Game keeps crashing due to my GPU, please help!

[Donny Deka]

I recently purchased a Alienware m14x and it has been a wonderful laptop, so far i've been able to play Battlefeild 3, Crysis 2 and all those high end graphical games on the highest settings with no problems, but i've been having a problem trying to get my GPU to work with SL for some weird reason. When I had the earlier drivers installed to my GPU I wasn't able to use my GPU at all for SL it always ran off my intergrated chip, but recently I upgraded to the latest driver and I was actually able to play SL on ultra with no lag whatsoever, (but not for long) after logging out than logging back in I always get this error message: http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/32/capturepl.png/

I tried reinstalling the drivers and I was able to get in once, I even tried putting the graphics down all the way to medium and the same thing happends, this is getting really frustrating someone please HELP!!!! *bashes head against wall*

Computer specs:

Intel core i7-Q2630 CPU 2.9 GHz turbo mode

Nvidia Geforce GT555M 3GB GPU

8GB DDR3 RAM

 

 

[Carl Thibodeaux]

Have you tried turning down your graphics? Maybe you have them set too high?

[Donny Deka]

Yes, I stated that.

[Peggy Paperdoll]

Let me guess.  Your i7 CPU has the on chip HD graphics intergrated.  That's new technology both Intel and AMD have come up with for laptops to save battery life.  It's supposed to automatically switch from the on chip graphics (the lower power consuming graphics) to the discrete card you have installed in the laptop.  It works great for DirectX graphics (what most games are coded for).  It stumbles quite miserably for OpenGL graphics (what SL is coded for).  I'm sure the problem will be fixed by the CPU manufacturers eventually but that does not help you now.  You will have to go into your Bios setup for your computer and disable the on chip graphics so that the discrete card will always be the graphics your computer will use.  You might also call HP to find out if there is some motherboard driver update that addresses this problem.  Alienware computers are not cheap.......make support earn the dollars you paid for the machine.

[Keera Woyseck]

i had problems with my, Nvidia Geforce GT555M 3GB GPU, major lag issues, but not the error message.  I was able to fix it by right clicking my desk top >> NIVIDA control panel, and setting my graphic's processsor to NIVIDA

[Donny Deka]

Thanks, i'll see if that works.

[Alisha Matova]

You need to set them even lower. Basic shaders Off. =\. You can try turning them back up later? If yer lucky. Or try some tpv. Or pre 2.7 sl viewer. Or roll your nvidia drivers back to 260. If they don't cripple your lappy.

 

Wish I had a better answer. I have had similar issues for months. To work I either use snowglobe. When I need to work with mesh i get to enjoy pre-windlight SL. =\. And I have puter specs that would make most gamers jealous....

[Donny Deka]

Ok well I found a fix for now but I don't understand why it would or how it would work, all I do is go to Nvidia control panel, switch to intergrated, click apply, then switch it right back to nvidia GPU and it works. I haft to do this everytime but it only takes a couple of secs so I guess i'm fine with it for now...\\

 

EDIT: Ok, I take that back now its not working. **bleep**!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (((

[Peggy Paperdoll]

The GT555M card is more than capable or running SL with medium or high settings without issues.........ultra may give some problems but mostly just texture lag.  It's the on chip graphics that is causing the problems.........disable or override that and the problem is fixed.

[Maeve Balfour]

Are you using one of the LL official viewers? Just wondering if its some kind of incompatibility issue. During the mesh beta testing period I had problems with my GTX460 after a viewer update, and was getting messages like yours. I ended up giving up, and using an older card to get around it. (My GTX460 is still borked if I try using it).

Try out one of the third party viewers (if you are using V3 etc), and see if that changes things. Just an idea....

[Peggy Paperdoll]

I've read that explanation a few times before.  I don't buy it.  The current driver for the GT555M is version 285.62.  That's the identical driver for a very large number of video cards..........all the way back to the 8000 series (some 3 or 4 years ago).  If what you say is true then almost every nVidia card (including my GTS250) would be having the same problem.  Linden Lab is not going to fix a driver incapatability problem for any video card unless it's a coding issue.......but then every video card using the driver would have the same problem.  I don't see that happening.  A TPV might work when the SL viewer doesn't but it's not because of a driver issue.......it's about features either not incorporated into the viewer or incorporated into the viewer that just don't use the same functions the card is capable of using.  I don't beleive LL has a coding problem with OpenGL........I don't have the problem and most other people don't either so you can't blame it on a driver or a viewer incapability issue.  It's something else and using that as a work around will never solve the problem.  It only makes the problem exist for longer periods of time.  It it's a driver issue then every card using that driver will have the problem.  If it's a viewer issue then every person using that viewer will have the problem.  If it's a viewer issue with a specific card/driver combination happening then only users using a card using a specific dirver then every person using that card with that driver and that viewer will have the problem.  All that adds up to more than just a few users experiencing the identical problem.  Pointing people in wrong directions will not help those who want to fix the problem.

[Alisha Matova]

Jup I know. So is my sli gaming rig. Which also crashes the display drivers on anything but the first login. With same error message. I'm guessing toggling chipsets is resetting or restarting the drivers some how. Wish I had that option =\

[Peggy Paperdoll]

Contact the support for your computer or CPU manufacturer.  Auto-switching is not quite where it needs to be in the development department.  It's a shame too since most people don't even know what's taking place.......all they know is that is don't work.  One of the great ideas that need refining.  It won't ever get fixed until the people who can fix it know about it.

[Alisha Matova]

I built this rig. No one to call. It plays most games at over 150+fps across triple monitors. =D. And kicked butt on SL till 2.7. I can, however, make it kick sl's butt again. By reverting to old 260 drivers. But then other games don't work right.

Also, I can also run pre 2.7 viewers(but am forced to run latest mesh viewer to work) on ultra with shadows and ao. Any newer viewer, I can't even turn on basic shaders without black screen driver crashes.

 

Anyhoo that's my experience. Others' milage may vary.

[Peggy Paperdoll]

I built this rig too.  It's not a gamer's rig, I don't use SLI (have enough problems keeping up with one monitor.  Why would I task my mind more with 2 or more?  ), I don't have the latest and greatest video card.  Built this machine (it's my 5th) because off the shelf (even those "gamer's rigs" like Alienware) are too confining and limited for my tastes.  I want my computer to be upgradable and build accordingly (not that I don't replace my computer way before it really needs to be replaced, but simply because I want that option should I decide to keep one for 5 or 6 years).  I know who made my CPU...........I can contact their support.  I know who made my motherboard..........I know where to get drivers for it and how to contact their support.  There are people you can contact.  I'm assuming that your rig has the latest CPU........i7?  If you do then it most likely has the on chip graphics............and that is where I believe the problem exists.  I just don't buy that driver viewer compatibility angle.  Much to spotty to be as widespread at that issue would be if true.

[Alisha Matova]

" I just don't buy that driver viewer compatibility angle". I'm really not trying to be difficult. But it's the viewer. Because I can fix it by using a pre 2.7 viewer. Or by dropping back to drivers from October of last year.

 

If it still happened in older viewers, I'd agree with you. but older viewer never hung the drivers to the point of crashing.

I've tried every trick in the book. Even forcing windows to wait 10 more seconds before restarting the driver. Maybe viewer is trying to use chip instead of actual gpu... I dunno.

 

Sorry to eat up your time.

[Peggy Paperdoll]

Or the chip is trying to take on the graphics. 

 

I'm not trying to be difficult either but the only common component in the mix is the on chip graphics.  I spent a week trying to help someone a month or so ago on the same problem......that's why I came to the conclusion I've come to.  Auto-switching is just not ready for prime time. 

 

Have you tried going into your Bios setup and disabling the on chip graphics?  That answer the question if you can disable that and the problem either continues or goes away.   If I had on chip graphics on my i3 I would try it to test.......but I don't.  If you do then maybe it will tell you that I'm full of crap........or if I'm a genius. 

 

Take care Alisha  :matte-motes-big-grin:

[Donny Deka]

I couldn't find any such option to disable it in my BIOs

[Peggy Paperdoll]

Call HP tomorrow then.  The person I tried to help a month or so ago didn't have that option either.  There has got to be a way to disable the graphics........if not then make HP fix it.  You paid more than the average person pays for a computer to get that Alienware computer.  It may be a motherboard driver update..........I don't know.  I do know I feel for anyone buying something and having a problem like this.  If you search Google you'll see a lot of people are having issues with the auto-switching so I'm sure HP is aware of the problems.

[Donny Deka]

Will do. Thanks for the support! I'll post how it went tommorow after I make the phone call.

[Peggy Paperdoll]

And I sincerely wish you luck. 

 

I want to know too.........I think I know what the underlaying problem is but I could be full of you know what.  I would love to know either way.  I'll be looking tomorrow when I get off work.  :matte-motes-big-grin:

[Alisha Matova]

Well I spent a couple hours beating on my machine. New partition with fresh windows install. Very latest drivers and latest viewer installed. Sadly, same issues. Viewer logs in great Once. Then proceeds to crash the drivers from the second time onwards.

I looked into my mobo specs and my 790i doesn't have an onboard graphics chip.

From evga's site.

"Onboard Video

Onboard Video Chipset

None"

 

Oh well, it was worth a try.

 

[Peggy Paperdoll]

Then your problem is not the same as Donny's.  His CPU does have the on chip HD graphics.  If you will look at the screen shot he linked in his original post his driver for his nVidia card crashed which leaves only the HD graphics to run SL and it obviously isn't up to the task.  Your problem is somthing else entirely.

 

After a little thinking about the screen shot I want to add into the possibility mix a heat issue.  I was under the impression that the laptop is new so I put the heat on the back burner.......but, maybe I shouldn't have.  I got the same Windows error message a couple years ago on an nVidia 8600GT card.  I was able to "fix" the problem with a driver update.....for a while.  The problem cropped up again a month or so later and about a week (maybe less) the card failed completely.  It turned out that I had burned the card up.  I knew the 8600 cards ran hotter than most cards and I did not properly monitor the heat and when I did, it always are up near 95 Celsius with SL running........ignorance on my part thinking that running at that high a temp for extended periods of time was harmless (it was 10 degrees below the upper threshold).

 

So, for Donny.........check your temps.  It might be what is causing your problem.  I still suspect the auto-switching is a problem but then maybe it's the heat that is causing that issue too.  Worth a shot anyway.