Serious Error -Windows XP

[ShadowFox]

whenever i boot into Windows xp, i always get the annoying message that "Windows has recovered from a serious error." then it asks me to send an error report to M$ It didnt always do this, just started a day after i installed. does anyone know what might be causing this or how to fix it? (i would rather not reinstall windows)

 

[HexVector]

This seems to be a somewhat common problem, I'm not sure anyone has found a real solution.

 

[Insidious]

I get that from time to time after I have installed or uninstalled a program. It usually only lasts for one boot though, so this must be something different.

Do you have a restore point set you can go back to and try process of elimination of installs/uninstalls between that point and the present to isolate the problem sw?

 

[TatSteeL]

you should look into startups programs in Registry. Sometimes you unistall a software and it didn't complete get rid of the registry. Trying to load something that's not their can cause that error. I have also encounter that if it loads software/games that's not compatible with win xp will also cause that error. Good luck

 

[ShadowFox]

well it looks like i just got lucky, just booted up and it didnt do it, thanks anyway guys

 

[DocDoo]

For those having this problem:

Boot into "command prompt SAFE-MODE" and type CHKDSK /F

 

[Rick67]

I'm having the exact same problem. It started about three days ago. It only happens when I reboot and log in as the administrator. I haven't intalled anything on my PC in the last couple weeks other than the Medal of Honor demo and Gamespy Arcade. I've also installed all of the recent XP critical updates. I'm leaning towards these updates being the problem but don't really know. I tried recovering my system back before I installed the above and it didn't fix the problem. I'm at the end of my rope and don't know what else to do.

How do I boot into command prompt SAFE-MODE and what is CHKDSK /F going to do?

Any help would be very appreciated.

Thanks,

 

[agentK]

same problem here! details point to the "dumpfiles" or "memorydumps" i think. how DO you boot safe-mode to command prompt?

 

[Newbie77]

Guys.. perhaps you should trying using the "System Restore" function.. I have had the same problem bugging me and I tried just about everything I read off the net except for "System Restore" (didn't know Windows XP came with it).. In the end, I got so irritated that I just reformatted my hd and reinstalled everything..

 

[Rick67]

This started for me about three or four days ago and I went back seven days and restored my computer to that point and I still have the problem. My error also says something about dumpfiles. I'll reboot and write down the exact error message. BRB

 

[Rick67]

OK, here's what pops up after every reboot:

>The system has recovered from a serious error.

The following files will be included in this error report:
C:\WINDOWS\Minidump\Mini122501-01.dmp
C:\DOCUME~1\RICHAR~1\LOCALS~1\Temp\WER1.tmp.dir00\sysdata.xml

BCCode : 1000007e BCP1 : C0000005 BCP2 : F2433A51 BCP3 : F8080870
BCP4 : F8080570 OSVer : 5_1_2600 SP : 0_0 Product : 768_1<


Anyone else getting this exact error?

 

[Rick67]

Well, I rebooted into command prompt safe mode and ran CHKDSK/F. It came back and said it couldn't run now because it was being used and asked if I wanted to schedule it for the next reboot and I said yes. I rebooted my PC and this is what came up:

>A problem has been detected and windows has been shut down to prevent damage to your computer.

If this is the first time you've seen this stop error screen, restart your computer. If this screen appears again follow these steps:

check to be sure you have adequat disk space. If a driver is identified in the stop message, disable the driver or check with the manufacture for driver updates. Try changing the vido adapters.

Check with your hardware vendor for any BIOS updates. Disable BIOS memory options such as caching or shadowing. If you need to use safe mode to remove or disable components, restart your computer, press F8 to select advanced startup options and then select safe mode.

Technical Information

Stop : 0x0000007E (0xc0000005, 0xf83A4C27, 0xf8c69840, 0xf8c69540)

tbcspud.sys - Address F83A4C27 base at F838C000, Datestamp 3b8d7887<

If have no idea what to do next. Does this mean I have a problem with my hard drive? I got this message everytime I restarted the computer until I cancelled the chkdsk/f.

HELP!! If it's a disk problem, will a reformat even fix this problem? BTW, Dell has release two BIOS updates in the last couple weeks and I just installed the latest one yesterday hoping that would get rid of this problem.

 

[DocDoo]

Rick67... I have seen the same STOP error on other boxes. However, what I thought ironic, was that they all were OEM installs!! I have yet to see that problem on any of the corporate boxes I have installed...

If you could not get CHKDSK /F to work, try CHKDSK /R

What does /F do?

/F fixes errors that may exist on physical disk.

What does /R do?

/R locates bad sectors and recovers readable information.

I assume everyone here has installed WinXP using NTFS on your root?

 

[Rick67]

Thanks DocDoo I'll try that right now. My hard drive is NTFS.

 

[Rick67]

I ran the chkdsk/r and ended up with the same message I got when I ran chkdsk/f. I guess I could call Dell and see what they can do. So IS this a disk problem? If so, I'm assuming a reformat wouldn't fix the problem. Thanks for the help,

 

[DocDoo]

This does not appear to be a hard drive problem. This may sound strange but, I am thinking its a driver issue with the graphics card. This has been the only other thing that has been common with this error (aside from WinXP and OEM install).

I don't want to steer anyone down the wrong path but I have not been able to get my hands on one of those WinXP boxes that has had this particular problem in about a week. When I do, I'll have more time to troubleshoot it....

PS. On one of the boxes I did a "driver roll back" using the pre-installed NVidia driver (for a GTS), time will tell.

 

[Rick67]

I just finished uninstalling NVMAX, NV Refresh Rate Fix and my NVIDIA Detonator XP v23.11 drivers. I rebooted with the standard display adapter and got the same error.

I've had NVMAX and NV Refresh Rate Fix on my PC for over a month now with no problems. I installed the 23.11 drivers about three weeks ago and everything was running fine up until a few days ago. The only other software I've installed in the last three weeks has been the Medal of Honor demo along with Gamespy Arcade, Windows XP critical updates, and I've flashed the BIOS twice with a new BIOS from Dell.

If it's not a hard disk problem then why won't it let me check the disk? Also, how do I get into the BIOS to disable BIOS memory options as the above message described?

 

[DocDoo]

<< Also, how do I get into the BIOS to disable BIOS memory options as the above message described? >>


As with most of the Dell line, its the <F2> key...

But in an event, I would give Dell a call tomorrow and get their opinion (especially since this happened after BIOS update).

Let us know how that turned out

 

[Rick67]

Whatever the problem is, it doesn't seem to be affecting anything. As long as I don't reboot, I never see the error message. I really think it has something to do with the critical updates or the BIOS upgrade. If it's a BIOS problem, will a reformat even fix the problem? I'll be calling Dell in the morning. Thanks for all the help.

 

[Newbie77]

Rick, I doubt the problem has anything to do with your hardware. It's either something to do with the drivers you are using or Windows XP. Reformatting the hard drive and reinstalling Windows should solve the problem. Hopefully, the problem won't pop up again. So far, the problem has not reappeared on my system (touch wood).

For me, the problem started when I tried to overclock my graphics card. The error msg came and didn't go away. I also did not notice any problems caused by the so-called serious error. If you don't want the error msg to pop-up everytime u boot into Windows, you can actually set it so that it won't prompt you on the occurence of "serious errors". However, that won't be solving the problem, merely, hiding it.

 

[Jace]

I got this same error message after using XP Home Edition for a couple of weeks. I tried almost everything that has been suggested here, including System Restore, back to a point that I knew the problem wasn't happening, but that didn't even work, so much for System Restore.

Anyway, I was able to fix it by booting to the CD and choosing to Repair the current installation. That fixed the error. I haven't had the error since.

I submitted the error to microsoft multiple times after the error came up (so they would know it wasn't a one-time occurrence and hopefully pay attention to it), but they didn't have any fixes for it. I suggest that you do the same so that the error will receive more attention and possibly even a fix in the service pack. Log on to oca.microsoft.com to submit the minidump.

 

[Rick67]

I'll try and repair the problem using the Windows XP disc. I hope that works. Will I lose any info on my PC by doing this? Do I just put the disc in and reboot?

I've sent an error report to Microsoft everytime I've booted my PC.

Thanks for the info.

 

[Jace]

I didn't lose any data when I repaired it. I did have to reinstall one of my games though, MotoRacer.

Yep, just boot to the CD and choose to install and repair. I can't remember the exact steps to get to the repair sequence. Seems like it was just about the same as Win2k, if that helps.

 

[Rick67]

Well, I can't even run the repair option because it keeps asking me for the administrator password. I'm not using a password! I'm the administrator and I'm not using a password!! I'M REALLY STARTING TO GET UPSET NOW!!

 

[Jace]

Did you try to proceed with a blank password? By default, the Administrator account on XP Home Edition has a blank password.