Question BSOD Bad Pool Header

Nov 17, 2019
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Win 7 (Yes, still using it, flog me.)

Browsing along normally, music running. BSOD, Bad Pool Header, restarted normally. here I am. But where am I? And why?
 

VirtualLarry

No Lifer
Aug 25, 2001
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Try a bootable RAM test, and/or re-seat your RAM.

Otherwise, it could be a bad/flakey driver. Maybe even bad/flakey hardware, if it's scribbling on RAM that it's not supposed to. Don't go swapping hardware before you do a RAM test though.
 
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Nov 17, 2019
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MemTest, basic two pass completed, no error. Showed no error on the test screen, but did not display result on startup and I can't find a log. No error -- no log?

sfc /scannow, no error.


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On soft restarts like this memtest did, or after a BSOD, the E: drive does not populate. Files cannot be found.

On hard restarts (shutdown, power button to start), it populates fine. Works normally.
 

mikeymikec

Lifer
May 19, 2011
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I would run memtest86, I wouldn't really trust the built in Windows one.

+1. Considering that if the system is old enough to run Win7 during Win7's 'era', so if there's a memory fault it's probably isn't going to be a glaring one and might take 4 or more passes for memtest86 (7.4 or 4.3.7, the 7.4 ISO contains both so it's compatible with UEFI and legacy systems) to find it.
 
Jul 27, 2020
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On soft restarts like this memtest did, or after a BSOD, the E: drive does not populate. Files cannot be found.
Flaky SATA controller?

Where is that drive located? On the single storage device (HDD or SSD) or a separate device?

You could try replacing the SATA cable and maybe also try a different SATA power connector from the PSU to the physical drive.

Check PSU voltages in BIOS if that's available. Any voltage running more than 5% higher (3.3V / 5V and 12V) could cause stability issues. How old is the PSU? You could try a spare one? If it's an OEM PC which won't accept a normal PSU, that's a bummer then.
 
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mikeymikec

Lifer
May 19, 2011
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@Lost_in_the_HTTP Does E drive show up in explorer immediately just with no files, or does it take its time, or not at all no matter how much time you give it?

I just wonder if the crash is causing the extra drive to go through some cursory NTFS checks and comes online in its own time. The event log would likely give some useful pointers here.
 
Nov 17, 2019
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E: does not appear at all on a soft boot. Always appears right away on a hard/power boot.

I see stuff in the Event Viewer, but nothing that tells me anything I can understand.
 

Shmee

Memory & Storage, Graphics Cards Mod Elite Member
Super Moderator
Sep 13, 2008
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What is the E: drive? SSD? HDD? What model? How old? You may want to check the SMART data to make sure the drive is healthy.
 
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crashtech

Lifer
Jan 4, 2013
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Old laptop makes me want to ask if it is overheating. I install Coretemp on everything, especially laptops.

It's probably a driver problem, these become more frequent with old stuff since backwards compatibility only goes so far.
 
Nov 17, 2019
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Speccy shows normally in the 100-130F range, sometimes spiking to 150 or less when running something intensive, but that's only for short periods.
 

mikeymikec

Lifer
May 19, 2011
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E: does not appear at all on a soft boot. Always appears right away on a hard/power boot.

I see stuff in the Event Viewer, but nothing that tells me anything I can understand.

disk / ntfs / *ahci* warnings and errors are of interest in the 'System' log. If they tally up with disk numbers in Disk Management or the correct drive letter, then they're definitely relevant.