I've been having major issues with my laptop crashing hard while I'm using it. It's a gaming laptop I've owned for about three years, and I haven't changed any hardware in over a year and a half. This started about a month and a half ago, where it would crash every few hours. Now it's getting worse, and I'm experiencing crashes every 1 to 15 minutes. Sometimes it even crashes while in sleep mode!
When it crashes, the screen freezes—sometimes goes black, but that's rare—while the audio stops completely. Nothing I do seems to fix it; even the shortcut to reset video drivers doesn't work.
Here's what I've done so far:
- Ran multiple virus scans using different methods
- Cleaned out the laptop
- Uninstalled unnecessary programs
- Monitored hardware for temperature or power spikes during crashes
- Conducted memory and storage tests
- Did a clean install of Windows
- Restarted with all peripherals unplugged
- Tried Automatic Repair
- Updated all drivers
Interestingly, it seems not to crash when I'm running a game on my second monitor, but today it crashed even with the game running. The frequency of these crashes is increasing, sometimes even on startup. I'm really at my wits' end and would appreciate any help!
2 Answers
First things first, try booting into the BIOS and just let it sit there for about 20-30 minutes. If it freezes, that's a solid indicator of a hardware issue, possibly the motherboard, RAM, or VRM. If it functions fine in the BIOS, then it’s likely a software or SSD issue. Let me know what you find!
After 30 minutes in BIOS, no crashes! What should I try next?
How are your CPU temps looking? That could give you a clue about overheating issues that might be causing the crashes.
My CPU temps usually range from 62 to 82, but I have seen it hit 102 before. I know that’s not crazy for laptops, though. It's between 74-78 in BIOS now.
Trying this now, very simple suggestion but makes perfect sense, thanks!