8 replies to this topic

[Viper_H]

Hello. My desktop PC has recently been getting random bluescreen stop errors. The error is coming up in the log file as follows: Error code 0000001a, parameter1 00041284, parameter2 2769f001, parameter3 00015c03, parameter4 c0883000. This has happened multiple times over the last few days and has rendered my computer pretty much unusable, as I never know whether it's going to fail on me or not. Through the multiple error messages I have read, both Parameter 1 and Parameter 4 stay the same, while the other two change. I have completely reinstalled Windows XP Service Pack 3 onto a brand new hard drive, so that can't be the problem. Nor is the pagefile corrupted as again, it is on a brand new disk. I have heard that this error is usually memory related, however I have run a full pass with Memtest86+, and a Windows memory tester called MemTester. I believe the error may be in the memory controller on the motherboard, as it does run very hot a lot of the time. I have a watercooled system, but the chipset heatsinks still rely on air to cool them, however they still do get rather hot. The last option I can see is to gut my system, and either remove the heatsinks from the chipset and water cool them, or check the thermal compound for any damage. If anyone has a better idea of what I can do, short of gutting my system (as that's far too much work than I can be bothered with at the moment) then I'd love to hear suggestions. My PC's spec is as follows: Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 at stock 2.4GHz speed Asus P5N-32E SLI motherboard Single InnoVision GeForce 8800GTS 384MB PCI-E graphics 4GB RAM as 4 x 1GB OCZ DDR2-6400 800MHz DRAM modules Windows XP Professional, 32-bit, Service Pack 3, OEM edition I would appreciate any insights or assistance anyone could give. Many thanks.

[tallin]

Good Morning Viper_H. to WTT,

Thank you for registering here and posting your problem for us to attempt a resolution for you.

I googled part of the error messages you included when posting your thread (may I say a most informative first post) so you may like to peruse this link showing several sites to research.

You could also look in Event Viewer to see what error messages are showing there which may help us to find an answer to the random bluescreen stop errors.

• Start
• Control Panel
• Administrative tools
• Event Viewer

Post any error messages there relevant to the specific blue screen errors for us to assist you with or research them as you seem to have a good grip on the workings of your system as shown by the excellent first post.

Best regards,

[Broni]

1. Download, and install WhoCrashed: http://www.resplende...rashedSetup.exe
Open it, click Analyze button.
The program will create report
Copy, and paste it into your next reply.

2. In Windows Explorer, navigate to C:\Windows\Minidump folder.
Zip all .dmp files, and attach them to your next reply.

[Viper_H]

Hi mates, Thanks for your replies. You can find the WhoCrashed and Minidumps attached. Funnily enough, I've not crashed all day now. The last crash is in the WhoCrashed log and the machine's been on ever since. It's been crashing while idle, and while under load, so I really don't know what to say... Nothing's changed since this morning either... Hope you can find some insight in the crashdumps and logs. Thanks!

Attached Files

•  WhoCrashed.txt   4.49KB   381 downloads
•  Minidump.zip   161.05KB   240 downloads

[Broni]

All your errors are the same:
MEMORY_MANAGEMENT, and the module responsible is ntoskrnl.exe
It's impossible to give you definitive answer, but I'll try my best opinion.
ntoskrnl.exe is responsible for various system services such as hardware virtualisation, process and memory management, and it plays crucial role, while Windows is booting.
In many cases ntoskrnl.exe error would mean boot files corruption, but you have brand new HD, and brand new installation, so I don't think, it's the case.
Since ntoskrnl.exe manages RAM, and you're getting MEMORY_MANAGEMENT error, I still suspect RAM problem.
Any software RAM test will never prove 100%, RAM is good.
You still may try to replace ntoskrnl.exe file with another one straight from Windows CD, but if that doesn't help, you'll need to play with RAM.
If you have more, than one RAM stick, try to run your computer with one stick at a time.
If you have only one stick, you'll need to get different stick (known as a good one), and go from there.
The above is my opinion only.

[tallin]

Hi Viper_H,

If you have more, than one RAM stick, try to run your computer with one stick at a time.
If you have only one stick, you'll need to get different stick (known as a good one), and go from there.
The above is my opinion only.

This is a tough one. To get an overall picture of your system, download Belarc Advisor.

The Belarc Advisor builds a detailed profile of your installed software and hardware, missing Microsoft hotfixes, anti-virus status, CIS (Center for Internet Security) benchmarks, and displays the results in your Web browser. All of your PC profile information is kept private on your PC and is not sent to any web server.

Keep us posted.

Broni is doing a good job, however I think Belarc can give information you maybe seeking.

[Viper_H]

Hi Tallin, I appreciate your no-nonsense approach to advice, however I built my PC myself, and my job is a PC engineer, so I do know the specs of my machine Thanks a lot for the advice. What I'm going to try and do tomorrow is run one stick at a time, and run Burn In Test, as that always causes the crash. I really hope it;s a RAM issue, as that;s cheap to replace and easy to install. Otherwise it's gutting time.

[Doug]

Viper_H,

You are on a sensible tract for problem-solving of a potential "hardware" memory problem in conjunction with the excellent recommendations of Broni, and your own problem-solving plan.
Even though you have previously run MemTest86 and apparently Microsoft Windows Memory Diagnostic, you "could" still be dealing with a RAM hardware issue.

Please remember that the stick of RAM is one hardware feature, and the module into which it is installed is a separate piece of hardware that can also be faulty. Therefore when testing with a single stick of RAM you may benefit from rotating the module location into which you install a known good stick of RAM. (or if using a stick of your present RAM, when it works in one module, rotate it through the other modules to see if it fails consistently in one of the modules.) I suppose that you will actually be testing with "pairs" of RAM in "pairs" of modules?

I'd also take a step backwards to investigate any Driver issues. I acknowledge that you have a significant expertise, but sometimes looking at one solution may cause the individual to overlook the obvious.

Device Manager may be your friend. (I apologize if this recommendation is too elementary, but I'd feel silly if a driver turned out to be the source and hadn't mentioned it.)

I'd also consider the Video Card memory as a possible source. Are you running two in SLI? Can you select to remove one and check with running one and then the other separately?

As to the mentioned Temperature issues... Can you direct a desk fan into your opened tower, thereby increasing air cooling for a test period of time? This "may" not do you any good, since if something is overheating, and you cool it down to prevent a crash, you haven't actually identified what is going wrong, but it is a start. (Again, if this is too elementary, I apologize)

Best of luck with your testing.
I look forward to reading about your results.

Doug

[John B..]

Hi,

In addition to what the others said, I would like to show you how to test you RAM.

Download Memtest86 (the bootable ISO zip file), unzip and burn to CD using ISO Recorder (note there are different versions for SP1 and SP2 - check which one is needed by right clicking My Computer > Properties). If you have Windows XP SP3 please use the version for SP2. Then boot from the CD and let it run for 3 or 4 passes - overnight if possible. Logically, the more tests you run the smaller the chance that the results are that there is no error, but there actually is. If the machine boots from floppy then there is a download link to create a floppy boot disk on that page.

Regards,
John.