Installing graphics card: nvlddmkm.sys error! Help!

[BENBOBBY]

Hi,

Im building a new computer and connected all the components, installed windows 7, then all the drivers included with the ASUS motherboard CD.

I then downloaded the latest nvidia drivers for my GTX 760, which seemed to install no problem and asked me to restart the computer. When rebooting it showed the Windows login screen for about a second then the screen went blank and the monitor turned off.

So I switched my pc off/on (I have no reset button) and now it hangs on the 'Starting Windows' screen then blue screens with an error about 'nvlddmkm.sys', which after googling found out relates to Nvidia. It has been connected to the graphics card all the time via a HDMI lead and was working fine before installing any drivers. Windows update was also automatically downloading/installing at the time which may be effecting it. Could this mean my graphics card is broken as its brand new?

Thanks for any advice!



SYSTEM INFO:
OS: Windows 7 Home Premium 64bit
GFX: EVGA Nvidia GeForce GTX 760 Superclocked ACX 2GB
CPU: Intel Core i5 4570
RAM: Corsair 8GB (2 x 4GB) Vengeance DDR3 1600MHz
PSU: Corsair RM650 Modular Power Supply
HDD: Sandisk Extreme 240GB SSD
MOBO: Asus H87M-PLUS s1150 uATX H87
SFX: Asus Xonar HDAV 1.3 SLIM
TV CARD: TBS6982 Dual Satellite HD TV Tuner
MONITOR: Samsung Syncmaster P2450H 24" LCD (connected with HDMI)

 

[BENBOBBY]

Thanks for the reply IC3. Nope they were the latest drivers from the nvidia website. I also tried an older driver too but had the same problem.

Unfortunately I think it might be faulty. After downloading the nvidia drivers and restarting the computer boots up and displays the "Starting Windows" screen then the monitor goes blank and flashes between "Analogue" and "Digital" signal before going completely blank again for about 5 seconds then the computer restarts. This repeats indefinitely. It has also blue screened with an error relating to "nvlddmkm.sys" as mentioned above.

I have tried the following:
- Different HDMI and DVI cables
- Different monitor
- Different nvidia drivers
- Different power cables
- Removing and re-seating the card
- Updating BIOS
- Downloading monitor drivers
- Downloading all windows updates

But to no avail. It works fine when connected to the graphics card in safe mode and before installing any drivers. Plus the fans both spin so know its receiving power.

Any ideas?

 

[BENBOBBY]

Thanks for the replies. Ive removed the soundcard and tv card for the time being to minimise what it could be.

I will reformat and reinstall windows tomorrow as suggested varkanoid. Will let you know how it goes... Although Im a bit confused why you say to do a system restore at the end?

Also should I disable all windows updates? I dont want it to automatically start downloading potentially out dated drivers. Or is it better to let it get all the updates it can find (excl graphics card)?

 

[BENBOBBY]

Thanks for the replies.

Before reformatting I thought Id try the GTX 760 in my older machine (ASUS P8Z68-V PRO, Intel Core i7 2600K, Windows 7 64bit, SilverStone 1000W) and amazingly it seems to work fine!

I then also tried a GTX 690 from my old machine in the new one and that worked fine too. So I guess that means theres some weird driver incompatibility causing the issue and not the card itself.

Would do imagine would be the problem then - motherboard drivers? I did manually update to the latest on the Asus website (0804) but would still suggest reformatting and installing from Intels website instead?

Finally regarding Windows driver finder. Is it best to enable or disable it? Because I find as soon as you insert a new graphics card for example and boot into windows it automatically tries to download and install drivers for it, whereas Id rather go to the nvidia website and make sure I get the latest one! So already start with a mess of drivers. But then for other components like Ethernet controller or mice etc then its actually pretty useful. However as I can see theres no way to cancel it on a per component basis. Ugh

 

[BENBOBBY]

OK I reformatted my PC. Sorry if Im being stupid, but how do I download drivers from Intel?

Ive downloaded the Intel Chipset Device Software (INF Update Utility) as suggested from here: https://downloadcenter.intel.com/De...g&OSVersion=Windows 7 (64-bit)*&DownloadType= but it doesnt "do" anything that I can see?

The Automatic Intel Driver Update Utility on the website doesnt work either. Just stays on "Analyzing computer..." on Chrome and IE with latest Java. Theres an option to manually search but dont know what Im even supposed to be looking for? Asus? H87? 4570?

Ugh this is so infuriating. Appreciate the help though.

 

[BENBOBBY]

Thanks for the reply. I formatted my PC, re-installed Windows and downloaded the latest Chipset and BIOS as suggested. Unfortunately things have gone from bad to worse...

The GTX 760 wasnt suitable for my case so am now using a SAPPHIRE AMD Radeon R9 270X 4GB card instead with the latest drivers. However I am STILL getting display driver issues.

It boots into Windows fine, but as soon as I launch any application, say Firefox the screen goes blank for a few seconds then shows a warning icon next to the clock "Display driver has stopped responding and has recovered" then Firefox crashes. Sometimes with another error "Load MMdriver stopped working" which relates to ATI.

It has also BlueScreened with message "The device driver got stuck in an infinite loop. This usually indicates problem with device itself or with device driver programming the hardware incorrectly"

What the hell?! Is my motherboard broken? Bad drivers? Strangely my old GTX 690 worked fine though. This is driving me crazy

 

[BENBOBBY]

A virus? No its a brand new system and all Ive downloaded is drivers from official sites! Anyways heres what Ive tried lately:

- Selecting PCIE as the primary graphics in BIOS
- Uninstalling Intel on-board graphics drivers
- Swapping memory sticks over
- Installing older versions of BIOS and chipset drivers
- Downloaded latest display drivers for my monitor
- Installing AMD beta driver
- Updating firmware on SSD (was already up to date)
- Resetting BIOS back to default

With the old BIOS (0704) I get a different blue screen error relating to "atikmpag.sys". With the beta AMD drivers I thought I had found the solution as it was stable all last night while using it, but then turned the computer off and on and this morning the problem is still there.

I dunno what else to do? Is the motherboard broken? Or power supply? Maybe its not getting enough power?

 

[BENBOBBY]

Yup no other hardware. Unfortunately I cant test it in another slot because its only a mATX board and small case so only one is usable.

I ran the DDU uninstaller as suggested. Reset and installed new drivers. Didnt help sadly.

One thing I realised is that the GTX 760 and R9 270X are heavily factory overclocked and neither of them work. Where as my old GTX 690, which is all stock, seems to work fine. Could they be too demanding for the motherboard perhaps? Is there a way to easily temporarily remove the factory overclocking to test?

Another strange thing is that the fan on my new Corsair RM650 650w Power Supply never spins! It has a special feature called 'Zero RPM' mode, but thats only supposed to be effective up to 40% load. However even when benchmarking running Unigine and Cinebench simultaneously on extreme mode it doesnt spin! Of course it doesnt run for long before it crashes but surely it uses more than 260W! Maybe its not getting enough power?

Thanks!

 

[BENBOBBY]

Silly question - does it matter which way you use the ATX power connector cable?

It has 24 pins one end and 20+4 pins the other. Does it matter if the 20+4 pins go into the power supply then the 24 in the motherboard or vice versa?