Hello you all!
I have an Inspiron 1525 with Vista 32. I installed XP and got lots of problems... So I decided to go back to the Vista that came with the notebook and reinstalled it, through the DVD that came with the package...

But I still getting those BSoDs... I already ran memtest86 (from Ubuntu) for 9 hours and NO MEM ERRORS! I also tried to read and understand the minidump file, but Windows Debugging Tools are not working well here (says that there are problems with ntkrnlpa.exe and I dont imagine what it could mean!)
I decided to post here beacause I read some topics and saw you are all comitted to help and really know about the problems...

I dont know what to do anymore! Hope you might help me! I am going to attach my minidmp file...

Thank you so much!


P.S: Dont know if this is gonna help, but the BS error message was something like IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL.... And I left XP because some BSoDs too! However, the XP ones I didnt try to fix... Just left behind and moved back to Vista!

Attached Files

Mini080109-01.dmp (136.1 KB, 3 views)

Your error is 0xA and these are cuased by either hardware or drivers attempting a higher IRQ Level than they should.

Your minidump cited memory corruption as the cause. Do the following:

1. Check the voltage setting for your RAM in your BIOS and see if it has it set at the voltage recommendation by your RAM manufacturer.

2. On occasion corrupted memory has been known to pass Memtest. Try running it on one stick at a time.

Thanks Route44!
I didnt check the BIOS voltage, but I ran Dell Diagnostic Tool and it performed lots of memory tests... All went well and succeded! So, now I have 2 mem tests (memtest86+, with 11 passes, more than 9 hours, and Dell Diagnostics Tool).
Are you sure its a mem problem? Couldnt it be a driver or something like that?

Thanks so much!

Yes, the minidump specifically cited corrupted memory. Does Dell permit one to access the BIOS? I still believe it would be good to check the voltage settings on your RAM. Also, make sure your RAM is seated properly.

Thanks Route44!
I got another minidump! So, if you dont mind, I'm gonna post it so you could check it and confirm it refers to memory problems! It's already debugged with some commands others asked me to enter...

Thanks so much for your help!

The file goes attached!


Hope it could help you to "confirm" a mem problem!
Another question: how can I find which is the correct voltage valeu for my memory?


Thanks again! I'm waiting for your reply!

Attached Files

Minidump080309.txt (17.7 KB, 1 views)

Your error is 0x00000024: NTFS_FILE_SYSTEM
A problem occurred within NTFS.SYS, the driver file that allows the system to read and write to NTFS file system drives. There may be a physical problem with the disk, or an Interrupt Request Packet (IRP) may be corrupted. Other common causes include heavy hard drive fragmentation, heavy file I/O, problems with some types of drive-mirroring software, or some antivirus software.

The minidump gave no specifics but hardware and what hardware it didn't say. Thus it still could be your memory. This error is one that would be good to run a harddrive diagnostics. Dell should be able to tell you the manufacturer of your harddrive. Once you find out go to their website and download their free harddrive diagnostic utility. Run the tests; this takes time but well worth it.

Also, do the following: Start > Run > type in ChkDsk > click Okay. There are three stages to this test. Tell us if after the completion of Stage 2 it says "Recovering lost files."

* You can also ask Dell the specs on your installed RAM like manufacturer, type, and voltage it should be set at.

Hello Route44!
News: I called Dell Support this morning and they asked me to run again the Diagnostics Tool. So, for my surprise, this time it said there was a memory error in a given position! So, they are coming to change my memory sticks this afternoon... Do you think this is the only error? Because, as you said it could be a hard-drive problem and now they found a memory error, I got scaried! Could be a problem with both of them?

Thanks so much!

That is good to hear! Here is the thing about corrupted memory: It can throw out all kinds of error codes and reasons that say nothing about bad RAM as the culprit. We've seen this happen countless times. The thing with corrupted memory is that it can cause havoc on a system.

At this point see if the changed RAM does the trick. Also, I believe that Diagnostic Tool can also scan your harddrive.

Keep us ip to date and thanks for getting back to us.

Hello Route44!
Just came here to post a status of my situation... The BSoDs stopped as they changed the memory sticks. So, looks like this was the main problem! Since the last friday (when they came, in the morning, to fix the things) I have not seen BSoDs... So, hope it's solved now! Thanks for your help and, having another problem, I won't hesistate to come here! You helped me a lot and gave me some precious advices...

Thanks and see you!

Excellent! Corrupted memory is one of the top reasons people have PC problems. And thanks for getting back to us with an update especially since it has been resolved. This kind of information helps everyone in the PC community.