The BSODs started when I was playing graphically intensive games (downloaded through Steam, such as Everquest2 or Borderlands2) every so often (Sidebar--I've crashed recently trying to play Dragon Age Origins, a game that I've played previously with no trouble at all on this computer around 2 months back), but now they've gotten to the point where sometimes the computer trying to use Firefox or even just on the log-in screen before I even try entering my password. I've tried to look at the minidump reports and see what's wrong with them via WhoCrashed, but unfortunately it seems that they aren't always created. Especially since I know I've crashed many more times than the minidumps seem to appear.
Also, many times that the computer restarts (either automatically after a crash, a hard restart, or turning on after I shut down the computer) the Bios screen appears automatically. Quite a few times after I select "Save changes and exit" it'll come up with the Bios screen again. Additionally, the Asus loading screen may come up and stay loading for a couple minutes when loading, something which only took a few seconds in the past. There was also one time yesterday after a crash where the sound wouldn't work due to some sort of error.
I've ran scans from MalwarebytesAntiMalware as well as Avast Antivirus and the already installed Windows Protector scan and came back with nothing significant. I have a weekly defragment on my computer. I've ran the S.M.A.R.T. test and was told that the state of my computer was good, as well as ran Seagates long test to check for errors and came back with nothing (although the first two times I tried running it, the computer crashed within the first 10 minutes).
I'm copy/pasting the WhoCrashed data in case that proves useful.
Thank you for your assistance
System Information (local)
computer name: NINJA
windows version: Windows 8.1 , 6.2, build: 9200
windows dir: C:\Windows
Hardware: Q501LA, ASUSTeK COMPUTER INC.
CPU: GenuineIntel Intel(R) Core(TM) i5-4200U CPU @ 1.60GHz Intel586, level: 6
4 logical processors, active mask: 15
RAM: 6320414720 total
Crash Dump Analysis
Crash dump directory: C:\Windows\Minidump
Crash dumps are enabled on your computer.
On Tue 1/6/2015 9:44:23 PM GMT your computer crashed
crash dump file: C:\Windows\Minidump\010615-145453-01.dmp
This was probably caused by the following module: ntoskrnl.exe (nt+0x150AA0)
Bugcheck code: 0xEF (0xFFFFE0006108E900, 0x0, 0x0, 0x0)
Error: CRITICAL_PROCESS_DIED
file path: C:\Windows\system32\ntoskrnl.exe
product: Microsoft® Windows® Operating System
company: Microsoft Corporation
description: NT Kernel & System
Bug check description: This indicates that a critical system process died.
There is a possibility this problem was caused by a virus or other malware.
The crash took place in the Windows kernel. Possibly this problem is caused by another driver that cannot be identified at this time.
On Tue 1/6/2015 9:44:23 PM GMT your computer crashed
crash dump file: C:\Windows\memory.dmp
This was probably caused by the following module: ntdll.sys (ntdll!RtlRaiseException+0xED9)
Bugcheck code: 0xEF (0xFFFFE0006108E900, 0x0, 0x0, 0x0)
Error: CRITICAL_PROCESS_DIED
Bug check description: This indicates that a critical system process died.
There is a possibility this problem was caused by a virus or other malware.
A third party driver was identified as the probable root cause of this system error. It is suggested you look for an update for the following driver: ntdll.sys .
Google query: ntdll.sys CRITICAL_PROCESS_DIED
On Tue 1/6/2015 9:24:36 PM GMT your computer crashed
crash dump file: C:\Windows\Minidump\010615-23265-01.dmp
This was probably caused by the following module: ntoskrnl.exe (nt+0x150AA0)
Bugcheck code: 0xEF (0xFFFFE0010DDBC900, 0x0, 0x0, 0x0)
Error: CRITICAL_PROCESS_DIED
file path: C:\Windows\system32\ntoskrnl.exe
product: Microsoft® Windows® Operating System
company: Microsoft Corporation
description: NT Kernel & System
Bug check description: This indicates that a critical system process died.
There is a possibility this problem was caused by a virus or other malware.
The crash took place in the Windows kernel. Possibly this problem is caused by another driver that cannot be identified at this time.
On Tue 1/6/2015 2:44:48 AM GMT your computer crashed
crash dump file: C:\Windows\Minidump\010515-20859-01.dmp
This was probably caused by the following module: ntoskrnl.exe (nt+0x150AA0)
Bugcheck code: 0xEF (0xFFFFE00132466900, 0x0, 0x0, 0x0)
Error: CRITICAL_PROCESS_DIED
file path: C:\Windows\system32\ntoskrnl.exe
product: Microsoft® Windows® Operating System
company: Microsoft Corporation
description: NT Kernel & System
Bug check description: This indicates that a critical system process died.
There is a possibility this problem was caused by a virus or other malware.
The crash took place in the Windows kernel. Possibly this problem is caused by another driver that cannot be identified at this time.
On Thu 12/18/2014 11:38:05 AM GMT your computer crashed
crash dump file: C:\Windows\Minidump\121814-37703-01.dmp
This was probably caused by the following module: ntoskrnl.exe (nt+0x153936)
Bugcheck code: 0x9F (0x4, 0x12C, 0xFFFFE00127338880, 0xFFFFF80179AE1980)
Error: DRIVER_POWER_STATE_FAILURE
file path: C:\Windows\system32\ntoskrnl.exe
product: Microsoft® Windows® Operating System
company: Microsoft Corporation
description: NT Kernel & System
Bug check description: This bug check indicates that the driver is in an inconsistent or invalid power state.
This appears to be a typical software driver bug and is not likely to be caused by a hardware problem.
The crash took place in the Windows kernel. Possibly this problem is caused by another driver that cannot be identified at this time.
On Mon 12/8/2014 1:00:30 AM GMT your computer crashed
crash dump file: C:\Windows\Minidump\120714-23046-01.dmp
This was probably caused by the following module: hal.dll (hal+0x658F)
Bugcheck code: 0x9F (0x4, 0x12C, 0xFFFFE00115650880, 0xFFFFF803FE6E6980)
Error: DRIVER_POWER_STATE_FAILURE
file path: C:\Windows\system32\hal.dll
product: Microsoft® Windows® Operating System
company: Microsoft Corporation
description: Hardware Abstraction Layer DLL
Bug check description: This bug check indicates that the driver is in an inconsistent or invalid power state.
This appears to be a typical software driver bug and is not likely to be caused by a hardware problem.
The crash took place in a standard Microsoft module. Your system configuration may be incorrect. Possibly this problem is caused by another driver on your system that cannot be identified at this time.
Conclusion
6 crash dumps have been found and analyzed. A third party driver has been identified to be causing system crashes on your computer. It is strongly suggested that you check for updates for these drivers on their company websites. Click on the links below to search with Google for updates for these drivers:
ntdll.sys
Also, many times that the computer restarts (either automatically after a crash, a hard restart, or turning on after I shut down the computer) the Bios screen appears automatically. Quite a few times after I select "Save changes and exit" it'll come up with the Bios screen again. Additionally, the Asus loading screen may come up and stay loading for a couple minutes when loading, something which only took a few seconds in the past. There was also one time yesterday after a crash where the sound wouldn't work due to some sort of error.
I've ran scans from MalwarebytesAntiMalware as well as Avast Antivirus and the already installed Windows Protector scan and came back with nothing significant. I have a weekly defragment on my computer. I've ran the S.M.A.R.T. test and was told that the state of my computer was good, as well as ran Seagates long test to check for errors and came back with nothing (although the first two times I tried running it, the computer crashed within the first 10 minutes).
I'm copy/pasting the WhoCrashed data in case that proves useful.
Thank you for your assistance
System Information (local)
computer name: NINJA
windows version: Windows 8.1 , 6.2, build: 9200
windows dir: C:\Windows
Hardware: Q501LA, ASUSTeK COMPUTER INC.
CPU: GenuineIntel Intel(R) Core(TM) i5-4200U CPU @ 1.60GHz Intel586, level: 6
4 logical processors, active mask: 15
RAM: 6320414720 total
Crash Dump Analysis
Crash dump directory: C:\Windows\Minidump
Crash dumps are enabled on your computer.
On Tue 1/6/2015 9:44:23 PM GMT your computer crashed
crash dump file: C:\Windows\Minidump\010615-145453-01.dmp
This was probably caused by the following module: ntoskrnl.exe (nt+0x150AA0)
Bugcheck code: 0xEF (0xFFFFE0006108E900, 0x0, 0x0, 0x0)
Error: CRITICAL_PROCESS_DIED
file path: C:\Windows\system32\ntoskrnl.exe
product: Microsoft® Windows® Operating System
company: Microsoft Corporation
description: NT Kernel & System
Bug check description: This indicates that a critical system process died.
There is a possibility this problem was caused by a virus or other malware.
The crash took place in the Windows kernel. Possibly this problem is caused by another driver that cannot be identified at this time.
On Tue 1/6/2015 9:44:23 PM GMT your computer crashed
crash dump file: C:\Windows\memory.dmp
This was probably caused by the following module: ntdll.sys (ntdll!RtlRaiseException+0xED9)
Bugcheck code: 0xEF (0xFFFFE0006108E900, 0x0, 0x0, 0x0)
Error: CRITICAL_PROCESS_DIED
Bug check description: This indicates that a critical system process died.
There is a possibility this problem was caused by a virus or other malware.
A third party driver was identified as the probable root cause of this system error. It is suggested you look for an update for the following driver: ntdll.sys .
Google query: ntdll.sys CRITICAL_PROCESS_DIED
On Tue 1/6/2015 9:24:36 PM GMT your computer crashed
crash dump file: C:\Windows\Minidump\010615-23265-01.dmp
This was probably caused by the following module: ntoskrnl.exe (nt+0x150AA0)
Bugcheck code: 0xEF (0xFFFFE0010DDBC900, 0x0, 0x0, 0x0)
Error: CRITICAL_PROCESS_DIED
file path: C:\Windows\system32\ntoskrnl.exe
product: Microsoft® Windows® Operating System
company: Microsoft Corporation
description: NT Kernel & System
Bug check description: This indicates that a critical system process died.
There is a possibility this problem was caused by a virus or other malware.
The crash took place in the Windows kernel. Possibly this problem is caused by another driver that cannot be identified at this time.
On Tue 1/6/2015 2:44:48 AM GMT your computer crashed
crash dump file: C:\Windows\Minidump\010515-20859-01.dmp
This was probably caused by the following module: ntoskrnl.exe (nt+0x150AA0)
Bugcheck code: 0xEF (0xFFFFE00132466900, 0x0, 0x0, 0x0)
Error: CRITICAL_PROCESS_DIED
file path: C:\Windows\system32\ntoskrnl.exe
product: Microsoft® Windows® Operating System
company: Microsoft Corporation
description: NT Kernel & System
Bug check description: This indicates that a critical system process died.
There is a possibility this problem was caused by a virus or other malware.
The crash took place in the Windows kernel. Possibly this problem is caused by another driver that cannot be identified at this time.
On Thu 12/18/2014 11:38:05 AM GMT your computer crashed
crash dump file: C:\Windows\Minidump\121814-37703-01.dmp
This was probably caused by the following module: ntoskrnl.exe (nt+0x153936)
Bugcheck code: 0x9F (0x4, 0x12C, 0xFFFFE00127338880, 0xFFFFF80179AE1980)
Error: DRIVER_POWER_STATE_FAILURE
file path: C:\Windows\system32\ntoskrnl.exe
product: Microsoft® Windows® Operating System
company: Microsoft Corporation
description: NT Kernel & System
Bug check description: This bug check indicates that the driver is in an inconsistent or invalid power state.
This appears to be a typical software driver bug and is not likely to be caused by a hardware problem.
The crash took place in the Windows kernel. Possibly this problem is caused by another driver that cannot be identified at this time.
On Mon 12/8/2014 1:00:30 AM GMT your computer crashed
crash dump file: C:\Windows\Minidump\120714-23046-01.dmp
This was probably caused by the following module: hal.dll (hal+0x658F)
Bugcheck code: 0x9F (0x4, 0x12C, 0xFFFFE00115650880, 0xFFFFF803FE6E6980)
Error: DRIVER_POWER_STATE_FAILURE
file path: C:\Windows\system32\hal.dll
product: Microsoft® Windows® Operating System
company: Microsoft Corporation
description: Hardware Abstraction Layer DLL
Bug check description: This bug check indicates that the driver is in an inconsistent or invalid power state.
This appears to be a typical software driver bug and is not likely to be caused by a hardware problem.
The crash took place in a standard Microsoft module. Your system configuration may be incorrect. Possibly this problem is caused by another driver on your system that cannot be identified at this time.
Conclusion
6 crash dumps have been found and analyzed. A third party driver has been identified to be causing system crashes on your computer. It is strongly suggested that you check for updates for these drivers on their company websites. Click on the links below to search with Google for updates for these drivers:
ntdll.sys
My Computer
System One
-
- OS
- Windows 8.1
- Computer type
- Laptop
- System Manufacturer/Model
- Asus Q501LA