After my son knocked my case (Thermaltake Tsunami, thank God) off my desk, I had major problems with this blue screen.....

I had hassle even after installing new mobo,CPU,RAM, and hard drive.

To get to the point.......THIS ERROR CAN BE CAUSED BY A HARDWARE CARD (RAM, HARD DRIVE, GRAPHICS CARD, SOUND CARD, ANY CARD) NOT being fully pushed into its slot.

OR (As in my case), you have bought a specialist or non standard case and you have to do a fair bit of wiggling to get all your PCI/AGP/PCI-E or RAM fully installed in its slot.

CONCLUSION
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If you get the BSOD - IRQL NOT LESS OR EQUAL


1. If you've recently installed/had installed new hardware OR if your case has taken a knock. ...............................................................................................Strip out all cards and RAM from your mobo, then carefully re-install them, making sure they are fully pushed into their slots and are secured.



2. If "1" doesn't apply or if you have tried my recommendations with no joy.......Seek other suggestions on this forum. (There's plenty of them...)



Note.
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On reflection, I think my problem was caused by using a cheap board in an expensive case.

Meaning, the slots at the back of my case didn't perfectly align with PCI/AGP slots on my mobo, resulting in me believing the PCI/AGP cards were secure.

MORALE OF THE STORY
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Don't put a novice jockey on a racehorse and expect it to win.....


Hope this helps...can't remember if I've already said that....I'm slightly drunk.

R.I.P. Jinky Johnstone - Lisbon Lion & Greatest Ever Celt