since this last update, sl keeps shutting down my display drivers and crashing me if i try to move!!

[nursie Szondi]

since the last AUTOMATIC update, when i log in i see flashes of something and when i try to move or do anything it crashes me saying my display drivers have quit working, i NEVER had this problem before with the older version of SL or before THIS update.... i need a fix!!!

[Rolig Loon]

Yes, there is an apparent bug in the recent update that does not recognize drivers in some graphics cards.  You can de-install the current version and re-install an earlier one ( available at (http://wiki.secondlife.com/wiki/Release_Notes ) or trying another V2 viewer like Firestorm >>>> http://www.phoenixviewer.com .

ETA: The automatic download and update feature is enabled by default, but if you would prefer to download and install new versions manually, you may do so by un-checking the 'Automatically download and install Second Life updates' box on the Setup tab in Me > Preferences.

[Peggy Paperdoll]

The error message is a Windows error message and almost always indicates something is pretty seriously wrong with either your GPU (graphics card/adapter) or your driver.  The problem will crop up when certain conditions trigger it.......such as a heavy load being put on the GPU.  It won't go away by itself.

 

From Tom's Hardware forum:

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Hi.

This error is due to Timeout Detection and
Recovery (TDR). It is a feature in windows vista (and 7) designed to restart a
crashed video adapter without a hard reset.

Originally it was buggy, and drivers didn't get along
with it very well. However, and I know a couple people do not agree with me on
this one, it is more or less entirely working now a days assuming you have the
latest drivers and updates in your system. Though there
are cases I have seen where the issue lied in the bios of the card
itself.

What this error is telling you is that the
card has crashed. This is generally a hardware problem. It could be brought on
by an excess of heat, a bad overclock, something wrong with the card itself, or
something wrong with a part feeding the card (MB or Power). If the card is
clean, you are sure nothings else in the system is broken, and the cards are not
overclocked then the issue is probably with the cards or the
motherboard.

This is a specific error (in a way.. it is
also painfully general in that it does not tell you the exact issue) as it
points directly to the GPU. It is very unlikely the problem is with a part of
the system unrelated to the GPU (overclock on the memory or cpu for instance).
However, SLI or crossfire adds an extra bit of issue to this as cards that work
fine alone may have problems together that would trigger TDR.

You can try a lot of things for this.. you
can even turn off TDR in the registry... but more often than not it is related
to the cards themselves, though if the issue only crops up in sli it is possible
there is something wrong with the mb... but not as likely as the cards simply
not behaving.

Despite what the error message states this
is notification of a hardware issue. This is not a driver problem.. though it
might be a symptom of a bad driver install and wiping+reinstalling drivers is
much easier than replacing hardware.

------------------------------------------------------------------

 

http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/270505-33-display-driver-stopped-responding-recovered-over-over



[Rolig Loon]

I would generally agree, Peggy, and you may be right in this case too. Since the last V2 upgrade, though, we have seen reports of a lot of graphics issues like this one. Sometimes people are getting complete or partial black screens, sometimes very distorted images, sometimes freezes or outright crashes. There might be a sudden epidemic of GPU hardware failures, but it looks more like the new upgrade has triggered an incompatibility with some graphics drivers or (as one person suggested) with Windows 7. Either way, it's not nice.

[Peggy Paperdoll]

No, it's not nice. And neither was the two years (or so) "epidemic" with ATI cards and OpenGL. It was a steady drumbeat that LL must fix the problem because the problem seemed to exist only with SL.........it turned out pretty much as I maintained after doing a little Googling, and was an ATI problem all along. There are ways to side step the problem but the only way to fix the problem is to fix the root cause. That's all I'm saying. It's a Windows error message about a hardware problem which says it's caused by some trigger......a bugy program certainly could be the trigger. However, that is seldom the real cause and to keep exploring something that is not likely the cause will not fix the problem. If all one does to "fix" the problem is to step back the viewer (side step) then whatever trigger exists that produces the problem will not be fixed. I don't think it's bug in the viewer release..........too many people don't have the problem. I also know that most people don't even know what a driver is, let alone how to properly update one.

When someone comes along and clearly states what the problem is, knows it's a Windows message, knows it's a driver or hardware problem, takes the proper steps to explore the driver or hardware resolution, and still has the problem I'll be more inclined to believe it's a bug in the viewer. I haven't seen any of that......in fact what I see is everyone jumping on the viewer as the problem (one of the least likely sources for a message from your operating system). Software bugs generally crash or cause problems with the software itself..........not the software for the operating system or the hardware the operating system communicates with,. There, of course, are exceptions (key word........"exceptions").