BSOD "IRQL_not_less_or_equal"

[Scylla]

Asus G1Sn-AKO14C - Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit

(It started out with Vista Home Premium but I upgraded it when W7 came out, BSOD prob did not start for many months.)

I use this laptop for recording birds' nests via screen capture. Keep getting BSODs, sometimes once a day, sometimes in quick succession

Have been running Memtest-86 v4.0a for nearly 12 hours, no errors yet.

I read that the cause is likely to be a badly/wrongly written driver. I plan to revisit drivers when I give up on Memtest.

Just thought I'd post here in case we have a bright spark member, but I bet they would ask me to post info that I have trouble digging out

[tommk3cab]

Info like memory dump files (or whatever they are called on windows 7) used to be minidump.dmp on XP IIRC.

That is what you would want to find, if you can find out what they are called on windows 7 (maybe the same) I have yet to encounter a bsod on windows 7.... famous last

EDIT: should be C:\Windows\Minidump\Minidump.dmp.

post up the results and the erroneous driver should be clear, especially if you have several files and they all point to the same driver.

[maccafan]

Could be a driver problem or could be the beginning of hardware failure..

You are right about the minidump files tommk3cab but you can't just read them. They need to be analyzed.

Download this, unzip and run it:

www.nirsoft.net/utils/bluescreenview.zip

We can take it from there.. I can also connect to your pc from here with your permission and have a look, if you want me to. Just PM me if you want me to do that. I have been repairing, configuring and building computers as a hobby for friends and family since 1999.

[Scylla]

Thanks a lot for the responses, Tom 'n Macca. Just an update - received a new router from TalkTalk this morning cos the existing Huawei had been dropping out a lot. New one is a D-Link - immaterial really, but anyway bro installed it and neither of us could connect, so the old one has been reinstalled.

I ran Memtest-86 (not the + version) for over 24 hours No errors. Immediately I booted into Windows I got a message from nVidia saying new driver was available - coincidence or what? So I've installed it, after checking it suited the graphics card GeForce 8500M GS (IIRC).

I've set eagles to record and will see how that goes for the rest of the day. If another BSOD occurs I shall run that prog you've linked to, Macca, and may well take you up on your kind offer Am downloading the prog.

scylla xx

[maccafan]

No worries Scylla..

Looks like you've got it all under control anyways..

[Scylla]

Got another BSOD Shall run your prog.

The crashes are all hal.dll caused by address hal.dll+2477


???


I'm about to run DriverView.

[stitch]

get a mac

[Scylla]

Feb 22, 2012 0:51:01 GMT Scylla said:

Just thought I'd post here in case we have a bright spark member

You misunderstood me, Stitch

[maccafan]

There will be more information.

Email me your minidump files Scylla.. Check your PM.

[tommk3cab]

That is a shame. That stands for hardware abstraction layer, covers quiet a broad range of things. Could simply be the file (hal.dll) is corrupted ( in which case installing just that file will cure it). It could be any driver playing up, mobo/chipset included AFAIK.

This is unlikely though IMO as if a particular driver was playing up (I would expect ) a particular driver name to show up which it hasn't (kind of)

Could of course be nothing to do with drivers and be a physical hardware problem.

I have found some references on google relating to underclocking your FSB may help with this error, at least in the short term.

forums.techguy.org/hardware/862194-bsods-hal-dll.html

[maccafan]

If hal.dll is corrupted the computer won't boot.

99.9% it's a driver issue.

[dave]

Feb 22, 2012 7:54:34 GMT maccafan said:

I have been repairing, configuring and building computers as a hobby for friends and family since 1999.

Very interesting macca - I might be getting a new computer myself later this year

Sorry to hijack the thread Scylla.... grovelling smilie......

[maccafan]

Feb 22, 2012 20:13:47 GMT dave said:

Very interesting macca - I might be getting a new computer myself later this year

You are welcome to any help I can give you Dave.

[dave]

Thanks macca - I may well take you up on that later this year.

[Scylla]

Feb 22, 2012 20:13:47 GMT dave said:

.... grovelling smilie......

That's all right then In any case, you're welcome

Macca read my minidumps and diagnosed a wifi driver error. I have tried more than once to update that driver in Device Manager but have always been told it was up-to-date.

(1) Tried the Intel updater prog, where it "reads" your system and recommends drivers - couldn't get it to run.

(2) Downloaded a driver for W7-64bit, installed. Laptop running for several hours without crashing, but that's what it does sometimes, will have to wait a week before I can announce success.

Sincere thanks to Macca for taking the time and trouble to help, I was getting frantic.

scylla