F5F Stay Refreshed Hardware Desktop Windows 11 installation encountered a BSOD with DPC watchdog violation.

Windows 11 installation encountered a BSOD with DPC watchdog violation.

Windows 11 installation encountered a BSOD with DPC watchdog violation.

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dodgeman96
Junior Member
38
06-16-2021, 02:15 AM
#1
In short, I began experiencing several freezes recently, most ending with a BSOD marked as DPC_Watchdog_Violation. I also saw the Memory Integrity Warning appear repeatedly, which would disable itself without cause. After checking everything online, I installed all available updates—AHCI, BIOS, chipset, GPU drivers, Windows updates, and more. I ran tests: CHKDSK, SFC, DISM scans, and everything passed without issues. The machine still froze, especially during a fresh Windows 11 install.

This was my computer for nearly three years without problems, except for a headset (Nova Arctics Pro) that had been there since about eight months. I thought it might be disabled by memory checks or driver restrictions, so I created a bootable drive using Media Creation Tool and did a clean install. But it still froze and triggered the same BSOD while installing Windows 11.

I tried cleaning up hardware—swapping SSDs, changing PCIe bays, removing extra drives, unplugging peripherals, even disconnecting the GPU—but nothing resolved it. I’m unsure if drivers are the main issue or if another component like the PSU or GPU is faulty. I also considered RGB controllers connected via USB.

Now I’m trying to figure out what’s causing it: could it be the power supply unit? Or is it something else, like a failing GPU or RAM? I’m planning to test the GPU with a bootable drive and run memtest86 on Linux, but this is getting frustrating. If it’s mostly driver-related, why did it still happen after a clean install?
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dodgeman96
06-16-2021, 02:15 AM #1

In short, I began experiencing several freezes recently, most ending with a BSOD marked as DPC_Watchdog_Violation. I also saw the Memory Integrity Warning appear repeatedly, which would disable itself without cause. After checking everything online, I installed all available updates—AHCI, BIOS, chipset, GPU drivers, Windows updates, and more. I ran tests: CHKDSK, SFC, DISM scans, and everything passed without issues. The machine still froze, especially during a fresh Windows 11 install.

This was my computer for nearly three years without problems, except for a headset (Nova Arctics Pro) that had been there since about eight months. I thought it might be disabled by memory checks or driver restrictions, so I created a bootable drive using Media Creation Tool and did a clean install. But it still froze and triggered the same BSOD while installing Windows 11.

I tried cleaning up hardware—swapping SSDs, changing PCIe bays, removing extra drives, unplugging peripherals, even disconnecting the GPU—but nothing resolved it. I’m unsure if drivers are the main issue or if another component like the PSU or GPU is faulty. I also considered RGB controllers connected via USB.

Now I’m trying to figure out what’s causing it: could it be the power supply unit? Or is it something else, like a failing GPU or RAM? I’m planning to test the GPU with a bootable drive and run memtest86 on Linux, but this is getting frustrating. If it’s mostly driver-related, why did it still happen after a clean install?

R
rythya
Junior Member
48
06-16-2021, 12:56 PM
#2
I completed some extra tasks last night but didn’t get any results. Changed the GPU to an older GTX 1080 from another machine, replaced the mouse and keyboard with different models, used a bootable Memtest86 USB stick—still doesn’t boot and shows a black screen. Tried a bootable Ubuntu 22.04 USB (desktop version), but only gets a black screen on every option except Safe Graphics Mode, which then displays a welcome screen before freezing like Windows. I’ve already tried three more hardware components, but I don’t have any spares. It seems the issue might be with the USB devices connected directly to the motherboard—such as RGB controllers, AIO or RGB power supply units. This computer was great for over two years before this sudden problem.
R
rythya
06-16-2021, 12:56 PM #2

I completed some extra tasks last night but didn’t get any results. Changed the GPU to an older GTX 1080 from another machine, replaced the mouse and keyboard with different models, used a bootable Memtest86 USB stick—still doesn’t boot and shows a black screen. Tried a bootable Ubuntu 22.04 USB (desktop version), but only gets a black screen on every option except Safe Graphics Mode, which then displays a welcome screen before freezing like Windows. I’ve already tried three more hardware components, but I don’t have any spares. It seems the issue might be with the USB devices connected directly to the motherboard—such as RGB controllers, AIO or RGB power supply units. This computer was great for over two years before this sudden problem.