Error encountered: IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL in afd.sys
Error encountered: IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL in afd.sys
Paging
@Colif and @gardenman
Contacting about a friend's PC issue. He's encountering BSODs related to IRQL referencing for several services, most recently afd.sys. It's a fresh build with an AMD 5600X, Gigabyte B550M DS3H AC, Nvidia 4070, and 32GB RAM.
I've reviewed nearly all IRQL threads on the forum you two have participated in. When afd.sys is mentioned, the problem seems tied to network drivers. I reinstalled and re-applied the Realtek ethernet + BT drivers multiple times.
A crash happened during streaming to Twitch.tv using OBS recording software.
chkdsk found no bad sectors to fix
sfc /scannow repaired system files (this time and once before this crash).
The latest full DMP is attached, hoping it helps clarify the situation.
MEMORY.DMP
drive.google.com
Also, here are 4 earlier minidumps (you can skip the one with Discord trigger unless it's relevant):
Dumps – Google Drive
drive.google.com
I believe @ubuysa would make a better option for assistance. Perhaps he will visit and provide guidance. Allow some time for responses.
These are old dumps, they're all from September. Are there no more current ones? The problem is that much may have changed on the system between September and now...
You're right that afd.sys is referenced in all the dumps, although there is no reference to a third-party network adapter driver in any of them. The afd.sys driver's full name is Ancillary Function Driver for Winsock, it's actually the high-level networking API and it does sometimes become fouled-up. The first thing I'd suggest then, is to reset winsock...
Open an elevated command prompt
Enter the command: netsh winsock reset
I'd also suggest resettingthe TCP/IP network stack as well...
Open an elevated command prompt
Enter the command: netsh int ip reset
If the user also has a third-party anti-malware product installed (McAfee, Avast, Norton, etc. etc.) then please ask them to disable it completely.
If it still BSODs after all this then please upload the new dumps.
The situation from last September involved reinstalling the network driver and using DDU to install the new nvidia 4070 driver, which initially resolved the issue. I plan to run those commands again and submit a complete dump if needed. It appears unusual that it only happens during streaming. If the network API is the cause, then perhaps the additional load from streaming is leading to this problem. I’m really trying to figure this out.
For AV settings, it’s just Windows 11/Defender protected. No other issues.