NIC card headaches..Why?

I knew when I bought Win 2000 Pro that it was possible I would run into some problems and incidents that I didn’t have in WinME. I specifically waited until I bought a new PC to even truly think about buying Win2000. To further insure (or so I thought) that I would have minimal problems, I made sure that all the hardware in this Gateway Essential 933 was on the HCL and that it would work with the proper installation of needed drivers.

For the most part I’ve done okay. The problems I have encountered have been the normal learning curve type of things. The configurations of both hardware and software all look normal and properly set. All is not fine however, somewhere in my NIC card. I’ve encountered a big problem with the card that may actually force me to revert back to ME. Seeing what was spent on 2K this really wouldn’t be what I want to do. Maybe someone can help save me from that drastic and gut wrenching ( J ) move.

The card is a Linksys LNE100TX Fast Ethernet Adapter(LNE100TX v4) and on the surface all seems fine. The card registers as active and as working properly with no conflicts. The driver for the card (Downloaded right from Linksys) is the apparent latest one available. The card actually works fine for periods of time. Then, out of nowhere it seems that the card dies out on me with an error as follows: DRIVER_IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL. The error reports as happening in the file NDIS.SYS. The error also reports that the machine is BEGINNING DUMP OF PHYSICAL MEMORY.

Another problem with the card I have found came when I tried to play Video poker through the Pogo games on NBCI.com. I go through all the steps and it loads the game fine until the very last moment. I see the game screen start to appear and the ** POOF ** gone. The computer goes into full system reboot. I tried the games using a regular dial up connection with the internal 56k modem and the game loaded fine and played fine so I know the problem lies somewhere in this NIC card.

Not sure where I can look to solve this. I’ve looked at a few of the knowledge bases on Microsoft and other places and find that though this error seems ‘popular’ there is no one definitive fix. All I can hope for now is for some kind soul to see this post on one of the forums I will post it to and maybe point me in the right direction. Or maybe it will end up ME here I come again! J TIA.
 

Well, I've had this problem before on some of the first machines I was putting Win2K on. It is actually not Win2K that is having problems with the NICc, it is the other way around. The chipset in the LinkSys NIC conflicts with some of the internal workings of Win2K. This is why I stopped using the LinkSys Nics on the machines and switched over to NetGear. First off, NetGear has a great card and a Lifetime warranty! Second of all it cost about a fraction of what 3Com does. You can get a good NetGear NIC for about $17, I'd recommend the FA310TX. So instead of waisting your Win 2K investment and throwing away a great OS that beats ME anyday for stability, go get a new NIC and have all your problems solved. Good luck!

Harry
Net Guyz, LLC
http://www.net-guyz.com

Harry..thanks much! I actually took your advice the day before you gave it to me! . I tried the service pack and when that didn't work I went to Circuit City and bought a Netgear FA-311 for $19.95. I was a little leary of wasting the money because I wasn't sure if I was going to have the same problem....I wish you had posted a day earlier..I would have went to CC with peace of mind! . Thanks again very much.
Also a thanks to all who offered advice. I may be back soon with another...trouble brewing with my crapola zip 100 external parallal. I'll try and work it..but if not..I'll be back!  Thanks again.

well guys,

i ve the same problem like leon, but i ve an external dsl modem .... i cant get a new one - far to expensive. so what can i do ?


well, my system doesn t crash when i m constantly moving the mouse, and that s no solution ...

plz

need help

Jack

First off, is your DSL modem connect to your computer through USB or a ethernet cable. Second what is the make and model of your DSL modem. Thanks!

yeah, it s connected through usb, the modem is a alcatel speed touch usb.


thx

Well the first problem is that the Alcatel DSL modem that you have is extremly horriable! I have many horrible stories with this moden most of them with the USB connection. The ones with the ethernet connection usally work great. What O/S r u running? A fix is to download the newest drivers but this is temp. We have never gotten this modem to work correctly through USB for more then a week. Any chance of getting one that connect strait to your ethernet card? Sorry to throw bad news your way. Let me know what you think. Have a great day!

-Harry
Net Guyz, LLC
www.net-guyz.com

I also have an external modem connected to my nic. Its a Ericsson Pipe Rider. I have the linksys lne100tx v4. I think it is happening when i run an ftp server ( Serv-u). Im also running a dns service, DNS2Go... Help plz

Hi there!
I have the same problem Leon399 has, but with a FA-311 Netgear card! Since i`ve changed my no name RTL8029-card to the Netgear one (because it was broken) i get these error-messages.
My OS is Win2k Pro

Thanks for any help...

I have a Netgear FA311, driver installed from Netgear's disk.  Problems involve very slow throughput on 100Mbps (much faster on 10), occasional lockups which force me to restart the card.  I'm on NT5 too.  I get DRIVER_IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL but only in my own code, most other programs don't have any trouble with it.  Looks like I shall have to use NT 4 or change the card.

WOW, cool site!!
I have the same problem with my Alcatel Speedtouch external modem.
I am running Windows 2k Server.

So far I have had dumps due to DRIVER_IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL in:
alcan5wn.sys (for some reason I am forced to install this driver)

Hi every body,
Lets take a trip down A+ basics....IRQ,IRQ,IRQ. When you see this error "DRIVER_IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL" there is a hint here, you have a IRQ problem hence computer crashes and reboots. NICs very rarely go bad (only seen one bad in 12 yrs and I've seen a bunch and this one was from a lightning strike), try instead of spending your hard earned money on another piece of equipment and hoping it will fix the problem, do some BASIC trouble shooting. Try taking all extra cards out and leave video and nic and see if the problem goes away if it don't try moving the nic to another slot. And lastly you can remove the dirver and reinstall it forcing the o/s to try to assign another IRQ. I find that if you will go to the command prompt and type "ipconfig /all" you should see a nice information window telling you all about your IP configuration. If your running DHCP you should see a IP address, if you don't chances are that your nic isn't getting it's IRQ and can't assign it to the NIC. If your not running DHCP and you don't see an address and you know you put it in and bound the protocol chances are your NIC don't have an IRQ.
This happens alot especially when people add new periphals to their computers. Check it out, it just might save ya a buck or two.

Hi,

The error DRIVER_IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL has got NOTHING do do with IRQ's but with IRQ levels !

Can be compired with a priority level, which device drivers use. So the device driver in question is doing something which is not allowed on its current IRQ level.

Btw. I have this problem with National Semiconductor DP83815 MacPhyter3v card...


H2Deetoo,

Peeps,

     I have the ndis.sys BSOD with my LinkSys 4.1 NIC.  This errors occurs exclusively, but not each time that I send an email out using Eudora 5.  I remember that on my original install of Win2K, I figured a way out of this problem.  Unfortunately, I cannot remember what this is, only that there is a cure.  I also have and SBLive! 5.1.  I have both the sound card and the NIC on the same IRQ, #11.
I am going to look for this fix like all heck, and if I find it, I'll let you all know for sure.

I have also encounted the BSOD with NDIS.SYS.  
"DRIVER_IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL"

Here are my specs:

Gateway Solo 2500 Laptop with 300mhz Celeron.
160 MB Generic RAM
Windows 2000 Pro.
Linksys 10/100 PCMCIA NIC (PCM100 Driver)

The error happens seemingly at random, but only while accessing the DSL Modem.  I run off a static IP address, so there is no DHCP involved.

An interesting note is when I take the NIC out of the Gateway machine, and plug it into a Fujitsu Laptop with 160 MB RAM and a P II 266 Processor in it, I have NO BSOD.  

The problem does not appear to be specific to the NIC, but rather (to me) has something to do with the chipset or the mobo.  

Any input would be appreciated greatly.  Like many of you, I have found no definitive answer.  Some solutions even seem like they contradict one another, so the problem seems to be linked with machine specific hardware, not the NIC.

Plz let me know anything you can.

I have had a similar problem with my Linksys 10/100 LAN Card.  The problem first ocurred when I was trying to link my Westell DSL modem to my PC via the NIC card and ultimately failed.  After searching through my device manager, I found that my NIC card was running on the same IRQ as my video card. I then removed the NIC card from the Device Mgr, moved the card to a different PCI slot, and then restarted my computer.  It went through the installation, and I restarted again.  I then checked in the Device Mgr, and the NIC Card is listed at both IRQ 11 (the first one it was on from which I removed it), and at IRQ 17.  Apparently both are working properly, which is impossible beacuse there is no longer a card at IRQ 11!  When I try to remove it from IRQ 11, it does not work.  Does anyone know why this may be happening, and any possible solutions for it?  Any input would be greatly appreciated.  Thanks!!

K Guys

Here the answer for IRQ's in Win2k.

Use the URL:
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;EN-US;Q252420

At the bottom of the post you will see how to setup Win2k to get rid of it.

Hope this Helps

Maruis
"I sleep at home not on my Job!"

Hi!

I have an nearly equal error...

0x000000D1 (0x01399114,0x00000002,0x00000000,0xBFEBFBBE)
DRIVER_IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL
Address BFEBFBBE base at BFEB6000, DataStamp
3a68bea9 - NDIS.SYS

by surfing through the Web with the Internet Explorer! I have an DSL Modem, ans i am surfing by an Proxy Server!

(Sorry for my English *smile*)

I hope someone can help me!

See ya.. André

H2Deetoo,

I have written a test program that reliably causes a BSOD in NDIS.SYS in my machine with a NetGear FA-312 NIC.  The NetGear FA-311 and FA-312 NICs both use the National Semiconductor DP83815 MacPhyter chipset.  Analyzing the crash dump reveals that it is the FA-312 driver that is calling NDIS.SYS when the BSOD occurs.  I have been able to reproduce the problem with v1.30 and v1.80 of the NetGear drivers, and v5.0.119.0 and v5.0.124.0 of the National Semiconductor drivers.  The BSOD occurs on Windows 2000 (and maybe NT and/or XP - I haven't tried).  In WinME, despite I don't get a BSOD, the NIC stops functioning after the running my test program.

I have been pursuing NetGear about this issue, but they haven't been very helpful.  If anyone would like to run my test program to see if you get the same results (and give me a bit more ammunition to use with NetGear/National Semiconductor) let me know.  You can drop me a note at ccooper21@hotmail.com and I'll send you the program and source code.

RWilco

I am having the same problem with my Linksys LNE100TX Fast Ethernet Adapter(LNE100TX v4)and Windows 2000 Professional.  I dont have any problems whenever I download stuff from the internet using Internet Explorer 6.0.  But the problem is everytime I download files in mIRC(DCC Get).  I get a BSOD whenever I receive files using mIRC.  The specific error is:

0x000000D1 (0x01107170, 0x00000002, 0x00000000, 0x01107170)
DRIVER_IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL.
Address BFED1C2B base at BFEC8000, Date Stamp 3a68bea9 - NDIS.sys

I've installed the most latest version of this driver for this version 4 NIC from the Linksys website but still having the same problems.  I am wondering if I should just go out and buy a NetGear or Intel NIC card and see if that will resolve this problem or not.  I dont think the problem would be anywhere else because the Linksys NIC card is the only PCI device installed.  Hope someone can provide me with some suggestions or advice.  Thanks in advance.

Hey guys just wanted to let you all know that my problem has been solved.  The NDIS.SYS driver associated with my Linksys NIC was the culprit.  So I went out and bought a D-Link DGE-500T Ethernet Adapter.  It's well worth it to spend a little more money on a more reliable NIC.  No more random reboots during my downloads from mIRC.  

alcatel alcan5wn.sys problems? http://www.usbman.com/Drivers%20and%20Patches.htm#1%20-%20E

I have had similar errors using a LinkSys NIC but the errors became broader in scope, so I ran diagnostics on my RAM and that was the problem. At least so far as I can tell. I removed a D-Link unit for the fact that I couldn't get the machine into standby mode due to the driver's interference, but the LinkSys unit does the same. Anyone have any input on how to work around the standby issue?

Also think it's important to note that the post mentioning the fact that this is an IRQ LEVEL problem was the sharpest yet. But what to do about it?

Email me! denodave@yahoo.com
Real men pray...especially techies!

I have an alcatel speedtouch pro ADSL router, and i cant get it to work with DCC sends in MIRC. Can you help?

Thanks,
       Jonny

Anyone have a fix for this problem, except for buying a darn new nic....Thanks...Teck support is bad for linksys

THE PROBLEM IS NOT THE LINKSYS CARD ITSELF - but the drivers.

Note very, very carefully - Linksys has 5(!) different versions of the same 100TX card - each one with different chipsets, and each one requiring its own drivers.

I discovered this one out after a full day of debugging - I thought I had the correct driver, but after carefully checking the physical card against the Linksys site I discovered that I had the wrong chipset drivers.  Changing the drivers fixed everything.  Be extra, extra careful.  You must yank the card and compare it to pictures on the Linksys site to get it right!

DO NOT download from the Linksys site until you confirm that the drivers are correct for the chipset!!  The easiest links for drivers on the Linksys site is for version 5 cards.  If you have a different one then they will cause problems.  And do not assume (as I did) that just because the card is new that you have version 5 - I bought 2 cards at the same time, and one ended up being version 4 and the other version 5!

I don't see how it could be an IRQ problem considering the fact that ACPI steers all PCI-based devices to the same interrupt. ACPI compensates for interrupt load balancing because NT 5.x doesn't have that ability.

I have the same irql BSOD problem with my Linksys100TX and it always occured in mIRC when downloading over a DCC Send. I checked out the card and it ended up being a version 5 card. Windows XP installs Version 4 drivers for all Linksys100TX cards so I downloaded the updated V5 drivers and installed. Since then, no irql BSOD! Make sure (like previous poster said) that you get the CORRECT version drivers for your card. Don't think XP is going to install them for you.

I recently bought a netgear 311 NIC and cannot install it.  When the system starts up, it recognizes it as an ethernet adapter - once it tries to install the drivers, it comes back with the error "the data is invalid".  After trying all of the standard fixes (removing, updating drivers, BIOS PnP support, etc) it still doesnt work.  I can get the drivers to install and have it show up in the device manager, but the unknown device is still there.  The netgear driver (in device manager) says that the card cannot be started and cannot find the location.  The unknown device is still there.  If I attempt to update the unknown ethernet adatper with the netgear drivers I still get the message that the data is invalid.  The system appears unwilling to bind the driver to the card.  Any help would be great.

Please remove the entire network stack, the Unknown Device, the NIC and any .INF's (usually in \Windows\INF\Other, or \Windows\INF - see the install disk to find the name of the .INF if you have trouble).  Shut down and pull the card.  Restart.  Does it still find the Unknown Device?

Try moving the card to a different PCI slot - could be a resource conflict.  Remember not to put the NIC in the slot next to the AGP port - they share resources.

Your mileage may vary...

Damn! Same problem with an Linksys NC100 2.1 card, error message is DRIVER_IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL. I only have the problem like Cyfu when I download AND upload on mirc using dcc. When my download does not hit peak (about 3 MB) Im safe but once it my bandwith gets up in the higher range WHILE Im uploading at the same time BAM! very annoying, had to keep requeueing files :\. I think I might just try Cyfu's solution and buy a darn new nic since nobody seems to have a solution anywhere. Im not in the mood to look for a needle in a haystack since Nic's are considered pretty cheap.

I have the IRQL BSOD as well, but after checking on other sites, they say this problem can be caused by many different reasons. However, I also have a Linksys 100tx ver 5.1.  I installed the drivers from the web site and yet I stil get the BSOD.  However, my BSOD does not tell me which file the problem is in.  Could this be my RAM? Can anyone help?

Well, I have the same problem. I have a FA311 that will bluescreen with Driver_IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL; stop 0x000000D1; FA312nd5.sys.

I am running windows XP, but this card was giving problems with windows 98 as well. Netgear's support told me today I should have built the OS without the card in it before loading the card. That was a new one too me, but one I will remember. Needless to say, I don't want to start all over again. I am wondering if I put in a different model card in, if the problem will go away.

Hi there, just wanted to let you know, I also had problems with the Driver_IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL; stop 0x000000D1; NDIS.SYS with my Sharp Notebook under Win2k. The System crashed when starting Eudora 5.1. The solution here was, that some email in the outbox caused the trouble. When trying to send it,  which was automatically is the case when you start the program, it caused the crash. Hence manually editing Eudoras out.mbx using an ascii-editor, erasing the last email did help for now. It seems that ths is somewhat common with some email clients.

I have this same issue with the Linksys Card (V4) I have found that this is known issue and the fix from MS is not on their web site.

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;Q317475

The fix is supposedly available though contacting MS support for their ever so famous $195.00 per problem rate.  :(  Oh well, guess it's time to invest in a new NIC :(

I have winXP though... will that still work?  They didnt have any drivers for WinXP so my NIC isnt upgraded i think
I really dont want to invest $$$ on a new NIC cause I'm only a kid lolz no solution @ all? =(

some say they just changed the PCI slot and the problem went away
A solution maybe

NyCxSpyder, I would indeed try changing the PCI slot - the problem is that XP and 2000 are now virtualizing IRQ's via software through a single hardware IRQ.  PnP on many motherboards is not exactly perfect PnP - they assign IRQ's to hardware based upon slot location, not upon query.

All this is why it is called Plug and Pray.

It is a lousy system - good in theory but botched in execution.  The MB manufacturers cut corners by pre-assigning IRQ to card slot locations with no manual override, and then the card manufacturers make cards, and drivers, with too-limited working IRQ ranges, and Windows has stability problems with some shared interrupts - so they now virtualize additional IRQ's via software, adding to the problem.

The whole interrupt scheme of the IBM architecture has just turned into one, big mess.

Try to force your NIC to use IRQ 9, 10 or 11 - the only IRQ's that I has found to be (almost) guaranteed stable.  NIC's SAY they works on other IRQ's, but not for long, it seems...

You may have to move cards, fiddle with the BIOS (if you are lucky enough to have IRQ steering in the BIOS - yet another cost-cutting move by the MB makers) or move OTHER hardware in the system around the NIC to pressure Windows and the BIOS to put the NIC where you want it (back-door the rotten thing).

You may even have to turn off IRQ steering (in the PCI Bus section of System Devices in Device Manager).  But that is a last resort, as Windows does not give you a method to set the IRQs by hand, even if you want to and know what you are doing.

Grrrr...

Overall, I hate Plug and Pray.

Your mileage may vary...

I had this same problem as well, and I believe I may have found a solution.  I'm running win2k, and after trying different versions of the linksys drivers, the same problem with crashing still came up.  I decided to try something radical and reinstalled my Linksys card with the original drivers from the disk, but I chose to install the win98 drivers, and yes, they will actually work.  I also reinistalled my TCP/IP Protocols for good measure.
So far, no crashes have occured at all with this setup.  Whether or not it will work for everyone is still unknown, but it worked for me.  Perhaps try it if you have the problems and tell me whether or not it fixed your problems as well?

It seems most problems associated with NIC's - especially when running on 2000 / XP - are interrupt based.  Win2000 / WinXP has special problems because Microsoft's default configuration is to assign all, or as many as it can, devices to a single interrupt, #9, and then 'load balance' from there.

'Load balancing' means to service the interrupts logically - that is, by software via the OS - rather than via hardware.  One hardware interrupt and when activated the OS finds out which device is asking for service and via software answers that device.

The only, major problem with that is the bandwidth that the video subsystem and network interfaces use from the system total - they are both DMA capable, high bandwidth devices that therefore require a high level of servicing from the interrupt system.  And since the interrupt system on 2000 / XP machines is software based the OS, at one time or another, cannot keep up with the demand (Windows was never designed to operate as a real-time OS) and the device fails - and takes down the entire system.

The solution, for a number of people's problems, it to make sure Windows is not IRQ sharing anything else important with the NIC.  Now, some NIC chipsets are pickier about the IRQ level set than other, but on the whole I have personally found that IRQ 9, 10 or 11 are the only IRQ's that almost never give trouble to a NIC that are on them - once any IRQ sharing issues and driver update problems are resolved.

If your NIC is IRQ sharing and you are having problems I may suggest trying to change the interrupt of that NIC, or move the other device's IRQ off the NIC, first.

Now, that could be a chore in itself.  Try removing the network stack and the NIC's entry in Device Manager, shut down, pull the NIC out completely, reboot, shut down, reinstall NIC, restart.

When computers start they report the BIOS IRQ settings at the first set of boot screens, before the Windows 'splash screen'.  If you have problems reading it just hit the 'Pause Break' key when necessary to pause the boot sequence - hit 'Enter' to continue.  Some computer BIOS's have their own splash screen to cover the POST screen output - 'Tab' sometimes works to turn that off temporalily - see you BIOS setup or motherboard manual.

If the BIOS is setting the NIC at a shared IRQ then Windows will probably keep it there, if only for convenience.  In that case either move the NIC to a different slot, or if available, go into the PCI setting page of the BIOS and see if you can change which IRQ the BIOS is assigning to the slot that the NIC is in.  Not all motherboards allow this.

Getting Windows to change a IRQ that it wants to use sometimes is just about as easy as bringing Elvis back to life.  But, if the system is unstable because of the NIC and the NIC is IRQ sharing, moving that IRQ will most likely help immensely.

I will help all if I can (after all I'm getting you into this mess!).

Good luck to all.

Your mileage may vary...

Very interesting discussions!

I just got a brand new BSOD today on a W2K sp2.  This happens every time I run a simple ASP program.

From my experience, computers and parts are not as reliable as it used to be.  It may be defective card, defective driver, incompatible configurations, or incorrect versions.

My process is as follows

1, download the latest driver and make sure it is certified for your OS.
2, Move or Change the NIC card.  If you are buying a new NIC, make sure it is a different model and make from the original one.
3, IF it still don't work, uninstall the driver, remove the NIC, go into RegEdit and clean up all the references from the old drivers.
4, IF all fail, get a new computer.

I keep getting the same exact BSOD (DRIVER_IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL at NDIS.SYS) everytime I use WinVNC to control another PC on the network, and I assume this started happening since I installed SP3.

I've seen this problem before. I worked on a computer that would give the NDIS.sys error after trying to connect to pogo.com. This computer had a 3com NIC installed and was removed for the incorrect driver installed. A SMC1255TX card was installed causing the error. After finding the driver for the 3com card and reinstalling it the computer worked fine. I beleive removing all instances of the driver out of the registry and reinstalling the driver probably would work.

hi everybody, after reading all of these problems with nics etc not one of you had a 3com modem and a 3com card  ----  funny eh !!!!!!!  ---- buy the best ,have the best!!!

Ditto on the "Driver_IRQL_Not_Less_Or_Equal" problem when trying to use D-Link DWL-650 on a Win2kPro Thinkpad.   Funny thing is, though, what all happens....

Per instructions, install the drivers from the CD, restart the machine and insert the card.  Next, go through the device recognition & do the h/w install.  NIC works and, if ejected, can be re-inserted without a problem.  That, however, is where the joy ends.  Any attempt to restart or do a power off/on (folowing normal Win termination) results in a BSOD and dump once the icons and background are painted.

Oh joy, I've finally found some people with my problem.  I too am getting the evil BSOD while downloading from mirc.

I've done quite a lot of trouble shooting to try and fix it (different MB, VC, SC, Memory, HDs, BIOS settings, etc.).  Just about the only thing I didn't try yet is a different NIC.  Two reason why are:
1. I only have one NIC.  
2. I never really thought it could be my network card since it ONLY happens when downloading off mirc (never any problems while downloading off IE, or playing games, or surfing the net, etc.), and ONLY at my max bandwidth.

After reading all of the above posts I see at least a couple with the EXACT same problem.  There's also quite a few others that sound very similar.  Tomorrow I'm gonna pick up an older NIC from a friend's place and test that.  I'm also gonna try moving the NIC to each of the PCI slots.

Forgot my system setup..

Currently running:

Athlon T-bird 900
Epox 8K7A
512MB Cruical 2100 DDR
Windows XP Pro
Linksys LNETX100 V4 NIC
Audigy X-Gamer
Radeon 32 DDR
Plextor 40x12x40
2 Maxtor 80G ATA133
1 Maxtor 45G ATA100
----

Also tried:

ABit KT7A-Raid
SB Live!
Geforce 4 Ti 4600
512MB Crucial PC133

The latest drivers (1737F) appear to solve the BSOD problem I described above with my DWL-650 wireless NIC running on a Win2k pro machine.  URL for drivers - and be sure to pick the 1737F set - is:

ftp://ftp.dlink.com/Wireless/DWL650/Driver/

Hope this helps others....

Getting the same DRIVER_IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL error with Windows XP, thought I'd upgrade from Win2000...what a f******g mistake that was...Got these errors with 2(PCI) x Intel Pro 10/100+ Management Cards, 1(PCI) x 3com 3C905B-TX card and jst for the heck of it a Accton NE2000 Compatible ISA card...Result: Nothing works.

Tried disabling BIOS PnP and puting IRQ's in BIOS to Legacy, no go.  Tried latest drivers from all over, no go, tried manually setting Cards settings via DOS, no go, pulled out all cards in PC, no go. Tried various slots, no go. Tried setting My 'Computer' under Device Manager to 'Standard PC' instead of APCI, no go.  I Know it is not the hardware cos I just upgraded from Win2000 and was running 2 sound Cards and 2 NICs prior to this 'upgrade'.  Just about to get my data off this freaking box and reinstall Win2000.  What a glorious waste of 18 hours..f**k you XP, mu**** fu****

I think 2000 is stable enough now and someone please slap me if I think of 'upgrading' to XP ever again.

Lore

Golly, I feel SO stinkin' inadequate because I cannot remember nor find a definition for "mirc".

Will somebody PLEASE tell me what this is, it's just driving me nuts!

I have this same problem with a Linksys NIC and XP Pro.  I just installed the NIC so I could connect with an Ericsson cable modem.  It appears that the NIC and the Video card are stomping on each other. I am going to try to change the the IRQ for the NIC to 10 or 11 and see what happens.

Hey I read this forum and thought I'd let you know what worked for me. I was getting the BSOD... NDIS.sys error with BEGINNING DUMP OF PHYSICAL MEMORY like some of you, running Windows 2000 professional with a Linksys Network Everywhere Card. I tried updating drivers and things like that, none of that worked. What did work: upgrading to Service Pack 3. I had Service Pack 2 on there, I just went to Start->Windows Update, downloaded Service Pack 3 (and a few other recommended downloads), restarted, and never had the problem again. Whether or not this would work for everyone I don't know, but it's probably worth a shot. Good Luck.

I noticed some of you have abit kt7 boards (at least one) which happens to have the via chipset.  I suggest finding out if your board has a via chipset.  If it does, download the latest drivers for it (called "4 in 1 drivers") and see if it works.

i get that same darn prob when receiving a file on mirc, i have tried updating the via chipset jus yesterday, and still get the dreaded BSOD. i use windows xp, and don't know what else it could be. also, the system freezes sometimes when receiving a file for about 10 seconds, then is unfroze for 3 seconds and keeps doing this until my internet connection is lost. btw, i have a linksys router, and dsl. any other suggestions??

I am having this problem, and I have a 3com NIC!  I will try to IRQ thing and let you know what happens.
Have a shuttle mobo and winXP home.
I have 512M ram, 2 sitcks.  If I remove either stick- no problem.  If I use both, BSOD within minutes when using IE

A driver fix for Windows 98/ 2000/ ME/ XP's BSOD for the Linksys LNE100TX v5.

States to not use the linksys driver but rather the driver from the mnfg of the chipset (ADMtek).

Read about it, as well as what driver to download here:
http://homepage.ntlworld.com/j.buchanan/winmx/faq-restart.html

Please note this will only work with v5 ... I have yet to find a fix for my v4  *sigh*

Carl M. Gregory
MC_8 @ #eggdrop && #tcl @ Undernet
http://mc.purehype.net/

After speaking with a second level senior tech at linksys for several days, he proposed a test for me.  He gave me a program (which I put on http://www.purehype.net:81/tools/DRTCP.exe ) so I could easily switch the MTU of the card.  Here is what he states:

-----------
This is in response to the technical difficulty that you are experiencing right now with your LNE100TX V.4
We have come up with a few sets of solutions that you can try and might help us solve the technical difficulties that you are experiencing right now.

You need to set up the MTU size of the computer you are using by setting it up in your registry settings (but altering the registry might ruin your Operating System).   And so I attached here a program that will automatically make some changes of your MTU setting in the registry.

è     Download this attachment and extract it in a certain folder.

è     Then open the folder to which you extracted this file attachment and run the DRTCP.EXE

è     Then on the Adapter Settings set the MTU size of the adapter (which is your LNE100TX v.4) to 1492 or 1490

o        Note: Be sure you set the MTU of the correct adapter (not the dial-up MTU) you are using.

è     Click on Save and restart the computer.
-----------

Welp, after several hours of testing it.. setting it to 1492 seems to of done the trick.

I hope I'm not talking too soon, but the BSOD issue usually occurs within 30 min's of downloading at top speed from a T3 or greater on mIRC via DCC Send.  Using a LNE100TX v4.1 card.

Does this help anyone else as well?



Carl M. Gregory
MC_8 @ #eggdrop && #tcl @ Undernet
http://mc.purehype.net/

By the one, the one helping me out is

Alejandro F. Casidsid
Product Support Representative
Linksys

I figure he should get credit.  Took me 3 days of talking to idiots at LinkSys level 1 support to finally get this knowledgeable person.


Carl M. Gregory
MC_8 @ #eggdrop && #tcl @ Undernet
http://mc.purehype.net/

After testing for 8 hours (usually happens in .5 hours) it worked fine.

I spoke too soon, same issue.  Tried it the next day after I woke up.

I will update when and if linksys fixes it only after 1 week of testing.

My bad everyone.

Carl M. Gregory
MC_8 @ #eggdrop && #tcl @ Undernet
http://mc.purehype.net/

Once again I ask ..... will someone please define the term "mIRC"? I can't seem to find it referenced and I can't bloody remember what the **** it means!

Email me! denodave@yahoo.com
Real men pray...especially techies!

Acronym  Definition
MIRC  My Internet Relay Chat    
mIRC  Mardam-Bey's Internet Relay Chat    
MIRC  Mediation Information & Resource Center    
MIRC  Multi-user Internet Relay Chat    

Most common would be 'Mardam-Bey's Internet Relay Chat'.


Carl M. Gregory
MC_8 @ #eggdrop && #tcl @ Undernet
http://mc.purehype.net/

i have a netgear fa311 and it seems to crash when I start winmx and only when i run this program.  it must have something to do with it to make it crash!!

LBrown24,

Did you read my post about WinMX.  Does that help?

Carl M. Gregory
MC_8 @ #eggdrop && #tcl @ Undernet
http://mc.purehype.net:81/

Thank you, this seems to help at least for now!

May I suggest those who have these problems with LNE100TX, no matter what your hardware version is, please go to Linksys web site to download the lne100txv5.zip driver updated on 7/01?

I'm getting the same driver_irql_not_less_or_equal error on a Dimension 4500 w/ XP pro. The errors being caused by a dlink airplus driver (for the dwl-520+) .. anyone else getting this? Dlink keeps updating the drivers, but the problem hasn't been fixed.

I have also struggled with this BSOD
IRQ_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL*** Address:fcb6obbe ... -NDIS.SYS

Setup: Win2k(SP3), IE6SP1, National NSC DP83815 MacPhyter onboard NIC. The system hung while clicking a definite WEB-Site Link button.
I was following this thread and noticed that ndis.sys calls dp83815.sys. Then I was to update both, ndis.sys & NIC Driver.

NDIS.SYS is updated by installing the latest SP3.
NSC DP83815 Drivers can be found here (date: 07/25/02):
http://www.national.com/appinfo/networks/0,1804,829,00.html

This solved the Problem!

BTW: The NIC Driver was somewhat tricky to find on their Site. One might be happy to have it

best regards
Michael

FINALLY! Found the soultion for the Linksys LNE100TX model 5 card.  After days of surfing the internet all I have been finding was people saying to just buy a new card!  But forget that, here's a link to a driver that will fix the problem:

ftp://210.65.45.84/nic/an983b/AN983B_WIN_DRV_217.zip

Yes, everytime I was downloading on mIRC my computer would reboot on it's own.  But after installing this new driver, it fixed my problem.  Not sure what it did but I did notice that it changed the IRQ of my NIC.  From 11 which was shared by a boatload of different things to 07.  

For further information, go here:
http://homepage.ntlworld.com/j.buchanan/winmx/faq-restart.html :)

VanP2,

Is that not what I already said?
Have you even been reading this post section?


Carl M. Gregory
MC_8 @ #eggdrop && #tcl @ Undernet
http://mc.purehype.net:81/

Carl M. Gregory
MC_8 @ #eggdrop && #tcl @ Undernet
http://mc.purehype.net:81/

A: Is that not what I already said?
B: Have you even been reading this post section?

A: I don't know, is it?
B: Yes I have, but didn't catch your post about my problem.  Only thing I saw was the MTU crap.  

Anyways, no need for me to post here anymore.  Farewell!

CarlMGregory (TechnicalUser) Oct 1, 2002
A driver fix for Windows 98/ 2000/ ME/ XP's BSOD for the Linksys LNE100TX v5.

States to not use the linksys driver but rather the driver from the mnfg of the chipset (ADMtek).

Read about it, as well as what driver to download here:
http://homepage.ntlworld.com/j.buchanan/winmx/faq-restart.html

Please note this will only work with v5 ... I have yet to find a fix for my v4  *sigh*
 
------------------------------------------------------------

Anyhow, this also works on v4.x as well (but you must rename the driver file to whatever it asks for, usually asks for an lnetxv5.sys file, trick it).

Carl M. Gregory
MC_8 @ #eggdrop && #tcl @ Undernet
http://mc.purehype.net:81/

Have been having the same problem, Athlon XP1800, K7n420Pro, GF4Ti4200, SBLive Value, Alcatel Speedtouch USB Modem. System spontaneously goes to BSOD during file sharing on Kazaa, takes between 2-30 minutes to occur, no real pattern; message on BSOD reads:
DRIVER_IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL
ALCANSWN.SYS
Various other text referring to memory dump etc.
Problem started 1 week ago just after installing the SBLive, but was working fine previously for over 6 months with on-board sound, so suspected a conflict between the modem and soundcard. (The modem uses ALCANSWN.sys, updating the driver did not help).
Tried fiddling with IRQs in BIOS with no success, although Graphics, Sound, LAN, Modem all sharing IRQ11.
Found the problem to be with high number of uploads in Kazaa NOT downloads. Disabling file sharing with other users seems to work 100%. Only other solution was to remove the SBLive which also worked 100% even after re-enabling file sharing.
Would suggest either of the above solutions, or possibly manually assigning the IRQs which might work on some mobos.
Good Luck.

CarlMGregory's method worked for me as well.

I was using a LinkSys Version 5 card and having errors when downloading files from mIRC as some of the other users were here as well.  I have now been running for several hours since installing the new drivers and have had no problems yet, whereas before it would lock up within 5 minutes.

If you are having the same problem I urge you to try this method, it seems to have worked for a lot of people, do not go out and buy a new card like the early replies in this thread suggest!!!

I found the solution to this headache!  It has to do with PCI Bus Steering, which takes care of IRQ assigning and management amoung others things.
I was getting spontaneous reboots, BSOD that said IRQL_NOT_LESS_THAN_OR_EQUAL and the driver that was causing the problem was NDIS.sys
You guessed it- the NIC.  Everytime the NIC would try to obtain an IP, it would find that it was sharing IRQ 11 with the SCSI Drive and BOOM!: reboot.
After the POST, the PC lists the mainboard serial number.  I looked it up, realized I had a intel chipset.  I downloaded the Intel chipset driver from the Intel website and voila!! PCI Bus steering was now working the way it should.  IRQ 11 was not being shared with the SCSI Drive AND the NIC... each device had it's own IRQ just as it should be.  No more spontaneous reboots, or BSODs.  Now, why hasn't Microsoft mentioned that Win2K has a problem with Intel chipsets???

is anyone still having issues with this?  i have windows 2000 and a netgear fa311/312 network card.  like others, when i'm downloading through mIRC my computer will randomly restart.  BSOD, DRIVER_IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL, refering to ndis.sys.  and it usually happens when i'm not there, so it really annoys me.
i don't see why netgear doesn't release a fix like linksys did.
any help would be appreciated.

I just had this problem crop up this week - I'm running a Netgear FA311 and Windows 2000 SP3 - despite what Microsoft claim, SP3 didn't fix this problem totally. If anyone has any more comments, input would be appreciated, as I don't really fancy trying my old Realtek that I pulled out of my computer and have been juggling with SB16s in my lunch breaks...

My Netgear FA311 used cause my computer to freeze up when using certain filesharing programs like WinMX on a primary connection, Bittorrent, or mIRC.
I found that the older driver version 1.3, available on the netgear site, solved the problem.
ftp://downloads.netgear.com/files/netgear1/f311v130.exe

I have the same problem and think that it's my cable modem gone bad.I have good signal levels and good tracerts and speed.But it loses sync periodically but without the bluescreen. I've tried different nics in different slots.I've tried different drivers on each of the cards.

I'm getting a new one one on monday so I'll post back so after with my results.I know the thread is old,but still useful.

sheki,

While you are waiting for your new cable modem, do a clean restore of your Winsock service stacks by running this utility:

http://members.shaw.ca/techcd/VB_Projects/WinsockFix.zip

Best wishes.

I should have also mentioned that it's happened before and after a reformat/reinstall of xp (I reformatted yesterday morning);) Thanks for your thoughts though.I'll save the file incase I or someone else needs it later.

I'm going to try to find drivers for the webstar modem to see if I can use usb instead to see what that does.I don't know why it would help but maybe it's worth a shot.

sheki,

USB in my experience is not a great solution for internet access.

Try to get it to work with just ethernet connections.  It can.

You might try testing when you get the new modem with this site, both the Tools testing portion and the freeware utility DRTCP should set you up correctly:  http:\\www.broadbandreports.com

You also should test the NIC and check the settings with the NIC chipset diagnostic tool.  I have seen many REALTek devices where there was essentially a power management sleep mode that was not available to be changed under its properties in XP.  The two most common chipset sites with software for diagnostics (note: download both driver and diagnostic software, the latter is usually not in the Windows driver section on the site):

For REALTek:  http://www.realtek.com.tw/downloads/downloads1-3.aspx?series=16&Software=True

For ADM-based:  http://www.admtek.com.tw/index/index/download.htm

Best wishes.

I agree the usb solution isn't a wanted one,but as a temp fix it makes me happy :)
Do you suppose it could be a bad ethernet port on the back of the modem? A lot of evidence would support this.

I should have also mentioned that the modem was losing synch under the ethernet,before and after the new install and through 2 different nics with different drivers and different slots.Loop back tests were fine.I also tried different cables.Signal levels are fine and so are tracerts and speeds.

My guess is not a bad ethernet port on the modem, but a low-level voltage issue.  These are tricky, but fairly common.

Put a hub or switch between the modem and your computer.  You may find the problem disappears.

You would not have this problem with the new modem and USB; but it is a common problem with rj-45 ethernet.  Try it before your new modem arrives.  I know it sounds like it should not make a difference, and there is scant reason on a technical basis for it to make a difference, but it often does.  An inexpensive switch takes the voltage difference, retimes the packets, and forwards them.  And suddenly the problem you described goes away.

Best.

Hi
I am getting this now as well
3 times today since noon

I have a ASUS A7N8X, new system but for 3 months, no problems
Using the 3COM NIC but also tried the nforce one, it creamed me also today

I was streaming video to my Laptop via a anypoint wireless
Same hardware I have had for 2 years on 2 PCs

So, now all of a sudden this is just killing me way too often
I never turn off the PC and have a starband sat modem
It seems to be working fine though

Power Supply is like 420 watts and all is brand new

Old PC had a cheap NIC card in it and it never did this but this one didn't either until like the last week.

So, what could eb causing this ?
I checked all of the drivers as far as I can tell :/

I have a second partition of XP that I used for a month that I might boot back into and see if it does not crash
This is a pretty new format as I wanted to start clean.

THis really SUCKS when it happens
It might be a fluke but Iwas streaming 220k when it happened but I have done that for 2 weeks and not a burp.

Thanks for any tips!

Tiger

Probably would be better if you started a new thread.  People see the 80 plus replies and ignore the post.

Ed Fair
Any advice I give is my best judgement based on my interpretation of the facts you supply. Help increase my knowledge by providing some feedback, good or bad, on any advice I have given.

I used to have Win2k OS and im using Netgear FA311 NIC and Netgear RP64 Router. Like most of u have already mentioned... i too had the same problem & same message error "DRIVER_IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL" and the sudden reboot...exactly the same problem...but i actually found a way to fix this. WinXP Pro Service Pack 1 fixed this error on my other comp so i upgraded my other one using Win2k to XP Pro and that didn't happen to me anymore.

But unfortunately, another problem arised. I visited so many threads & forums and found ppl havin these same problems-the comp freezes for a little while when downloading using Bittorrent when the download exceeds 80+ kb/sec. I also have tried using different Bittorrent progs...even the java ones...still the same...its freezes. But so far mIRC is good even if i exceed that limit.. i haven't tested it fully in mIRC. But i got that fixed too by upgrading to the latest NIC driver for my Netgear NIC card.

Now...the thing is...i got the BSOD & sudden reboot fixed, the freezing fixed...but after a little while of downloading again in Bittorrent exceeding 80+ kb/sec...my connection to the Internet completely shutdown and disconnect. I can't even access my LAN. No freezing occurs....this can be quickly fixed by just enabling then disabling the network connection... but of course... this is only a temporary fix... as soon as i start downloading at fast speed again... this happens.

I've tried so many drivers... even those not for Netgear ones for the heck of it... still no go. Netgear site is no help at all. When i was in Win2k i get BSOD... in XP this....geez... someone help? -_________-

Hi
My fix was putting the USB wireless on the MB USB plug and now the 4 way PCI USB card
It has not done the BSOD since I did that so I feel pretty good about the fix
I have done the same steps that4 used to hose me and it was always when streaming video from realplayer to the laptop via the wireless.

So, some IRQ didn't like that it seems.
What, no idea but it seems it can't be related to what you're having as it seems software related, not hardware

but, you might want to move some devices to other slots of USB ports
Yell if it works
T

resolved this problem by downloading updated chipset drivers from intel.  They have a utility for identifying your chipset and then for updating the driver.  Go to the downloads section.

During the past month I had this NDIS BSoD problem using a LinkSys LNE100TX version 5.1 and Netgear FA-311.  I tried a D-Link DFE-530TX+ which worked fine for a little while, but then I lost access to the network.  Network activity was slow to none.  After trying everything I could think off, I placed my original failed 3Com card back in, disabled "Local Area Connection", swapped the failed 3Com with a Netgear FA-311, and defined "Local Area Connection 2".  This seemed to have cleared up the immediate problem (for now).