[phillpower2]

Yes, I did check the drivers (one by one) and apparently they are all up to date. 

 

 

Have you manually downloaded and installed the drivers for your motherboard directly from ASRock, Windows has a nasty habit of downloading and installing incompatible drivers when it checks for updates and as said the chipset drivers must come directly from the board manufacturer and not some random ones that Windows finds and then foists on you.

 

Can you upload the latest crash dmps for us and using only the method below.

 

1. Copy any dmp files from C:\Windows\Minidump onto the desktop.

2. Select all of them, right-click on one, and click on Send To> New Compressed (zipped) Folder.

3. Upload the zip folder using the Attach button, bottom left of the dialogue input box 

 

ntoskrnl.exe. By the way, do you know what is it, exactly? I googled it but it seems like this particular BSOD can be caused by many different issues. 

 

 

There you go with that Google again, I also mentioned this in my reply #2 

 

the other two crashes being NT related are pretty generic crashes that just mean that something tripped the Windows file system up, possibly the same two ASRock drivers

 

 

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Yes, I did check the drivers (one by one) and apparently they are all up to date. 
 

 
Have you manually downloaded and installed the drivers for your motherboard directly from ASRock, Windows has a nasty habit of downloading and installing incompatible drivers when it checks for updates and as said the chipset drivers must come directly from the board manufacturer and not some random ones that Windows finds and then foists on you.

 
 
 
 

 
I tried both. For instance, the all-in-one driver downloadble from AsRock's official website (I checked the link you gave me) is the AsRock Utility which also installed those drivers creating "old" BSODs. Then I let Windows search and install the drivers and, since then, BSOD did not happen (at least, not because of AsRock drivers). I manually installed the other drivers on AsRock website and left those that didn't cause issues, which Windows also "confirmed" to be the right ones.
 
 

Can you upload the latest crash dmps for us and using only the method below.
 
1. Copy any dmp files from C:\Windows\Minidump onto the desktop.
2. Select all of them, right-click on one, and click on Send To> New Compressed (zipped) Folder.
3. Upload the zip folder using the Attach button, bottom left of the dialogue input box 
 

 
I don't know why (maybe because of the latest Windows update?) but at the moment the Minidump folder is empty. 
A few days ago, though, I did paste on my desktop a dump file (I don't even remember why), which is the one I'm attaching: since then, I made those changes I mentioned in my previous posts, plus I uninstalled Bitdefender in order to check if they were issues related to my anti-virus. In case this dump file turns out to be useless, I am "fairthful" a new BSOD will occur and I'll attach a new one.

 

ntoskrnl.exe. By the way, do you know what is it, exactly? I googled it but it seems like this particular BSOD can be caused by many different issues. 
 

 
There you go with that Google again, I also mentioned this in my reply #2  
 

Quote

the other two crashes being NT related are pretty generic crashes that just mean that something tripped the Windows file system up, possibly the same two ASRock drivers

 

 
 
You're right, you already mentioned that. Sorry, I'm trying to solve these issues when I come back from work, when I'm so tired I barely remember who I am!   In my defense, though, I googled ntoskrnl.exe before opening a thread here. 
 
Honestly, I'm just afraid all those BSODs occur because of some hardware issue.   The hot temperature isn't helping and I found out the back fan of my case to NOT work properly (I am now forced to open the case and manually "spin" it in order to let it work, even though the 2 fans on the front work normally). 

Attached Files

•  Minidump.zip   75.58KB   291 downloads

Edited by Penelope79, 12 June 2019 - 11:42 PM.

[Penelope79]

 

Yes, I did check the drivers (one by one) and apparently they are all up to date. 
 

 
Have you manually downloaded and installed the drivers for your motherboard directly from ASRock, Windows has a nasty habit of downloading and installing incompatible drivers when it checks for updates and as said the chipset drivers must come directly from the board manufacturer and not some random ones that Windows finds and then foists on you.

 
 
 
 

 
I tried both. For instance, the all-in-one driver downloadble from AsRock's official website (I checked the link you gave me) is the AsRock Utility which also installed those drivers creating "old" BSODs. Then I let Windows search and install the drivers and, since then, BSOD did not happen (at least, not because of AsRock drivers). I manually installed the other drivers on AsRock website and left those that didn't cause issues, which Windows also "confirmed" to be the right ones.
 
 

Can you upload the latest crash dmps for us and using only the method below.
 
1. Copy any dmp files from C:\Windows\Minidump onto the desktop.
2. Select all of them, right-click on one, and click on Send To> New Compressed (zipped) Folder.
3. Upload the zip folder using the Attach button, bottom left of the dialogue input box 
 

 
I don't know why (maybe because of the latest Windows update?) but at the moment the Minidump folder is empty. 
A few days ago, though, I did paste on my desktop a dump file (I don't even remember why), which is the one I'm attaching: since then, I made those changes I mentioned in my previous posts, plus I uninstalled Bitdefender in order to check if they were issues related to my anti-virus. In case this dump file turns out to be useless, I am "fairthful" a new BSOD will occur and I'll attach a new one.

 

ntoskrnl.exe. By the way, do you know what is it, exactly? I googled it but it seems like this particular BSOD can be caused by many different issues. 
 

 
There you go with that Google again, I also mentioned this in my reply #2  
 

Quote

the other two crashes being NT related are pretty generic crashes that just mean that something tripped the Windows file system up, possibly the same two ASRock drivers

 

 
 
You're right, you already mentioned that. Sorry, I'm trying to solve these issues when I come back from work, when I'm so tired I barely remember who I am!   In my defense, though, I googled ntoskrnl.exe before opening a thread here. 
 
Honestly, I'm just afraid all those BSODs occur because of some hardware issue.   The hot temperature isn't helping and I found out the back fan of my case to NOT work properly (I am now forced to open the case and manually "spin" it in order to let it work, even though the 2 fans on the front work normally). 

Attached Files

•  Minidump.zip   75.58KB   291 downloads

Edited by Penelope79, 12 June 2019 - 11:42 PM.

[phillpower2]

Old crash dmps cannot be relied upon I`m afraid but fwiw the attached dmp looks to be software as opposed to being hardware related, see attachment below;

 

 I found out the back fan of my case to NOT work properly (I am now forced to open the case and manually "spin" it in order to let it work, 

 

 

This needs to be remedied and can I ask that while the fans are not working that you do not reach inside the case while the PC is powered up, the risk of harm to yourself is too high + there is also the chance that something could get shorted out and hose the whole computer.

 

For now we need to see if there is any more crashes and subsequent crash dmps generated for us to look at, meanwhile, we should look at the cooling fan issue.

 

Are the fans connected to the fan headers on the MB, if yes, are the fans the four pin type, if yes, are you aware of ASRock Hardware Monitor which amongst other things has the following features, your fans could be temperature controlled and so not faulty at all.

 

- CPU, Chassis temperature sensing

- CPU, Chassis Fan Tachometer

- CPU, Chassis Quiet Fan (Auto adjust fan speed by CPU temperature)

- CPU, Chassis Fan multi-speed control

- Voltage monitoring: +12V, +5V, +3.3V, CPU Vcore Voltage

[Penelope79]

Best Answer

So far, I'm not seeing BSODs, which is an improvement I guess. 

However, my PC keeps "freezing" in certain occasions (twice so far: again, during The Sims 4 gameplay and when I was running Performance Test software, specifically when it reached the "Memory threaded" test), to the point I have to forcibly reboot it. 

 

I did not know about AsRock Hardware Monitor, but I'm afraid that's not the issue : the rear fan simply is no longer working unless I manually spin it once, then it works. It used to work immediately as soon as I turned on the PC. This fan is a three pin type and is directly wired to the MB. 

 

Is Windows Events Viewer helpful in case I don't encounter BSODs anymore but only "freezes"?

 

Thank you!

[phillpower2]

I would say that no more BSOD is a big + as you have ruled out three possible causes of the issues that you were originally having. drivers are ok, your RAM is now in the correct slots, working in dual channel and giving you 50% more performance than you were previously getting and Windows is also now all good, you should be feeling pretty upbeat about the improvements you have achieved 

 

You have a couple of chassis fan headers on the MB, try swapping the non working fan to the other chassis fan header on the MB and vice versa the other fan to the header that the non working fan is connected to atm, any change in the behaviour of either fan.

 

You can check the Event Viewer but it will most likely only list error 41 kernel Power errors which basically just means that Windows was closed but not shut down properly, this happening over a prolonged period can lead to Windows becoming corrupt and a non booting computer.

 

In addition to checking the fans we need to check the quality and performance of the PSU and the system temps etc.

 

Can you post the brand and model name or number of the power supply (PSU).

 

 

Download Speedfan and install it.  Once it's installed, run the program and post here the information it shows.  The information I want you to post is the stuff that is circled in the example picture I have attached.

If you are running on a vista machine, please go to where you installed the program and run the program as administrator.

 

(this is a screenshot from a vista machine)

So that we have a comparison to Speedfan, download, run and grab a screenshot of HWMonitor (free).

 

To capture and post a screenshot;

 

Click on the ALT key + PRT SCR key..its on the top row..right hand side..now click on start...all programs...accessories...paint....left click in the white area ...press CTRL + V...click on file...click on save...save it to your desktop...name it something related to the screen your capturing... BE SURE TO SAVE IT AS A .JPG ...otherwise it may be to big to upload... Click on the More Reply Options tab then after typing in any response you have... click on Choose File...desktop...find the screenshot..select it and click on Attach This File...on the lower left...after it says upload successful...click on add reply like you normally would.

 

Screenshot instructions are provided to assist those that may read this topic but are not yet aware of the “how to”.

[Penelope79]

I would say that no more BSOD is a big + as you have ruled out three possible causes of the issues that you were originally having. drivers are ok, your RAM is now in the correct slots, working in dual channel and giving you 50% more performance than you were previously getting and Windows is also now all good, you should be feeling pretty upbeat about the improvements you have achieved  

 

Yes, I really hope BSODs stopped for good!

 

You have a couple of chassis fan headers on the MB, try swapping the non working fan to the other chassis fan header on the MB and vice versa the other fan to the header that the non working fan is connected to atm, any change in the behaviour of either fan.

 

I tried to swap the fans: the rear fan keeps not working, while the two front fans keep working normally. Hence I am afraid the rear fan has some issues, am I right?

 

Can you post the brand and model name or number of the power supply (PSU).

 

 

It's Thermaltake Smart SE 530W Modular (specifically, this one).

 

I'm also attaching the screenshots you suggested: n.1 is SpeedFan, n. 2 and 3 is HW Monitor. The screenshots have been taken under normal conditions, not on "stress", so to say (such as, for instance, during gameplay).

 

Thank you!

Attached Thumbnails

• 
• 
• 

[softwaretested]

Hi Penelope, 

 

Have you tried Driver Verifier to show your faulty drivers? 

[phillpower2]

The readings look ok in the main but the voltage going to the memory slots looks a bit off so I would suggest that you check the voltage in the BIOS.

 

Not a PSU that I would use or recommend but when new it would be good enough for powering your system, how old is the PSU.

 

The rear exhaust fan needs to be replaced asap as atm the hot air is trapped inside the chassis and heating up the hardware, this will cause you problems and with the hard drives in particular as they will start giving you problems when the temps get around 50 C, post the brand and model name or number of the computer case and we can look for an appropriate replacement fan.

[Penelope79]

Hi Penelope, 

 

Have you tried Driver Verifier to show your faulty drivers? 

 

No, I haven't. To be honest, I never used it. 

 

The readings look ok in the main but the voltage going to the memory slots looks a bit off so I would suggest that you check the voltage in the BIOS.

 

Not a PSU that I would use or recommend but when new it would be good enough for powering your system, how old is the PSU.

 

The rear exhaust fan needs to be replaced asap as atm the hot air is trapped inside the chassis and heating up the hardware, this will cause you problems and with the hard drives in particular as they will start giving you problems when the temps get around 50 C, post the brand and model name or number of the computer case and we can look for an appropriate replacement fan.

 

The PSU is 3 years old, while the computer case is the Sharkoon VG5-W . I think the fans are all 12 mm. 

 

Can I ask you what voltage I'm supposed to consider to be good? 

 

I'm attaching a few images of the data I have in the BIOS, hopefully they're useful.

 

 

Thank you!

Attached Thumbnails

• 
• 
• 
• 

[phillpower2]

An example of the type of replacement fan that you need here I suggest that you keep the fixing screws from the present fan, past experience has taught as much as sometimes the replacement screws are too big or none are supplied at all. 

 

Your BIOS pics are showing that the CPU and the RAM are getting too much voltage and especially considering that the computer is not under any load, the PSU voltages look to be ok, those are the +3.3, +5 and +12V readings.

 

Look in the BIOS for a setting that will restore the default factory settings for the MB, they are sometimes listed as most stable or optimised, using such a setting will get rid of any bad OC settings, once done restart and check the readings in the BIOS, the CPU should ideally be getting around the 1V mark and the the RAM no more than 1.5V.

[Penelope79]

An example of the type of replacement fan that you need here I suggest that you keep the fixing screws from the present fan, past experience has taught as much as sometimes the replacement screws are too big or none are supplied at all. 

 

Your BIOS pics are showing that the CPU and the RAM are getting too much voltage and especially considering that the computer is not under any load, the PSU voltages look to be ok, those are the +3.3, +5 and +12V readings.

 

Look in the BIOS for a setting that will restore the default factory settings for the MB, they are sometimes listed as most stable or optimised, using such a setting will get rid of any bad OC settings, once done restart and check the readings in the BIOS, the CPU should ideally be getting around the 1V mark and the the RAM no more than 1.5V.

 

I tried to change any BIOS setting to the default one by following the MB's manual, but I'm afraid there is no real difference in the voltage getting to the CPU and the RAM unfortunately (I'm attaching a few images).

 

Thank you for the suggestion about the fans. I'll probably buy a new one from Amazon (the Italian version because I'm in Italy) and I found a few ones: what do you think?

 

1

2

3

4

 

finally, just for the record, yesterday my PC "freezed" again when I was just running Advanced SystemCare.

Attached Thumbnails

• 
• 
• 

[phillpower2]

Option one of your fan choice looks to be adequate.

 

Your CPU and RAM are being auto overclocked looking at your BIOS pics.

 

finally, just for the record, yesterday my PC "freezed" again when I was just running Advanced SystemCare. 

 

 

Yuk, no good ever comes from running garbage such as this, see my canned info below;

 

You will not see anything like this recommended on any reputable forum, they are at best a gimmick and at worse a danger to the operating systems registry, it is an old article but the author is still highly respected and tbh Ive not seen it explained better than at the miekiemoes' Blog here

 

 

[Penelope79]

I followed your suggestion and I bought the first fan, it will be delivered tomorrow.

 

Do you think is there any way to disable the auto overlock? The only option other than "Auto" (pic n. 2) is "Manual", but it asks for manual settings and I have no idea what I am supposed to write, which is the reason I left "Auto". Do you think this could be the real issue behind the "freezes"?

 

Finally, thank you for the link about Advanced SystemCare: I had no idea, I uninstalled immediately. Is CCleaner similar?

Edited by Penelope79, 23 June 2019 - 01:08 PM.

[phillpower2]

Because the heat is trapped inside of the case all of your internal hardware be being affected so for now we should see how things go once you have a fully working exhaust fan at the rear of the case, what you have atm is the trapped hot air being circulated around the inside of the case which is heating up your components.

 

CCleaner is ok as long as you do not go anywhere near the registry cleaner.

[Penelope79]

With the new fan, I definitely saw an improvement. My PC is much more quite now and the temperatures are more constant.

I still experienced a "freeze" though: I tried playing at The Sims on purpose and, though I waited much longer for the freeze to happen, it occurred anyway.