Driver help

Every once in a while (2-3 times a week) my computer screen flashes all types of color and goes black, then the blue screen and then I get the message that the computer experienced an unexpected shut-down. The blue screen is full of text explaining the problem but don't stay on long enough to read all the text. ( maybe 5 seconds)

About 3 times a week I get a black screen and the message that the display driver has quit working and I have to close the browser in task manager and re-open it again.

Not sure if the two are related and not sure how to fix it. I did a system restore or recovery (set everything back to factory, as it was the day I opened the new comp.)

Everything seemed ok and then it did it again about 3 hours after the recovery.

Checked the display driver and it is up to date

ATI Radeon HD 4200

Version: 8.733.0.0

Windows 7
64 bit

Browser: Firefox 33.1

Any ideas what the deal is and how to stop it from happening?

90% time it happened I was on the site "break.com" and a few times on other sites which had videos like YouTube or Live leak.
Seems it has something to do with running videos or sites that have a lot of background flash playing on screen???

Any help would be appreciated, have checked websites trying to find an answer but seem to be getting nowhere.

Hi,

Download the latest drivers for your HD4200 off the AMD website, then download DDU (display driver uninstaller), open DDU and select AMD in the scroll menu then click on "uninstall current and previous drivers and restart" wait till your computer has restarted and install the drivers that you have just downloaded

a reply to: mwood

I would suspect it's a bad video card, but there are a few things you can try.

First, (assuming it's a desktop) open it up and blow all the dust out. You'd be surprised how dust can make computer electronics go hinky. Second, try reducing your video hardware acceleration. Third, try going back to an older video driver and see if you have the same problem.

Good luck!

We need the code from the BSOD (blue screen of death).

It should look like 0x00000### and a few numbers at the end, they're what count. They actually tell you the cause of the issue. It may not be display driver related at all. There will be multiple numbers in a list. The only one really needed is the very first one on the left.

Next time it happens, glance down towards the bottom of the text to read that code, and write it down.

a reply to: mwood

How long have you had the computer ?
Video driver crashes happen but if you're getting BSOD too it may indicate something else.
The latest catalyst driver for your card is driver version 8.951 , I would suggest you give that a try.
support.amd.com...

a reply to: Aldakoopa

Or look in the event log, most of the time you don't get the time to read the BSOD code ...

mwood

Your screen flashes a blue screen with white text before restarting. Blue Screen errors can be one of the most annoying things to happen to your computer because you don't have a chance to read the error message. Many things can cause this problem and bad memory is one of them.

Turn Computer off and unplug the power cord from the back, open your side panel and remove one of your memory sticks. turn computer back on, wait until after reboot and everything loads turn off again. Place memory stick back into it's slot, turn computer back on. If the problem still occurs, try the same steps, but remove the other memory stick this time and repeat.

If you still have this problem, it is your memory faulting out.

Goodluck

originally posted by: WeSbO
a reply to: Aldakoopa

Or look in the event log, most of the time you don't get the time to read the BSOD code ...

Good idea. I didn't think of that.

The reason I'm saying that it may not be a display issue is because A) AMD HD 4200 is becoming pretty outdated, and is usually an integrated graphics solution in the motherboard, not a separate card, that tells me that this computer is getting a little on the old side, and B) I've have BSODs before while watching videos and didn't know what to blame it on, and found out it was because my hard drive was starting to go bad. Sounds weird, but it would mostly happen ONLY on websites with videos, and while playing games, but on a rare occasion it would happen when sitting idle or doing other things. The drive has an issue reading some information stored on it, maybe even including a display driver, that it needs immediately, the drive reads the wrong information, the computer shuts down immediately because it didn't receive the info it needed to keep running and performing the task(s) it was given.

a reply to: mwood

Radeon has always had horrid drivers.

Switch to a nvidia if possible.

if not unistall the drivers.
maybe using a driver uninstaller.

then reinstall the drivers.

originally posted by: grey580
a reply to: mwood

Radeon has always had horrid drivers.

Switch to a nvidia if possible.

if not unistall the drivers.
maybe using a driver uninstaller.

then reinstall the drivers.

I'm tired of that excuse.

I've only had one driver issue, and it was fixed quickly with another update from AMD. I've been using AMD for a while now, and have even tried beta drivers now and again, but for some reason that's always someone's excuse for convincing people to switch GPU brands.

a reply to: mwood

Firstly, here's how to keep your computer from restarting when you get a Blue Screen of Death (BSOD):

pcsupport.about.com...


That setting is on by default, but I always turn it off on mine and everyone else's machines so that the blue screen will stay up and people can get the error information immediately instead of trawling through the event lists.

The "different colors to black" is usually a sign that the hardware is going out. Could also be something more simple as overheating. When's the last time you blew out your computer with a can of compressed air?

The reason why it happens more on YouTube-like sites is because watching videos is more taxing on the video card than just browsing a forum, for instance.

If you have or can get your computer blown out to make sure it's not overheating and it still does it, then you know the hardware is on its way out. And unfortunately with a laptop, it's easier and cheaper to just buy another laptop than it is to take it somewhere to have the video hardware replaced. Unlike a desktop where the video card can easily and cheaply be replaced.

originally posted by: Aldakoopa
I'm tired of that excuse.

I tire of that excuse as well. I never update my Radeon drivers because.....




wait for it......





I never have driver problems.





One can search "NVidia driver issues" and get plenty of links for reading. Driver issues are not confined to just one manufacturer.

a reply to: mwood
Check the fan on the graphics card. If it is not working properly replace it before you fry your card.

OK, thanks for the advice so far people.

The computer is a desktop and it is about a year and a half old.

It is a HP P6803w model and was bought at walmart so although I have had it a year and a half I don't know when it was built so how old is it actually? I don't know.

It is blown out very often and it is impeccably clean inside.....no dust.

Wow. The computer itself isn't that old then. However, that hardware came out about 7-8 years ago.

Also, for the people that keep saying to check the video card fan, I hope you're not wasting your time. As I mentioned earlier, it's integrated graphics on the motherboard chipset, and it's passively cooled. Since it's clean inside, the only way that would overheat is if there's a lot of heat in the case (Is the house hot? Is it too close to a heater vent?) Otherwise, it should be fine so long as the case fan(s) are still working.

a reply to: mwood

Since it's clean inside and likely not overheating, then one of two things is happening:

- Either the hardware is on its way out.

or

- Maybe you just have a bad cable going to your monitor, or even a bad monitor.


At this point, you can try a different cable to see if you're still having problems. You could also try a different monitor to rule that out as well.

If you are still having problems, then luckily you have one 16x PCIe expansion slot, and three 1x PCIe expansion slots on your motherboard to add an inexpensive video card to.

Thanks for the advice.

I can go to a site I use to watch movies and watch a 3 hour movie with no problems whatsoever, I can play games that really tax the system for hours with zero problems.

Actually in retrospect, You tube has never crashed it. After I thought about it deeper I realized it was 2 sites where it crashes.
1. Break.com and I was not even watching a video, just on the home page it crashes. Has happened there about 4 times.

2. The Blaze news site (I use the term "news site" loosely here). Again, no videos. it just crashes on the home page.

It seems like sites with a ton of pop ups and flash items running on the page have something to do with it maybe?

Could it be an issue with flash player, java or something?

It seems to me (and maybe I;m wrong) but if I was playing a game or watching a movie for a long time the card would heat up from that......no???

Thanks for the advice .Checked the display driver and it is up to date .ccleaner to improve PC Speed .