Hey everyone! Since upgrading my PC with new parts back in January 2025, I've been hit with bluescreen errors and crashes at least a few times a week. This usually happens when I'm working in Unity3D or sometimes while gaming. I've teamed up with an IT-savvy friend to troubleshoot, but we're at a standstill, and I'm hoping someone here can offer a fresh perspective.
For some context, I use my PC strictly for game development, basic gaming, and everyday tasks—nothing too resource-intensive or overclocked. The new components include the CPU, liquid cooler, RAM, and motherboard, while the used ones are the GPU, PSU, and SSD (which has been flashed). Here's a [list of my parts](https://pcpartpicker.com/user/Samhunny/saved/#view=BVQndC) if that helps.
Here's an overview of the steps I've taken so far:
- Ran various CMD & PowerShell commands, including SFC and restore health
- Updated motherboard drivers
- Tweaked the MB network adapter to fix a connection issue that caused a crash while hosting a game
- Faced an Error 0x800f081f with DISM, ran chkdsk afterward
- Passed memtest, but had issues running it from my main computer—had to switch to another one
- Monitored temperatures with HWMonitor—everything seems normal
- Checked PSU connections and confirmed it's rated at 850 watts
- Updated drivers again using Avast Driver Updater
- Installed HWiNFO to track logs post-crash
- A forced Windows update happened
- No errors found running Windows Memory Diagnostic
- Disabled Fast Startup as a last resort
- Crashed while only Chrome and Discord were open—surprised me since it was a light load
- Messed around with XMP settings in BIOS
- Ran mdsched.exe, claimed to fix something with the C: drive
- RMA'd my RAM; had a few days without crashes after installing new sticks
- Checked Event Viewer; used PowerShell to get rid of some problematic Xbox-related apps
- Still faced crashes, but without blue screens this time
- Analyzed DMP files and found NT Kernel & System and TCP/IP Driver mentioned as causes
- A similar case I found suggested CPU issues, which led me to run a Prime95 stress test—crashed after about an hour into the second test.
Now I'm stuck—are these crashes a cue that my CPU might be the culprit, or could it be hard drive-related? Someone please help me nail down the issue so I can get back to work!
Here are the [DMP files](https://www.mediafire.com/file/sinvlo3kdexn7qs/Minidump.zip/file) I gathered for analysis.
3 Answers
It sounds like you've been through a lot of troubleshooting! Have you had a chance to get a look at the dump files? Those give a lot of insight into what might be causing the BSODs. If you can boot into Windows or Safe Mode, check in the C:WindowsMinidump directory for any dump files, then zip them up and share them. If you’re running into problems uploading due to sites being blacklisted, maybe try alternatives like catbox.moe or mediafire. The more dumps you can provide, the easier it’ll be to pinpoint the problem.
Also, make sure you have your Windows settings set to create Small Memory Dumps instead of Kernel dumps for more consistent results when it crashes.
Based on the dump files, nothing stands out, but I'd suspect possible corruption within Windows or a storage issue causing it. Memory problems usually lead to corruption too, but your memory tests don't show many direct faults. Without more definitive proof, it’s hard to rule anything out. If you are using newer hardware, have you considered upgrading to Windows 11? I've heard that it tends to work better with modern setups, especially during the early DDR5 days.
Did you install all necessary drivers after setting up Windows 10, like the GPU and chipset drivers? Also check Device Manager for any warning signs. Sometimes you might find duplicate Windows updates messing things up, so it's worth looking into the 0x800f081f error you mentioned—definitely Google it to find more info on fixing that issue.
I checked Device Manager, and there are no warning signs. I might've had some duplicate updates at some point, but I haven’t seen the 0x800f081f error surface for a while now.