Halp!! Kernel Power error ID 41

[Texelis]

If anyone can offer ideas on the cause, or solutions to this problem, I would be forever grateful.

I have been fighting my computer for 9 months. Random black screens with "No Display" showing. Critical error ID 41 shows in Event Viewer. Sometimes audio can still be heard, computer is still running. I can be running 7 things, or just surfing. Might stay up for 2 days, but sometimes 20 min, no rhyme or reason, seems random.

i7-4930k not overclocked
16GM G.Skills ram - tested
Sabertooth TUF MOBO
Windows 10

Power settings to High Performance, CPU sleep - Never, everything Never, no hibernation

All drivers updated
Initial testing showed some heat spikes, so I replace CPU cooler
Had some 12V warnings, so replaced PSU with Corsair 850 Platinum
Had video stuttering, replaced GPU with RTX 2080Ti

Thrown lots of money at the issue, but starting to think it's a software thing, OS maybe... I'm going to have to replace the CPU / Mobo / Ram next, but god damn I'm frustrated.

Thanks!

 

[Radegast74]

Random shit like that sucks. You probably have to do a real methodical take-apart and put-back-together again, with notes.

But before that, yeah, re-install the OS, make sure the MOBO has all the firmware upgrades, etc.

 

[LoicFarris]

Have you tried a full OS rebuild? Also do you power the system down when it's not in use? I know MS claims you don't have to, but my PC is powered off when it's not in use. Seems to keep my OS install stable longer when I do that or has for the past 20 years.

You said you ran a RAM test and it came out okay? I wouldn't suggest getting the full CPU / Mobo / RAM next, do one at a time. Perhaps run a CPU test to see if any errors appear?

 

[Texelis]

Random shit like that sucks. You probably have to do a real methodical take-apart and put-back-together again, with notes.

But before that, yeah, re-install the OS, make sure the MOBO has all the firmware upgrades, etc.

I haven't done a full oS reinstall no, I guess I should try that :(

 

[Texelis]

Have you tried a full OS rebuild? Also do you power the system down when it's not in use? I know MS claims you don't have to, but my PC is powered off when it's not in use. Seems to keep my OS install stable longer when I do that or has for the past 20 years.

You said you ran a RAM test and it came out okay? I wouldn't suggest getting the full CPU / Mobo / RAM next, do one at a time. Perhaps run a CPU test to see if any errors appear?

Tested each one separately, 2 computer techs have looked at it and can't see anything wrong. Have not done full OS reinstall. I did leave it running a lot in the past, trying to shut down after use now.

 

[LoicFarris]

Yeah definitely do a full OS rebuild before throwing money at hardware. If you have a bad build it'll cause issues. MS will swear up and down that their OS is rock solid, but it's not. I used to re-build mine every 12 months, but I will admit, my current Windows 10 build has lasted over 24 months with virtually no degradation.

Also, while the symptoms don't exactly match up... what kind of storage are you using? SSD, HDD? Have you run checks on those for corruption or bad sectors etc? Just wondering if you're issue could be related to that. Also if you have an SSD, you don't want to max it out, SSDs need at least 25% capacity left empty. The reason is SSDs will shuffle data around the drive to prolong drive life, if it's been above 75% say 90+ you may have an issue there.

 

[Texelis]

Too add, Antivirus is uninstalled, duplicate audio devices removed.

 

[LoicFarris]

Hmm, I would suggest an OS rebuild as your next move. I could suggest more band-aids but I think you'd be better off with a wipe / reload. I'd suggest backing up files to an external SSD or HDD so you can do a full on reformat before the install. The nice thing w/ the fresh install is then you will rule out the OS as an issue. Maybe download any drivers you need so you install only what's needed on the system when it's back online.

 

[Sraika]

when i have consistent unexplainable pc issues i tend to assume it's the power supply
jut my 2c

 

[Texelis]

Yeah definitely do a full OS rebuild before throwing money at hardware. If you have a bad build it'll cause issues. MS will swear up and down that their OS is rock solid, but it's not. I used to re-build mine every 12 months, but I will admit, my current Windows 10 build has lasted over 24 months with virtually no degradation.

Also, while the symptoms don't exactly match up... what kind of storage are you using? SSD, HDD? Have you run checks on those for corruption or bad sectors etc? Just wondering if you're issue could be related to that. Also if you have an SSD, you don't want to max it out, SSDs need at least 25% capacity left empty. The reason is SSDs will shuffle data around the drive to prolong drive life, if it's been above 75% say 90+ you may have an issue there.

Ok, I'll do OS next. OS on Samsung Pro SSD, though older. Only half of drive is used, lots of room. If I replace storage, I'm going to want to replace mobo and move to M.2 ideally

 

[Texelis]

when i have consistent unexplainable pc issues i tend to assume it's the power supply
jut my 2c

Mine too, already replaced with Corsair 850 Platinum.

 

[MurderingPsycho]

I used to re-build mine every 12 months, but I will admit, my current Windows 10 build has lasted over 24 months with virtually no degradation.

Yup, this used to be the easiest way to fix most windows issues but I haven't had to since I switched to 10 either.

@Cody Starbuck When you say you still hear audio, is the audio correct for what you should be hearing? What I mean is, does it sound like whatever you were doing is still happening on the computer? If so, you may just have a bad connection to the monitor. Try replacing the cable or connecting it to your TV for a while and see if it helps. I'm pretty sure that the error you are seeing (ID 41) is just the windows error for a bad shutdown so you would get that whether the PC just died on its own or you killed and reset power because it stopped responding.

It's possible that the temp spikes you saw damaged the CPU but yours is new enough that it should have effective thermal throttling. However, you might want to turn off any XMP profile you have for the RAM as well, they don't always work as advertised. Your processors max speed is 1866 but I doubt that your RAM is listed that low. Pretty much, if your RAM is running at its "advertised" speed, it's likely overclocked with an XMP profile.

Also, did you already to the dust bunnies on motherboard hunt. With a little extra humidity in the air a little dust can definitely cause problems.

 

[Texelis]

Yup, this used to be the easiest way to fix most windows issues but I haven't had to since I switched to 10 either.

@Cody Starbuck When you say you still hear audio, is the audio correct for what you should be hearing? What I mean is, does it sound like whatever you were doing is still happening on the computer? If so, you may just have a bad connection to the monitor. Try replacing the cable or connecting it to your TV for a while and see if it helps. I'm pretty sure that the error you are seeing (ID 41) is just the windows error for a bad shutdown so you would get that whether the PC just died on its own or you killed and reset power because it stopped responding.

It's possible that the temp spikes you saw damaged the CPU but yours is new enough that it should have effective thermal throttling. However, you might want to turn off any XMP profile you have for the RAM as well, they don't always work as advertised. Your processors max speed is 1866 but I doubt that your RAM is listed that low. Pretty much, if your RAM is running at its "advertised" speed, it's likely overclocked with an XMP profile.

Also, did you already to the dust bunnies on motherboard hunt. With a little extra humidity in the air a little dust can definitely cause problems.

Yes, sounds like audio is continuing on, but it's pretty short, then computer becomes unresponsive and I need to reset. I could try that, but it's happened on multiple monitors I tried separately, and on different cables. Hmmm... I'll check XMP. New case, new cooler, new PSU, new GPU, it's pretty clean in there, I've dusted. Going to do a fresh install of OS next.

 

[MurderingPsycho]

This is a stupid question but did you connect power to the 8 pin auxiliary power jacks on the GPU?

 

[at-2500]

Before attempting something laborious I would consider running memcheck for a couple of hours to rule out faulty ram / ram seating problems. It basically writes and reads patterns to the ram and shows you errors that happen. The easiest way to do that consists in creating a bootable Linux usb stick and running it from there.

 

[Mich Angel]

This might help you ... if it doesn't make sure your PSU ( power supply) is adequate and power cords is in working order and perform as it should and connected correctly .

A sudden loss of power in power supply would also cause this problem, windows don't know the difference only that it lost power and shut down/restarted abnormally.

The Kernel-Power error (ID 41) error message states that the system has rebooted without first cleanly shutting-down. It can be caused if the system stops responding, crashes, or loses power unexpectedly. To be more precise, the error occurs when the computer is shut down or restarted unexpectedly.

https://blog.pcrisk.com/windows/12891-how-to-fix-kernel-power-error


Hope it can be of some help or give idea in right direction.

And to add I have same power setting as you, always had that on all computers never had any problem as long as hardware was working correct.
"Power settings to High Performance, CPU sleep - Never, everything Never, no hibernation " Always have it on max but never overclocked..

CHEERS!

 

[Texelis]

This is a stupid question but did you connect power to the 8 pin auxiliary power jacks on the GPU?

Yes, and running 2 separate cables from PSU to GPU, not splitting one

 

[Texelis]

Before attempting something laborious I would consider running memcheck for a couple of hours to rule out faulty ram / ram seating problems. It basically writes and reads patterns to the ram and shows you errors that happen. The easiest way to do that consists in creating a bootable Linux usb stick and running it from there.

Did this, ram is good.

 

[Texelis]

This might help you ... if it doesn't make sure your PSU ( power supply) is adequate and power cords is in working order and perform as it should and connected correctly .

A sudden loss of power in power supply would also cause this problem, windows don't know the difference only that it lost power and shut down/restarted abnormally.

The Kernel-Power error (ID 41) error message states that the system has rebooted without first cleanly shutting-down. It can be caused if the system stops responding, crashes, or loses power unexpectedly. To be more precise, the error occurs when the computer is shut down or restarted unexpectedly.

https://blog.pcrisk.com/windows/12891-how-to-fix-kernel-power-error


Hope it can be of some help or give idea in right direction.

And to add I have same power setting as you, always had that on all computers never had any problem as long as hardware was working correct.
"Power settings to High Performance, CPU sleep - Never, everything Never, no hibernation " Always have it on max but never overclocked..

CHEERS!

Thanks, been thru all of that, replaced PSU just to nuke it if it was the problem.

 

[Texelis]

*** currently running after fresh install on new disk. We'll see how it goes!