Hi there,

I recently built my own computer using brand new parts which all fit together perfectly. However, after a couple of months I noticed that the computer was beginning to act up and causing the BSOD.

Since the problem started, I have changed around the RAM and also added another 1GB SATA HDD and also doing a clean install of Windows Vista Business N on the new HDD to see if this fixes the problem. However, it doesn't seem to have done anything and more recently the BSODs have been more frequent, particularly when accessing the hard drive for long periods of time (e.g. when doing my video work).

When the BSOD happens, it will always run through a Memory Dump before restarting the computer itself and then displaying a "Windows has recovered from a critical error" upon returning to the desktop.

More noticably is the fact that when running programs such as Skype, the BSOD also seems to happen more frequently, although I cannot be sure that it is Skype causing the problem because it happens randomly with almost any program that runs.

Please could you advise?

Kind regards,

Andrew.

PC Specifications:

- Windows Vista Business N
- Gigabyte GA-P35-S3L Motherboard
- Intel Q8300 2.5Ghz Quad Core CPU
- Corsair 5GB (2,2,1) 800Mhz DDR2 RAM
- Seagate 1TB Internal Hard Drive
- Western Digital 1TB Internal Hard Drive
- HIS HD3870 512MB Graphics Card
- Western Digital 500GB External Hard Drive

The memory dump is a result, not a cause. You need to find the cause of the BSOD. You've got quite a system there! Are you a gamer?

5 GB of RAM is a hefty amount. Did you check to see if the motherboard will support that much?

Take a look at this thread- it is on ongoing BSOD/Memory dump thread. You will see where many have posted a Stop Errors. Here's an example of one: Stop: 0x00000008e (additional number sets here)

You will need to find your Stop error and that's best done in the Event Viewer:

Please download VEW and save it to your Desktop:

Setting up the program

Double-click VEW.exe then under Select log to query, select:

• Application
• System
  
  Under Select type to list, select:
• Critical (Vista only)
• Error
  
  Click the radio button for Number of events
• Type 20 in the 1 to 20 box
• Then click the Run button.
• Notepad will open with the output log.
  
  Load the log
• In Notepad, click Edit> Select all
• Then press Edit > Copy
• Press Ctrl+V on your keyboard to paste the log to your next reply.

(Courtesy rev-Olie)

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Hi there,

Thanks for your prompt reply.

Nah, not a gamer as such although I do play the odd game every now and then. The main reason for the large amount of RAM is down to me doing video work and needing it for power-hungry programs like After Effects and Photoshop. Yeah, when I built the system, I checked all the compatibility and it's fine . The motherboard will support up to 8GB of RAM i think....over 4GB anyway .

In the meantime I have been on another help forum and they have advised me to post the "Minidump" files on there, which they have looked at and said that the problems could be any number of drivers. I've not updated any drivers since that message though since I wanted a second opinion from here first .

I have downloaded VEW and will post the results in a sec....


EDIT: Okay, I've tried to run the program using the above settings and it comes up with:

Run-time error '75';:
Path/File access error

....when I click "Run". I've tried to re-download the program, opened it and tried to run it again but it keeps coming up with the same error message.

Run the program with administrator rights, right click the shortcut for that specific software and select from the context menu "Run as administrator".

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I'm still having problems after I click on the "Run" button on the VEW program. I've selected "Run as administrator" and it opens fine but after clicking "Run", I then waited 5 minutes and it didn't do anything. Roughly how long does it take to gather a report?

I'm going to PM rev_olie and have him check my input for the program. Hang tight, okay?

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Okay, no problem

Hi KugarWeb

It seems there could be a specific problem with VEW, its not just you. Its possible that the upload/mirror has a failed application we are trying to download. I am going to contact someone else on another forum and try and get hold of the developer and see what we can do.
Sorry for the wait.

In the mean time lets have a look for another root cause:

Disable "Restart on error" feature...

1. Right-click My Computer, and then click Properties.
2. Click the Advanced tab (Vista: click Advanced system settings).
3. Under Startup and Recovery, click Settings to open the Startup and Recovery dialog box.
4. Clear the Automatically restart check box, and click OK the necessary number of times.
5. Restart your computer for the settings to take effect.


Download BlueScreenView
No installation required.

• Double click on BlueScreenView.exe file to run the program.
• When scanning is done, go Edit > Select All.
• Go File > Save Selected Items, and save the report as BSOD.txt.
• Open BSOD.txt in Notepad, copy all content, and paste it into your next reply.

I am just starting Uni at the moment and so I will say sorry for any delays in advance

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Hi there,

Thanks for the reply . I will try out BlueScreen View in a second and post the results.
Haha, I know what you mean, I start back at University in a couple of days, hence why I suddenly realised I'd better fix this problem before going back .

Anyway, in the meantime I have tried another program which I was recommended on another help forum called OCCT. It ran through a few "stress tests" and found that the CPU was getting too hot to continue with the tests properly. Another thing which I noticed was that when it was running through the tests, the CPU was buzzing which is what it was doing during heavy tasks such as exporting DVD files through Premiere Pro.

So, I will inspect the inside of my computer to check that the CPU is secure with thermal paste still. I know that the CPU fan is secure and working correctly but it does not seem to make any difference to the BSODs even if I have it running at full capacity (it's adjustable from the front of the base unit). After I've checked the inside, I will carry on with the tests using BlueScreen View .

Thank you very much for your help so far

KugerWeb, I will leave you in rev_olie's capable hands.

I would like to mention something through. It is not a good idea to be using input from several forums at the same time. There is always the possibility that a combination of programs can cause a conflict.

For instance, a possibility:
You've already got an unstable system. This is not a good time to be trying programs out unless you are specifically being assisted and the program is indicated by the helper, on one forum. You really don't know if the 'new' problem was caused by the 'new' program or is part of the 'old' problem.

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