nvlddmkm has failed, can anyone help?

[gorobei]

I'm getting multiple crashes in TF2, 3+ a session. system hangs and then vista recovers 20 seconds later.

The error is always:
"display driver nvlddmkm stopped responding and has successfully recovered."

a google of nvlddmkm brings up a ream of pages on the issue but no solid answers. About as much superstition as science. (take one dimm stick out, disable aero, new power supply, new videocard, click heels together 3 times)


Can anyone help???????????


system info:
q9550 stock
asus p5e vm hdmi
2 x 2Gb ddr800 corsair
bfg 9800gtx+ stock
enermax liberty 700 watt
vista 64 home
whql 197.45

only seems to affect tf2, l4d2 is fine.

 

[faxon]

did you try reinstalling your graphics card drivers by chance? i see no mention of that in your post, shoulda been the first thing to try

 

[gorobei]

i was running an earlier version of nv drivers, the one that came out before the card frying version. i did a driversweeper removal and then did the 197.45 version. I can sweep again, but i'm not really confident that Nv considers this much of an issue and is doing anything about it based on some of the nvForum postings.

Or is regular sweeping required? unfortunately steam auto updates way too much crap, including the physx drivers which i had opted not to install originally.

 

[taltamir]

I can help, here is a detailed explanation and guide I wrote back in the day.
http://forums.anandtech.com/showthread.php?t=106841&highlight=nvlddmkm

 

[gorobei]

@taltamir: The problem has only occurred with tf2, and not l4d2/cod4/shatteredhorizon. Other than a memory problem, it doesnt seem to fit the hardware issue explanation of your original post in your thread/guide. I think my psu is up to snuff, so I'd like to explore the software side of the issue.

I'll try another driver sweep and driver install. The main problem was that the crashes happened after a driver install/clean/revert and then TF2 released an update the same day, so I couldn't tell if it was the game or the driver.

[I'm trying to fix this before i enter a casual TF2 summer league competition. It kind of sucks being in a critical game moment and having the machine lock up. gah.]

 

[taltamir]

@taltamir: The problem has only occurred with tf2, and not l4d2/cod4/shatteredhorizon. Other than a memory problem, it doesnt seem to fit the hardware issue explanation of your original post in your thread/guide. I think my psu is up to snuff, so I'd like to explore the software side of the issue.

If you read more carefully, I said that if a problem occurs with only 1 game then it is most likely a bug in that specific game.

there are 4 options:
1. It is a bug in the game
2. It is a bug in DX itself (extremely unlikely at this point in time)
3. It is a bug in the nvidia driver (unlikely)
4. It is a hardware problem.

BTW, did you check your PSU? I had a case where the PSU was the problem. You can test your PSU via OCCTPT

PS. I updated it just recently with more info. you should check it again.

 

[Bill Brasky]

@taltamir: The problem has only occurred with tf2, and not l4d2/cod4/shatteredhorizon. Other than a memory problem, it doesnt seem to fit the hardware issue explanation of your original post in your thread/guide. I think my psu is up to snuff, so I'd like to explore the software side of the issue.

I'll try another driver sweep and driver install. The main problem was that the crashes happened after a driver install/clean/revert and then TF2 released an update the same day, so I couldn't tell if it was the game or the driver.

[I'm trying to fix this before i enter a casual TF2 summer league competition. It kind of sucks being in a critical game moment and having the machine lock up. gah.]

Try verifying the integrity of your cache files or reinstalling the core TF2 components.

edit: Do you have multi-core rendering enabled? Try disabling it. I had multi-core rendering enabled for L4D2 and it caused crashes ALL THE TIME. I presume the multi-core rendering engine is the same for both games.

 

[taltamir]

@ The problem has only occurred with tf2, and not l4d2/cod4/shatteredhorizon

This sounds like a problem with tf2. Not a hardware problem, not a driver problem...
unless your PSU is just slightly inadequate and tf2 is the most intensive game of the bunch and the only one capable of pushing your PSU enough to cause this.

 

[nitromullet]

@ The problem has only occurred with tf2, and not l4d2/cod4/shatteredhorizon

This sounds like a problem with tf2. Not a hardware problem, not a driver problem...
unless your PSU is just slightly inadequate and tf2 is the most intensive game of the bunch and the only one capable of pushing your PSU enough to cause this.

Could also be a driver problem specific to TF2 with the OP's specific setup. Agreed that PSU sounds unlikely given the lack of issues in other games.

I'd suggest upgrading the latest NV drivers to see what happens and go from there.

 

[taltamir]

Could also be a driver problem specific to TF2 with the OP's specific setup. Agreed that PSU sounds unlikely given the lack of issues in other games.

I'd suggest upgrading the latest NV drivers to see what happens and go from there.

True. although in which case others would have experienced it...
Update nvidia drivers, reinstall the game, update the game to latest version. Then see.

Also, google for your specific problem. For example, I remember NWN2 had a specific bug with the 8800GTX and cards only. some research could uncover an issue with TF2 and your configuration

 

[gorobei]

-verified game cache,
-did a driversweep,
-updated to 257.21,
-turned off multicore rendering.

just did a good length session with no hitches, so a possible thumbs up. I'll test for stability next week, and if it is good
i'll try the muliti-core again to see if that is the problem.

It is tough to tell with TF2 since they update it so often. Old bugs get fixed yet the team that is working on the new features are frequently using code from old builds, so the old bugs pop up after an official update.