A new Windows installation still faces issues on your machine
A new Windows installation still faces issues on your machine
So the main suspect appears to be my SSD. Probably time to budget for a 250GB or 500GB 850 Evo next month. Maybe I’ll attempt to set up Windows on one of my HDDs if I manage to clear out some space. Lol, I just installed Windows on one of my HDDs now. ----- Good luck with the update, I’m not getting any help here. Microsoft’s support isn’t useful and Reddit didn’t assist either. First, share your specs. One is a pre-upgrade model, another is my current build, and the third is my friend’s PC. Explain your problem first, then the specs—otherwise it won’t help much.
Old specs: CPU – i7-4790k, Cooler – Corsair h100i GTX, Board – Asus Maximus VII Hero, RAM – G.Skill Sniper 2x4GB @1866MHz, GPU – EVGA GTX 980Ti, PSU – Corsair ax860i, SSD – OCZ Arc 100 120GB, HDD1 – Seagate Barracuda 7200RPM (2TB), HDD2 – Seagate FireCude 7200RPM (2TB), Controller – NZXT Grid+ V2, Sound – Asus Xonar U7 MKII
Current specs: CPU – i7-8700k, Cooler – NZXT Kraken X52, Board – Gigabyte Z370 Aorus, RAM – Gigabyte Z370 Aorus Hero, GPU – EVGA GTX 980Ti, PSU – Corsair ax860i, SSD – OCZ Arc 100 120GB, HDD1 – Seagate Barracuda 7200RPM (2TB), HDD2 – Seagate FireCuda 7200RPM (2TB), Controller – NZXT Grid+ V2, Sound – Asus Xonar U7 MKII
Best friend’s PC: CPU – i7-4790k, Cooler – Corsair h100i GTX, Board – Asus Maximus VII Hero, RAM – G.Skill TridentZ 2x8GB @3200MHz, GPU – EVGA GTX 980Ti, PSU – Noname, Boot SSD – OCZ Arc 100 120GB, HDD1 – Seagate Barracuda 7200RPM, HDD2 – Seagate FireCuda 7200RPM, Controller – NZXT Grid+ V2, Sound – Asus Xonar U7 MKII
I installed Windows Pro 64-bit previously and everything worked. Recently, Explorer would crash in the control panel. After reinstalling, it fixed itself, but sometimes it would disconnect during games. Windows TechSupport said the issue stemmed from Windows itself—no fixes available. They suggested a clean install, which I did, but Explorer would still crash or freeze.
I reinstalled Windows multiple times—once with a new USB stick, once with a different install medium. Nothing helped. A recent update caused problems around 30% failure rate, and after reverting it, I couldn’t open files properly. Even after reinstalling, the control panel and apps wouldn’t launch.
This happened yesterday. I recorded a video showing the problem: I’ve reinstalled Windows several times last year due to similar crashes. I tried another USB drive and another install medium, but nothing resolved it.
I also noticed system restore points aren’t working well—they often trigger errors when trying to revert.
Ctrl+R crashes Explorer when pressed, but works after a few seconds.
I tried copying games to the HDD, but they still crash. Steam games run perfectly on my SSD.
Is it a USB stick or Windows installer issue? No. I used the same tools as before, and my friend’s hardware is functioning normally.
Games I store on the SSD don’t seem to get corrupted. So, is my SSD malfunctioning? It’s possible it’s acting erratically. Please help me figure this out.
I have no spare HDD I could install Windows on. Are there any ways to check if the SSD is dying? Search times aren't slow I think. The SSD is as fast as it always has been. I know from past experiences that dying HDDs would result in ridiculous slow speeds like windows taking 5+ minutes to start and such. Windows still starts really fast. Takes only a couple of seconds for me to get into Windows. Gonna download OCZs SSD utility and see what it has to say. Update. Pressing ctrl+r now crashes the explorer. Edit: Okay ctrl+r works again. WTF
These are excerpts from OCZs SSD utility. However, I'm not in the mood right now. It would require reinstalling Windows later. I usually play a game like FFXIV and keep it on the SSD, but it crashes when I launch it. I tried moving it to an HDD, but it still fails... All my Steam games run smoothly on my SSHD.
It's very probable the issue lies with the drives, cables, or motherboard ports. Since you've updated everything except the drives, they might still be the source of the problem.