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General discussion

Windows 8.1 Pro behaving strangely

Mar 24, 2015 7:51AM PDT

I've been running Windows 8.1 64-Bit on my i7 4770K desktop for about one year. Two months ago I upgraded the OS to 8.1 Pro. Key hardware components are Samsung EVA Pro 256 GB SSD ("C" drive), 16 GB DDR3 RAM and 4 x SATA 3.0 HD for data. Except for a few BSOD, mostly in OS module ntoskrnl.exe, and error: POOL_CORRUPTION_IN_FILE_AREA. This BSOD occurred on 3/19/15; a crash dump was created; and Windows rebooted normally. System behavior has gotten very strange after that BSOD: a) start->shut down or sign out -> shut down no longer shuts down system. Only the display turns off. Shut down requires holding the power off button until the event happens. I'm stumped and need advice on how to analyze what's happening and, ideally, how to fix it. Thanks for your assistance.

Discussion is locked

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So, that K version.
Mar 24, 2015 7:56AM PDT
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Re: Windows 8.1 Pro behaving strangely by lemaech56
Mar 24, 2015 8:34AM PDT

The system is strictly stock and not overclocked, though the processor is an i7 4770K with unlocked multiplier. I will debug using 1 stick of RAM - there are 4 x 4GB sticks. It will be a few days before this can be done. Thanks for the tips.

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Windows 8.1 Pro behaving strangely - Resolved
Mar 25, 2015 3:21AM PDT

After many hours of debugging based on recommendations from Bob and Kees on this forum - which led to my reviewing articles on Windows 8.1 troubleshooting - my problem was finally resolved. Here is a summary of key actions taken:

1. Review and change Power Management config: Power Button set to Shutdown. Shutdown issue not
resolved.
2. Ran system file check in CMD Prompt with admin permission: sfc /scannow: Result was "Windows
Resource Protection did not find any integrity violations."
3. Created Windows Recovery USB but didn't use.
4. Removed USB 3.0 Hub, since at boot up Windows became stuck in "checking drive "N." This step was
taken since there is no physical drive N, but I noticed that a USB stick was given drive letter N when
inserted into Hub. Note that there was no USB stick in Hub when Windows became stuck during boot.
5. System booted without issues, but remained on after Start->Shutdown or sign out->Shutdown. Only display
was turned off.
6. Searching Net for this behavior, the suggestion to run powercfg.exe /hibernate off in CMD Prompt with
admin privilege was done. Windows shutdown and booted up normally.

In summary, this is the toughest issue I've experienced in otherwise rock solid and secure Windows 8.1 Pro. I'm still perplexed about the power setting (hibernate on), since I've never changed it. Thanks for your assistance. As always, CNET Forum came to my rescue.

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Re: fix it
Mar 24, 2015 8:05AM PDT

I'd run system file checker (http://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/wiki/windows_other-system/system-file-check-sfc-scan-and-repair-system-files/bc609315-da1f-4775-812c-695b60477a93) to see if something is damaged during the crash. Unlikely, but you never know.

If you still have a backup image of your SSD from before that BSOD (I do make them since I had to do a total reinstall to solve some strange issue) see if that is OK. If so, go forward from there. If that's misbehaves also (and it didn't originally) you know it's a hardware issue.
It makes sense to make an image backup of your current system first.

Kees

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Re: Windows 8.1 Pro behaving strangely by lemaech56
Mar 24, 2015 8:45AM PDT

Unfortunately, I don't have a backup only of SSD "C" drive only general backup taken by Acronis True Image. I will perform a backup of "C" drive after this issue has been resolved or improved. SFC shall also be run. Thanks for the tips.

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Re: Acronis
Mar 24, 2015 9:06AM PDT

Doesn't Acronis make a separate backup for each partition? It does with me, but maybe that is because I run it twice, once for the c: and once for the d:. The c: (system) is most important, of course. The d: is only done by Acronis because it doesn't take too much time (only 35 GB of current stuff), but I backup most of it as files also, in an incremental backup to a USB-stick or to another PC on my home network and I do that more often of course. The incremental data backup to USB (even USB 2) takes a few minutes, so I can do that before shutting down or while looking a TV show or making a cup of coffee.

So I can restore my c:-drive with my system (and I once did it, whch made me quite happy that it worked), independent of my data.

Kees

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Re: Windows 8.1 Pro behaving strangely
Mar 24, 2015 3:29PM PDT

I ran sfc /scannow and the result was "Windows Resource Protection did not find any integrity violations."
Acronis runs continuously, so there are total system backups dating back to 3/2/15. I will do a system restore from this version, since it is the oldest and taken well before the system acting up. Also, I created a system recovery disk (USB) using Windows 8 procedures. The next few days promise lots of system triage.