BSOD on boot, even with brand new Windows installation

[NeatSquidYT]

Hi all,

I have Windows on a secondary drive that I keep around for gaming purposes etc., but as of late I've struggled to boot into it even if I totally wipe the drive and then reinstall Windows. The BSOD error is "Page fault in non paged area" which would suggest a RAM issue, however running memtest for around an hour shows absolutely no errors and Linux on my main drive works perfectly. I've tried installing it to a different drive, and no different. I can't even boot into Windows at all, as soon as it gets past the initial loading it displays the BSOD. It doesn't seem to be dumping a BSOD in C:/Windows/Minidump either - there is a file there but it's empty (literally 0B). I'm kind of stuck as to what to do now - the installation process works perfectly so if it were a faulty installation media, I would have thought this step would fail? I've also swapped around my RAM sticks - I have a 8GB stick and 2x4GB sticks, and I've tried them all in every combination and nothing.

 

Specs if needed:

Xeon E3-1231 V3

PowerColor R9 390

MSI Z97 PC Mate

16GB DDR3 RAM (1x8GB HyperX Fury, 2x4GB Samsung)

EVGA Supernova 750W 

[Ringtail Jax]

Memtest may not show errors but ram compatibility can still be an issue, even if the timings and clock speeds are the EXACT same, had this issue on a dell server I was working on at work.

 

Just so I understand correctly does the system post normally when the ram sticks are put in individually? (only the hyperx fury ram, only the samsung ram)

[NeatSquidYT]

21 minutes ago, 178Jax said:

Memtest may not show errors but ram compatibility can still be an issue, even if the timings and clock speeds are the EXACT same, had this issue on a dell server I was working on at work.

 

Just so I understand correctly does the system post normally when the ram sticks are put in individually? (only the hyperx fury ram, only the samsung ram)

The system posts normally regardless, and Linux works perfectly fine. Any combination of RAM whether it's 1x8GB stick or whatever and Windows still refuses to boot. I've had Windows work fine with the full 16GB for ages before, this issue has just come up recently.

[Ringtail Jax]

*scratches head* understood, to be blunt though just because it posts perfectly and works perfectly in linux does not mean it's stable. On another note it could be a weak or dying memory controller, could be a weak or dying chipset, my guess is you have already updated the bios to the latest revision on this motherboard?

[Ringtail Jax]

You also said that the install media works fine, however windows CAN still be corrupt during and before the install process. Windows DOES do verification checks during the install but nothing extensive like sector checks on the install media to verify integrity. There will always be variables in between...

[NeatSquidYT]

8 minutes ago, 178Jax said:

*scratches head* understood, to be blunt though just because it posts perfectly and works perfectly in linux does not mean it's stable. On another note it could be a weak or dying memory controller, could be a weak or dying chipset, my guess is you have already updated the bios to the latest revision on this motherboard?

argh sorry for wasting your time, a BIOS update fixed it - I don't understand how cos with the exact same setup Windows used to work fine on the old BIOS revision, but I guess I'll not question it. Thank you!

[Ringtail Jax]

Remember windows does kernel updates too, anything that may not be within spec or causes instability by the slightest can and will be rejected by windows in the form of a FU. Windows is picky like that

[NeatSquidYT]

Just now, 178Jax said:

Remember windows does kernel updates too, anything that may not be within spec or causes instability by the slightest can and will be rejected by windows in the form of a FU. Windows is picky like that

Ah that could be it! I did recently update my Windows installation ISO that i have on a multi boot USB, so that explanation would make sense.

[Ringtail Jax]

Also it's not a waste of time if someone learns from the experience, please post again if you have other issue k? *flies off into the distance* XD