FOR THIS BOARD.

ok cool, I will get on that.

EDIT: Ok I just finished. if anything else occurs you guys will be the first to know.

 

[Nix0735]

Ok after a few more days, along with the same persisting problem...

I just don't know what to do besides try and send it back to Ironside and have them repair it or ship me a whole new system (should they not be able to fix it). I really don't want to do that...

I have noticed that when it crashes that my PC does indeed keep its LED's on and the fans do spin however that is it and nothing else works. My wireless mouse is no longer connected to the wireless adapter nor would my xbox controller stay connected when it crashes. Which I don't know what to make of it...
I did also notice that it will crash more often when running a 2nd app like Opera GX or Chrome in the background regardless of what is on the browser (especially youtube). And I took some time to look deeper into my PC settings to see the that my ViperSteel Ram Sticks aren't ECC.

Ontop of that I am curious bc while I am running a dual monitor setup, I need to know since I am capped at 1080p (mostly due to my monitors and lack of technical familiarity). Would running a simple converted cable (Ex: DP to HDMI cable) which if I remember isn't active (??) cause any hardware issues? My main monitor is running a simple HDMI cable BTW(my Graphics Card only has one HDMI port, its a 2070 Super by EVGA.
I just want this issue to be done with especially because just to boot up again, it seems longer than before... If anyone has any ideas besides memtest86 or hard disk sentinel. It would be highly appreciated. Again all previous ideas didn't work. It just seemed to extend the period till the next crash. If it becomes too much of an annoyance I may just send it in for repairs as it seems out of my hands at this point with everything going on right now.

 

[Darkbreeze]

See if it does it with mouse only. No Xbox controller connected.

ECC isn't supported by your platform anyhow, and most memory ISN'T ECC, so that would not be expected to be a problem. It wouldn't even run with ECC memory installed.

Really, it sounds to me like you have either a graphics card or motherboard problem.

 

[Nix0735]

See if it does it with mouse only. No Xbox controller connected.

ECC isn't supported by your platform anyhow, and most memory ISN'T ECC, so that would not be expected to be a problem. It wouldn't even run with ECC memory installed.

Really, it sounds to me like you have either a graphics card or motherboard problem.

it still crashes only with mouse connected. I have it with intergrated rgb and once it freezes my mouse returns to default color instead of what I set and the color flashes (trying to connect to wireless adapter) After asking some guys I know they said the same thing, its either psu or gpu dying...

Which sucks because in order to get warranty on it I have to send my pc back in for an entirely new one... and that will take awhile. Since I switched from a Thermaltake 600W psu to a 850w ASUS ROG STRIX it only leaves my GPU (MB would make sense however I don't recieve any problems on MB debugg leds... which im told says psu even more....)

 

[Darkbreeze]

While it certainly COULD be the power supply, and IS, more often, and with more symptoms than most people would commonly believe, that unit IS a Seasonic built unit, with extremely good reviews. Now, that doesn't mean it can't be bad, because even brand new Seasonic Prime Ultra Titanium and Corsair AXi units can come with a problem right out of the box, but it DOES however make it a lot less likely.

I think your best course of action would be, if possible, to try a different graphics card in your system or your graphics card in a different system, to see if the problem follows the hardware or not.

 

[Nix0735]

I talked to some other guys I know and everything seems to be good, however when we brought up HWiNGO64 my ram doesnt run at show clock values and my event viewer finally logged some cmos events describing what i could be. After running some Kaspersky scans and running ram to 1.35v and enabling xmpp I will run my pc like usual and see what happens push comes to shove I will have to reformat and start anew