Like Quicksand

I've been fighting computer problems the last few days. My laptop has a problem where it periodically blue screens mostly with a message relating to IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL. Sometimes it gets in a mode where it won't even boot up without crashing and it can take many tries to get it to boot. Googling has never come up with much in the way of useful info. I did find a program that would read the "mini-dump" file and the error was in the kernal, so nothing useful there. Nearly all the references I did find referred to it relating to a driver problem. So why not update some of the drivers?

So I go to the Lenovo site and find one of those cluster f***s that depend on searches to get you materials. Lots of info is just not there, like the actual instructions on installing drivers. They give you lots of versions of the same stuff telling you how to run programs to identify your system which don't work in safe mode. But nothing on how to install the driver once you get it.

I was able to update the wireless driver automatically through device manager. But the video driver wouldn't update. I found the right driver at Nvidia and set it to installing... It's been a half an hour and it's still not done. Task manager shows literally no activity in the CPU, disk and network. Obviously it is hung. No cancel button. I click the red X in the corner and it pops up an intimidating message saying I can't kill the task as it could make my system unstable... like I have much to lose.

I am so over this Lenovo piece of crap! I actually bought a new computer at Costco before the holidays, but the Lenovo ran fairly well so I returned the new one unopened. Two days later the Lenovo crap started crashing on startup again. This time it is really bad. If I can get out of this installation without rendering the computer useless, I'm going to clone the drive first, then wipe it clean and reinstall from scratch. It will take weeks to get everything reinstalled, but I don't see how I have much choice.

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Rick C
Reply to
rickman
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Before you do anything drastic boot the thing from a Linux live CD and see if the problem is OS related or a hardware failure. The last time I had kernel panics was down to bad capacitors on a motherboard, failing ram and before that a rare race condition on a peripheral controller.

Nirsofts tool is about as good as any for reviewing BSOD crashes for patterns.

formatting link

They assume you have an IT department to do it for you.

It is generally a very bad idea to install a generic video driver on a manufacturers bespoke laptop implementation of video hardware. Kill it and go back to the restore point you did before starting the install.

Check that you aren't dealing with a hardware fault first!

If the Linux kernel has similar panics and can't run a memory test then you will waste a lot of time reinstalling windows to no avail.

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Regards, 
Martin Brown
Reply to
Martin Brown

I know that the Ubuntu live CD has memtest on it, to work out the computer with. If that fails, it's the hardware.

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Tim Wescott 
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Reply to
Tim Wescott

Virus perhaps? What O.S., likely Windows? If so obtain yourself a copy of Linux Mint Live and boot to that off of the DVD and see how you like that maybe?

formatting link
download and burn the iso to DVD

You do not have to install as you can run it in memory to see how you like it and if anything it should reveal whether your problem is hardware or software related.

I am writing this on an old dual core Lenovo and literally none of my computers have given me any difficulty what so ever in the last 21 years since making the switch and as I do not game I just never have missed Winblows.

Not all hardware is 100 percent Linux compliant but I've had little difficulty on that point and absolutely nothing in the way of constant headaches which Windows gave me on a near daily basis.

I have literally not had a crash in 21 years though an occasional program freeze with Firefox or Flash crash but that's OS independent.

Reply to
Wayne Chirnside

Thanks for the link. If I have any more trouble I'll try this.

The only way to kill it was to use the power button. Even a soft reboot hung. But when it came up, the new driver was there, but had an issue, so I uninstalled it and reinstalled it. I don't recall all the details now, but it gave all appearances of being impossible to fix at that point. Since there was no driver, I couldn't get device manager to install the new one. I tried manually running the NVIDIA installer but it claimed there was no appropriate hardware. Bizarrely, after some time the driver magically appears and is now working! I had to do a reboot to get it 100% but it seems to be updated properly now.

With any luck that will have fixed the BSoD problem.

I tried to run some hardware diagnostic software that installed to a USB stick to boot from, but that didn't work so it wouldn't boot. Or I wasn't doing something right to make it boot. Every inch of exploring this is lined with booby traps. I think IT people deserve a raise.

Once I am happy with the state of this damh machine and I get a new SSD for it, I will copy the current system over to the SSD and I plan to make it a dual boot with Linux. Maybe I'll get used to Linux enough that I'll say goodbye to Windows for good.

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Rick C
Reply to
rickman

Yes, seriously, do NOT attempt software rework until you look (at the minimum) at a memory test.

Reply to
whit3rd

SNIP

.

Just a suggestion, remove and refit the SO DIMM memory a few times, or try fitting it in an alternate socket if it's available. If you have a pair, just fit one. This was a common issue on Sony VAIOs...

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Reply to
TTman

The main problem with linux is it's in the hands of kids, and most distros have some key problem. But I still wouldn't go back to windows.

NT

Reply to
tabbypurr

hahahaha...who do you think works at M$? :-)

Reply to
Bill Martin

MS oversees them, and despite the many bugs some issues aren't allowed out the door. That doesn't apply to linux.

NT

Reply to
tabbypurr

I got the new driver loaded although I can't tell you exactly how. I haven't had the BSoD with at least two boots so that, if not cured, is an improvement.

The video is very slow now though. So there is something not right. The only quantitative measure of this I have is the "Windows Experience" index. The Video has gone from around 6 or 7 down too 2.0/4.0. Seems they have a Desktop graphics score and a 3D business and gaming graphics score respectively. It's slow enough to be noticeable so I want to fix it. Not sure how though. I'm not having as much luck finding info on this. Google seems to find a lot of gaming related stuff where they measure performance in fps and no real info on how to fix the issue or even what is wrong.

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Rick C
Reply to
rickman

Everyone at Microsoft who was ever any good has long since cashed out and either retired or headed for even-greener pastures. There's nobody left at Microsoft *but* kids. Kids who want to be IBM salesmen when they grow up.

Meanwhile, nobody -- and I mean nobody -- carries the banner of Bill Gates's old-school technical leadership style like Linus Torvalds does. I'm not a big Linux guy but I'm rooting for them.

-- john, KE5FX

Reply to
John Miles, KE5FX

I sincerely hope linux - or perhaps something else - makes Windows history. The way MS has treated its customers over the years has certainly earnt my avoidance at every possible opportunity.

If Linux is to do this it needs something it doesn't have today. I suggest a standard each distro can be checked against. This would include things like - and these are issues I've bumped into with popular distros -

- file manager doesn't miss files when copying

- full support for NTFS & FAT32

- basic UI functions such as control c, control v etc. work in all apps

- at least 3 years full support, followed by the software repository remaining available for at least 10 years.

- all bundled software to be stable releases. Repository can contain beta but it must be clearly marked.

- necessary codecs included etc etc... just basic sense stuff that's needed for a distro to not be some kid's joke.

NT

Reply to
tabbypurr

Gotcha! NTFS and FAT32 are Microsoft-only, the one because it has only the vaguest of known specifications (about like MicroChannel in the IBM days) and the other because MS wants to collect rent on their patented "features". What you want, is for Microsoft to release the hostages. To another operating system.

Microsoft has a plan to rent all the functions of every computer, in every home, on every desk, and has "never wavered from that vision."

Reply to
whit3rd

I found what is wrong. The Nvidia driver is throwing error 43 and is being disabled. So I am running with just the Intel driver. I'm not sure if that is for a video on the Northbridge chip or if it is for a default minimum functionality required in whoever's video chip is on the board. In any event, the video runs much slower this way.

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Rick C
Reply to
rickman

You need to find the exact Nvideo driver for the chipset and model customisations done to your particular portable - the generic Nvideo chipset driver will almost certainly baulk about loading on a laptop or if it does load will have serious operational problems.

The basic Intel driver for an i3770 can manage WI 6.5 & 6.5 so what CPU does your system have? Portable CPUs are less capable but I'd be surprised if it was as bad as 2.0 unless it has gone back to the most basic memory mapped bit bashing driver version with no hardware assist.

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Regards, 
Martin Brown
Reply to
Martin Brown

FAT & NTFS are used more widely than on MS sytems only. Plenty of linux distros can work with both just fine. Unfortunately some can't.

And never will. The hostages need to walk away, but for that to happen Linux needs to up its game, the way I suggested ought to work.

NT

Reply to
tabbypurr

I'm not clear on what you think has been "customized" for this laptop. Are you suggesting the chip is not the same chip other models of computers use? Or are you saying there are special drivers for the rest of the board, so the graphics driver has to match?

"Intel(R) HD Graphics 4600" is the only driver installed and working.

I looked for a driver on the Lenovo site but nothing there seems to work as it should starting with all the diagnostic tools, the ID tools and the driver. Nothing on the Lenovo web site alters my opinion that the Lenovo name is pure crap!

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Rick C
Reply to
rickman

I know you're trolling, but I'm responding anyway.

Why? NTFS is only of historical interest.

you want to break existing user intefaces to use a "standard" that was invented years after the applications were written?

If you want a perpetual repo download debian. it's only a few hundered gigabytes.

Sounds like debian.

necessary for what? do you mean firmware?

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Reply to
Jasen Betts

intel video is in the CPU package.

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Reply to
Jasen Betts

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