DesktopPC meltdown

pilaf · Jul 28, 2008

Just within the past week I put in a new psu and replaced my old graphics card with a gtx 260.

I played assassins creed which came with the card, and i cant remember having any problems with it and it may have crashed once but i cant entirely remember.

I decided this game is awesome until i got to the cave area i encountered these odd black bars covering large portions of my screen, I guess it had to do with lighting filters or something but when i looked at a certain area it just lost picture in some areas.

I think that is unrelated to my actual problem though, i got over it and it wasnt a huge deal I could just turn around and back around and they were gone.

BAM

crashed. blue screen, ok so I restart my comp, try to play again. game crashes. somethings wrong with my HD, the system says NTFS.

I have not had any problems like this whatsoever but now various problems occur such as the game crashing when im trying to load a saved game.

tried tons of stuff but got that blue screen like 10 times before so I decided to run in safe mode, xferred some important files over to my backup drive

time to resort to drastic measures.

reformatted and said goodbye to my precious 250 gigabytes of data and let windows install then fell asleep when it was going...

next morning windows loads everythings cool so I reinstall aim msn firefox all that good stuff and reinstall crysis.

i didnt mind replaying thru the game to get where i was, it was pretty fun and im better at it now so i can try different approaches and whatnot anyway i get to the part where you have to rescue the girl in the village before teh tanks come.

well first off, it crashed once or twice while i was in that village, then when i got the girl i went on the roof to shoot the tanks -but the trees... have rainbow colored leaves.. awesome.

anyway i alt f4'd out and uh oh BLUE SCREEN. reboot again, BLUE SCREEN AGAIN.reboot again and this time i get a black screen saying windows file system is NTFS AGAIN!!! AGAIN!.

I reboot and get a blue screen again, reboot again...windows loads fine but random programs are crashing.

I have to actually type this in notepad and copy paste it before firefox crashed again...now 30 minutes after the last crash i get a message (just now) saying this:

A problem with a NVIDIA nForce(TM) SATA Driver driver has caused your computer to shut down and restart unexpectedly. This type of problem is commonly referred to as a "stop error" or "blue screen."

This problem has been fixed in Windows Vista Service Pack 1. first of all im not even USING the SATA chip so that shouldnt even be a problem. I havent installed SP1 yet obviously but this msg doesnt change anything.

Im still posting this and if i can get it to stop crashing ill let you know.. I would post system specs but i truly honestly dont think it makes an iota of difference.

pilaf · Jul 28, 2008

I used the driver that came with the card.

psu: corsair tx650

ive managed to keep the pc running long enough to almost finish downloading SP1 since the stop error said this:

A problem with a NVIDIA nForce(TM) SATA Driver driver has caused your computer to shut down and restart unexpectedly.

thats the chip on my mobo that im obviously not using. im wondering about installing the driver for that and then installing the gtx over it but I dont know if it would have any effect but i cant even deduce a problem without first checking performance after the service pack.

pilaf · Jul 28, 2008

also getting numerous windows error popups saying something like "X program has stopped working due to a problem in the run32.dll" or some random **** like that. ive never seen anything like this on such scale im thinking its pretty deep bc ive gotten that message for at least 10 different processes

Fumz · Jul 28, 2008

You're not alone with nVidia SATA driver problems:
NVIDIA Forums > Blue screen in vista, nForce(TM) SATA Driver

Problem caused by NVIDIA nForce(TM) SATA Driver - Tech Support Guy Forums

Problem caused by NVIDIA nForce(TM) SATA Driver - SLI Zone Forums

I would uninstall it and just use the default Windows driver. See what that does?

pilaf · Jul 28, 2008

drivers are my weakspot. uninstall the gtx driver and use the windows default? whats the windows default?

Fumz · Jul 28, 2008

Not sure what the problem is, but nVidia has for a long time had problems with their hard drive drivers; before this SATA driver problem they had the notorious SW_IDE driver problem.

What I mean by default drivers is to use the SATA drivers that Windows provides. In short, you don't have to do anything but let Windows handle it. The only thing you have to do is uninstall the nVidia SATA drivers; leave the graphics drivers as they are.

You can do that through Add/Remove Programs. Select the nVidia drivers, then select to uninstall a specific driver and choose the SATA driver. Uninstall it, then reboot. With any luck, you'll be back gaming in about 2 minutes.

FYI, there is no fix from nVidia yet, or at least that's what I gather from what little I've read, so if at some point you find yourself re-installing Windows, remember to NOT install the nVidia SATA driver. I'm not familiar with their new chipset driver package, but if it's anything like it was on the nForce 3 or nForce 4, they'll ask you if you want to install this driver separate from the other chipset drivers.

pilaf · Jul 28, 2008

tried the add/remove thing but had 5 successive BSODs, now in safe mode. cant seem to find the add/remove menu here but im trying this:

idk if this will work

pilaf · Jul 28, 2008

perhaps this would also do something

Fumz · Jul 28, 2008

No. What you're doing is messing with the display drivers... stop. Display drivers are not your problem. Your problem is with the nVidia SATA driver.

Boot into Safe Mode, then go to the Control Panel, then go to Add/Remove Programs and remove the SATA driver only according to the instructions above. Again, you do not need to remove the display drivers, only the SATA driver.

Btw, you'll want to place a checkmark back in the nVidia display driver box in MSCONFIG and you'll also want to re-enable the drivers in the services menu... if you've disabled it.

pilaf · Jul 28, 2008

well, didnt work, crysis crashed again. then i got 2 BSODs

my other card xfx 8600gt xxx didnt have any problems like this im pretty sure. i did have a few BSODs over the course of like... 6 months but i dont remember what caused them. not nearly as bad as this though. the problem must have arisen upon introduction of the gtx 260's driver. when i go to remove the sata display driver its not there all it has is "nvidia display driver" type stuff. im assuming it contains the collective of display drivers on my system and i cant select a specific one to disable. according to one BSOD it says the sata driver problem is fixed in SP1 but attempts at DLing failed due to random crashes. im gonna try DLing in safe mode since it seems to not crash here. i was going to uninstall the gtx driver to see if it was causing the driver errors but now im saying **** it. i hope sp1 will DL and install in safe mode and then i can boot with no problem, but if it doesnt work im nuking windows and reformatting again, THEN hopefully itll be stable and wont crash and i can DL SP1 then install the gtx and if what the stop error said was correct and the sata driver erros was indeed fixed in sp1 i wont have any problems

pilaf · Jul 28, 2008

this is the mobo in my rig. the cpu cooler is more expensive than this thing. Newegg.com - JetWay J775GT2-LOG LGA 775 NVIDIA nForce 570 SLI ATX Intel Motherboard - Intel Motherboards
i skimped, i know... i should probably get a new one. im much better with hardware than software but am i wrong thinking that the mobo is linked to that whole sata crap? maybe this problem occurs only on mobos with nforce chips? ill research that if i decide to replace the board.

Fumz · Jul 28, 2008

lol, you weren't kidding when you said you weren't good with drivers.

Yes, the nVidia SATA driver issue is specific to nVidia boards, which is why you have to remove the SATA driver.

when i go to remove the sata display driver its not there all it has is "nvidia display driver" type stuff. im assuming it contains the collective of display drivers on my system and i cant select a specific one to disable.

Perhaps it may be easier to just wipe all your chipset drivers out and start from scratch? If you can't find the SATA driver, you may have no other choice? Download this: Driver Cleaner Professional download from Guru3D.com and save it somewhere. Then go to Add/Remove Programs and uninstall all your nVidia drivers. After you reboot, things will be slower, but let's cross our fingers and hope the repeated crashing doesn't occure?

Once back at the desktop, run the driver cleaner to make sure all traces of the nVidia drivers are gone.

Get your motherboard CD and install the chipset drivers... only this time pay careful attention to what you're installing. If you see SATA, uncheck it/don't select it/choose to not install it, do whatever is required to make sure the nVidia SATA driver does not install.

I would not rely on SP1 to fix this nVidia problem. It may be fixed, maybe not... better to avoid it altogether; besides, it's not like you're going to notice any difference between the nVidia SATA drivers and the Vista default SATA drivers anyway... and best of all, the Windows drivers won't cause you to crash left and right.

johngalt · Jul 28, 2008

Oh, and BTW - readability makes a huge difference. I skipped this post because of readability- and I usually answer *all* new posts here.

Just for the record, I did *not* use the SATA drivers because I am not running any sort of RAID configuration on my HD - and have never had that issue pop up (obviously - if the file ain't there, I ain't gonna have a problem with it).

*BUT* - saying over and over and over that you're having a Blue Screen without telling us what the BSOD *is* is not gonna help us at all. All those funky numbers, like 0xABE5467865567786 etc *mean* something - and would have helped us trace the problem down a *lot* faster.

Now, as Fumz said, don't mess with the nVidia *display* driver - this is not your *video card* causing the problem, it is a driver associated with your *motherboard* - specifically the nVidia SATA driver, which gets installed as a result of you selecting to install the SATA drivers for RAID operation when you used the CD.

Finally, get the *latest* drivers online ***ALWAYS*** - you never know how old the CD is, even if you just bought the card yesterday.

Fumz · Jul 29, 2008

pilaf said:
am i wrong thinking that the mobo is linked to that whole sata crap? maybe this problem occurs only on mobos with nforce chips?

It's not the motherboard, per se, so getting another nVidia chipset, all things being equal, isn't going to help you rid yourself of the problem.

After more reading, it seems that the basic problem is twofold: the nVidia SATA driver and Windows Update. Apparently Windows Update updates the nVidia SATA driver silently, and it's this silent update that's causing all the grief, or at least most of it. The SATA driver itself sucks too, so you should not install it, but you have to stop Windows from slipping it onto your system.

There's really a lot of useful information in this thread, and if you ever decide you want to do some tinkering, it's good stuff: NVIDIA Forums > Blue screen in vista, nForce(TM) SATA Driver

Keep in mind that these recommendations are from guys hell bent on installing the SATA driver to guys hell bent on installing the SATA driver. You do not need the SATA driver. Windows has always done a much better job of managing this than nVidia has.

The first thing you need to do is make sure Windows does not slip back onto the machine the nVidia SATA driver. You're going to have to either turn off automatic updates or automatically download the updates but install them manually. Either way, you have to sort through the updates and deselect any nVidia SATA driver you see... always. Until the issue is resolved, this is just the way it is. Perhaps johngalt can shed more light on how he manages to avoid this issue, because I'm not really sure why yours would update and his would not; he also runs an nVidia chipset?

The second thing you need to do is get rid of that SATA driver. Right click on My Computer and select properties, then the Device Manager. According to the link above, there should be an entry named, "NVIDIA nForce Serial ATA Controller". Highlight it, then select properties/driver tab. If you see that the Provider is nVidia, then you need to uninstall it. Don't roll back, because we're not sure if you'd just be rolling back to a previous version Windows has slipped in? Uninstall, reboot, then go back to the device manager and see if the Provider is now Microsoft.

See if that works?

SCSIraidGURU · Jul 29, 2008

Post your error messages from the event viewer. Use add remove programs to remove your video drivers. Reboot. Delete the old directory for the video drivers. Reinstall your video drivers. Run everything at default. Make sure its works before pushing it. Did you buy a decent power supply? What are the specs on it?

pilaf · Aug 1, 2008

ok im back. i put in another board from another pc. same problem. i cant even install or boot windows on the other one..

anyway, im getting the same issue, host process for windows not working, random **** popping up not working, control panel inaccessable, explorer crashing and restarting itself and blue screens that only last .5 seconds so the only thing i can read is MEMORY MANAGEMENT something...

I have located the add/remove programs function, but the ONLY thing on there is the nvidia display driver for the 8600gt. nothing else. so maybe the sata driver isnt causing the problem on this board?

pilaf · Aug 1, 2008

what makes the whole thing even more strange is that i get MORE problems when using the gtx 260. right now im on the 8600gt and there are still problems but i really have no idea how changing the vga could cause problems before i even installed the drivers for it. so until i get a stable board WITHOUT a nvidia chipset im stuck without all my beautiful games...

Fumz · Aug 1, 2008

For the last time, you really need to calm down and start paying attention; not only to the people here trying to help you, but also to the error messages your computer is giving you.

For some inexplicable reason you keep talking about your graphics card despite the fact that your graphics card isn't what's causing the problem? It's the SATA drivers which are giving you the errors, not your graphics drivers. You've been given several links; read one. Your machine has told you the SATA drivers are the cause of the problem, listen to it.

At this point, it would probably be easiest to just re-format and re-install Windows. However, if you're not going to follow direction, why bother? It's important that you do the format.

After you install Windows, patch to SP1. When you install the chipset drivers, do not install the SATA drivers... I repeat, do not install the SATA drivers. If you just run the driver package and do not pay attention to what you're installing, and again install the SATA drivers, you'll end up in the same place you're at now.

I hope that's clear? I'd like to see you solve the problem, but you've been sort of an unwilling participant in all this... that's somewhat frustrating, so I appologize if I come off sounding harsh. I only mean to get you over this hurdle.

pilaf · Aug 1, 2008

well heres the problem im having NOW:

i did reformat

when i run a perfectly fresh version of windows, It starts crashing before i even have a chance to download and install sp1.

for some reason my original problem board refuses to boot at all.

the only reason i mention the video card is bc i never had this problem until i switched boards. it may be that windows installed an update in the background and it was just coincidentally the same time i installed the card. in fact thats (probably) what it is. but regardless, the first 3 "paragraphs" i just typed above are what are confounding me the most.

dmex · Aug 1, 2008

pilaf,

Are you still getting a BSOD? Because I can lookup the Microsoft database for the exact cause and resolution.

You can also Drop the attitude, swearing/foul language and use grammar, I just cleaned up this thread and dont want todo it again...

Steven

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