Nvidia driver crashing during or right after startup

ixfd64 · 2021-03-24, 07:27

I mentioned in another thread that my new laptop sometimes crashes when waking up from sleep. From a closer inspection, the problem appears to be related to the Nvidia driver. Here are the things I've noticed:

The crash only occurs when the laptop wakes up from hibernation or starts up from a powered-down state. It does not seem to happen after a reboot or if the computer is asleep for a short time.
Windows is less likely to show a BSoD if the crash occurs during wake-up from hibernation.
All the stop errors mention the nvlddmkm.sys file, which is the Nvidia driver. The error code is PAGE_FAULT_IN_NONPAGED_AREA most of the time, although I've seen ATTEMPTED_WRITE_TO_READONLY_MEMORY and SYSTEM_THREAD_EXCEPTION_NOT_HANDLED_M as well. WhoCrashed indicates these are all software errors.
The crash does not always cause a BSoD. Sometimes the driver recovers, and sometimes it doesn't — programs like mfaktc will not run in the latter case.
If the crash doesn't occur after the computer starts up, then there are no further issues.
The screen often takes a very long time to turn on even when there is no crash.

So far, I've tried the following solutions:

Updated my Nvidia drivers to the latest version.
Completely reinstalled the drivers after removing them with DDU.
Updated the BIOS to the latest version, which promises stability fixes.
sfc /scannow shows no errors.
Ran the Windows troubleshooter. It didn't find any problems either and only reset my power plan.

Does anyone have any other ideas?

Xyzzy · 2021-03-24, 12:40

Does your laptop have two video "cards"?

https://wiki.archlinux.org/index.php/NVIDIA_Optimus

ixfd64 · 2021-03-24, 14:19

It has both a discrete video card and an integrated GPU, if that's what you mean.

ixfd64 · 2021-06-19, 00:45

I've been keeping the Nvidia drivers up to date, and the issue hasn't come up in a while. It may have been caused by a bug in the driver that was later fixed. Let's hope it stays this way. *knocks on wood*

storm5510 · 2021-07-06, 01:02

I saw on Reddit today that a lot of people are having problems with Nvidia drivers. They reference the 471.xxx release and complain about poor performance and crashing. One individual specifically mentioned a GTX 1080 GPU. These have been around for several years. I have never had any problems with the one I have.

Not long ago, Nvidia released some GPU's referred to as LHR, or "Low Hash Rate." This was their attempt to cut into cryptocurrency mining. Something makes me wonder if the driver code for LHR has been included in drivers for older model GPU's?

2021-03-24, 07:27	#1
ixfd64 Bemusing Prompter "Danny" Dec 2002 California 9C8₁₆ Posts	Nvidia driver crashing during or right after startup I mentioned in another thread that my new laptop sometimes crashes when waking up from sleep. From a closer inspection, the problem appears to be related to the Nvidia driver. Here are the things I've noticed: The crash only occurs when the laptop wakes up from hibernation or starts up from a powered-down state. It does not seem to happen after a reboot or if the computer is asleep for a short time. Windows is less likely to show a BSoD if the crash occurs during wake-up from hibernation. All the stop errors mention the nvlddmkm.sys file, which is the Nvidia driver. The error code is PAGE_FAULT_IN_NONPAGED_AREA most of the time, although I've seen ATTEMPTED_WRITE_TO_READONLY_MEMORY and SYSTEM_THREAD_EXCEPTION_NOT_HANDLED_M as well. WhoCrashed indicates these are all software errors. The crash does not always cause a BSoD. Sometimes the driver recovers, and sometimes it doesn't — programs like mfaktc will not run in the latter case. If the crash doesn't occur after the computer starts up, then there are no further issues. The screen often takes a very long time to turn on even when there is no crash. So far, I've tried the following solutions: Updated my Nvidia drivers to the latest version. Completely reinstalled the drivers after removing them with DDU. Updated the BIOS to the latest version, which promises stability fixes. sfc /scannow shows no errors. Ran the Windows troubleshooter. It didn't find any problems either and only reset my power plan. Does anyone have any other ideas? Last fiddled with by ixfd64 on 2021-03-24 at 21:24 Reason: typo

2021-06-19, 00:45	#4
ixfd64 Bemusing Prompter "Danny" Dec 2002 California 2³×313 Posts	I've been keeping the Nvidia drivers up to date, and the issue hasn't come up in a while. It may have been caused by a bug in the driver that was later fixed. Let's hope it stays this way. knocks on wood Last fiddled with by ixfd64 on 2021-06-19 at 00:51

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2021-03-24, 12:40	#2
Xyzzy Aug 2002 2×3²×13×37 Posts	Does your laptop have two video "cards"? https://wiki.archlinux.org/index.php/NVIDIA_Optimus

2021-03-24, 14:19	#3
ixfd64 Bemusing Prompter "Danny" Dec 2002 California 4710₈ Posts	It has both a discrete video card and an integrated GPU, if that's what you mean.

2021-07-06, 01:02	#5
storm5510 Random Account Aug 2009 Not U. + S.A. 2860₁₀ Posts	I saw on Reddit today that a lot of people are having problems with Nvidia drivers. They reference the 471.xxx release and complain about poor performance and crashing. One individual specifically mentioned a GTX 1080 GPU. These have been around for several years. I have never had any problems with the one I have. Not long ago, Nvidia released some GPU's referred to as LHR, or "Low Hash Rate." This was their attempt to cut into cryptocurrency mining. Something makes me wonder if the driver code for LHR has been included in drivers for older model GPU's?