bent pins on socket 1155 LGA mobo?

[Sunny129]

i am inquiring about how exactly the socket pins can get bent. i recently installed a 3770K in a Gigabyte Z77X-UD4H mobo. the CPU was placed perfectly into the socket. no excessive force was used to get it into the socket. also, i lined it up perfectly and lowered it in slowly, so it did not "fall" into the socket due to having been initially improperly aligned or anything like that. so up to that point, i'm confident that i hadn't bent any pins. i then lowered the hinged load plate, again, without the use of excessive force - in fact, it didn't require any force at all to lower it into place (which i think is perfectly normal). then came the part where i put the retention lever into the locked position. during this procedure, i could hear some noises that sounded like metal parts under pressure. i did not put any pressure on the load plate while lowering the retention lever into place - i only put pressure on the lever itself (as instructed).

my question is this - could pins have been bent during the process of lowering the retention lever to the locked position so long as no pressure was being applied to the load plate itself? the noises i heard while putting the lever down made me worry. after doing some research though, i understand that the noise may have just been the spring-loaded pin array adjusting under the increased pressure as the load plate moved into position, which is normal? can any one confirm this?

the reason i have these questions is b/c i've got a computer that POSTs and can enter the BIOS no problem, but the instant Windows 7 starts to boot, a BSOD flashes on the screen for a split second and then the whole system reboots...so right now i'm stuck in this reboot loop. i've done all the basic troubleshooting already, including testing the memory, reverting to the "fail-safe" defaults in the BIOS, and uninstalling all but the necessary hardware (CPU, boot drive, 1 stick of RAM, etc.). i'm open to suggestions here, but at this point i'm really just looking for opinions as to whether bent socket pins might cause this type of behavior. also, its been suggested that it might be a short, but if that were the case, wouldn't i be not able to get into the BIOS, let alone POST?

TIA,
Eric

 

[Smoblikat]

i am inquiring about how exactly the socket pins can get bent. i recently installed a 3770K in a Gigabyte Z77X-UD4H mobo. the CPU was placed perfectly into the socket. no excessive force was used to get it into the socket. also, i lined it up perfectly and lowered it in slowly, so it did not "fall" into the socket due to having been initially improperly aligned or anything like that. so up to that point, i'm confident that i hadn't bent any pins. i then lowered the hinged load plate, again, without the use of excessive force - in fact, it didn't require any force at all to lower it into place (which i think is perfectly normal). then came the part where i put the retention lever into the locked position. during this procedure, i could hear some noises that sounded like metal parts under pressure. i did not put any pressure on the load plate while lowering the retention lever into place - i only put pressure on the lever itself (as instructed).

my question is this - could pins have been bent during the process of lowering the retention lever to the locked position so long as no pressure was being applied to the load plate itself? the noises i heard while putting the lever down made me worry. after doing some research though, i understand that the noise may have just been the spring-loaded pin array adjusting under the increased pressure as the load plate moved into position, which is normal? can any one confirm this?

the reason i have these questions is b/c i've got a computer that POSTs and can enter the BIOS no problem, but the instant Windows 7 starts to boot, a BSOD flashes on the screen for a split second and then the whole system reboots...so right now i'm stuck in this reboot loop. i've done all the basic troubleshooting already, including testing the memory, reverting to the "fail-safe" defaults in the BIOS, and uninstalling all but the necessary hardware (CPU, boot drive, 1 stick of RAM, etc.). i'm open to suggestions here, but at this point i'm really just looking for opinions as to whether bent socket pins might cause this type of behavior. also, its been suggested that it might be a short, but if that were the case, wouldn't i be not able to get into the BIOS, let alone POST?

TIA,
Eric

How recent is your W7 install? Is this a new mobo?

The CPU pins will not bend if you did everything exactly as you said you did, whenever I install a CPU it always makes that wierd scratching sounds that sounds like pins are bending, but they arent.

 

[Sunny129]

i can't recall exactly, but less than a year old. i got the board [used] along with a 3770K CPU. they worked flawlessly in another machine of mine for a few weeks straight. i then upgraded to a G1 Sniper 3 and put the Z77X-UD4H back in the box. but then i recently bought another 3770K, and so i took the Z77X-UD4H back out of the closet. this is where i started encountering problems. this wouldn't be the first time i've swapped hardware between computers and changed the systems' hardware configurations, but i've never had a problem with that so long as i installed the appropriate chipset drivers afterwards...so i can't imagine that's that problem. also, if there was a problem with the 3770K i just acquired, would that not also keep me from getting into the BIOS or even POSTing?

 

[PhIlLy ChEeSe]

How recent is your W7 install? Is this a new mobo?

The CPU pins will not bend if you did everything exactly as you said you did, whenever I install a CPU it always makes that wierd scratching sounds that sounds like pins are bending, but they arent.

The initial install always crushes the pins, this is normal...........

but the instant Windows 7 starts to boot, a BSOD flashes on the screen for a split second and then the whole system reboots...

when you go in the BIOS make sure the memory is set what ever speed/voltage is on the package. Set defaults on the motherboard(usually F5 button while in the bios). Reboot, set to what you need.
So remove the board from the case, any hardware that you have EXTRA of, like a second PSU swap out try it. Process of elimination here, yes a bent pin could cause this but so could a scratched PCB on the board. What about the wall socket, are you plugged into the wall or a battery back up? If you have back up unit, by pass it for now. also if you can swap out the HDD/SSD start in safe mode.

 

[Sunny129]

well it wasn't the very first install b/c when i purchased the CPU & mobo, the CPU arrived already installed in the mobo socket. plus i have no idea how many times the previous owner(s) may have removed and reinstalled a CPU. but there were definitely no bent pins on the Z77X-UD4H when i uninstalled my first 3770K and moved it to another mobo. the important thing is that you guys have confirmed for me that those noises are normal when closing the socket cover.

as for the rest, i'll start w/ setting specific memory timings and voltage (instead of just running with the BIOS defaults). then i'll remove the mobo from the case to rule out the possibility of the case causing a short. testing the PSU and the battery back-up are last on the list b/c they were both working just fine a few days ago in a different machine. i'll report back with the results (or a lack thereof)...

 

[PhIlLy ChEeSe]

Have you tried booting into safe mood? I would wait on removing the motherboard, as usually if it is a short the board will not work at all. From the OP, to me it sounds like you had more than one HHD in the system when you installed windows. So now the system isn't seeing the setup you had before, as if you removed a HHD.
Like you set it up in Raid, but now its not set up in Raid or part of the array isn't being SEEN by the motherboard............
When the OS gets to the splash screen(you see windows sign) the hardware is handing off to software witch is on the hard drive. If that's true then it sounds like a software issue and not a hardware problem. Like the BOOTMBR is corrupt and the hardware can't read it any more.

the battery back-up are last on the list b/c they were both working just fine a few days ago

Not sure why but I have seen battery back ups cause certain issue's, so its worth a try to just plug straight into the wall and see.

 

[Gillbot]

If you can get into the bios and everything seems functional in there, I'd try to do a fresh install or run a live disc of some sort to test.

 

[Sunny129]

Have you tried booting into safe mood? I would wait on removing the motherboard, as usually if it is a short the board will not work at all. From the OP, to me it sounds like you had more than one HHD in the system when you installed windows. So now the system isn't seeing the setup you had before, as if you removed a HHD.
Like you set it up in Raid, but now its not set up in Raid or part of the array isn't being SEEN by the motherboard............
When the OS gets to the splash screen(you see windows sign) the hardware is handing off to software witch is on the hard drive. If that's true then it sounds like a software issue and not a hardware problem. Like the BOOTMBR is corrupt and the hardware can't read it any more.

not sure how to boot into safe mode without having booted into Windows first, running msconfig.exe (system configuration utility), checking "safe boot" under the boot tab, and restarting. i suppose there may be a key stroke to make windows boot into safe mode (just like "del" gets you into the BIOS), but i don't know what that key stroke is if there is one. if you know of another way to get into safe mode without having to fully boot into windows regular mode first, please let me know...

as for having had multiple drives, i originally had one SSD (OS drive) and one HDD (data-only drive) in this machine. i was not running any sort of RAID, so the fact that i'm troubleshooting without the HDD connected should only make testing simpler. but that doesn't rule out the possibility of a corrupt BOOTMGR, particularly if its on the SSD and the SSD is the only drive i've got connected right now...after all, it would still be the only drive w/ an OS on it even if the HDD were still connected.

Not sure why but I have seen battery back ups cause certain issue's, so its worth a try to just plug straight into the wall and see.

true...i'll go ahead and do that straight away since its a simple thing to check.

btw i still haven't had a chance to go into the BIOS and set specific memory timings and voltage yet. i'll try to do that tonight. i just don't have much spare time for troubleshooting, so the process may be a bit slow going and drawn out. but i'll report back with an update soon...

 

[Gillbot]

http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/...-safe-mode#start-computer-safe-mode=windows-7

If your computer has a single operating system installed, press and hold the F8 key as your computer restarts. You need to press F8 before the Windows logo appears. If the Windows logo appears, you'll need to try again by waiting until the Windows logon prompt appears, and then shutting down and restarting your computer.

 

[Sunny129]

thanks for the tip...i'll let you know tonight if the computer will even boot into safe mode...

 

[ss284]

I'm guessing the ahci/raid drivers are mismatched. Typically happens when you swap motherboards. Just try safe mode which bypasses intel RST drivers. If that works, you need to match the W7 install's setting in the BIOS to boot successfully. W7 repair is pretty good at fixing these things as well.

 

[Sunny129]

i would love for it to turn out to be that simple...i know that new chipset drivers must be installed on an OS drive after either installing a new mobo or moving that OS drive to a computer with a different mobo (which i've done both of plenty of times before, but never did i have such a problem booting to windows). every other time i've swapped hardware between my 3 home computers (and believe me, i've done this several times), only occasionally did i have problems booting the OS...and those rare instances were easily fixed with a simple change in BIOS boot settings. of all the other times i did a hardware swap like this, i was able to boot to windows without a problem...granted, there would be some driver issues once i got to windows, but that was easily fixed by updating the OS with the chipset drivers of the new mobo and restarting.

anyways, i guess this will all hinge on whether i can get the system to boot into safe mode first. i'll keep you guys and gals posted...

 

[Sunny129]

ok, so i bypassed the UPS, and the system still crashed in the same place. so we can rule out the UPS.

i get a BSOD even as the computer tries to boot into safe mode! i paid attention as the drivers were loading an noted that the system hangs on the windows/syste32/drivers/AtiPcie.sys driver. a quick google search yields all sorts of "solutions," many of them extremely complicated if you're absolutely set on salvaging the existing volume and OS. rest assured, i'm not. to me it just looks like chipset driver remnants from the old mobo. i used to have an ASUS M4A89GTD PRO/USB3, whose 890GX chipset obviously required both IGP drivers and PCIe bus drivers (both made by ATI/AMD). now that i'm running an intel chipset and an intel chip w/ its own IGP, perhaps this AtiPcie.sys driver is causing problems for Windows. unfortunately when i boot into "safe mode with command prompt," the system hangs before it gets to the command prompt, and thus i cannot delete the hanging driver using the command prompt. i'm afraid i might have no choice but to do as Gillbot suggested and do a fresh Win7 install...ugh .

*EDIT* - while windows repair's own intuition got me nowhere (it didn't detect any problems whatsoever lol), i did manage to get to the command prompt through windows repair. so i deleted the AtiPcie.sys driver file and restarted...no go - i got a BSOD in the same place as before! i booted into safe mode again, only to find that its hanging on yet another driver file, this time called ClassPNP.sys. i really don't want to go through the time-consuming process of booting into windows repair over and over to delete one driver file at a time (which is probably a bad idea anyways)...although i might as well try it b/c at this point, if that doesn't work nothing will, and i'll probably end up reinstalling windows.

also, i thought more about the possibility that the BOOTMGR might be corrupt, and i no longer think that's what's going on, b/c Windows does start to boot, if only for a second or two, before it BSOD's and restarts. the BOOTMGR just tells the computer which OS to boot, and once Windows starts to boot, the BOOTMGR's job is well and done, right? besides, this machine has no other volume with an OS on it. heck, i even removed my data-only HDD so that the 128GB SSD is the only physical volume in the machine right now, giving the BOOTMGR as little as possible to be confused about.

 

[Sunny129]

*PROBLEM SOLVED*

ok, so last night i uninstalled the SSD with the OS that won't boot and reinstalled it in my 790FX/1090T platform to add back the AtiPcie.sys driver file that i deleted from the commend prompt earlier. then it dawned on me to troubleshoot the SSD itself. so i restarted the 1090T machine, went into the BIOS, and set the SSD in question to be the first boot device. low and behold it booted into Windows without a problem! i then uninstalled it from that machine, reinstalled it in my other Z77/3770K (the one w/ the Gigbyte G1 Sniper 3 mobo), and set it as the primary boot drive through the BIOS. sure enough, it crashed at the same time/in the same place as it did when it was installed in the Z77X-UD4H/3770K machine. that made me confident enough to think that the root of the issue has something to do with the fact that i originally had ATI/AMD chipset drivers installed on this OS, and that switching the AMD 890GX mobo/chipset out for an intel Z77 mobo/chipset resulted in the failure to boot.

unfortunately, uninstalling any and all ATI/AMD drivers was not an option since i couldn't get into Windows to uninstall them. so i decided to reformat and do a fresh Windows installation. after having reinstalled Windows, i have zero problems booting...so it must have been a driver issue (or a software issue of some sort) and not the SSD itself. i wish it didn't come down to reformatting, but at least i know now that nothing is wrong with either the mobo, CPU, memory, or SSD...so i'm at least happy about that . ideally i would have liked to avoid reformatting and reinstalling Windows altogether, but without a way into Windows, i feel that the only solution was a reformat and OS reinstall. and b/c Windows now successfully boots, i'm calling this solution an overall success.

i want to thank everyone for the advice and the suggestions. i know i more or less solved my own problem, and that's usually how it goes for me...but it really helps me to write/post about it, if not just to vent, then to mentally walk myself through all the things i've already tried and all the things i have yet to try.

 

[PhIlLy ChEeSe]

Try booting with the F8 key but choice the "Disable drivers signing" see if that works, yeah not sure why but sounds like the boot part of the drive is corrupt.
You can try to start an install load the driver's then back out of the install, to see if you can save it. Witch is really a last ditch effort to a total clean install.

Update: Glade you got it!!!!

 

[blackened23]

I don't know if it was mentioned but immediate BSODs during a Windows startup can be related to AHCI being misconfigured in the BIOS. Long story short, AHCI should always be turned on - but if you have a legacy windows installation, your old motherboard probably did not support AHCI. So that will cause your new system to always BSOD on boot, because AHCI is (and should be) turned on. But if it is turned on and you're booting into a legacy windows installation, it will always BSOD. So the fix is to temporarily turn AHCI off until you can re-install windows. Or leave it off and not use the benefits of AHCI.

Glad to hear you fixed it, but I just thought I would throw that out there.

 

[Sunny129]

Try booting with the F8 key but choice the "Disable drivers signing" see if that works, yeah not sure why but sounds like the boot part of the drive is corrupt.
You can try to start an install load the driver's then back out of the install, to see if you can save it. Witch is really a last ditch effort to a total clean install.

Update: Glade you got it!!!!

yeah, i tried that, along with every other option that's available from the "F8" boot screen, and all of them failed to get me into windows LOL...i should have mentioned that earlier on...