PC restarted during execution of prime95 (Z390 Aorus Master/9900k)
PC restarted during execution of prime95 (Z390 Aorus Master/9900k)
Hi everybody,
In short, I Overclocked my 9900k to 5ghz, the vCore was at 1.32. While running prime95 (blend) within the first 5 minutes the pc suddenly shut down and rebooted back into windows, no blue screen, simply a reboot.
No surprise that it happened when the Blend test was at its "hot stage" (max 100c). Do you think something's wrong with my Mobo or PSU? or is it some kind of built in protection?
Later I tried running the same test with default bios settings and it did get to 100c but NO shutdowns, it throttled a little bit.. but kept running. And the interesting thing is that in "stock" mode the vCore was actually higher because it was on "Auto" setting in the bios.
(FWIW before I tried prime95 I ran Aida64 and OCCT large data set without any issues) It's maybe important to say that I didn't update the bios so its in version F4 (first version)
When I overclocked I didn't look at the VRM temperature when it shut down so I can't say if this was due to high VRM temp, but the VRM temps on this board are pretty good so I doubt this was the cause of the shutdown) But the LLC was at Turbo setting (seems to be equivalent to level 6 on other brands' mobos)
Now I am running at stock settings until I figured out what caused the shutdown. I don't want to damage my pc. This pc is perfectly new, I built it from all new parts just 2 months ago. My PSU is corsair RMx 1000 by the way.
If some of you have any experience with the Z390 master, can you please let me know what can cause this shutdown?
EDIT: I am starting to believe more and more that it's not a vCore issue. because I already got up to 1.37 vCore and still getting those reboots in prime95 when it's reaching the AVX part of the test (a few of minutes in)
It seems unlikely to me that I passed an hour in OCCT and Aida64 with only 1.3v but getting shutdowns in prime with freaking 1.37v! My LLC is at Turbo
Is there any current protection/temp protection or something like that in the bios that I'm maybe overlooking?
Whenever the system appears to be shutting down and reaching temperatures of 90-100°C or above, it is very likely a temperature issue is involved. Even if the core or package temperatures aren't the direct cause, other components like VRMs could still trigger protective measures.
Throttle protections offer limited effectiveness and often fail to prevent damage. The recommended approach is to follow best practices for avoiding such situations. Allowing your system to operate under those extreme temperatures is not considered a safe method for most users who aren't experienced overclockers or highly skilled enthusiasts.
Pay attention to and heed the guidance from Computronix. He has demonstrated, and...
Anything over 80°C is undesirable. Anything over 85°C is starting to get into "bad" territory. At 100°C you are way past bad into really bad, and probably more than likely you ARE going to see VRM and power delivery problems.
What are your full hardware specifications including exact power supply model number and CPU cooler model.
Also, you should NOT be running AVX versions of Prime to do thermal testing. AVX based stress tests should ONLY be used, ONLY, if you KNOW you are primarily going to be running applications that make heavy use of AVX instruction sets.
Quick and dirty overview of overclocking/stability validation procedure.
Set CPU multiplier and voltage at desired settings in BIOS. Do not use presets or automatic utilities. These will overcompensate on core and other voltages. It is much better to configure most core settings manually, and leave anything left over on auto until a later point in time if wish to come back and tweak settings such as cache (Uncore) frequency, System agent voltage, VCCIO (Internal memory controller) and memory speeds or timings (RAM) AFTER the CPU overclock is fully stable.
Save bios settings (As a new BIOS profile if your bios supports multiple profiles) and exit bios.
Boot into the Windows desktop environment. Download and install Prime95 version 26.6.
Download and install either HWinfo or CoreTemp.
Open HWinfo and run "Sensors only" or open CoreTemp.
Run Prime95 (ONLY version 26.6 which is not an AVX version, or another later version with a modified local.txt file to eliminate the use of AVX while thermal testing) and choose the "Small FFT test option". Run this for 15 minutes while monitoring your core/package temperatures to verify that you do not exceed the thermal specifications of your CPU.
(This should be considered to be 80°C for most generations of Intel processor and for current Ryzen CPUs. For older AMD FX and Phenom series, you should use a thermal monitor that has options for "Distance to TJmax" and you want to NOT see distance to TJmax drop below 10°C distance to TJmax. Anything that is MORE than 10°C distance to TJmax is within the allowed thermal envelope.)
If your CPU passes the thermal compliance test, move on to stability.
Download and install Realbench. Run Realbench and choose the Stress test option. Choose a value from the available memory (RAM) options that is equal to approximately half of your installed memory capacity. If you have 16GB, choose 8GB. If you have 8GB, choose 4GB, etc. Click start and allow the stability test to run for 8 hours. Do not plan to use the system for ANYTHING else while it is running. It will run realistic AVX and handbrake workloads and if it passes 8 hours of testing it is probably about as stable as you can reasonably expect.
If you wish to check stability further you can run 12-24 hours of Prime95 Blend mode or Small FFT.
You do not need to simultaneously run HWinfo or CoreTemp while running Realbench as you should have already performed the thermal compliance test PLUS Realbench will show current CPU temperatures while it is running.
If you run the additional stability test using Prime95 Blend/Small FFT modes for 12-24 hours, you will WANT to also run HWinfo alongside it. Monitor HWinfo periodically to verify that no cores/threads are showing less than 100% usage. If it is, then that worker has errored out and the test should be stopped.
If you find there are errors on ANY of the stability tests including Realbench or Prime95, or any other stress testing utility, you need to make a change in the bios. This could be either dropping the multiplier to a lower factor or increasing the voltage while leaving the multiplier the same. If you change voltage or multiplier at ANY time, you need to start over again at the beginning and verify thermal compliance again.
A more in depth but general guide that is still intended for beginners or those who have had a small amount of experience overclocking can be found here:
*CPU overclocking guide for beginners
Thanks for the updates, everyone.
Darkbreeze, I’m only willing to accept those temperatures if I can pass the test, and it’s only with prime95 that I’m achieving such readings. In reality, between 1.3v and 1.33v the temperatures remain quite normal across other programs—even Aida64 stays under 85°C. The only time things get this hot is in the AVX section of the prime blend test.
Also, this is exactly what thermal throttling is meant for, isn’t it? And as I mentioned earlier, even with default settings I still reach a maximum of 100°C, which keeps the PC running smoothly without sudden restarts.
I’m not temperature-sensitive per se; it might be more about power handling.
Here are my specs:
- 9900k
- Z390 Aorus Master (F4 BIOS)
- Noctua NH-D15 (SgtScream answers your question)
- 16GB (2x8) 3333mhz Corsair memory
- 1000W RMx Corsair PSU
I also have a decent case: Fractal Meshify C with two 140mm Noctua Industrial fans at 2000 RPM and a rear Corsair ML140 Pro at 2400 RPM. Everything runs at full speed during tests, and my room temperature is around 23-24°C with the AC on.
Everything is brand new. I bought this PC two months ago and assembled it myself.
f4 is the initial BIOS release. I would begin there and progress to F8.
Have you considered if it could be this? I told myself I wouldn’t update the bios unless something was really bad.
I’m looking for advice on what might be causing this before I start updating.
I saw some people talking about similar problems with prime, but the answers aren’t very clear. A few think it’s because there isn’t enough voltage.
The initial step is always to refresh the BIOS on a newly installed system. Make use of the warranty before it ends. Updating the BIOS should only happen as a final option for older systems without a warranty, since it's not worth the risk. These updates serve a purpose. They aren't intended to render your system unusable.
The problem with Prime95 is strictly tied to a specific version, a recognized issue involving AVX. Which Prime95 version were you using? Check only version 26.6 (Small FFT's) – http://www.mersenneforum.org/showthread.php?t=15504 Refer to Sections 11 & 12: Intel Temperature Guide – https://forums. According to Intel’s datasheets, TDP and thermal specs are confirmed “without AVX.” Page 87 – Section 5.1.1 – Thermal Considerations, first paragraph, second sentence: 8th and 9th Generation Intel® Core™ Processor Families Datasheet, Volume 1 – https://www.intel.com/content/www/u...co...vol-1.html
I agree, for the most part. There are good reasons to not update to a new BIOS version when it is FIRST released, unless you already have an issue, but if that BIOS version stands for a few weeks and there are no major complaints across the relevant forums from it then there is no reason in general to not update. Especially if you already have a BIOS version that incorporates the performance reducing mitigations and microcode changes for the various vulnerabilities. If you have a system that is pre-Spectre and Meltdown, and haven't updated to a BIOS version newer than January 2018, I can see reasons for not wanting to update to a version that incorporates them. I actually wish I had not but for systems that were released after that anyhow, it doesn't really matter since they will already have them.