Display driver keeps crashing on the computer and receive error message "Display driver NVIDIA Windows Kernel Mode Driver Version 306.97 has stopped working and recovered".

Anonymous
2012-10-29T09:27:10+00:00

Original Title: Display driver NVIDIA Windows Kernel Mode Driver Version 306.97 has stopped working and recovered.

Hiya,

I recently installed Windows 8 Pro, installed all my usual apps etc.

The problem I've encountered is the display driver keeps crashing. Or having time outs. The exact error message reads;

"Display driver NVIDIA Windows Kernel Mode Driver Version 306.97 has stopped working and recovered."

So far it randomly times out even when the computer is idle, and more frequently when I'm watching videos online. Also, viewing videos fullscreen on certain sites like YouTube is ok, but on others it's very laggy (image updates maybe once a second) and the audio is out of sync.

I can't find a way to properly uninstall the graphics driver.

Windows for home | Previous Windows versions | Devices and drivers

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Anonymous
2012-10-31T17:40:51+00:00

At least yours is semi working.. I have the GTS 450 ( uses the same drivers ) and mine doesn't work at all.. Stuck with the regular on-board driver atm and cant play any games... Microsoft tells me to wait a couple of weeks and to call back and Nvida says 10 ways to uninstall and re-install the same drivers. Hopefully someone with get a fix for this soon.

Hi guys,

Seems like it's not just me.

Just an update, I can't confirm it as a fix, but I haven't run into any problems (apart from a little screenlag) since installing the beta drivers. For me, the beta driver version is 310.33, R130. The only other change made to my system is updating the Adobe Flash version packaged with Google Chrome from 11.4.31X to 11.4.402 to eliminate severe problems when watching video in fullscreen.

System Info;

**Operating System:**Windows 8 Pro with Media Center 64-bit, Build 9200

CPU: AMD FX-8150 Eight physical cores

GPU: ASUS NVIDIA GeForce GTX 560 TI

Primary hard disk: OCZ Vertex 3 120GB

Hope it helps

Edit: Still no crashes, 02/11/12, 4 days

Further edit;

If you still receive the error message, try the following steps;

A. Try performing a clean install of the driver.

Download the latest drivers for your graphics card. Run the downloaded file and select 'Custom Installation'. On the next screen you'll see a tick box or similar labelled 'Clean Install'.

You can do this by visiting nVidia Driver Downloads (www.nvidia.com/Drivers). Either automatically detect the correct driver or download using the form. The best way in my opinion is to use GeForce Experience, which will do everything for you with two clicks and a restart.

B. Close all other programs

It's possible that the error was caused by too many programs needing to use the resources provided by the graphics card/chip. It is also possible that a certain program caused a conflict which crashed the drivers.

You can either try closing some currently open programs one by one and see if the error persists or reboot your system with startup programs disabled and enable them one by one to find the culprit. If the error is too persistent to do the above, an easier option would be to boot into safe mode.

More information can be found below

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/2665946/en-us

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  1. Anonymous
    2013-02-22T14:28:39+00:00

    Hello,

    The driver for your video card is outdated that's why it keeps on crashing. I suggest that you uinstall it and install the new version of it. Go to the website of your computer's manufacturer and find the page that says Support and Download or Drivers and Downloads .. Enter your computer's model and the operating system and look for the video card driver for windows 8. After installing it, make sure to keep all your drivers updated to avoid from getting problems again. You can install RadarSync to automate the driver updating mechanism of your computer.

    I hope this helps!

    David

    That information is incorrect.  The drivers being discussed here are, in fact, the latest Nvidia drivers, one of which was the one prepackaged with Windows 8 pro.  Nvidia is one of the major manufacturers of drivers, and they make their drivers universal, so that you can download one driver, and it runs any NVidia card that you happen to have installed in your machine.  The problem in question is definitely not due to outdated drivers.

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  2. Anonymous
    2013-02-22T09:08:55+00:00

    Hi mjdboys,

    Sounds like although your laptop is quite high spec, your having a few problems. The best thing to do, especially because of the power problems is to get Toshiba to sort it out, if it is still in warranty. I had several problems with my Toshiba laptop including screen and battery power problems. Toshiba was happy to help, sent my laptop via courier and got it back & fixed within a week.

    The problem with the graphics driver crashing is not being caused by Windows 8, but specifically the graphics card driver. Following advice from David's reply, I would use GeForce Experience to keep graphics drivers updated.

    I assume that you have tried doing a full reset/recovery of the laptop.

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  3. Anonymous
    2013-02-22T01:11:25+00:00

    i have tried the latest driver that Toshiba has and it does it 

     i have got the latest driver from nvidia and it still does it

    it has been clean installed and driver sweeper uninstall and we have done it in safe mode all that nvidia support told me what to do

     and then they even gave up

    i also have tried heaps of older drivers as well that nvidia recommended  my laptop is a

    Toshiba qosmio x505-880 pqx33u-01 j00hb it is less than 2 years old and it has had the following problems that happened in the first 12 months

    all these have been replace with new ones

    power pack

    key pad

    motherboard

    LCD inverter

    LCD inverter cable

    LCD screen

    and it also wont power up some times with the battery in you have to remove it power up than put it back in

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  4. Anonymous
    2013-02-22T00:27:38+00:00

    Hello,

    The driver for your video card is outdated that's why it keeps on crashing. I suggest that you uinstall it and install the new version of it. Go to the website of your computer's manufacturer and find the page that says Support and Download or Drivers and Downloads .. Enter your computer's model and the operating system and look for the video card driver for windows 8. After installing it, make sure to keep all your drivers updated to avoid from getting problems again. You can install RadarSync to automate the driver updating mechanism of your computer.

    I hope this helps!

    David

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