Windows 8.1 error: "thread stuck in device driver"

Anonymous
2013-11-20T13:05:26+00:00

After installing the Windows 8.1 update without issue, every time I turn on my computer a screen appears that saying that there was an error when the last session ended, and that the issue pertains to "thread_stuck_in_device_driver". This has occurred every time for the last 6 days, and I have used system restore and Windows Update and the issue still remains. Has anyone found a solution to a similar problem?

Thanks, Jarred

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Windows for home | Previous Windows versions | Performance and system failures

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Anonymous
2015-08-25T16:30:23+00:00

The Dell support page offers a few things to check, but says if all else fails, replace the video card.

Maybe replacing the video card is worth it to get rid of all the headaches. 

THREAD STUCK IN DEVICE DRIVER

This Blue Screen error indicates that a device driver-almost always a video card driver-is stuck waiting for something (usually a hardware operation) to happen. Most of you have probably seennv4_disp.sys associated with this Blue Screen.

  1. Ensure the video drivers are updated to the latest Dell version.
  2. The system BIOS is fully up-to-date.
  3. If both the video driver and the system BIOS are fully up-to-date, check with the manufacturer for recent driver updates.
  4. As a last resort, try exchanging the video card.

Note: Reinstalling Windows is not likely to prevent this error from reoccurring.

http://www.dell.com/support/article/us/en/19/SLN129813/EN#Error6

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  1. Anonymous
    2013-12-31T00:10:08+00:00

    What was the latest AMD driver you ended up with?

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  2. Anonymous
    2013-12-29T09:46:18+00:00

    all drivers are up to date

    but the problem still persists

    please fix this windows 8.1 problem as soon as possible, its getting very irritating.

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  3. Anonymous
    2013-12-28T19:38:37+00:00

    I bought an Inspiron 15R SE in May and tried upgrading from Win 8 to Win 8.1 on 26 December. Problems became apparent when it finally booted to 8.1 and had to go through its configuration phase: it could not get a wi-fi connection, so I had to take the laptop out to the hallway and wire it into the router.

    I quickly learned that I had to reinstall the wi-fi and bluetooth drivers - initially I did this from the "Drivers and Utilities" DVD that came with the laptop. However, I experienced subsequent crashes and loss of wi-fi again, so I went to the Dell support site and downloaded the latest drivers for wi-fi and bluetooth. But several times on starting the computer I saw the "thread_stuck_in_device_driver" error, and then I found this forum.

    The Dell support site lists quite a few drivers besides the wi-fi and bluetooth ones, for which there are more recent versions than I have on my laptop. However, I gathered from this forum that the graphics card driver was a prime culprit and I downloaded the update for that one. I can confirm that the laptop will now sleep and wake up without issue. I have not updated the other drivers yet - but I will bear it in mind if I come across other problems. I do not want to go through a lengthy procedure of updating all drivers if there is no problem - "if it ain't broke, don't fix it".

    Whilst I am unhappy about spending so many hours of my Christmas break recovering from the issues with the Win 8.1 upgrade, I am pleased to see that I can get a bluetooth connection to my phone much more easily now - one of the bugbears of Win 8.

    In retrospect I would like the Dell support site to include pages entitled "Upgrading your Dell from Windows 8 to 8.1". This would cover going through the routine update from the Windows Store. It would recommend wiring the computer to the router, certainly by the time that the computer was ready to first boot into 8.1. It would then direct users to the support pages for their model, advising reinstallation of wifi, bluetooth and anything else as appropriate (video drivers in our case). It would be ideal if Dell could list the essential driver updates for Win 8.1 for each Dell model.

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  4. Anonymous
    2013-12-28T16:27:46+00:00

    Hi Rajith,

    I am also facing the same issue. I tried updating the bluetooth audio device driver where it was showing yellow exclamation mark. But it shows the latest best driver has been installed.

    Please help. Shall I go back to Windows 8 to remove this problem. I started using my new laptop (Dell inspiron 15R) just a week back and updated it to 8.1 version 4 days back. This issue was not seen with win8.

    Thanks,

    Shankar S.

    If your laptop is only a week old and you were happy with 8, I would just do a refresh or restore to factory settings.

    Refresh keeps all your files, restore puts it back to the way it was when you bought it.

    Even though Dell's recommended driver downloads worked for my Inspiron 15R SE, my expensive QuarkXpress publishing software program didn't work right. (I bought the laptop specifically for that software). So, I did a restore to factory settings and my laptop is back to 8 and working like it did when I bought it.

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