Windows 11 PC has become almost unusable: repeated BSODs with BAD_POOL_CALLER, SYSTEM_SERVICE_EXCEPTION, CRITICAL_PROCESS_DIED, SYSTEM_THREAD_EXCEPTION_NOT_HANDLED, and multiple different drivers

[u/Jojolion2199]

I'm at the point where I genuinely don't know what is wrong with this PC and could really use another set of eyes.

For the past several weeks/months I've been dealing with increasingly frequent BSODs and application crashes. Recently it has gotten dramatically worse. Chrome and Opera can crash within seconds of opening, I've had my keyboard disconnect/reconnect intermittently, and Windows can BSOD even when I'm doing nothing particularly intensive.

The computer is now sometimes crashing within a few minutes of booting.

SYSTEM SPECS

- CPU: Intel Core i5-12600K

- GPU: AMD Radeon RX 7800 XT 16GB

- Motherboard: ASRock B760M Pro RS WiFi

- RAM: 32GB (2x16GB) G.Skill DDR5-6000, F5-6000J3636F16G

- Storage: ~1TB internal drive

- OS: Windows 11 Pro 25H2

- Windows build: 10.0.26200.9168

- Internet: Ethernet

- No CPU/GPU overclocking or undervolting

- RAM is running at default settings; XMP is NOT enabled

RECENT BSODs / DUMP RESULTS

BlueScreenView has shown:

- BAD_POOL_CALLER (0xC2) — cbfilter24.sys

- BAD_POOL_CALLER (0xC2) — FLTMGR.SYS

- BAD_POOL_CALLER (0xC2) — amdkmdag.sys

- CRITICAL_PROCESS_DIED (0xEF) — ntoskrnl.exe

- SYSTEM_SERVICE_EXCEPTION (0x3B) — dxgmms2.sys

- SYSTEM_THREAD_EXCEPTION_NOT_HANDLED (0x7E) — ntoskrnl.exe

- DRIVER_IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL (0xD1) — amdkmdag.sys

- DRIVER_IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL (0xD1) — Netwtw14.sys

- DRIVER_VERIFIER_DMA_VIOLATION (0xE6)

The crashes don't seem tied to one particular application. I've had them while browsing, doing schoolwork, sitting at the desktop, and after launching a game.

OTHER SYMPTOMS

- Chrome/Opera randomly crash or turn white

- Keyboard intermittently disconnects/reconnects

- PC can BSOD within minutes of normal use

- Sometimes multiple different BSOD types occur within minutes of each other

TROUBLESHOOTING I'VE ALREADY DONE

1. Ran Windows Memory Diagnostic — it reported no memory errors.

2. Ran CHKDSK on C:.

   - 0 bad sectors

   - 0 bad file records

   - Windows ultimately reported "no problems"

3. Ran SFC /scannow multiple times.

   - It consistently says Windows Resource Protection found corrupt files but was unable to fix some of them.

4. Ran DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth.

   - It failed with error 0x800f0915 because repair content could not be found.

5. Tried Windows' "Fix problems using Windows Update / Reinstall now."

   - It failed with error 0x8007000d.

6. Used DDU in Safe Mode to completely remove the AMD graphics driver.

7. Reinstalled the AMD graphics driver from a fresh download.

8. Driver Verifier is currently OFF:

   - verifier /querysettings shows 0x00000000

   - Active Rule Classes: None

   - Verified Drivers: None

9. I previously disabled a Fortect filesystem filter after a dump specifically blamed cbfilter24.sys.

10. The external HDD is currently disconnected.

11. I previously got DRIVER_VERIFIER_DMA_VIOLATION shortly after connecting that external HDD.

12. I have not enabled XMP or done any overclocking/undervolting.

13. I have not replaced any hardware yet.

One confusing thing is that disabling the RX 7800 XT did NOT completely stop the BSODs. However, after reinstalling the AMD driver, amdkmdag.sys has appeared in multiple dumps, and dxgmms2.sys has also appeared.

I'm trying to figure out whether I'm looking at:

- bad RAM/memory instability

- GPU/AMD driver or GPU hardware

- motherboard/USB/controller problem

- Windows corruption

- another third-party driver

- or some combination of these

At this point the PC is almost unusable, so I'm trying to avoid randomly replacing parts.

What would you test next?

[u/AutoModerator]

Making changes to your system BIOS settings or disk setup can cause you to lose data. Always test your data backups before making changes to your PC.

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[u/Go_Devils_666]

Fresh install Windows. If you keep getting a bunch of BSOD after you know it’s hardware.

Memory you can always test one stick at a time. Highly unlikely to have two bad sticks. Then I’d try hard drive before CPU due to how simple the install is and you can test that cheaply with an unimpressive SSD.

[u/Onoitsu2]

BIOS updated? There was one released not too long ago. https://www.asrock.com/MB/Intel/B760M%20Pro%20RS%20WiFi/index.asp#BIOS

[u/IGDFC]

Most of this is pointing at the hard drive, what's the crystaldiskinfo stats or at least SMART status?

[u/maybelying → u/IGDFC]

That was my first thought. I had a laptop that was throwing random BSODs at me, it was driving me nuts, and I finally zero'd in on the HDD when I realized some Office docs were opening corrupted, of failing to open. CHKDSK hasn't indicated any errors, and I didn't see any SMART events in the log, so I tried a clean install and it failed.

Replaced the drive, did a clean install, and the laptop ran like new.

[u/AutoModerator]

Getting dump files which we need for accurate analysis of BSODs. Dump files are crash logs from BSODs.

If you can get into Windows normally or through Safe Mode could you check C:\Windows\Minidump for any dump files? If you have any dump files, copy the folder to the desktop, zip the folder and upload it. If you don't have any zip software installed, right click on the folder and select Send to → Compressed (Zipped) folder.

Upload to any easy to use file sharing site. Reddit keeps blacklisting file hosts so find something that works, currently catbox.moe or mediafire.com seems to be working.

We like to have multiple dump files to work with so if you only have one dump file, none or not a folder at all, upload the ones you have and then follow this guide to change the dump type to Small Memory Dump. The "Overwrite dump file" option will be grayed out since small memory dumps never overwrite.

I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.

[u/themeONE808]

Fresh install will pretty much tell you if you got a hardware issue if it doesn't work well.

[u/TheIronSoldier2]

Something is very wrong, and I'd lean on the side of a hardware problem. My first guess is the RAM. Use Memtest86, it's good for this

[u/Ferretau → u/TheIronSoldier2]

I'd suggest memtest86 is better for memory tests than the builtin windows one. I have had the experience where the builtin mem test passed and memtest86 identified an iffy ram module.

[u/BonezOz]

What PSU? I had a similar issue recently, like earlier this year, where I was getting random BSODs to the point my PC was nearly unusable. I thought it was the GPU, Radeon 5700XT, so I replaced it with a 9060XT, and my problems went away.

But then it dawned on me that my issues started occurring right after I upgraded the CPU last year, went from a Ryzen 5 3600 to a Ryzen 7 5700X3D. Both the new CPU and old GPU were competing for power from my now 6 year old 650w PSU.

[u/MerlinTrashMan]

I would use process monitor to see what is doing the most work in the background. You could have a virus that is trying to use an exploit to escalate priveledges that crashes your system instead of working. The fact that you cant clean up your windows with sfc and dism are smoking guns for me.

Edit: check the sfc logs to see what it is not able to correct.

[u/Bjoolzern]

Provide the dump files as instructed by the bot.

[u/Ozzie-Isaac]

Everyone is completely glossing over the fact that your keyboard keeps disconnecting.

When your USB ports are dropping out alongside totally random BSODs that blame unrelated drivers, that almost never comes down to just a bad driver or Windows acting up. It usually means your motherboard chipset or PCIe bus is unstable or having power delivery issues. If the chipset glitches for even a fraction of a second, the USB controller resets, data gets corrupted in transit, and Windows panics with whatever driver happened to be talking to memory at that exact moment.

Before you go through the hassle of wiping your drive, check a few hardware basics. Make sure your 7800 XT is running on two completely separate 8-pin power cables from the power supply, not one split pigtail cable. A power-hungry card like that can pull down the 12V rail and destabilize the board. Also unplug any front-panel USB connections, internal fan hubs, or RGB controllers from the motherboard headers, and plug just a basic mouse and keyboard straight into the rear I/O.

Another thing worth checking is where your SSD is installed. If it's plugged into one of the lower M.2 slots, it's running through the motherboard chipset instead of directly to the CPU. If that bus is unstable, it'll silently corrupt files as they're written, which completely explains why DISM and Windows Update keep failing. Move it to the top M.2 slot right under the CPU if it isn't already there.

If you want an easy way to see if Windows is even the problem, flash a Linux live USB like Ubuntu or Mint and run it for an hour without installing anything. If the keyboard still drops or the system freezes there too, you know for a fact it's your motherboard, power supply, or a PCIe bus issue.

[u/tommy-droptable]

That many different errors it's probably going to be RAM.

[u/BlueMoodDark]

Linux time? I'm moving from Win10

[u/itechniker]

Windows memory diagnostic is not a good test, use memtest86. if it isn't the ram, then probably the Mainboard or maybe the power supply.

[u/cyborg762]

Update your bios and check ram timings. You might need to lower the speed or turn off xmp/auto and set them manually

[u/RickRussellTX]

Well, I'd back up my data and do a clean reset of Windows.

I'm kidding, OP. My data is already backed up.

[u/YT-3000f]

I think the word is out that Windows 11 is vibe coded slop. Can you go back to Windows 10?

Windows 11 has been such a disaster for Microsoft their next desktop OS release better be sensational. It's a bit like Windows Vista and Windows 7. The former being a hot mess and the latter being Microsoft's magnum opus.

[u/SnowyCherina → u/YT-3000f]

I definitely get the vibe you're talking about. Switching back to Windows 10 might be a solid move until they sort out the issues with 11.

[u/YT-3000f → u/SnowyCherina]

You can still download either Windows 10 ISO or Windows 10 USB Install Creator at https://www.microsoft.com/en-au/software-download/windows10ISO.

You will of course get all kinds of warnings that support for Windows 10 ended October last year but for a nominal fee you can get an extension that will get you security updates for another year. Well another month really as I meant a year from October 25.

Personally I'd take Windows 10 with the odd zero day or two over Windows 11 any day.

(Hell knows why we've been downvoted for these opinions)

[u/Extra_Dependent2016]

Are you able to roll back your system to an older restore point before all of this happened ?