inexplicable computer freezing - kernel power 41 63?

Thebluehydra
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inexplicable computer freezing - kernel power 41 63?

Post by Thebluehydra »

hello everyone,

a few months ago (around november) i built my own custom pc; something that i have wanted to do for a long time. for about a month or two after that the system worked perfecrly fine and was performing very impressively. however, out of nowhere i started experiencing random freezing issues that would create loud sounds comparable to a swarm of angry wasps inside a large metal truck.

this has continued to be a problem ever since. at what appears to be complete random my computer will crash and burn for no real reason. i've had this issue for months now, and i haven't been able to identify any kind of behaviour or patterns that would clue me in as to what causes the issue. i've examined every program i use on a regular basis but none seem to be the culprit. my pc is running at a perfectly cool temperature in a well-ventilated position. i try not to have too many things running at once and i keep my pc turned off (or at least in sleep mode) whenever i'm not using it. the only way for me to recover is to perform a hard reset, which takes me to the windows safe mode boot screen, after which i return to regular usage. it's even possible for my computer to freeze right after i reboot, so i have no idea if it's a program causing my issue at all.

frustrated, i examined my event viewer to see if i could identify anything. while there is no explanation for the freezing itself, i did find a critical-level error named "Kernel Power" with event id 41 in category 63. i searched up this term a few times and while there were a number of solutions (such as checking audio drivers of all things), none have been able to solve my issue. i don't know if this is connected to my freezing issue or is just a generic message given to computers that freeze.

here are my system specs, if it helps:
Spoiler
OS Name Microsoft Windows 7 Professional
Version 6.1.7601 Service Pack 1 Build 7601
Other OS Description Not Available
OS Manufacturer Microsoft Corporation
System Name USER-PC
System Manufacturer System manufacturer
System Model System Product Name
System Type x64-based PC
Processor AMD Athlon(tm) X4 880K Quad Core Processor, 4000 Mhz, 2 Core(s), 4 Logical Processor(s)
BIOS Version/Date American Megatrends Inc. 2801, 14/12/2015
SMBIOS Version 2.7
Windows Directory C:\Windows
System Directory C:\Windows\system32
Boot Device \Device\HarddiskVolume1
Locale United Kingdom
Hardware Abstraction Layer Version = "6.1.7601.17514"
User Name User-PC\User
Time Zone GMT Standard Time
Installed Physical Memory (RAM) 16.0 GB
Total Physical Memory 15.9 GB
Available Physical Memory 12.9 GB
Total Virtual Memory 31.9 GB
Available Virtual Memory 28.5 GB
Page File Space 15.9 GB
Page File C:\pagefile.sys
any and all help that can be provided for my issue would be greatly appreciated. thank you for reading.

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HansV
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Re: inexplicable computer freezing - kernel power 41 63?

Post by HansV »

Best wishes,
Hans

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Jay Freedman
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Re: inexplicable computer freezing - kernel power 41 63?

Post by Jay Freedman »

I'd cast suspicion first on the CPU temperature, and second on the power supply.

To monitor the CPU temperature, get the free SpeedFan. Anything higher than about 60°C is suspect. Even with adequate cooling of the rest of the cabinet, the CPU can run hot if, for instance, there isn't enough thermal grease between the CPU package and the radiator.

Similar symptoms can come from a power supply that's too small for the load, or from one that's going bad. I don't know how to test for a supply that's failing, other than swapping in a known-good one.

Both of these suggestions, by the way, come from personal experience. Don't ask!

Thebluehydra
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Re: inexplicable computer freezing - kernel power 41 63?

Post by Thebluehydra »

hi guys,
thanks for the responses. sorry i couldn't get back sooner, some college-related stuff got in the way.

i believe my power supply may be at fault. the question now is how would i go about testing it? do i need to get a new power supply? my current supply runs at 600w.

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HansV
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Re: inexplicable computer freezing - kernel power 41 63?

Post by HansV »

Testing a power supply is not easy - you need specialized equipment (a multimeter or a power supply tester) for it. See How Do I Test the Power Supply in My Computer?

The alternative, as indicated by Jay Freedman, is to replace your power supply with another one, to see if that works better. You could ask around if someone you know has a spare one...
Best wishes,
Hans

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BobArch2
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Re: inexplicable computer freezing - kernel power 41 63?

Post by BobArch2 »

I will echo Jay's comment about the CPU overheating. I had a like situation after one of my DIY builds that took a few weeks to surface. After many attempts to resolve the issue I finally came across an article about the thermal grease. With trepidation, I removed the CPU and reapplied the thermal grease. All has been fine for the last 6 years with this build.

And the power supply could be the culprit. I never had a problem with the initial build as I installed an Corsair AX750 watt power supply.
Regards,
Bob

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viking33
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Re: inexplicable computer freezing - kernel power 41 63?

Post by viking33 »

I go along with a power supply problem. 600W should be an adequate size but if it's going downhill, who knows?
I recently ( about 6 months ago ) had my PSU blow out and the real problem was, it also took out the CPU and the motherboard. A new PSU is relatively inexpensive and a LOT cheaper than having all the other components to replace also. Good luck!
BOB
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Thebluehydra
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Re: inexplicable computer freezing - kernel power 41 63?

Post by Thebluehydra »

hi again everyone,
sorry for the late response... again. college put us all on the burner for the last week or so, but i'm on half-term break now.

i sat down with my old man a couple hours ago to test the power levels coming out of my psu. we measured 5.075v coming out of red and 12.29v coming out of yellow.

i also recently downloaded speedfan to see if overheating was an issue. i found that my gpu was reaching fairly high temperatures so i upped its fans' speed. here's a picture of its values now:
speedfan.png
as you can see at the bottom, the voltage values seem to be underperforming. this is odd considering my tests with the multimeter showed they were outputting normally. there's also a couple of other odd quirks too, such as "temp3" apparently being -128 degrees which obviously isn't correct; i have no idea how that's happening.

it might also be worth mentioning that my psu is an evga 600w bronze. you can find it here:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/EVGA-Bronze-Po ... B01GJD45YS" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
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StuartR
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Re: inexplicable computer freezing - kernel power 41 63?

Post by StuartR »

You can't tell if a PSU is working properly by just measuring the output levels with a meter. You would need to use a device which monitors over time and reports drops and surges. It's much cheaper and easier to just try a different PSU and see of the problem goes away.
StuartR


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Jay Freedman
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Re: inexplicable computer freezing - kernel power 41 63?

Post by Jay Freedman »

Another reason the multimeter doesn't give an accurate reading is that the power supply isn't under load. When it's supplying current to the active components in the computer, the voltage will always be lower than when nothing is connected to it. SpeedFan shows the voltages under load. Usually the drop is smaller than what you're seeing -- for example, in this computer the -12v supply is showing values between -9.2V and -9.4V.

Thebluehydra
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Re: inexplicable computer freezing - kernel power 41 63?

Post by Thebluehydra »

hi all,

i feel you're right, in retrospect maybe testing the power was a waste of time. i now have speedfan running in the background constantly but i can't keep an eye on it 24/7, nor check it when my pc actually goes bust.

my dad suggested plugging a supply monitor into the socket my pc is plugged into from but this might be a waste of time as i had a previous pc plugged in to the same socket which never had any issues. until any new symptoms arrive i've decided to try out another psu. question is, should i go for a psu with 600w (as i'm using now) or go for one that's higher?

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viking33
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Re: inexplicable computer freezing - kernel power 41 63?

Post by viking33 »

Thebluehydra wrote:hi all,

i feel you're right, in retrospect maybe testing the power was a waste of time. i now have speedfan running in the background constantly but i can't keep an eye on it 24/7, nor check it when my pc actually goes bust.

my dad suggested plugging a supply monitor into the socket my pc is plugged into from but this might be a waste of time as i had a previous pc plugged in to the same socket which never had any issues. until any new symptoms arrive i've decided to try out another psu. question is, should i go for a psu with 600w (as i'm using now) or go for one that's higher?
As I said before, 600w is generally adequate but if you can get a larger one at a good buy, go for that one. More wattage available is fine and you'll only use what your devices require. Some think that more is not good because it will run your system at a higher power than it needs. Not so.
BOB
:massachusetts: :usa:
______________________________________

If I agreed with you we'd both be wrong.