irql_not_less_or_equal

[Thrust Augmentation]

I've seen some pretty knowledgeable replies in this section & thought that I would ask for some advice;


I've got a Samsung i7 laptop (GTX 675M, HM76E chipset, HDD & SDD, Win7 64) which has been occasionally going BSOD in recent months with the irql_not_less_or_equal stop error.


The usual suggestions seems to be test the memory (done), check the graphics drivers (done) & have a good look through Event Viewer for clues. It's taken a while to narrow down the exact time of the event as it usually happens when the computer is unattended, but it BSOD'd in front of me last night, so I got straight into Event Viewer after it happened.


There seems to be little in Event Viewer related to the time of the stop, just regular processes, followed by start notifications after restating of an unexpected shut down.


Any idea's on where I should be looking to try & trace this down or where in Event Viewer the most relevant information may be?


I don't know if this is relevant, but the computer spends a good 16 hours a day switched on, being used pretty heavily Mon>Fri, but the stop's are more prevalent at the weekend, when it's on, but not really being used that much (possibly 1 stop weekdays & 3 at the weekend on average).


Thanks.

[Saab Dastard]

That error isn't a memory fault per se; rather it indicates that a kernel-mode process or driver attempted to access a memory address to which it did not have permission to access.

Most likely a hardware driver, because they operate at the most privileged level, but it could be an application (such as AV or firewall, or backup) that operates with elevated privileges.

If you've eliminated graphics drivers, you will need to look at the providers of other device drivers and update them, particularly non-MS ones. Sound card drivers are a possibility.

You won't find anything in Event viewer, because there was nothing wrong until it BSODed, at which point the OS crashed and nothing could be logged.

You really need to read every line of the BSOD and see if you can identify the rogue process that triggered the BSOD - the filename is often visible, look out particularly for .SYS or .DLL files.

Given the fault pattern you describe, you might investigate the power management setup.

SD

[RamonBadger]

in the bad old days that error was often caused by an overheating CPU - dust/ bad thermal compound / loose fan, or by a dying motherboard

conversely, a scrambled hard drive can cause it as well - a "false" error due to driver file corruption

[Thrust Augmentation]

OK guys, that's give me a clearer picture & a few more thing too look into.

Appreciated!

[Booglebox]

Try doing a memory test?
Or it could just be getting old :(