Windows 8 pro upgrade

I cannot see them

 

Ok, here's what I did to get the OSD and Alien Command Center working:

1. Installed Windows 8 with the DVD on my main partition
2. Went through the setup process
3. Installed the Windows 7 Chipset Driver for my Alienware M18x R2 (Intel)
4. Installed the Windows 7 OSD Driver for my Alienware M18x R2
5. Installed the Windows 7 Alienware Command Center Driver for my Alienware M18x R2
6. Installed the Windows 8 Drivers for the rest of the devices (Card Reader, Audio, Management Intel Engine Interface, Graphics, LAN/WiFi, Touchpad and FreeFall Sensor).

After I rebooted my system, I immediately went on checking the OSD buttons which worked correctly (I could confirm this by myself as I was seeing the OSD layers popping up for Eject Button, Increase/Decrease sound and mute).

That's what I did, before this I installed my operating system like 5 times from ground up anew because it was driving me crazy because of this silly little annoying yet not full functional feature

 

Was this on an M18x R2 running Windows 8 Pro ? Also was this machine Bios rev A08? I've never seen something as contrary as this OSD app, mine would install all the functions except the eject button would work and it wouldn't look at all like it used to on windows 7.. I mean my keys / buttons for Binary GFX, Wi-Fi, Sound, and Command Center all worked just no the ever illusive eject button.

I'm beginning to wonder if my machine is not simply cursed or something.

Also a pro tip if you decided to enable the two finger scrolling function in the synaptic pad get ready for some fun because your scrolling will be inverted, up is now down and vise versa just like on a Mac but not an intentional headache. I found that after enabling two finger scroll clicking on the reverse scroll direction check mark, applying and then removing it again resolved that quirk. For anyone who may have been bitten by that bug.

Update:

Installed again on an eSATA drive and did what the post above laid out in exact order and still I have an OSD that sort of works, no distinct Alienware graphics for the buttons you press and most assuredly no eject button. Looks like its time for an OSD A02 release.

Thanks to all that have tried to help I really appreciate it, I'm going to learn how to not use the eject button until a revised OSD comes out, or we can discover the fix.

 

The eject button was a bit hit and miss on windows 7. I had to go to my computer and right click on the drive and select eject most of the time.

 

What clean up did you use? Did it delete any personal information? I just installed Windows 8 as an upgrade on my GF's laptop and its running slower than it did before. I chose the option to keep all the system setting, apps, and personal files. If I choose to use the cleaner would I loose anything?

 

Did you ever get AlienRespawn to work? What sidebar gadgets are you using in the image? Do they work for the Raedon 7970Ms? Also I really thinking about upgrading to Windows 8, but doing so as a clean install. You should provide a guide on doing so. It seems like you got it working with no problems what so ever, and I'm pretty sure everyone would appreciate one especially coming from you.

 

I am on the same boat as you. Reinstalled windows8 5 times no success. I am also on A08 bios...

 

Anyone can help me out with my oriiginal question "I need help , i am getting random BSOD ....and it says IRQL_Unexpected_error value or something .....this is usually happens at any time , the last time i wasnt even using my computer , was on the phone and the next thing i noticed was a BSOD. Any help would be appreciated"

 

To be honest I didn't really look at what was causing it. I was already in the process of running late for work. Now I'm off work and too lazy to boot up a M18x. Thank God for voice dictation and Siri.

 

Well, I took the plunge, and other than the "holy crap where did the start button go?!" experience, it doesn't seem too bad. I haven't run into any major issues yet, although I'm not a hardcore benchmarker like some of the other folks on here. All the games seem to run just fine (SWTOR, MoH Warfighter, WoW, Batman: AC, Dishonored). The only one that's giving me pause is Guild Wars 2. It runs fine (and may even look a little better than before for some reason), but it seems to take a bit longer to load the zones. Not sure if it's local or has to do with datacenter connectivity due to the hurricane. Either way, the load time is noticeable, but the gameplay itself is fine. I'm running the new beta Nvidia drivers.

I do miss the Start button, and I tried out a couple of the alternatives. Still not sure if I'm going to keep one or just try to get used to the new paradigm.

 

@ ligithin

My Alienware M18x R2 is running Windows 8 Pro, the BIOS is an unlocked A03 version, I won't upgrade any further, because I don't need UEFI nor do I need to have my BIOS locked (I'm not quite sure if there's actually an unlocked A08 BIOS available at this time).

Everything works fine for me so far, Windows 8 is extremely fast and reliable, had not a single BSOD yet and most games are running (even Gothic II!).

Edit:

@ evil_mike

Did you try Start8 from Stardock? I'm using it and it's awesome! You get the whole Windows 7 start menu back, even the search feature is included You can customize the start button icon to whatever you want it to be and even switch to a metro style start menu. And the best part, it's only around 5$!

 

I am getting this same issue constantly. Just happened twice within the hour. I use my system all the time for work and now I don't trust it. What is causing this? I assume a driver issue but these are "newish" systems and Microsoft should have accounted for these systems and their drivers. Any one with advise please? Is there some driver that I have to manually install that I missed? I went thru Dell for the alienware utilities, I went thru Nvidia for the latest Windows 8 drivers, I have the latest intel rapid storage. I have the latest kaspersky internet security certified for windows 8. I am kind of at a loss here. The beta never gave me this much trouble. Thanks

 

You could try running Who Crashed to identify the troublesome driver. v4 is the latest from Resplendence and is Windows 8 compatible.

 

Thank you, this helped identify what the problem is. I seem to have multiple issues. I have had intelppm.sys, ntoskrnl.exe, fltmgr.sys, and iastora.sys fail on me. I think a check disk is in order to fix anything corrupt since these are windows specific files. What do you guys think? The install went smoothly so I guess it is what it is.

 

Its driving me crazy ...did you upgrade or fresh install ??

Sent from my HTC One XL using Tapatalk 2

 

I did a fresh install. I had Windows 7 giving me issues every now and then but that was mainly because I ran so many programs and uninstalled and downloaded etc. It was an unorganized mess. So I wanted to start from a clean slate.

Also, chkdsk and chkdisk /r did not fix or find any issues. I might have to repair this by using the Windows 8 DVD I created and using the repair option. At least that is what I have come to understand.

 

After installing the Windows Media Center upgrade, I now get a "waiting for google" message way before google finally loads no matter what browser I use. Has anyone experienced this?

 

I am also on 8ProMC but I am not experiencing your problem, it could be a non-functional DNS node. I would do a DNS flush and then I would check the tracert to google to see if there were any problems. You might want to switch your DNS server too, I recommend the Google DNS (IPv6 DNS servers are available) Public DNS Server List (Updated October 2012).

 

Do you mind sharing the steps you went through to install windows 8? Clean install or upgrade. Also what drivers did you use and the order you installed them in? Does alienates pawn and or autopsy work for you? What about other Alienware apps? Thanks in advance.

 

So i understand this right ....who crashed ...works after i get the BSOD or do i run it before ?

 

Windows 8 nice. I thought at first the new interface will suck for keyboard and mouse users, I was wrong it was actually pretty easy. I went back to windows 7 though since I was having some problems with WarZ, which a clean install would probably fix. I will be going to windows 8 once im ready for a clean install. So +1 for Windows 8!

 

Works after. If you reboot and then run it, it will give you a list of what's happened which is easier to understand.

 

From what I have come to understand, I will probably have to "repair" my installation of windows. Since some of the problems are coming from windows specific .exe files and drivers. I uninstalled the latest intel rapid storage because even though it claims to work with windows 8, I kept getting a BSOD because of it.

 

Sure, no problem. I downloaded all the relevant drivers from Dell's website and the new Nvidia beta driver first. Then I did a clean install because a) it's a best practice, and b) there have been a lot of issues with upgrades. I installed the Intel drivers first, then the Nvidia, then the Bluetooth drivers, freefall sensor, and any remaining ones. Lastly, I installed the OSD and Command Center stuff.

I did not install AlienRespawn or Autopsy.

Some random observations: I noticed that the Norton toolbar does not play nicely with Internet Explorer 10, although it seems to do fine with Chrome in Windows 8 (which is odd, since I had problems with it with Chrome on Win7). I also find that Chrome performs better than IE 10 (not surprising, I suppose).

Hope that helps.

 

I noticed it has gone well for those with the M18x R2. Anyone else having issues with the R1? I am crashing constantly now. I have one device that doesn't have a driver and that is an ACPI device that is unknown. I am having BSOD left and right. It is really frustrating. I wish Dell would support the M18x R1 with Windows 8 :-/ I will hopefully be able to repair my installation later this evening.

 

After reading posts about alien respawn not working I thought I'd give it a go on both systems. It turns out that it is functioning perfect. Is it not suppose to work?

 

ACPI\SMO8800 is the Free fall sensor. I am also not using it myself, it might screw you up. Have you check Whocrashed? What is (are) causing the BSODs?

 

Brother Mike, would you mind sharing with everyone wether or not you installed ALL the relevant Dell drivers such as chipset and MEI etc etc....as if you would have done during a clean install of Windows 7 or did you omit any? - might clear up a bit of confusion as to which Dell drivers people should be downloading/installing after a clean install of Win 8.

I totally agree that a clean install is probably the best approach here when it comes to upgrading to Win 8. Too many variables to go wrong with a normal upgrade. Maybe people wanting to upgrade should do so via bootable media and install Win 8 to a completely blank partition. That's my thinking - if in doubt....nuke it!

 

I crashed again don't really know what to do
This is the who crashed result

On Thu 11/1/2012 7:24:35 PM GMT your computer crashed
crash dump file: C:\WINDOWS\Minidump\110112-23968-01.dmp
This was probably caused by the following module: ntoskrnl.exe (nt+0x7AD40)
Bugcheck code: 0xC8 (0x1, 0x2, 0x0, 0x0)
Error: IRQL_UNEXPECTED_VALUE
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 the processor's IRQL is not what it should be at this time.
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 Thu 11/1/2012 7:24:35 PM GMT your computer crashed
crash dump file: C:\WINDOWS\memory.dmp
This was probably caused by the following module: ak27x64.sys (Ak27x64+0x1FE27)
Bugcheck code: 0xC8 (0x1, 0x2, 0x0, 0x0)
Error: IRQL_UNEXPECTED_VALUE
file path: C:\WINDOWS\system32\drivers\ak27x64.sys
product: Driver for Killer Wireless-N 1100 Series Network Adapter
company: Bigfoot Networks, Inc.
description: Killer Wireless-N 1100 Series LAN device driver
Bug check description: This indicates that the processor's IRQL is not what it should be at this time.
This appears to be a typical software driver bug and is not likely to be caused by a hardware problem.
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: ak27x64.sys (Killer Wireless-N 1100 Series LAN device driver, Bigfoot Networks, Inc.).
Google query: Bigfoot Networks, Inc. IRQL_UNEXPECTED_VALUE



Sent from my HTC One XL using Tapatalk 2

 

I ran whocrashed (wonderful tool) and I get ntoskrnl.exe issues and volmgrx.sys issues. I sometimes get issues with the intel rapid storage but I removed that. I had the latest version from intel claiming Windows 8 support but still got errors so I removed it.

 

two BSOD in the last 5 minutes ....you think i should go back to windows 7

So i am on killers website downloading the drivers for windows 8 if that does not resolve ...screw windows 8

 

Have you tried using the repair function? That is my plan. I do not want to go back to Windows 7. I am spoiled already with Windows 8 and I want it to work. I just downloaded and installed the Free Fall sensor and that cleared up any missing drivers/ unknown devices. So far no BSOD but it has only been 5 min as I am writing this post. We shall see but I plan on "repairing" my windows 8 tonight if I have any more issues.

 

My plan is to instlal the drivers again and repair if not goodbye windows 8 .......i need a working machine for school work and i cant keep wasting time fixing my computer

 

I feel your pain. I just BSOD again so I am definitely going to repair the installation. After that I might try and consult Windows support. It's not like Dell would help It is frustrating... I wish everything just went smoothly.

 

I noticed a lot of BSODs after an upgrade from a clean install of Windows 7. Now, after a clean install of Windows 8 itself, it's as smooth as butter, and ofcourse.. BSOD free.

 

What system is this on? An R1 or R2?

I did a clean install and I am having numerous issues :-/

 

I did a clean install and My Machine is running fantastic.

 

It seems like something is wrong with your disks and or the controller itself. It might also because of RAID 0, try Windows 8 on a single SSD. Intel RST 11.6.0.1030 works well on windows 8, did you install this one? I have the R1 and Windows 8 has been fantastic since Aug (RTM).

The BigFoot driver for Windows 7 also gave me BSODs. In August there was a beta driver for Windows 8 but they didn't publish it publicly, I had to use the default Windows 8 driver until I emailed BigFoot support, the beta driver worked well. The official Windows 8 driver also works well.

 

I went and installed the windows 8 driver from bigfoots website ...and everything seems to be running allright now ...except that i am getting below par gaming performance ...well that could totally be independent of this .

 

What's the Software where you change the keyboard lights etc ? I installed everything from the windows 8 section on Dell's site.

 

Even though my system is running perfect, I wanna see what all the fuss is about. I'm about to do a clean install on my M18x R1 then the R2. Wish me luck/pray 4 me......maybe I can get rid of this latency.

 

In order to do a clean install with the upgrade, did you follow to guide that Stevie shared? Also, for the drivers you listed, did you use the Windows 7 or 8 drivers? I went on Dell's website and say that most of the drivers are now for windows 8.

Mr. fox had stated that he couldnt get it working. Have you tried AlienAutosy?

I agree, that would he nice.

 

M17x R4.

That's the AWCC (Alienware Command Center), which Dell hasn't yet put up for Windows 8. You can use the one for Windows 7. It works well!

 

Yeah, the ACC driver for Windows 8 is not present, currently go for the Win 7 driver, but be assured that the driver can have massive delays after you logged on to your system. My driver fails to respond and takes around 15-30 seconds to actually get itself up and running. Same goes for the OSD driver, Win 7 driver okay with delay, Win 8 driver won't even bother to work...

 

I had a hard time getting rid of the dell 9.73 recovery partition for alienrespawn. I figured that I'd never want to go back to 7 anyways.
Both systems are running better than before after clean W8 install. No problems here. Now I have to install a whole bunch of games/updates

 

I believe they're intentionally designed to be "delayed launchers" at startup much like the pattern Intel follows for SRT and other technologies. It makes room for systems to boot fully with all other components without these utility launchers taking up much CPU time initially.

 

So I tried repairing the installation but it would have an error. Then I tried reinstalling but apparently now it knows it is an upgrade package and not a clean install package and wants Windows 7 on there prior to being installed. So I installed Windows 7 and tried upgrading multiple times and I get errors. This is getting rediculous so I am running Windows 7 now but I plan to fight tonight with it.

 

So while at work, I let my laptop try and upgrade to windows 8. It had failed a few times last night but I made sure to update windows 7 until there were no more updates then I upgraded this morning. It has installed so now I have to install my programs and everything but I will report if I have anymore BSOD issues. Fingers crossed!

 

the best thing to do is a clean install. all my games are running perfect.

 

Thanks for that, all working as it should

Secure erase your ssd's with something like Parted Magic, re install and chose custom install and do a clean install, after finished do the reg hack to activate.