xpsp2 BSOD "DRIVER_IRQ_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL"

I've been using Windows XP Pro SP1 for a long time with no problems. I decided to try to upgrade to sp2 again, since it is becomming more of the norm. Every so often, around every 24 hours or so, my computer will BSOD. First i was getting one for win32k.sys, and i did some searching, found it might be related to my display adapter, and installed a newer driver for it. Now I am getting a new blue screen error, but around every 24 hours still... The BSOD is as follows:

"DRIVER_IRQ_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL"
Stop: 0x000000D1 (0x71A82163, 0x000000F0, 0x00000000, 0x71A82163)

Notice there is no file reference like or anything like the first BSOD i got... not sure what to do, but i'm pretty sure its hardware related, so....

Any help?

Thanks guys!

I keep getting that one on my machine as well. Happens at random intervals, but usually when I'm trying to get into windows explorer, or do something graphics related. Spybot, Adaware, HJT, and fully updated PC-Cillin don't find what's causing it so I have to assume it's a corrupted file somewhere in windows. A full-reinstall fixes the problem for about a month for me, even after I update fully, but then it starts hitting again...

It happens for me even when nothing is running, like i boot up and just leave the computer running for long enough it will BSOD.

its just on my home computer, sp2 works on all our work computers just fine... I have tried several reinstalls, both upgrading to sp2 from sp1, and a sp2 integrated install, both with similar results. Has my older computer reached its limit at sp1, never to run sp2? I don't really like the idea of not being able to fully update my computer at home...

I noticed it seems to be an irq problem
I dont have many options in bios for this, but is there anywhere else I can check these settings to see if theres conflicts or irq's not set ect..?

Try and update your drivers for your hardware...

From my limited experience with XP sp2 has knocked out print drivers, video drivers, modem drivers, and sound card drivers...all issues fixed by going to the vendor and getting the latest drivers.

IRQ errors are definately hardware issues..and win32sys is dll version conflicts...

Update your drivers and they will interact better with the new\updated dlls from the sp.

Hths

MLF

updated my display driver, sound driver, and nic card from manufacturers. Disabled anything i dont use, printer port, serial, etc... Will post results in around 24 hours if this helped or not.

Thanks for the advice!

HAve you tried a different Video Card?
I have a nVidia Ti4200 that hates the gut of the Gigabyte Mobo.. It took 2 years to reach divorce status, a different card in there and 24/7 3 months no problems..

Have you looked at software: the error could also be a Virtual Device driver.. Anti Virus, Cd Burning Software etc..

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It happens for me even when nothing is running

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.. there is ALWAYS something happening on a PC.. refer to my comment about VXD's.. ..

So if this problem occures with a fresh install of WinXp with SP2 and NO extra software..you have a hardware failure..

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Originally posted here by Und3ertak3r
HAve you tried a different Video Card?
I have a nVidia Ti4200 that hates the gut of the Gigabyte Mobo.. It took 2 years to reach divorce status, a different card in there and 24/7 3 months no problems..

Have you looked at software: the error could also be a Virtual Device driver.. Anti Virus, Cd Burning Software etc..

.. there is ALWAYS something happening on a PC.. refer to my comment about VXD's.. ..

So if this problem occures with a fresh install of WinXp with SP2 and NO extra software..you have a hardware failure..

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I see what your saying, but as I said in first post, i've been running xpsp1 with no problems for over a year, so its not defective hardware. It is specifically a hardware compatability issue with sp2 only. I am hoping that by upgrading my drivers and disabling unused hardware, my problem should go away.

With the emergence of advanced IRQ management, the OS completely handles the assignment of IRQs. That's because we ran out of them and they are shared now. You can turn that off but you could also move your cards in and out of an empty slot at the end of the PCI bus to see if it's related to the way XP is handling a slot. Is your vid AGP or PCI? AGP grafix don't use IRQs right? (wrong, see edit). Take a card out move it to the last slot, test, etc. But really if there are no conflicts in the Hardware list on XP the OS may be fine and the Mobo and BIOS need updating, in fact I would do that anyway. After XP SP2 was released a lot of folks released updates so flash both. IF non of that works the PCI assignments sometimes move with the card. It would then be time to go back in time and turn of advanced PCI management. OH , DO NOT forget that cards can also have flash updates. Make sure your vid card doesn't have a new chipset update that is solely seperate from diver updates for windows. There is a lot of variable here.

//EDIT Brain wash, PCI card slot 1 shares IRQ with AGP. So if you have an AGP card, a troubleshooting step would be to remove and relocate what ever is in slot 1 and keep it out until trouble is isolated in some fashion.

I have an agp video card. I had a sound card in pci slot 1, but removed it when i was updating my drivers for my mobo, and the integrated sound card started working. So far no BSOD since yesterday... May have either been that pci slot 1, or old drivers for my hardware. For now all I can do is wait, althogh I'm hoping my problem is solved. I will post tomarrow when I am more sure.

Ok, I'm well past the 36th hour now. I'm guessing my problem is gone since this is a record for my sp2 uptime. Thanks to all that helped!

After dealing with sound card issues on one site that uses them to test audio equipment...I have found that sound cards use upto 3 IRQs and alot of memory resources...

Saying that...your issue was probably solved by moving the soung card...but then again maybe not. :rolleyes:

From my humble experience...sound cards should be placed in the middle of the PCI s slots...and nothing should be directly beside it as it will use the resources from these adjoining slots...now this was a few years ago...but I still follow the same rule when having to add sound cards..as some of the machines require an analog (which is usually on board now) and a digital card to run the required testing on that site.

I havent had experience with XP on these machines...this was all NT\2000

Good to hear it is all fixed :)

MLF

Sound card using 3 IRQ's??? Wow, a video card doesn't even use that much... Are you sure? 3 irq's?? seeing as how there are only... 15-16... I forget the exact amount, you usually don't even have to think about IRQ's as a PC tech... :p

No ..not with the new OSes and hardware....cause they allow you to share IRQs...and then there is that IRQ that bridges to a higher #??..used to be 9.

I have had soundcard vendors tell me to do this to trouble shoot soundcards as they are notorious for using other slots resources...again this was not with XP.

Works for me :D

MLF

As for video cards...AFAIK they are mostly AGP now and and have thier own resource area...depending on the board of course on how it uses the resources

I also recently buiyed a new ESS 1983 PCI Sound Card, only to end up with the same Blue Screen. Reme,ber what microsoft promised when Windows XP was launched? That we will nevwer see that idiot blue screenm again. that's mainly because windows xp controls the drivers and hardware directly, bypassing the device driver's help. Win 9x doesn't do this.
Solution: NO SOLUTION CURSE CURSE MICROSOFT.

Hah, I didn't realize microsoft promised that... Now microsoft knows not to promise anything anymore! :p

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As for video cards...AFAIK they are mostly AGP now and and have thier own resource area...depending on the board of course on how it uses the resources

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I thought AGP still gets an IRQ, or maybe that's just PCI video cards...?

morganlefay,

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...and then there is that IRQ that bridges to a higher #??..used to be 9.

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Might you be speaking of: IRQ 9 steering into IRQ 2.

In regards to IRQ Sharing, otherwise called IRQ Steering,

IRQ Steering prior to XP
PCI bus IRQ steering started with Windows 95 OEM Service Release 2 (OSR2). It was also supported in Windows 98, Windows 98 Second Edition, and Windows Millennium Edition (Me). By using PCI bus IRQ steering, Windows can dynamically assign or "steer" PCI bus IRQs to PCI devices.
If PCI bus IRQ steering is disabled in Windows the BIOS assigns IRQs to PCI devices, but if PCI bus IRQ steering is enabled, Windows assigns IRQs to PCI devices. When IRQ steering is enabled the BIOS still assigns IRQs to PCI devices and, even though Windows can change these settings, it generally does not.

IRQ Steering with XP
Windows XP cannot rebalance resources in the same way that Microsoft Windows 98 does. After PCI resources are set, they generally cannot be changed. If you change to an incorrect IRQ setting or I/O range for the bus that a device is on, Windows XP cannot compensate by rebalancing the resource that was assigned to that bus.

Windows XP does not have this ability because of the more complex hardware schemas that Windows XP is designed to support. Windows 98 does not have to support IOAPICs, multiple root PCI buses, multiple-processor systems, and other highly complex hardware schemas.

When you are dealing with these types of hardware, rebalancing becomes risky and therefore is not implemented in Windows XP except for very specific scenarios. However, PCI devices must be able to share IRQs. Generally, the ability to share IRQs does not prevent any hardware from working. I believe the Plug and Pray operating system settings in the computer BIOS do not generally affect how Windows XP handles the hardware. However, Microsoft recommends that you set the Plug and Pray operating system setting to No or Disabled in the computer BIOS.

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Duck: I thought AGP still gets an IRQ, or maybe that's just PCI video cards...?

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AGP does get an IRQ, which one depends on your motherboard/video card combination, eg. IRQ 10, IRQ 16. Although, AGP has it's own non-competing data bus.
Sometimes if I turn off "Allow IRQ for VGA" in BIOS, then the BIOS doesn't assign an IRQ, but don't remember if Windows does either, although it should.

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AGP has it's own non-competing data bus.

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Correct me if I'm wrong, but that would be the north bridge, correct? Ram uses that as well right?

Northbridge was right, except starting with the 8xx series chipsets like the i815 and i815E in the year 2000.

Intel new design is the Intel Hub Architecture (IHA). Like the old system, IHA has two parts, but they are called the Graphics and AGP Memory Controller Hub (GMCH) and the I/O Controller Hub (ICH) instead of Northbridge/Southbridge.

Anyways, AGP had/has a dedicated point-to-point channel to main memory so that the graphics controller can directly access and fill it with 3D textures.

Ok, old thread, but some of you may still have this BSOD problem with SP2 and NOT SP1.
I thought it was an IRQ problem, and I may have had one at one point, but the BSOD did not stop there.

The solution:
I finally figured out that one of the many advanced ram options in my BIOS was conflicting with sp2. I do not know if it was a phisical ram problem that sp1 ignored somehow, and sp2 is more pickey, or if its just that sp2 is not compatable with these 'advanced ram options'. Either way, I turned them off 1 by 1 untill the BSOD stoped for good. Its been several months now (as you can tell by the thread date) and no problems since.

Who'd of thought it was a problem with the bios...?

Once again, sorry for digging up my old thread, but I have ran into several other people in recent weeks who have had this same problem, and this has fixed it every time. I do not have the name of the exact bios option that I turned off, but if some one can't figure it out by trial and error (theres only like 4 options for ram) I can go look when I get home :)

thanks for that Cross.. it is interesting that one of the issues that are mentioned on the Technet site is Memory problems with this error.. what you have reminded is the issue of BIOS setting in these issues..

There is another thread here on this issue.. and someone did link to the technet page..

Cheers