Question Several BSODs - - - IRQL, KMODE and others ?

[eSchall]

Hello everyone,

I have been running into several different BSODs over the past weeks and need help in getting to the bottom of it. My system is self-build in April 2023 and has been running smoothly until a few weeks ago when this started. I have not removed or added any hardware at any time. Windows updates and NVIDIA drivers are always up-to-date.
BSODs I have run into:

IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL
KMODE_EXCEPTION_NOT_HANDLED
SYSTEM_SERVICE_EXCEPTION
something with WATCHDOG
"Boot failure detected" when waking up from sleep mode. This happened only once. I chose "Load optimized defaults and boot" after googling it and it booted up again.

I am getting one of the first 3 at random for every few hours I use the PC. In BlueScreenView all have ntoskrnl.exe + a different code at the top but nothing else marked. The WATCHDOG one I got twice at the start of the windows installation from a USB boot media which is why I have not tried re-installing Windows again. Frankly I am a bit scared to try again so now I am trying to fix this without reinstalling. In the past when running into BSODs, simply reinstalling Windows has been my go-to fix as this has always removed the problems and I am always traveling light with all important data in the cloud and not many apps on my pc.

What I have done so far:

• Tried reinstalling Windows via USB, got the WATCHDOG errors before actual installation process started
• MemTest86 - No Errors
• Windows System File Checker - No Errors / Corrupted Files
• Windows Memory Diagnostic - No Errors
• Used Gigabyte Control Center to update all Motherboard drivers as well as the BIOS

After every step I have waited to see if BSOD pop up again and they always have.

Minidumps & Info

CPU: Intel Core i7 13700
CPU cooler: ENDORFY Fortis 5 Dual Fan
Motherboard: Gigabyte Z790 GAMING X
Ram: Slots 2+4: G.Skill Ripjaws S5 DDR5-6000 - 32GB - CL32 - Dual Channel (2 pcs) - Intel XMP
SSD/HDD: 2TB Kingston KC3000 NVME M.2 SSD
GPU: 24GB Palit GeForce RTX 4090 GameRock
PSU: be quiet! Pure Power 12 M 850W - 80 PLUS Gold
Chassis: be quiet! Pure Base 500DX Midi Tower
OS: Windows 11 Home 24H2
Monitor: Displayport: LG 43UD79-B 107,98 cm (42,51 Zoll) UHD 4K IPS Monitor
HDMI: BenQ XL2411Z (24 Zoll) Monitor
All items were bought new in late April 2023 and put together by myself.

I have uploaded a zip from the Synapsis File Collection App that includes the last 10 minidumps. Two of which happened while I was putting this post together. I had more but lost them because windows was only saving 5 at a time and by the time I found out several were already gone. The WATCHDOG ones did not produce a minidump file. If there is anything else I can give you that will help please let me know.

Thanks for any help.

 

[Ralston18]

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

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

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

All attached peripherals?

Any error codes, warnings, or informational events in Reliability History/Monitor or Event Viewer?

= = = =

Is all important data backed up at least 2 x to locations away from the system in question? Verify that all backups are recoverable and readable.

= = = =

Power down, unplug, open the case.

Clean out dust and debris.

Check that all connections, cards, RAM, jumpers, and case connections are fully and firmly in place.

Use a bright flashlight to look for signs of damage.

 

[johnbl]

first fix attempt:
i would go to gigabyte and look for
GIGABYTE IT5701/ 5702 RGB lighting controller firmware upgrade package
looks like it conflicts with the cosair software.

https://www.gigabyte.com/Motherboard/Z790-GAMING-X-rev-10/support#support-dl-utility


machine info
BIOS Version F12
BIOS Starting Address Segment f000
BIOS Release Date 01/07/2025
Manufacturer Gigabyte Technology Co., Ltd.
Product Z790 GAMING X
Processor Manufacturer Intel(R) Corporation
Processor ID 71060b00fffbebbf
Processor Version 13th Gen Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-13700
Processor Voltage 88h - 0.8V
External Clock 100MHz
Max Speed 5200MHz
Current Speed 2079MHz
---------
bugcheck kernel stack corruption
running Corsair.Servic
===
bugcheck due to stack corruption in kernel
============
bugcheck due stack corruption in kernel
=========
bugcheck due to stack corruption running
iCUE.exe
--------------
note: got interrupted, will look at dump when I get back
notes:
gdrv3.sys Tue Sep 10 20:09:58 2024
and RTCore64.sys running
old driver rtf64x64.sys Wed Sep 22 01:40:17 2021

mixed build of nvidia drivers:
2 drivers from feb 2024
1 nvidia driver from march 3 2025
I would do a full reinstall of GPU driver.
I would remove the gigabyte driver gdrv3.sys if you do not need it. having both gdrv3.sys and rtcore64.sys both tweaking on your gpu at the same time could be an issue.

 

[eSchall]

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

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

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

All attached peripherals?

Any error codes, warnings, or informational events in Reliability History/Monitor or Event Viewer?

= = = =

Is all important data backed up at least 2 x to locations away from the system in question? Verify that all backups are recoverable and readable.

= = = =

Power down, unplug, open the case.

Clean out dust and debris.

Check that all connections, cards, RAM, jumpers, and case connections are fully and firmly in place.

Use a bright flashlight to look for signs of damage.

I have added my system specs in the initial post.

Reliability History / Event Viewer shows me the BSOD events but I cannot derive anything from it.

All data that is important is backed up. If anything break / I need to do a clean reinstall of windows I would be ready to do so. I bought a new USB stick and created a bootable media that is also working.

I opened up the case and cleaned it out using pressured air. I checked all connections but there was nothing hinting towards a physical problem.

first fix attempt:
i would go to gigabyte and look for
GIGABYTE IT5701/ 5702 RGB lighting controller firmware upgrade package
looks like it conflicts with the cosair software.

https://www.gigabyte.com/Motherboard/Z790-GAMING-X-rev-10/support#support-dl-utility


machine info
BIOS Version F12
BIOS Starting Address Segment f000
BIOS Release Date 01/07/2025
Manufacturer Gigabyte Technology Co., Ltd.
Product Z790 GAMING X
Processor Manufacturer Intel(R) Corporation
Processor ID 71060b00fffbebbf
Processor Version 13th Gen Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-13700
Processor Voltage 88h - 0.8V
External Clock 100MHz
Max Speed 5200MHz
Current Speed 2079MHz
---------
bugcheck kernel stack corruption
running Corsair.Servic
===
bugcheck due to stack corruption in kernel
============
bugcheck due stack corruption in kernel
=========
bugcheck due to stack corruption running
iCUE.exe
--------------
note: got interrupted, will look at dump when I get back
notes:
gdrv3.sys Tue Sep 10 20:09:58 2024
and RTCore64.sys running
old driver rtf64x64.sys Wed Sep 22 01:40:17 2021

mixed build of nvidia drivers:
2 drivers from feb 2024
1 nvidia driver from march 3 2025
I would do a full reinstall of GPU driver.
I would remove the gigabyte driver gdrv3.sys if you do not need it. having both gdrv3.sys and rtcore64.sys both tweaking on your gpu at the same time could be an issue.

I am finding a lot of troubling reports of people trying to install that RGB lighting firmware update. I do not care at all about any RGB in my case (case window is next to the wall, the RGB versions were just cheaper when I bought the parts) but am worried about trying to install that. It is installed by using the Flash.bat?

I did a clean uninstall of the NVIDIA driver using DDU tool in safe mode, there was a guide on this page somewhere. Then reinstalled the latest driver.

How do I remove the gdrv3.sys?

I have had 2 more IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL a few days ago that I have added to the upload folder.

 

[johnbl]

i would just download microsoft autoruns64.exe run it as an admin find the gdrv3.sys driver and delete the entry or unclick the driver name so it will not load (easy to get back if you need it)

I would update the firmware and disable the driver. You do not want the firmware responding to events that are for your corsair device. it will cause stack overflows/and memory corruptions.

 

[eSchall]

i would just download microsoft autoruns64.exe run it as an admin find the gdrv3.sys driver and delete the entry or unclick the driver name so it will not load (easy to get back if you need it)

I would update the firmware and disable the driver. You do not want the firmware responding to events that are for your corsair device. it will cause stack overflows/and memory corruptions.

Done both now. Firmware update seems to not have caused any issues. I will give it a few days and see if I have any more issues and report back.

 

[eSchall]

Got another BSOD IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL just now and uploaded the new minidump into the folder. PC was just idling while I was afk.

Would trying a clean install of Windows be more efficient vs. trying to find out what is causing this?

 

[johnbl]

last bugcheck, chrome was running, it told the file system to write a file, the filesystem tried and got a bugcheck

normally, you have to look for issues in the data path.
IE disable any chrome extension, then update any network driver, update any filter driver (like malware scanner) then any drive firmware.

I will take a quick look but it would normally take a kernel dump to have proper debug info for this problem.

notes:
old driver
rtf64x64.sys Wed Sep 22 01:40:17 2021
(old realtek network driver)

MyPortIO_x64.sys Mon Jun 22 18:03:29 2015
(i would remove this driver, it might be corrupting kernel memory for other drivers) Or you might look for a update and make sure you really need this driver