Driver_irql_not_less_or_equal windows 7

Issue : Your PC crashes with a DRIVER_IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL om a windows 7 system with an error of blue screen of death. I got this driver_irql_not_less_or_equal issue on a pc I was working on today and I thought I would write up what I did to fix this issue.

Causes of driver_irql_not_less_or_equal windows 7

-Most common cause is an issue with a hardware driver
-If you received the error “Stop 0x000000D1 or DRIVER_IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL” 0xD1 message means that the system attempted to access pageable memory using a kernel process “IRQL” that was too high. Drivers that have used improper addresses typically cause this error.
-Faulty hardware
-Corrupt or bad Virtual Memory page file

How To Find out what caused driver_irql_not_less_or_equal windows 7

When the BSOD happens and you get the error “driver_irql_not_less_or_equal” on the top left you will see “STOP 0x********” mostly likely “Stop 0x000000D1” now google this error code to see what caused the BSOD. Now at the bottom of the screen it will list what files were in use at the time of the crash. Take a look at these files and try to work out what files are on the screen that are not part of the operating system. For example if the file “ati_4dma.dll” was on the bsod it could be your ATI display driver causing the problem. If this is the case visit the ATI

Next you can take a look at your dump file. Every time a bsod happens a .dmp (Dump) file is written to c:\windows\minidump\ and will be named similar to “Mini031108-01.dmp” take this dump file and run it through the debugger. I did this and got the below result.

It is now clear that the NETw4v32.sys file is causing our driver_irql_not_less_or_equal bsod.

How To Fix driver_irql_not_less_or_equal on windows 7

Hopefully we have found out exactly what hardware driver is causing the bsod issue. Simply visit the vendors website and download and install a newer driver. This should fix the issue. If you did not manage to locate which hardware driver was causing this issue I recommend you to upgrade all the hardware drivers in your system.

Make sure the latest service pack is installed on your system. You can check if the latest service pack is installed by running windows update.

Run windows update and install all hotfixes. It is possible that Microsoft have released a hotfix which will resolve our driver_irql_not_less_or_equal bsod issue.

Try running ChkDsk to check your drive for errors. Right click your Drive icon/ Properties/ Tools/ Error Checking

System restore, It is possible that doing a system restore will help.

Failing all the above a re-install of the operating system will probably help. I would also recommend upgrading to a newer version of windows if possible.

Is your hardware compatible with your system? Check out http://www.microsft.com/hcl to make sure

Bad hardware, Its possible that a hardware component has become faulty. If you managed to identify which file was causing the bsod I would recommend swapping out that bit of hardware first. If you are unsure which bit of hardware is causing the issue I would recommend removing 1 stick of memory at a time and boot up your computer. If that fails you will have to replace all the hardware in the computer one by one to find out which component is causing the issue.

Other Fixes For driver_irql_not_less_or_equal bsod

I searched the internet for fixes for the error driver_irql_not_less_or_equal bsod and I have listed some fixes below which I found, but am not to sure will fix this issue. (But might help you never know)

======================================= Source Microsoft: Windows XP Pro – DRIVER_IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL error

Set file signature verification options
Open System in Control Panel.
On the Hardware tab, click Driver Signing.
Under File signature verification, click one of the following:

Ignore to allow all device drivers to be installed on this computer, regardless of whether they have a digital signature.

Warn to display a warning message whenever an installation program attempts to install a device driver without a digital signature. This is the default behavior for Windows.

======================================= Source You may receive a “STOP: 0x000000D1″ error message, the computer may stop responding, and data may become corrupted after you install the hotfix that is described in Microsoft Knowledge Base article 835166 on a computer that is running Window…
There is an issue with the SCSIPORT driver. Microsoft have released a hotfix to resolve this issue @ You may receive a “STOP: 0x000000D1″ error message, the computer may stop responding, and data may become corrupted after you install the hotfix that is described in Microsoft Knowledge Base article 835166 on a computer that is running Window…

======================================= Source Windows stop DRIVER_IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL error.

Corrupt or bad Virtual Memory page file
If you’ve followed the above steps and are continuing to experience this issue this error can also be caused by a bad virtual memory page file. To correct this issue follow the below steps.
1. Click Start, Settings, Control Panel, and Open the System icon.
2. In the System Properties window click the Advanced tab.
3. Click the Settings button under Performance.
4. Click the Advanced tab.
5. Click the Change button under Virtual Memory.
6. Select No paging file and then click each of the Ok buttons until all windows are closed.
7. Restart Windows.
8. Click Start, Settings, Control Panel, and Open the System icon.
9. In the System Properties window click the Advanced tab.
10. Click the Settings button under Performance.
11. Click the Advanced tab.
12. Click the Change button under Virtual Memory.
13. Click System managed size and then click each of the Ok buttons until all windows are closed.
14. Restart the computer.

FAQ : driver_irql_not_less_or_equal bsod

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