Having BSOD problems and I have tired just about everything I could to try and fix it

I was sent here from Reddit, very nice guy said if I don't fix my problem here im SOL.

Alienware m17xr4. windows 7, nvidia 675m geforce

my laptop kept getting blue screens with the error called "NVKFLT"( error 116) then" Nvidia TDR ERROR' if you would like i can post the full error report but essentially it meant my video card timed out and after a few seconds it would give me a BSOD in order to stop the timeout. Problems seem to have started after updating my Nvidia card (675 gtx). Now its what I have been told, but i cannot be 100% sure it was the update itself. Still dont know what exactly the problem is. So one of the first things i did was roll back to the 314.xx(forget exactly) driver. Didnt see a big change really still got BSOD. I got the Original nvidia driver, still got a BSOD. "So it must be a hardware issue" said everyone and i agreed with them for a while, but anyways then i did some more thing specifically related to the TDR error aspect:

First what I did was go into registry and change timeout, standard it is 2 second i made it 5, then 10, then 60, 120 etc. I just kept buying myself more time really. Still got the BS though. Second thing I did was just disable TDR in registry all together, which DID seem to fix most problems for a long time.
Now I dont get blue screens anymore, like i should, but as expected games still crash and I am unable to get rid of them in task manager without completly turning off laptop (holding power button, BUT I KNEW this was going to happen). Now since doing the whole disable TDR, my crash rate has drastically decreased:

For example the months I did not diable TDR i crashed with BSOD over 10 times a week, now in the months since disabling i have had, some weeks 0 to 2. One month was actually crash free! When i do crash it goes in a cycle, I crash, reboot, crash, give up not play games for a few days, then i play for weeks with no error, then crash again. it just seems to not be random, otherwise i would crash irregularly, but im fine for a few weeks then it hits, wait a few days, then im fine, repeat cycle.
Im finding that im more and more inclined to believe that my game crashing is not a hardware issue, but something in the software, i dunno where though. I have done BIOS scans, clear. I have gotten every version of the nvidia drivers, even a full system restore! I have done everything a guy with a lot of time doing research on this can do! Ive found people with same exact problem on this model, but i never get response from them. the only reason I doubt a hardware issue, is because i play games fine 90% of the time, no lag, no problems at all, so if this is a hardware error, I highly doubt its the video card.


Some suggest waiting for Steam OS, or switching OSs, others say its a hardware issue and my card is fried (it really isnt). So any help or ideas I can get from anyone who read through all this is more than appreciated in my book, i wouldnt be able to thank you enough. and i probably missed mentioning a few things so if you have questions im all ears.

Also updated Bios to A12 and passed checks. I have done a factory system restore few months ago. I do fn F7 to switch graphics card to use solely my vidcard, I eventually crash but takes a lot longer.

These laptops are so easy to clean out, and I do so regularly, so i doubt overheating, sometimes im not even playing intense games, like Dishonored isnt very stressful for this, but I have vrashed playing all sorts of low end graphical games.

Only thing i havent done yet is do an OS reinstall but I need a lot of time to do it, so may save that for the weekends.

 

Hi man, you are having the exact same problem I had, and I see others over in the NV forums. Plays fine for a couple of days then it crashes constantly. Many believe it is a driver issue. Often just changing the driver will get you some time to play. Me, I think that the 320.x driver damaged older cards and/or the 580/675m is not a reliable card. The 320.xx was overvolting the card and I saw that. Dell replaced the card and all is well now. This also happened for at least two other NBR members, both with 580m's which is the same card.

See this thread http://forum.notebookreview.com/alienware/721878-nvidia-320-18-driver-warning.html

The latest driver has super low latency and is why most of the TDR, BSOD's have gone but IMO the damage is still there.

If you have done a system restore to factory and it happens again then I would bet on the card being damaged. Far too many people having this. The latest driver 331.92 had reduced or cleared the TDR for many but not all by a long shot. NV won't admit they messed up so the thread is full of people that think NV are just incompetent and cannot produce a good working driver, it's been going on for around 7 months now!

https://forums.geforce.com/default/...driver-feedback-thread-released-11-27-13-/18/

As a last resort do a clean windows install and only use the dell NV driver followed by 314.22 which has been fine and considered the most solid driver they released. If that is good go straight to the latest and test. If it happens again then a new card is going to be needed .

I'm guessing your warranty has expired? If not then all is good, I can advise on the best way to inform dell you need a new card.

Sorry man, I don't hold out much hope but fingers crossed for you

 

So, say you're having this same issue but you don't have a warranty. What is the best solution? Find a local store to replace the card? Or can Dell do it for me without charging an arm and a leg? I'd love to see DotA in high res again. Thankfully the integrated chip can handle it at low res without any chop. I haven't tried a clean reinstall, but with my luck with computers, I'm not really holding out much hope. One other question; if I do change the card, is it worth getting another 580m or should I try for something else, and if so, what would you recommend? Thanks for any insight.

 

Ebay is your friend for the lowest cost. You will need to do some research about pasting but if you are going like-for-like then all you need is some paste and reuse the pads, carefully putting them in the original places IF they stick to the card and not the heatsink.

Any decent local store will be able to do the work for you but it's not that difficult. 7 screws in total as I recall.

If you remove the GPU you get two 'hits'. All the crashes should stop (which again points to a duff card) and you get to see what is involved in doing it yourself. Dell will do it but it's almost certainly going to be expensive - call and see.

As for something different, only the 580m or lesser cards that dell sold with the model can be used without any messing around on your part, but to step-up you're going to need at least a 680m and you will need to research what needs to be done to get it to work (R3).

 

I would say that if you are not good at computers, taking it to a local store is the best option but if you know how to replace parts properly you can find them on eBay.

 

Looks like that seems to be the occuring result I get from sites that the 320 driver corrupt/kills cards....i really dont have any more money to but another card and im out of warranty

Meh... Not too much I can do I guess. I knew in the back of my head that the card was fried but I just wanted to clear out any other possible solutions. I have used the 314.22 driver and I still crsh along with the original Beta driver dell gave me from their site still crash. Well I thank you guys all for the help. All of you have been the most helpful out of everywhere else I have gone, I have been to dell forums, nvidia forums, alienware forums, reddit. You were the best help and I ant thank you enough

EDIT: I can renew my warranty for like 400$, it was the reason I originally didnt renew it. But I dunno if i can pay the money, then ask for a card replacement? Can I do that? It is like getting health insurance while you are having a sickness, they usually dont do that haha!

 

At least if you take the GPU out you should have a working machine - although limited gaming

Yeah, the 'pre-existing conditions' clause would certainly be a possibility but I have heard of dell being OK with late renewal followed by a claim. I knew my GPU was on the way out so renewed mine before it expired. In the UK they do not allow late renewal at all. Once it expires you are SOL. You can't even get a renewal AT ALL for the accidental part. I looked at the US and UK warranty T's & C's and it is clear that in the US you have a legal right to renewal, (I think it's before 90 days after expiry but that will be state dependent, and dell often are a lot more flexible than other OEM's) not so much in other countries

Only you can decide how to go about this but I'm sure you have an idea

 

dell says on their page the following about out of warranty stuff :

After diagnosis by a Dell technician, we'll send you packaging and instructions to mail your notebook to a repair facility.

Your repaired notebook will usually be returned to you in 10-12 business days after you've shipped it.

Call: 1-800-288-4410 Starting at $179 for anything except motherboards and LCDs, which are subject to an additional charge.

AHH STARTING Keyword.


Ok warranty renewal is 278$ i think i should get it, then wait a few months then call it in sound like a plan?

 

Hmm, 'starting at', sounds like that is labor charges and parts are extra? The MB and display take more work to strip out so the base labor will be longer. Just a guess though, it's kinda unclear.

A call will clear it up but I think at that point you have missed the boat for a renewal and repair (once they have your service tag and a report of a hardware problem)

 

i did call them back in september and gave them my email and service tag.....meh....i dunno what to do now...

 

In that case all you can do is call and plead poverty. ' I didn't have the money for the renewal and now that I do the machine has gone bad. Any chance I can still renew and get it fixed.' You never know, you might get a friendly rep. I had an Indian rep go way beyond what I was entitled to when I explained I am house-bound disabled and this machine is my only contact with the outside world!! Sob story I know but I was aware that Indian culture is very sympathetic to disabled people - and it's the truth I told

Good luck.

 

I mean other than playing games my laptop runs fine. So i still have that, maybe i can learn to manage livining with a stupid spotty video card for a bit, then maybe i buy a new one and install that, but for now i really dont have the money to do it

 

Such a shame but at least you have an iGPU to work with to tide you over while saving. If you take the dGPU card out then this will force the iGPU in games. Not so fast and you'll need to lower some settings but you'll appreciate a new card when you can get it