where it says:
_________________________________________________________
Address a problem with NVIDIA Graphics Driver
NVIDIA Graphics Driver has stopped working properly.
A driver update, if available, might prevent this problem from recurring.
There are several ways of locating and installing driver updates, but it is best
to let Windows do this for you. Try the first step below, which describes the
process. If it doesn't produce a driver update that solves the problem, then try
the remaining steps in the order given.
1. Check for optional third-party updates
2. Try updating NVIDIA Graphics Driver manually
3. Check the NVIDIA Corporation website for driver updates
4. Check your computer manufacturer's website for driver updates
���������������������������������������������������������
so I tried everything but the last thing. I downloaded the latest version:
71.89_win2kxp_english.exe
which it appears I already had to begin with, and then searched for it on my
hard drive. I found several other copies in a few different folders, so I copied
versions of the new one into every folder that had a copy already. I don't
remember it asking me if I wanted to replace the ones that were already there,
so could I still be having trouble with an old screwed up copy that it keeps
bumping into without knowing there's a hopefully better copy right in the same
folder? Or what? I got this computer used, and it has some stuff on it I don't
need or even want. Is there a way to find out what programs are using that
driver and remove everything associated with it if I don't want it, or maybe
remove and reload it if I do?
Have you recorded any of the actual error messages ?
The "71.89_win2kxp_english.exe" file is only referenced, at the instant
you install it. After that, the smaller files stored in OS folders, are the
ones that are used on every reboot.
Fixing driver issues is not always easy. I had one case, where no
matter how much research and fiddling with files I did, I could not
get acceleration enabled on my video card. The eventual solution
was to reinstall the OS, to clean up the mess. So while there
can be plenty of well meaning suggestions from people, it
might turn out that no one knows what the problem is. So
that is the "solution of last resort".
But before doing that, at least a thorough listing of the
symptoms, with plenty of details, will help people answering
your question decide whether it is hardware or software. It
helps if there is exact error text from the crash, error
numbers in hexadecimal and so on.
Once the "serious problem" message is gone, does the computer
work properly after that ? Can you play games, and do the 3D
games render properly and at full speed ? Sometimes a problem
is serious enough, that the computer will immediately reboot.
Is that what is happening ?
What is the make and model number of the computer ? An example
of a make would be "Dell" and a model number would be "Inspiron 1525".
That gives the readers some idea of what vintage of computer it
is. Since you're using a relatively old driver (71.89), that
suggests the video card must be an older one, or that your
OS is something older than WinXP. The last driver for Win98,
was something like 81.98.
http://www.nvidia.com/object/win9x_81.98.html
This is the hardware supported by that driver version.
http://www.nvidia.com/object/81.98_9x_supported.html
Other OSes may have newer drivers, but they stopped supporting
some of the cards on that list. For example, the most recent
WinXP driver wouldn't support FX5200 but would support a
Geforce 6200.
But at this point, there isn't enough evidence to say whether
a driver change will make any difference at all.
Paul
One time it said:
_________________________________________________________
BCCode : 100000ea BCP1 : 83158020 BCP2 : 83168F60 BCP3 : F8C68CB4
BCP4 : 00000001 OSVer : 5_1_2600 SP : 2_0 Product : 768_1
C:\DOCUME~1\MIKEWA~1\LOCALS~1\Temp\WERb07f.dir00\Mini092409-02.dmp
C:\DOCUME~1\MIKEWA~1\LOCALS~1\Temp\WERb07f.dir00\sysdata.xml
���������������������������������������������������������
and another time it said:
_________________________________________________________
BCCode : 100000ea BCP1 : 831A6DA8 BCP2 : 8321A340 BCP3 : F8C64CB4
BCP4 : 00000001 OSVer : 5_1_2600 SP : 3_0 Product : 768_1
C:\DOCUME~1\MIKEWA~1\LOCALS~1\Temp\WERb4de.dir00\Mini100409-07.dmp
C:\DOCUME~1\MIKEWA~1\LOCALS~1\Temp\WERb4de.dir00\sysdata.xml
���������������������������������������������������������
>The "71.89_win2kxp_english.exe" file is only referenced, at the instant
>you install it. After that, the smaller files stored in OS folders, are the
>ones that are used on every reboot.
So does that mean this particular driver is necessary in order for the computer
to run, so I can't just delete it and whatever program it's associated with?
>Fixing driver issues is not always easy. I had one case, where no
>matter how much research and fiddling with files I did, I could not
>get acceleration enabled on my video card. The eventual solution
>was to reinstall the OS, to clean up the mess. So while there
>can be plenty of well meaning suggestions from people, it
>might turn out that no one knows what the problem is. So
>that is the "solution of last resort".
>
>But before doing that, at least a thorough listing of the
>symptoms, with plenty of details, will help people answering
>your question decide whether it is hardware or software. It
>helps if there is exact error text from the crash, error
>numbers in hexadecimal and so on.
>
>Once the "serious problem" message is gone, does the computer
>work properly after that ?
I haven't had any problem with it after it finally gets going, and I leave it
on for days at a time.
>Can you play games, and do the 3D
>games render properly and at full speed ? Sometimes a problem
>is serious enough, that the computer will immediately reboot.
>Is that what is happening ?
I don't play any games with it.
>What is the make and model number of the computer ? An example
>of a make would be "Dell" and a model number would be "Inspiron 1525".
>That gives the readers some idea of what vintage of computer it
>is. Since you're using a relatively old driver (71.89), that
>suggests the video card must be an older one, or that your
>OS is something older than WinXP. The last driver for Win98,
>was something like 81.98.
>
>http://www.nvidia.com/object/win9x_81.98.html
>
>This is the hardware supported by that driver version.
>
>http://www.nvidia.com/object/81.98_9x_supported.html
I searched my hard drive for anything named GeForce or Quadro, and all it came
up with is:
If that's the only thing that cares about that driver and I find it and trash
it, might that end the problem? Come to think of it it has been several months
since this problem began, and it may have started in March 2009.
>Other OSes may have newer drivers, but they stopped supporting
>some of the cards on that list. For example, the most recent
>WinXP driver wouldn't support FX5200 but would support a
>Geforce 6200.
I don't want any stuff like that, so is there a way to find the program that's
using it and get rid of everything associated with it including the driver?
0x000000EA: THREAD_STUCK_IN_DEVICE_DRIVER
>> The "71.89_win2kxp_english.exe" file is only referenced, at the instant
>> you install it. After that, the smaller files stored in OS folders, are the
>> ones that are used on every reboot.
>
> So does that mean this particular driver is necessary in order for the computer
> to run, so I can't just delete it and whatever program it's associated with?
>
The way Windows works, is it is prepared to work with no video driver.
Video cards have a default mode they (most all) support. It is something
like a VESA mode. The Windows OS has a pre-installed driver, that knows
how to talk to any video card using VESA mode. So, if you go to "Add/Remove"
and remove the Nvidia driver, then Windows will use the other driver instead,
on the next reboot. The resolution may drop to 640x480 when that happens, so
you don't have a full, high res screen to look at. Operating in that mode is
annoying. Then, you can install some other driver file you download
from Nvidia.
So, yes, you can delete the Nvidia driver. Use "Add or Remove Programs"
to get rid of it. But it is best, if you have a new candidate driver
downloaded all ready, because working in a 640x480 window in 16 colors
is pretty annoying.
>
> I haven't had any problem with it after it finally gets going, and I leave it
> on for days at a time.
>
That is a bit strange. Does that suggest to you, that perhaps some
other piece of software may be contributing to the problem ? If the
Nvidia driver is able to run for days at a time afterwards, without
getting THREAD_STUCK_IN_DEVICE_DRIVER, then that suggests the
driver by itself, may not be at fault.
>
> I don't play any games with it.
>
> I searched my hard drive for anything named GeForce or Quadro, and all it came
> up with is:
>
> http://www.nvidia.com/content/DriverDownload-March2009/includes/us/images/driverpromo_quadro_adobe.jpg
>
> If that's the only thing that cares about that driver and I find it and trash
> it, might that end the problem? Come to think of it it has been several months
> since this problem began, and it may have started in March 2009.
No, that isn't likely to be it.
>
> I don't want any stuff like that, so is there a way to find the program that's
> using it and get rid of everything associated with it including the driver?
I hesitate to suggest this, but I'll mention it anyway. If you go to the
driver download page, "Option 2" is a scanner for your hardware. It will
try to find the driver needed.
http://www.nvidia.com/Download/index.aspx?lang=en-us
*Always* save the driver you have currently, and keep track of which
ones you've installed, so you'll know later what is going on. If
the new driver doesn't work, you can uninstall that after you've tested
it. WinXP, in the Device Manager, has a "rollback" button for the video
card driver, but it only rolls back one driver version. You can manage
your video driver, just as easily, by using "Add or Remove Programs".
But so you won't be stuck in 640x480 forever, have the old driver
handy, just in case.
I recommend always uninstalling the old driver first, before installing
the new one.
What I cannot predict, is what the driver installers do with registry
entries. On the one hand, they will remove stuff related to the
card type perhaps, but if you had a problem, like the display
resolution was set to a too-high value, the installer doesn't
appear to change or delete that setting.
If you get in trouble, you can also press F8 at startup, and enter
Safe Mode. There are items like "Last Known Good Configuration". Take
a moment to test F8 at startup, so you know how it works, and what
menu options are available. One of the options should be
"start windows normally", so you can exit F8 without invoking any
of the Safe Mode features.
http://pcanand.files.wordpress.com/2009/05/safe_mode_01_01.jpg
Paul
>wr@jr. wrote:
>>
>> One time it said:
>> _________________________________________________________
>> BCCode : 100000ea BCP1 : 83158020 BCP2 : 83168F60 BCP3 : F8C68CB4
>> BCP4 : 00000001 OSVer : 5_1_2600 SP : 2_0 Product : 768_1
>>
>> C:\DOCUME~1\MIKEWA~1\LOCALS~1\Temp\WERb07f.dir00\Mini092409-02.dmp
>> C:\DOCUME~1\MIKEWA~1\LOCALS~1\Temp\WERb07f.dir00\sysdata.xml
>> ���������������������������������������������������������
>> and another time it said:
>> _________________________________________________________
>> BCCode : 100000ea BCP1 : 831A6DA8 BCP2 : 8321A340 BCP3 : F8C64CB4
>> BCP4 : 00000001 OSVer : 5_1_2600 SP : 3_0 Product : 768_1
>>
>> C:\DOCUME~1\MIKEWA~1\LOCALS~1\Temp\WERb4de.dir00\Mini100409-07.dmp
>> C:\DOCUME~1\MIKEWA~1\LOCALS~1\Temp\WERb4de.dir00\sysdata.xml
>> ���������������������������������������������������������
>
>0x000000EA: THREAD_STUCK_IN_DEVICE_DRIVER
>
>http://aumha.org/a/stop.htm
Thanks for that link. Are the forums they mentioned helpful? I couldn't get
anything out of the NVIDIA forum I tried.
>>> The "71.89_win2kxp_english.exe" file is only referenced, at the instant
>>> you install it. After that, the smaller files stored in OS folders, are the
>>> ones that are used on every reboot.
>>
>> So does that mean this particular driver is necessary in order for the computer
>> to run, so I can't just delete it and whatever program it's associated with?
>>
>
>The way Windows works, is it is prepared to work with no video driver.
>Video cards have a default mode they (most all) support. It is something
>like a VESA mode. The Windows OS has a pre-installed driver, that knows
>how to talk to any video card using VESA mode. So, if you go to "Add/Remove"
>and remove the Nvidia driver, then Windows will use the other driver instead,
>on the next reboot.
I didn't try to delete it but I looked in "Add/Remove" to see if I saw it listed
and I couldn't find it if it's there. Could it be under a different name or
something?
>The resolution may drop to 640x480 when that happens, so
>you don't have a full, high res screen to look at. Operating in that mode is
>annoying. Then, you can install some other driver file you download
>from Nvidia.
>
>So, yes, you can delete the Nvidia driver. Use "Add or Remove Programs"
>to get rid of it. But it is best, if you have a new candidate driver
>downloaded all ready, because working in a 640x480 window in 16 colors
>is pretty annoying.
>
>>
>> I haven't had any problem with it after it finally gets going, and I leave it
>> on for days at a time.
>>
>
>That is a bit strange. Does that suggest to you, that perhaps some
>other piece of software may be contributing to the problem ? If the
>Nvidia driver is able to run for days at a time afterwards, without
>getting THREAD_STUCK_IN_DEVICE_DRIVER, then that suggests the
>driver by itself, may not be at fault.
From my ignorant pov after reading their explanation this seems like it might be
the best approach:
_________________________________________________________
. . .
This issue occurs if the graphics adapter is caught in an infinite loop while it
waits for the video hardware to become idle. This can indicate that there is a
problem with the video hardware, or that the graphics adapter cannot program the
hardware correctly.
. . .
Method 2: Adjust the Hardware Acceleration
1. Click Start, click Control Panel, and then double-click Display.
2. On the Settings tab, click Advanced, and then click the Troubleshoot tab.
3. Move the Hardware Acceleration slider to None, and then click to clear the
Enable write combining check box.
4. Click OK, and then click OK.
Note This procedure prevents the graphics adapter from programming the hardware
incorrectly, but you may lose some display functionality and performance.
Although you can increase the hardware acceleration settings higher than None to
regain functionality and performance, these settings increase the possibility
that the issue will occur again. For maximum stability, leave hardware
acceleration off.
http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=293078&sd=RMVP
���������������������������������������������������������
Do you think I should try it? Will I have to restart that computer?
>> I don't play any games with it.
>>
>> I searched my hard drive for anything named GeForce or Quadro, and all it came
>> up with is:
>>
>> http://www.nvidia.com/content/DriverDownload-March2009/includes/us/images/driverpromo_quadro_adobe.jpg
>>
>> If that's the only thing that cares about that driver and I find it and trash
>> it, might that end the problem? Come to think of it it has been several months
>> since this problem began, and it may have started in March 2009.
>
>No, that isn't likely to be it.
>
>>
>> I don't want any stuff like that, so is there a way to find the program that's
>> using it and get rid of everything associated with it including the driver?
>
>I hesitate to suggest this, but I'll mention it anyway. If you go to the
>driver download page, "Option 2" is a scanner for your hardware. It will
>try to find the driver needed.
>
>http://www.nvidia.com/Download/index.aspx?lang=en-us
>
>*Always* save the driver you have currently, and keep track of which
>ones you've installed, so you'll know later what is going on.
Should I make a list so I can do a search for them later? And how to know where
to put them after I download them? Do they all go in the same folder? I believe
there are three of four folders that contain that driver right now.
>If
>the new driver doesn't work, you can uninstall that after you've tested
>it. WinXP, in the Device Manager, has a "rollback" button for the video
>card driver, but it only rolls back one driver version. You can manage
>your video driver, just as easily, by using "Add or Remove Programs".
>But so you won't be stuck in 640x480 forever, have the old driver
>handy, just in case.
>
>I recommend always uninstalling the old driver first, before installing
>the new one.
>
>What I cannot predict, is what the driver installers do with registry
>entries. On the one hand, they will remove stuff related to the
>card type perhaps, but if you had a problem, like the display
>resolution was set to a too-high value, the installer doesn't
>appear to change or delete that setting.
>
>If you get in trouble, you can also press F8 at startup, and enter
>Safe Mode. There are items like "Last Known Good Configuration". Take
>a moment to test F8 at startup, so you know how it works, and what
>menu options are available. One of the options should be
>"start windows normally", so you can exit F8 without invoking any
>of the Safe Mode features.
>
>http://pcanand.files.wordpress.com/2009/05/safe_mode_01_01.jpg
>
> Paul
After it tries to boot up the first time and fails it brings up the option of
starting in Safe Mode or normally. When I choose to start normally it usually
brings up the Dell window or something, and then clicks and buzzes for a few
seconds with a black screen, then it shuts down entirely and the power light on
the monitor starts to blink. Then if I leave it alone for a bit the computer
will try again, and will go to the window giving the start mode options. If I
don't do anything it will try to start normally after so many seconds, fail, and
do the same thing over and over and over... But if I start in Safe Mode, then
shut down, then re-start that is when it will sometimes work okay. And sometimes
after it has been sitting unused for a day or more it will start okay the first
time on its own, and will give the error messages about having recovered from a
serious problem.
FIRST YOU SAID:
��������������������������������������������������������
> Should I make a list so I can do a search for them later? And how to know
> where
> to put them after I download them? Do they all go in the same folder? I
> believe
> there are three of four folders that contain that driver right now.
>
AND ON THE ORIGINAL THREAD:
71.89_win2kxp_english.exe
AND SO I WONDER:
Twice you reference putting the driver files into certain folders. Did you
actually install these drivers?
Does the device show up in Device Manager?
If so, did you try to use the Update Driver function there?
You might also use Add/Remove Hardware to reinstall the device and when
asked for the drivers, browse to wherever you have the drivers stored. May
help, may not.
As Paul points out, always backup your drivers before updating or replacing
them.
There are software programs out there, both freeware and paid, for backing
up drivers.
Personally, I keep a DRIVERS directory to hold copies of drivers (classified
by types) of my own systems as well as others I maintain or rebuild.
Don't know if you use one or not, but it might be helpful to use an Action
Log to document your system and all its System Info, its errors with the
messages it displays (with date & time), each step you take in trying to
correct the problem, and the direct result of those steps.
Maybe not...I don't know. Doing a search for
71.89_win2kxp_english.exe on the hard drive brings up two results
for a 19,382 KB Application. They are located in:
C:\cdj840\2kxpinf\enu\drivers\win2k_xp
C:\Documents and Settings\Mike Ward\Desktop\K
and both were created October 5, 2009. Both are File Version
2.11.15.0
>Does the device show up in Device Manager?
I couldn't find Device Manager. I did a hard drive search and it
came up with 0 results.
>If so, did you try to use the Update Driver function there?
>
>You might also use Add/Remove Hardware to reinstall the device
I don't know which device it would be. How to find out?
>
> I couldn't find Device Manager. I did a hard drive search and it
> came up with 0 results.
>
There are different ways of accessing it, and this is just one.
Go to Start:Run dialog, and enter this as the command.
devmgmt.msc
The Device Manager should pop up. That shows the hardware
devices. There is info buried in each entry, with info
like drivers and so on.
For some more fun, use Start:Run again, and type this command
dxdiag
It will take up to 30 seconds for the window to fully load. Then,
use the "Display" tab, to learn more about your hardware.
Because there are so many numbers involved in driver versions,
it is very hard to tell, after the fact, what file was installed
to get the drivers that are currently there.
You might be better off looking in the Control Panel for
"Add or Remove Programs", to get some idea what driver
package you installed.
If you're still not sure, give this a try.
http://www.techpowerup.com/downloads/1642/TechPowerUp_GPU-Z_v0.3.5.html
GPU-Z.0.3.5.exe
There is a driver version field on the GPU-Z window.
HTH,
Paul
>> Does the device show up in Device Manager?
wr> I couldn't find Device Manager. I did a hard drive search and
wr> it came up with 0 results.
Oh-oh.
I suggest a Mac.
--
If a man would follow, today, the teachings of the Old Testament, he
would be a criminal. If he would follow strictly the teachings of the
New, he would be insane.
~ Robert G. Ingersoll
Are you familiar with the Control Panel? This has a lot of your basic tools
for operating windows. I'm going to walk you through the Settings path.
There are other ways to get there, but we'll just use this one for now.
But first, BACKUP your drivers and set a System Restore Point
You may want to print this out because of all the steps (simple steps, but
many). The steps I'm giving you are to Update Driver using the driver you
downloaded into whatever folder you put it in. Obviously, the steps vary
for other choices. Let's just use Update Driver now and see what happens.
Now, let's proceed.
To locate your Device Manager via Control Panel, select:
1) Start menu
2) Settings
3) Control Panel
The Control Panel has a whole bunch of different controls options.
The ones you should familiarize yourself with at the basic level are: Add
Hardware, Add or Remove Software, Display, and System. The others are
either more specific or more advanced and aren't relevant here.
Now to locate the Device Manager:
4) System
When you select System, it brings up a whole slew of information
with tabs including General, Computer Name, Hardware, Advanced, System
Restore, Automatic Updates, and Remote.
Copy down the info about your computer from the General tab for
future reference.
5) Hardware - Select the hardware tab and it will show Device Manager,
Drivers, and Hardware Profiles.
6) Device Manager - Select the Device Manager tab. This is what you're
looking for. After a few seconds, the Device Manager will display a list
of drop down categories of devices you can control. Among all the others,
you should have Display Adapters, Monitors, and Sound, Video and Game
Controllers. These three deal with your system graphics. We won't worry
about Imaging Devices and others at this point.
7) Select Display Adapters and it will drop down a list of display
devices the system recognizes. Your NVIDIA should be here.
8) Select the NVIDIA graphics device you are using. Right Click once to
show your options menu.
9) Select Properties. The Properties window should pop up. It has four
tabs: General, Driver, Details, and Resources. The two you need to worry
about are General and Driver.
10) General tab - This shows:
Device type (display adapters), the Manufacturer, and the
location of the device (PCI bus ... or something like that).
Device Status (with an info window and a Troubleshoot
button)
Device usage: with the options Use This Device (Enable) and
Do Not Use This Device (Disable)
a) Make sure the Device Status says "This device is working
properly. If your are having problems with this device, click Troubleshoot
to start the Troubleshooter." DON'T CLICK Troubleshoot yet. We'll get into
that if updating your driver doesn't work.
b) Make sure the Device usage says Use this Device (enable). If
it doesn't, change it.
11) Driver tab - This shows the device and its own drivers along
with the Driver Provider, Driver Date, Driver Version, and Digital Signer.
It also has four buttons: Driver Details, Update Driver, Roll Back Driver,
and Uninstall.
12) Driver Details button - This will show all the driver files
associated with your device. Is there anything there?
13) Update Driver button - This will bring up the Hardware Update
Wizard. It will ask "Can Windows connect to Windows Update to search for
software?". Since you already have the updated driver downloaded and know
its location, you can select "No, not this time" and Click Next to continue.
(Usually, I let the system do its thing from this point on except
under specific circumstances. For our purposes, this is one of those
exceptions.)
The wizard will state in bold "If your hardware came with an
installation CD or floppy disk, insert it now."
Then it asks "What do you want the wizard to do?"
a) If you want the system to do the job, select "Install the
software automatically (Recommended)."
b) If you want to go directly to the driver you have downloaded,
select "Install from a list or specific location (Advanced)."
Assuming this is what we're doing:
Click Next to Continue.
c) The wizard says "Please choose your search and installation
options."
d) De-select "Search removable media" and Select "Include this
location in the search." Select the Browse button.
On the Browse for Folder window, follow your directory tree down
to whatever folder you have your Driver in and select that folder.
e) Hit OK and the window goes away. Back on the Hardware Update
Wizard, hit Next.
f) The wizard searches your file and sees if the driver you
downloaded is right. If not, it will say "Cannot Continue the Hardware
Update Wizard - The wizard could not find a better match for your hardware
than the software you currently have installed. Choose what you want to do.
To keep the current software, click Finish. To search again in another
location, click Back."
g) If the wizard finds one in that folder, it will display it.
Select it and go.
h) If the wizard doesn't, use the Back keys to go back to the
window that said "If your hardware came with an installation CD" and select
"Install the software automatically (Recommended)." It will search all over
for a better driver. If it finds one, it will come up with it and you
select it and go.
If this process doesn't solve your problem, you'll need to uninstall and
reinstall the driver or the uninstall and reinstall the hardware. Let us
know if so and we'll walk you through reinstalling.
Hope all this helps. If not, feel free to ignore it.