I was playing a game called Nightreign yesterday when my house experienced a brief power flicker. Since then, my PC refuses to boot into Windows, except for safe mode and only without any GPU drivers installed. I even tried my daughter's GPU, but the same issue occurs. Could the problem be with the RAM or the PSU? Here are my specs: 5080, 9800x3d, 32GB Team Group RAM, and a Super Flower 850W Combat FG PSU.
2 Answers
From what you've described, it seems you can access Windows, but only in Safe Mode with generic drivers. This usually points to either a corrupt Windows installation or a bad GPU driver. I recommend using DDU to fully remove the Nvidia drivers, and then reinstalling them fresh to see if that helps.
It sounds like you might need to run a couple of commands to check your system. Open Command Prompt as admin and type `sfc /scannow` to check for system file issues. If that doesn't reveal anything, follow up with `chkdsk /f`. Also, make sure you check your boot configuration: press Windows key + R, type `msconfig`, and under the boot tab, uncheck "Safe Boot". If those don't work, try uninstalling and reinstalling your GPU drivers. If all else fails, you might have to reset your PC or even reinstall Windows. If nothing seems to help, I would start by checking your PSU, then reseat your RAM, and lastly the CPU, applying thermal paste if you do.
That makes sense! I've done all those steps, but I'm heading to Microcenter soon. I’m starting to suspect it might be a PSU or motherboard issue. Any more thoughts?