Infinite Loop/BSOD error

[Botty]

Hier gibts den Betapatch für alle Viachipsätze

http://downloads.viaarena.com/drivers/others/Test_driver1.zip

Hat bei mir leider nicht geholfen, wers trotzdem ausprobieren möchte.


DDR266 motherboards (Recommended settings):

SDRAM Cycle Lenth: Cas setting of 2.5
Bank Interleave: Enable or Disable (only if 1 DIMM is installed)
Precharge to Active (Trp): 3T
Active to Precharge (Tras): 6T
Active to CMD (Tras): 2T
DRAM Burst Length: 4
DRAM Drive Length: Auto
CPU to DRAM: Slow or medium

PC133 motherboards (Recommended settings):


DRAM Timing by SPD: Disabled
DRAM Clock: HCLK at 100FSB if 133FSB fails
SDRAM Cycle Length: 3
Bank Interleave: Enable or Disable (only if 1 DIMM is installed)
DRAM Drive Strength: Auto
Memory Hole: Disabled or Enable at 15M-16M

[BloodyWorld]

Was hat es mit diesem Fehler auf sich?
Trifft er nur auf Radeon zu oder auch andere?

BloodyWorld

[Botty]

Quelle: www.theddrzone.com


Firstly what is the error?

This error is seen when using ANY chipset and Windows XP operating system. The errors relate to a system crash caused by a fatal error in a file. Normally related to a video card drivers such as ati2dvag.dll or nv4_dsp.dll although other files have been reported as well. It says the file is running in a an infinate loop (BSOD) and that you need to reboot. Due to the numbers of people complaining of this error its been proven NOT vendor specific to a chipset or Video card maker such as Nvidia or ATI.(see bottom of page for sources)

Sample: Stop 0x000000EA or THREAD_STUCK_IN_DEVICE_DRIVER A device driver problem is causing the system to pause indefinitely. Typically, this problem is caused by a display driver waiting for the video hardware to enter an idle state. This might indicate a hardware problem with the video adapter or a faulty video driver

What Causes it?
It appears that this is all due to a BIOS setting which basically has to do with the way that the CPU and RAM communicate with XP and DirectX 8.1. Basically, PC components compete for system resources and the Video drivers give too much ram to the video card which is the root cause of this problem. Specific drivers have agrivated the problem for some (Such as NVidia's 23.11 Dets)

LaZeRIP From the VIA Arena forums did some of his own testing....

Quote: Using both WPCREDIT and CTSPD I could verify that indeed TWO memory slots were setting/reading timing differently. I had months ago purchase some good quality (additional) SDRAM from crucial. After pulling up both the CL2 and CL3 avail for my "Gateway Select", I opted for the CL2 (faster). With the Gateway stick of PC133 still installed simply added the Crucial PC133 CL2 for a total of 256mg Ram. All seemed fine, infact using "DocMemory" testing overnight in continuous loop NEVER produced any fails, errors, ect... At the time of my memory upgrade I might also mention was runnin WinMe w/ no real concerning problems although I can remember that on a very seldom occasion NHL2002 would even crash under WINme but VERY seldom. Now over 1 month + w/ WinXP Pro have had nothin but continuous random crashing in 3d games only. Usually producing the famous "Nv4.... loop, thread stuck, ect..." , a few times just a BSOD/Reboot w/ no message or just "critical error".

The FIX.
VIA came to the rescue with a beta patch.
I must stress very strongly the word BETA here. This patch has to go through more testing from VIA in Taiwan from several departments before it is released officially and in fact will probably end up being a silent install patch in the next version of the 4in1 drivers – that is if further rigorous testing proves that it is in fact a fix to this issue. If you choose to install this patch on your computer, you do so at your own risk and full responsibility yourself.

So what does it do?
It closes the RX55 memory register in BIOS. The RX55 register's official name and function is Memory Write Queue (MWQ) timer. The MWQ timer is actually a timing device included in the memory host controller to prevent write data being held in the memory queue too long. After the data has been in the queue too long it times out. This timed out data is then given a higher write request priority. Now that might sound nice – a bit of extra performance BUT the procedure fails when overloaded. 3D games and Win XP put too much load on the memory queuing timer procedure. The nVidia new driver exaggerates the problem even more as the driver enables nVidia cards to use even more memory than previous driver versions.

Fiona Gatt from the VIA Arena forums wrote....

One thing I have noticed is that I think some people in are confusing another issue with the issue that I am referring to here. Symptoms I am talking about are the infinite loop error, dropping to desktop in 3D games or spontaneous reboot in 3D games. What I strongly suggest is that you try these trouble shooting suggestions before trying the patch:

- Load optimized defaults in your BIOS and do not modify memory settings
- set your memory settings in the BIOS less aggressively and test
- make sure you have an adequate power supply - update your BIOS and test
- disable or enable AGP fast write and test (this has worked for some people)

The reason that I make these suggestions is that I think some people are confusing general instability because their systems are being pushed to the max, with this error. For example, if you have a 250watt power supply, 128mb RAM and have all your memory settings at max then you may be asking for trouble – the symptoms may be similar to this issue but it’s not the same. If you still get the issue after going through these suggestions then try the beta patch (if you want to – remember it is BETA).

Future Fixes
This Patch is for some VIA chipsets on the AMD platform only (KT133\a) and is not recommended for use with other manufacturers and Intel platforms. Unfortunately you will have to wait until Intel, SIS and ALI release a fix for those boards. There is good news in sight though, VIA is continuing to work through this issue for both their AMD and Intel based solutions and will have a patch for ALL chipsets that manufacture very soon. Microsoft meanwhile has reportedly had 8000+ bug reports of this issue, and according to a reader in the VIA forums, currently have 4 or so development teams working on this issue. It is also apparently on Microsoft's Top 100 issues list for XP. (Microsoft if you read this feel free to email me with your views and any updates)

I do know Microsoft IS aware and IS working on it. As for other Chipset manufaturers..Who knows. At least VIA have taken this issue on as a priority and are offering solutions.

Sources:
Go the the DELL FORUMS and you'll find heaps of infinite loop errors and crashing to desktop with Nvidia 2# drivers. (all Intel of course)

Go to the [H]ardOCP FORUMS and click search (top right) and do a search for Nvidia loop and you'll get a huge result listing. Most are actually with VIA chipsets though.

Here's Microsoft's "solution": http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;EN-US;q293078

And here's one from a hybrid AMD/VIA chipset user:
http://forum.hercules.com/index.php3?pg=readmsg&msgid=43364&viewall=y&forumname=Prophet+II+GTS+series
I am having the same problem. Infinite Loop errors with nv4_disp. Everytime I play Diablo II or Quake III, any game, I get the error within a few minutes. All this crashing is probably screwing up my 60 GB hard drive, and I don't want to have to spend another $150 to get a new one. It's getting annoying, testing my dedication to Hercules. Please fix this soon!
Here's my system configuration:

Windows XP
AMD 1.2 GHz 266 MHz FSB
ASUS A7M266 motherboard (AMD 761 chipset)
512 MB DDR SDRAM
GeForce2 GTS Pro 64 MB DDR
Creative Audigy Platinum Sound Card
Pioneer 16X DVD
A ton of cooling fans

One thing I have noticed in my years online, is the power users who update their drivers often, use high-end video cards and the latest OS, DirectX are more likely to use VIA chipsets, be active online and in forums. For better or worse this gives VIA a lot of publicity about these types of issues.

So in summary, is it a VIA problem as some people have said? Definitely not. It covers ALL chipsets from all the major manufacturers and Video cards using both nVidia's chips and those from ATI. Personally it looks more like a combination of Video drivers and the NT kernel with a good does of DirectX 8.1 thrown in. Can it be fixed? Yes but at this stage only VIA have stood up and made an effort.

[Botty]

quelle: www.viaarena.com


Staying out of the Loop

Introduction:

There has been a technical issue which has been discussed at length in the VIA Arena forums and in many other forums on the web of late, often known as the Infinite Loop or NV Loop/BSOD error.

What are the symptoms of this error?

The error normally occurs under a Direct3D or OpenGL application, on systems using a GeForce 2 or GeForce 3 video card with WinXP and the Nvidia detonator drivers 23.11 or 21.83. There are reports, however, of the issue occurring under Win2K. There are also reports of this occurring with ATI video cards but this has not been confirmed by VIA.

OpenGL- spontaneous reboot, hardware lockup or insufficient virtual memory error from WinXP

Direct 3D - Hardware lockup, BSOD with a message about an infinite loop error with a Nvidia driver

BSOD error message - this varies but refers to a problem with "nv4_disp.dll"

What is nv4_disp.dll?

This is part of the Nvidia detonator drivers. The full description is Nvidia display driver.

Is this a VIA chipset issue?

No. This issue is being reported on motherboards based on chipsets supplied by various vendors. (For example, refer to the article on The DDR Zone).

Is this a DirectX8.1 issue?

No. This issue can be replicated on Win2K without Direct X8.1 installed.

Is this a WinXP issue?

No. This issue can be replicated on Win2K when using Nvidia detonator drivers upwards from version 21.81.

Is there a fix?

At this time there is no one fix that fixes the issue for everyone. This issue is occurring on various VIA chipsets as well as many chipsets from all other chipset vendors. All of these chipsets are integrated into motherboards which have different BIOS and different board designs.

What can be done?

There are many system settings that have eliminated the problem for many people. What follows is a list of things you can try with your system. The suggestion is that you try one thing, test your system thoroughly under normal usage conditions. If the fix does not work, try the next fix and test again. Try combinations of these suggestions as well.

1) Try the Nvidia 21.83 drivers.

Many people have reported more success using these drivers than the 23.11 drivers.

2) If you have an AMD based system (with a VIA chipset)

Install the 4.37v(a) 4in1 driver pack. This contains a patch which will change a register setting to disable the Memory Write Queue. The patch forces the register to be reserved as per VIA's recommendation to motherboard manufacturers. In many instances this will also free up the system resources that cause the loop error. This is not the cause of the loop error but on some systems may resolve the issue.

3) DRAM setting in BIOS - for DDR motherboards

RAM manufacturers highly recommend using a setting no higher than 2T command rate. Some motherboards set it as 1T and in many instances this actually works perfectly well. To check your setting and change it, enter the BIOS, go to "Advanced Chipset features" then "DRAM Clock Drive Control". You will see "DRAM Command Rate". Set this to 2T. If you have more than one memory module it is highly recommended to have this setting at 2T.

If this does not work, try lowering other memory settings to make them less aggressive, such as:

DRAM Clock - this is the front side bus speed that your RAM runs at. If you have 2100 RAM, you should be able to set it at 133 which is 266DDR. This can be changed down to 100 but I would only recommend this after trying all other fixes.

SDRAM Cycle Length - This is your cas rating. 2 is aggressive, 2.5 is recommended (safe).

Bank Interleave - This decides how multiple memory modules communicate. Enable or Disable this. It will only make a difference if you have more than one memory module.

Precharge to Active(Trp) - 2T is aggressive, 3T is normal/safe.

Active to Precharge(Tras) - 5T is aggressive, 6T is normal/safe.

Active to CMD(Trcd) - 2T is aggressive, 2T is normal/safe.

DRAM Burst length - 8 is aggressive, 4 is normal/safe.

DRAM Drive Strength - highly recommended to leave on auto in all options.

You may also have a CPU to DRAM setting. Options are slow, fast and medium. Obviously fast is aggressive etc.

4) RAM setting in BIOS - for PC133 motherboards

Enter the BIOS, go to "Advanced Chipset features"

DRAM Timing By SPD - set to disabled

DRAM Clock - Host CLK is safe and effectively runs your RAM at 100FSB, HCLK-33M is aggressive and effectively runs your RAM at 133FSB

SDRAM Cycle Length - 2 is aggressive and 3 is normal/safe

Bank Interleave - This decides how multiple memory modules communicate. Enable or Disable this. It will only make a difference if you have more than one memory module.

DRAM Drive Strength - leave as auto

Memory Hole - leave as disabled, although enabling 15M-16M can help with sound issues

5) Display Properties

Enter display properties by right clicking on your desktop and selecting properties or going through the Display Properties icon in Control Panel. Under the Settings tab, click Advanced. Select the GeForce 2/3 tab. Select Additional Properties. There will be a tab labeled Direct 3D Settings. You will see PCI Texture Memory Size. Lower this setting. I believe the default it about 63 but this may vary depending on your video card and motherboard. I recommend no higher than 32. The lower you go, the safer the setting is. I have found very minimal to no performance decrease by adjusting this setting.

6) Memory

During my testing, I discovered that with the 1T Command Rate, I was not able to use more than one memory module for long periods of time. The system would not pass stability testing. Setting this to 2T fixed this issue. With some high end DDR333 RAM and high quality Micron RAM, I was able to use the 1T Command and all aggressive settings with a single module with no problems. With the 2T setting with single modules, I was only able to replicate the loop error with 2 modules. Both these modules happened to be single sided 256mg dimms. All other modules were double sided. These modules were not faulty as they caused no errors under WinME/98/2K. So I would recommend, if you are purchasing DDR RAM, insist on double-sided dimms and only buy quality RAM.

What systems did you use for the testing that has led to this guide?

I have tested VIA Apollo KT266, KT266A, P4X266, P4X266A, AMD761, SiS735 and Intel845/845D based motherboards, all of which were able to replicate the issue with extreme settings or low quality RAM. Software used was 3DMark 2001 Professional from MadOnion.com set up using batch run for 8 hours. If it passed 8 hours it went onto a 24 hour test. Quake III Bench - this is the fastest way to replicate an error, downloaded from The Guru of 3D. If you can run a complete batch run without a memory error in XP, 3DMark 2001 would also pass the 24 hour test. The Quake III Bench runs Quake III demos up to 30 times at different resolutions.

If you would like to discuss this, please post in this forum thread.

John Gatt, 21 December 2001

[Kennung Eins]

Ehm, ist das denn jetzt ein neuer "Betatreiber", oder der gleiche, der irgendwann um Neujahr herum im Netz auftauchte?

[Magic (tm)]

Nein leider ist das der alte. Jo wie du schon sagst der ist seid Ende letzten Jahres im Umlauf damals noch aus viaarenaforum .. Demnach kann ich den Treiber auch nur für Kt266 und Kt266A Chipsätze empfehlen. Es war jedenfalls so das damals Leute mit anderen Chipsätzen böse Prbl. bekammen. Ich nutze den Treiber schon länger kann sagen er hat bei mir das Prob. verkleinert was heissen soll das der Bug nicht so schnell auftritt gelöst hat er ihn aber nicht.

[Kennung Eins]

hmmm na gut, danke trotzdem.

[King Rollo]

Salem alaikum!

Hab mir den Patch mal gezogen und auch installiert, aber was dann? Wohin installiert sich das Teil denn? Wo kann ich die oben genannten Einstellungen machen? Bei mir fragt er nur, ob ich den Patch wirklich installieren will und als nächstes kommt die Frage, ob ich den PC gleich oder später neu starten will! Ändern tut sich aber nirgens was!

MfG
KKR