problem with my graphics drivers.. i think

[Diamondis 0]

im having trouble with my PC. im on windows XP SP2, i have a GeForce4 MX 440 with AGP8X, but when i install my drivers.. my PC crashes. if i dont have any drivers installed my PC works fine apart from all the usual stuff that happens cos u have no drivers. if i install any drivers, it works fine for a little bit, then my screen freezes and flickers on then off, and sometimes it doesnt work again until i shut off my PC by the power button at the front. this only sometimes happens when i use my PC for everyday things like the internet, but when i play my online game Final Fantasy XI, it always happens. id post a pic of what i mean but.. i dont see an attatch file button x.x;

 

i may have rambled so here it is in short >< without any drivers my PC works ok. when i install them, it crashes either when i play my game or just any time it likes. anyone know what this is? im stumped

[Relic 0]

Which drivers are you using?

[Diamondis 0]

ive used a ton of them and they all did the same thing, i tried the latest, i tried 44.03from may 2003, 45.23 from august 2003, 45.33 from october 2003, 53.04 from feb. 2004, and some others >< right now i have 71.89 from april 2005.. still getting the same problem

[Sampson 0]

It may be any number of things including a bad card. But, what usually sets off nVidia drivers is that they interfere in the memory space of another process or program. This does not happen at first, but seemingly randomly the screen goes blank, blinks, and if you have the BSOD report it will tell you that there has been a memory conflict and it will point the finger at nv4_disp.dll. One method of stopping this is the following:

 

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.

 

It doesn't always work. This is also called the nVidia infinite loop problem. To date no one seems to have a resolution for it. That having been said, when you load up your browser (since you seem to be able to trigger it going on the net), bring up your Task Manager (Ctrl-Shift-ESC), note the amount of memory being used. (Pay attention to those which use more than 20,000 bytes and those that grow by 10,000 to 30,000 more. Everytime you load a new page or whatever bring up the Task Manager and note the differences in programs. What could be happening is that some program or process grows to the point that the driver and the process exceed or conflict with each other for memory space. If the program is something like a popup blocker you could shut it down then bring it back up for it to release some memory and not have the machine crash.

[Relic 0]

Have you tried up[censored] the chipset drivers for your mobo?

[Diamondis 0]

i tried what the poster 2 posts above this one said and it made it noticably worse x.x; and to the poster above >.> tell me what that is and ill try it lol

[Relic 0]

Originally posted by Diamondis:

Quote:

i tried what the poster 2 posts above this one said and it made it noticably worse x.x; and to the poster above >.> tell me what that is and ill try it lol

 

What brand and version of motherboard are you using? You want to update the the AGP chipset drivers for the motherboard itself. Before I can attempt to help anymore, I need to know what motherboard you have.

[Sampson 0]

Sorry, Diamondis, that the simpler things didn't work. Relic seems to think that it has something with the AGP chipset drivers. That may well be the problem. What I would ask you to do in the meantime is monitor the Task Manager. It only requires you to hit Ctrl-Shift and ESC to bring it up. What most people think that is happening is that another program or process interferes with the nvidia drivers and competes for a particular memory address. Just watch the progams that grow larger as you use your computer on the internet.

[Diamondis 0]

Motherboard Properties

Motherboard ID 08/12/2003-nVidia-nForce-6A61BM49C-00

Motherboard Name MSI K7N2 (MS-6570)

 

Front Side Bus Properties

Bus Type DEC Alpha EV6

Bus Width 64-bit

Real Clock 100 MHz (DDR)

Effective Clock 200 MHz

Bandwidth 1600 MB/s

 

Chipset Bus Properties

Bus Type HyperTransport v1.0

Bus Width 8-bit

 

Motherboard Physical Info

CPU Sockets/Slots 1

Expansion Slots 5 PCI, 1 AGP, 1 ACR

RAM Slots 3 DIMM

Integrated Devices Audio

Form Factor ATX

Motherboard Size 230 mm x 300 mm

Motherboard Chipset nForce2-SPP

Extra Features Fuzzy Logic 4

 

Motherboard Manufacturer

Company Name Micro-Star International

Product Information http://www.msi.com.tw/program/products/mainboard/mbd/pro_mbd_list.php

BIOS Download http://www.msi.com.tw/program/support/bios/bos/spt_bos_list.php

 

that what u need? >.>;

 

[Diamondis 0]

ive been watching my task manager like u said, everything seems fine, nothings growing much.

[Relic 0]

Your chipset drivers can be found here: http://www.msi.com.tw/program/support/dr...age=2&num=0

 

You want this driver NVIDIA nForce2 System Drivers for MCP2 of SB. I don't know if this link will work for the download, but give it a whirl.

 

javascript:void(window.open('/program/support/download/dld/spt_dld_file_record.php?folder=2&kind=1&name=NF2_MCP2.zip','open','width=550,height=250,scrollbars=yes,resizable=no'))

 

I really doubt that link will work from here, you'll have to go to MSI's site.

 

 

[Diamondis 0]

the link worked ^^ and it installed fine, but my moniter still goes crazy and crashes when i install graphics drivers =(

[Relic 0]

Originally posted by Diamondis:

Quote:

the link worked ^^ and it installed fine, but my moniter still goes crazy and crashes when i install graphics drivers =(

 

Something I forgot to ask: Did you just install the MX440, or was it already in your system? Did the problems start after installing SP2 for XP?

 

I do believe SP2 has DirectX 9c in it. Your card only supports DX8.1. Usually this is not a problem, the card will work, it just won't be able to use all the features of DX9. This could be different in your case.

 

Click "Start/Programs/Accessories/System Tools/System Information". In the new window, click "Tools" in the upper bar, then select "DirectX Diagnostic Tool". In the "System" tab, it will give you the version of DirectX that you have installed.

 

Contrary to what some say, DX9 can be removed, I've done it myself, so I know it works. Check your version and let us know what it is.

[Diamondis 0]

ok heres my history with this problem.. i had it once and didnt know what it was, i messed around with virus scanners and spyware scanners etc, and it just.. fixed itself so i thought it was a virus. about 6 months later, it started again, couldnt find any viruses etc, so i reformatted and it seemed to fix itself again. this time.. no virus.. so i reformatted, but this time it didnt fix itself, i noticed it didnt start until i installed the drivers.

 

the MX440 was in my PC when i bought it, but ive reformatted so im having to re-do the driver thing etc. about the SP2 thing.. im not sure, i seem to recall having this problem with SP1 but i may be mistaken, and i have D9X... and as ive been writing this reply my screen just flashed off and on.. when it came back on my settings had changed from 1024 x 768 to something like 640 x 480 >.>;;

[Diamondis 0]

oh no.. >< my screen is flickering again.. and i dont have any drivers installed!! except the one you gave me the link to im so confused

 

[Relic 0]

Well, I'm starting to think it's a hardware problem, not drivers. Possible causes, faulty RAM, faulty motherboard, or faulty vidcard.

 

I'd check the RAM first. You haven't said how much RAM you have in your system, but if it's more than one stick, pull the other and see if the problem goes away. If not, swap it for the other stick. I've had bad RAM cause all kinds of problems on my system, that could be the problem.

 

Too bad you can't scoop an AGP vidcard from another system and try in your system, or try your vidcard in another system.

 

Obviously this card worked fine with your system in the beginning, then things went downhill. We've basically ruled out a driver issue, so hardware is what's left. Try the RAM deal first, one bad stick can totally screw up your system.

[Diamondis 0]

i think i have 256MB of RAM, i only have one.. RAM.. thing.. <,< lol.. i have another PC that works fine, its has a different graphics card in it, think i should try that one in mine?

[Relic 0]

Oh yeah, if you have another AGP card that works fine, definitely try it in your system. Also, try the 440 in the other system. If both work in the other system, and neither work in the current system, it rules out the vidcard.

 

That would narrow the problem down to RAM or motherboard.

 

Let us know what happens.

[Diamondis 0]

my brother wouldnt let me use his card XD so i bought a new one, Nvidia GeForce 6200, i installed it, i havent seen my screen flicker yet >.> *touch wood* but my screen seems blurred and theres like.. little black squares in some of my screens

 

 

[Relic 0]

Originally posted by Diamondis:

Quote:

my brother wouldnt let me use his card XD so i bought a new one, Nvidia GeForce 6200, i installed it, i havent seen my screen flicker yet >.> *touch wood* but my screen seems blurred and theres like.. little black squares in some of my screens

 

 

Download these drivers: http://downloads.guru3d.com/download.php?det=1145

 

this utility: http://downloads.guru3d.com/download.php?det=911

 

and this utility: http://majorgeeks.com/Driver_Cleaner_Professional_d3214.html

 

Unzip the drivers, but don't install. Unzip NVTweak, but don't install. Unzip Driver Cleaner pro, but don't install.

 

Uninstall your old videocard drivers, preferable in safe mode. If at any time during the next couple reboots, Windoze wants to install drivers, select "Cancel". Reboot, into safe mode again, run Driver Cleaner pro. Reboot normally, install the drivers(77.77). Reboot, then install NVTweak.

 

NVTweak will give you extra settings for quality and performance in the nVidia control panel. DCPro will cleanup all your old driver garbage in the registry. The 77.77's are very stable drivers. Hope this fixes you up.

[Diamondis 0]

is it ok to install those drivers? >.> some drivers came with the new card and those are the ones i installed.

[Relic 0]

I've never used the drivers that come with the card, they're usually put of date, or just don't work all that well.

[Diamondis 0]

still got the little black squares in my icons and menus ^^;;;

[Relic 0]

Can you take a screenshot of the squares for us? You should have some sort of graphics program on your system, if nothing else, you have Paint, that'll do the trick.

[Diamondis 0]

i can yeah, but how do i post them?