BSOD: Thread_Stuck_In_Device_Driver

[Angrush]

Hello all! So it seems just about every day, usually just once, I get a BSOD. I'll typically be playing World of Warcraft and alt-tabbing to google chrome, etc. The crashes typically happen right after I alt-tab. I have looked at the dmp files with BlueScreenView, and the two that it shows in red (assuming these are the culprits) are: dxgkrnl.sys (DirectX Graphics Kernel) and tdx.sys (TDI Translation Driver).

This started happening about 4 months ago or so, and 2 months ago (roughly) I re-installed Windows 8.1 to see if that would fix the issue, updating everything fully, etc. However, that never fixed the issue. I'm just tired of it so now I'm trying to figure out exactly how to fix it, so hopefully you guys will be able to help!

OS: 8.1
CPU: Intel i5 4690
GPU: AMD Sapphire Triple-x r9 290x
MOBO: Z97-D3H
RAM: 8GB HyperX something
PSU: 800W ATNG Power

I've also posted this issue on tech support forum with no responses yet, and that forum required me to do a few things prior to posting, such as run a program that saved a zip file, and then run a perfmon.. I can't post links just yet, but it will have the attachments it required(hopefully they'd be useful to figuring out the exact problem) [www].techsupportforum.[com]/forums/f299/bsod-thread_stuck_in_device_driver-1174825.html#post7328793

[callipygoustp]

I'm not certain I can help you, but, do you know what the stop code was on the BSOD?
Edit : never mind, I found what I needed in the .dmp files you provided.

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Quick link to thread mentioned by OP : http://www.techsupportforum.com/foru...ml#post7328793

Right at the top of the emp1_PERFMONOutput.zip/PERFMONOutput/perfmon.html file you provided on the site you linked I see the following :
Error
Symptom:
Device drivers are not installed.
Cause: A driver has not been installed for this device preventing it from working properly.
Details: The device driver for SM Bus Controller has not been installed. This device will not be available until the correct device driver is installed.
Resolution: 1. Try installing the drivers using Windows Update.
2. Install the drivers that are on the installation media that came with the device.
3. Check with the manufacturer for an updated driver.
Related: Explanation of Error Codes Generated by Device Manager

Are you sure you have all of the necessary motherboard drivers installed? Are they up to date? The latest drivers I see for your motherboard are dated 5/27/15:
Gigabyte GA-Z97-D3H drivers

I should state : this isn't necessarily what is causing your issue, but, if it was my machine it is where I would start.

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Your bios is pretty out of date as well : 20140530000000.000000+000 Version ALASKA - 1072009
The current version is dated 2015/09/18.
Again, this may not be the problem. I'm just stepping through your logs and calling out things I see.

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In the provided dump files I'm seeing several issues related to : dxgkrnl.sys which was preceded by atikmdag.sys.
This usually means, in my experience, you have a driver issue but from what I can tell you have the latest version of the driver which is dated 12/19/2016. You might want to try doing a clean install of the driver, if AMD allows it, or try using an older version of the video driver.

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I did a google search on the problem : https://www.google.com/search?q=amd+...ICE_DRIVER+8.1
and I'm seeing a common thread : people started having the same/similar issue after updating their video drivers. Try an older version of the video driver if a clean install of the video driver doesn't work.

[Angrush]

I'm not certain I can help you, but, do you know what the stop code was on the BSOD?
Edit : never mind, I found what I needed in the .dmp files you provided.

- - - Updated - - -


Right at the top of the emp1_PERFMONOutput.zip/PERFMONOutput/perfmon.html file you provided on the site you linked I see the following :
Error
Symptom:
Device drivers are not installed.
Cause: A driver has not been installed for this device preventing it from working properly.
Details: The device driver for SM Bus Controller has not been installed. This device will not be available until the correct device driver is installed.
Resolution: 1. Try installing the drivers using Windows Update.
2. Install the drivers that are on the installation media that came with the device.
3. Check with the manufacturer for an updated driver.
Related: Explanation of Error Codes Generated by Device Manager

Are you sure you have all of the necessary motherboard drivers installed? Are they up to date? The latest drivers I see for your motherboard are dated 5/27/15:


I should state : this isn't necessarily what is causing your issue, but, if it was my machine it is where I would start.

- - - Updated - - -

Your bios is pretty out of date as well : 20140530000000.000000+000 Version ALASKA - 1072009
The current version is dated 2015/09/18.
Again, this may not be the problem. I'm just stepping through your logs and calling out things I see.

- - - Updated - - -

In the provided dump files I'm seeing several issues related to : dxgkrnl.sys which was preceded by atikmdag.sys.
This usually means, in my experience, you have a driver issue but from what I can tell you have the latest version of the driver which is dated 12/19/2016. You might want to try doing a clean install of the driver, if AMD allows it, or try using an older version of the video driver.

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I went to the drivers website for my motherboard and everything is up-to-date (all on or before the 5/27/15) except the Realtek HD Audio Driver, but I already updated myself the other day after I purchased the HyperX Cloud Stinger..

I also downloaded the BIOS update from the same website and it gives me an error for incompatibility with 64bit version of Windows; however, there is no option to download any other version other than the F9 update it shows on the page.

Referring the AMD drivers, it has happened for the past 6 months I believe and I've gone through a few AMD Drivers and the issue still persists, so trying an older version won't work imo. (I always do a full clean install of drivers)

I did do a windows update, and in my Device Manager it doesn't seem to show the SM Bus Controller anymore, not sure if that was causing an issue or not but I googled it and it says it monitors the boards voltage and temp.

[Deleted]

Don't alt-tab?
Just a thought.

[Arbiter]

It's entirely possible that the drivers were corrupted in the past. Simply updating them doesn't necessarily uncorrupt them.

I would try to uninstall the drivers via Display Driver Uninstaller or AMDs in house solution (can't recall the name). From there try installing the newest drivers and that should rule out GPU drivers being a possible issue.

I'm also ssuming your Temps are fine and you've tried removing any overclocks?

[Angrush]

Don't alt-tab?
Just a thought.

I like your signature, fits you well.

It's entirely possible that the drivers were corrupted in the past. Simply updating them doesn't necessarily uncorrupt them.

I would try to uninstall the drivers via Display Driver Uninstaller or AMDs in house solution (can't recall the name). From there try installing the newest drivers and that should rule out GPU drivers being a possible issue.

I'm also ssuming your Temps are fine and you've tried removing any overclocks?

I always use DDU. Yeah, my temps are fine, nothing is overclocked either.

[Evildeffy]

Having checked your original issue, this is not an easy one to solve.

However ... What I think might be an issue is your power supply.
You must have a PC from CyberPowerPC.

Now it's not a guarantee this will work but lately I've seen a lot of PSU issues and I know the PSU you have is a ... well for lack of a better description: A Pile of Shit.

Do you have any spare PSU you could try?
Because it could very well be your power supply is unstable whilst switching on loads.

Also as a random sidenote since I've seen this from a CyberPowerPC a couple days back...
Do you by any chance have a power adapter taped to the back socket of your CPU?
Probably not the cause but that's not healthy for the CPU/Mobo... best to move that away

[Angrush]

Having checked your original issue, this is not an easy one to solve.

However ... What I think might be an issue is your power supply.
You must have a PC from CyberPowerPC.

Now it's not a guarantee this will work but lately I've seen a lot of PSU issues and I know the PSU you have is a ... well for lack of a better description: A Pile of Shit.

Do you have any spare PSU you could try?
Because it could very well be your power supply is unstable whilst switching on loads.

Also as a random sidenote since I've seen this from a CyberPowerPC a couple days back...
Do you by any chance have a power adapter taped to the back socket of your CPU?
Probably not the cause but that's not healthy for the CPU/Mobo... best to move that away

I don't have a spare PSU :/ But yeah it's from CyberPowerPC. I've since built a computer for a friend and I really wish I had done that to begin with, however I had just graduated high school with a lot of money in my savings lol. Is there any other way to check the reliability of my PSU other than hooking a spare up? If this is 100% the case I could buy a new one, but would suck if I did buy a new one and the issue persisted.

Umm, I don't believe I have anything taped to the back socket of the CPU? I paid extra for the liquid cooling not sure if that would make a difference..

[Evildeffy]

I don't have a spare PSU :/ But yeah it's from CyberPowerPC. I've since built a computer for a friend and I really wish I had done that to begin with, however I had just graduated high school with a lot of money in my savings lol. Is there any other way to check the reliability of my PSU other than hooking a spare up? If this is 100% the case I could buy a new one, but would suck if I did buy a new one and the issue persisted.

Umm, I don't believe I have anything taped to the back socket of the CPU? I paid extra for the liquid cooling not sure if that would make a difference..

Unfortunately PSUs are notoriously difficult to test in general.
Paperclip testing or if you have a device (like I do) that tests the start-up values it gives you a basis if the PSU powers up or not.
It doesn't however tell you how the PSU reacts when load is put on it.

Is there a friend of whom you could borrow a PSU from?
Anything with 500W on the 12V rail will suffice. (a little bit extra for safety)

As far as the last bit goes.. generally not but it is with LED strips they build in, it's easy to check by simply removing the right panel and check.

[Angrush]

Did some research and saw that the AMD High Definition Audio Device in Device Manager can cause issues - I disabled it, and so far I'm 2 days without a crash. I will update if this does not end up fixing the issue.

[callipygoustp]

Did some research and saw that the AMD High Definition Audio Device in Device Manager can cause issues - I disabled it, and so far I'm 2 days without a crash. I will update if this does not end up fixing the issue.

Nice
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