Inspiron 8600 BSOD at NDIS.SYS

I have an Inspiron 8600 Laptop, XP Home/SP2, well-maintained.

Starting yesterday, I have experienced sporadic Blue Screens of Death:

DRIVER_IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL

0x000000D1....

NDIS.SYS is referenced.

In researching these error messages, one possible cause is an issue with the
Network Card (which is integrated in this model).

That seems likely because over the last few weeks, from time to time, the
"Network Cable is Unplugged" message comes up, even though the ethernet
cable is firmly plugged into the ethernet port. I wiggle the cable a
little, it goes away, and I can once again access the internet.

So, putting this all together, the most likely cause is a hardware problem
with the integrated NIC. The question is whether or not this can be
replaced without replacing the entire motherboard. Another question is
whether I could install an outboard NIC and somehow disable the integrated
NIC.

Any suggestions?

How difficult is it to open the case and inspect the area of the integrated
NIC, to see if there is any obvious physical issue?

Any other thoughts appreciated.

Don

Don Cohen wrote:
I have an Inspiron 8600 Laptop, XP Home/SP2, well-maintained.

Starting yesterday, I have experienced sporadic Blue Screens of Death:

DRIVER_IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL

0x000000D1....

NDIS.SYS is referenced.

In researching these error messages, one possible cause is an issue with the
Network Card (which is integrated in this model).

That seems likely because over the last few weeks, from time to time, the
"Network Cable is Unplugged" message comes up, even though the ethernet
cable is firmly plugged into the ethernet port. I wiggle the cable a
little, it goes away, and I can once again access the internet.

So, putting this all together, the most likely cause is a hardware problem
with the integrated NIC. The question is whether or not this can be
replaced without replacing the entire motherboard. Another question is
whether I could install an outboard NIC and somehow disable the integrated
NIC.

Any suggestions?

How difficult is it to open the case and inspect the area of the integrated
NIC, to see if there is any obvious physical issue?

Any other thoughts appreciated.

Don


Before going much further, I would run extensive diagnostics on the
hardware. Not the Dell ones. Run MEMTEST Version 3.3 to test the
memory, and run the hard drive manufacturer's diagnostics AND HDAT2 on
the hard drive. The failure in NDIS.SYS may be coincidental with
another hardware problem.

You cannot replace the built-in Ethernet without replacing the
motherboard. If the 8600 has a slot capable of handling an old time
PCMCIA card, you can install a 3COM or Xircom card, both of which have
XP drivers.

If you open the case and tear down the system to the motherboard, the
most you are likely to see is a wobbly Ethernet connector. It is
usually difficult to discern anything with the naked eye about chip
failure, except that nVidia graphics chips sometimes end up with burn
marks.

Teardown of a Dell laptop follows the typical pattern of:
1. Remove plastic bezel covering on-off switch and LEDs
2. Remove keyboard
3. Remove LCD screen
4. Reomve touchpad/palm rest

This involves maybe 20 tiny screws, the right size of SMALL Philips head
screwdriver, a small flat-bladed screwdriver, a large clean open work
space, and good ability to visualize how things go together. If the
8600 was my laptop, I would not do it, and I do a lot of laptop
teardowns (and reassemblies). For the effort involved, you would not
gain much knowledge, if any... Ben Myers

Some thoughts on your issue. I too have an I8600 that has served me well for
a long time but has some similar issues.
1) After being put to sleep/standby the wired network card often doesnt like
to work unless I select it under network devices and select disable, wait
for it to disable and then select enable again. After which it works
perfectly till I next put it to sleep. Though this install of windows has
been installed for over 18months with tons of different software installed
so it is probably due for a reformat which will likely fix all my problems.
2) An external network card can be attached through PCMCIA
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16839218002 something
like this.

Hope that helps in some way.

Robert


"Don Cohen" wrote in message
...
I have an Inspiron 8600 Laptop, XP Home/SP2, well-maintained.

Starting yesterday, I have experienced sporadic Blue Screens of Death:

DRIVER_IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL

0x000000D1....

NDIS.SYS is referenced.

In researching these error messages, one possible cause is an issue with
the Network Card (which is integrated in this model).

That seems likely because over the last few weeks, from time to time, the
"Network Cable is Unplugged" message comes up, even though the ethernet
cable is firmly plugged into the ethernet port. I wiggle the cable a
little, it goes away, and I can once again access the internet.

So, putting this all together, the most likely cause is a hardware problem
with the integrated NIC. The question is whether or not this can be
replaced without replacing the entire motherboard. Another question is
whether I could install an outboard NIC and somehow disable the integrated
NIC.

Any suggestions?

How difficult is it to open the case and inspect the area of the
integrated NIC, to see if there is any obvious physical issue?

Any other thoughts appreciated.

Don

Hi Ben,

Thanks much for the reply and information. I responded to this
earlier this morning, and tried again a few hours later, but for some
odd reason, they haven't shown up here. In any case:

On Nov 11, 9:12*am, Ben Myers wrote:
Before going much further, I would run extensive diagnostics on the
hardware. *Not the Dell ones. *Run MEMTEST Version 3.3 to test the
memory, and run the hard drive manufacturer's diagnostics AND HDAT2 on
the hard drive. *The failure in NDIS.SYS may be coincidental with
another hardware problem.

I booted into the Diagnostic program Dell has pre-installed on the
Laptop, and found no evidence of hardware failure there (the NIC
passed as well).

I have a bootable MEMTEST CD, which I have successfully used on
multiple other systems, but for some reason, when it would start
loading, it would trigger a reboot, so I was unable to run this. I
have no idea why this occurred - any ideas?

The Dell Diagnostic memory test completed without showing any
problems.

Given the fact that I continue to get intermittent notification that a
network cable is not connected, there is clearly something wrong with
the NIC, in any case, it would seem to me. This only started within
the last few months. The fact that the BSOD also points to the NIC
seems to confirm this, but I'm certainly open to any ideas.

FWIW, I had the Laptop on all day today, with sporadic use, and no
BSOD, although the intermittent "cable not connected" occurred
throughout the day.

You cannot replace the built-in Ethernet without replacing the
motherboard. *If the 8600 has a slot capable of handling an old time
PCMCIA card, you can install a 3COM or Xircom card, both of which have
XP drivers.

Given your other comments, this may end up being the way to go if the
BSOD recurs.

How does one disable the NIC that is built-into the motherboard -
through the BIOS or elsewhere?

Finally, the BSOD's started when I was in Brazil, with my Dell Power
brick plugged into either 110 or 220 (the brick says it supports
both). Could a power problem be the culprit here? It's only been a
day, but so far it hasn't occurred since returning to the U.S.

Thanks again.

Don

wrote:
Hi Ben,

Thanks much for the reply and information. I responded to this
earlier this morning, and tried again a few hours later, but for some
odd reason, they haven't shown up here. In any case:

On Nov 11, 9:12 am, Ben Myers wrote:
Before going much further, I would run extensive diagnostics on the
hardware. Not the Dell ones. Run MEMTEST Version 3.3 to test the
memory, and run the hard drive manufacturer's diagnostics AND HDAT2 on
the hard drive. The failure in NDIS.SYS may be coincidental with
another hardware problem.

I booted into the Diagnostic program Dell has pre-installed on the
Laptop, and found no evidence of hardware failure there (the NIC
passed as well).

I have a bootable MEMTEST CD, which I have successfully used on
multiple other systems, but for some reason, when it would start
loading, it would trigger a reboot, so I was unable to run this. I
have no idea why this occurred - any ideas?

The Dell Diagnostic memory test completed without showing any
problems.

Given the fact that I continue to get intermittent notification that a
network cable is not connected, there is clearly something wrong with
the NIC, in any case, it would seem to me. This only started within
the last few months. The fact that the BSOD also points to the NIC
seems to confirm this, but I'm certainly open to any ideas.

FWIW, I had the Laptop on all day today, with sporadic use, and no
BSOD, although the intermittent "cable not connected" occurred
throughout the day.

You cannot replace the built-in Ethernet without replacing the
motherboard. If the 8600 has a slot capable of handling an old time
PCMCIA card, you can install a 3COM or Xircom card, both of which have
XP drivers.

Given your other comments, this may end up being the way to go if the
BSOD recurs.

How does one disable the NIC that is built-into the motherboard -
through the BIOS or elsewhere?

Finally, the BSOD's started when I was in Brazil, with my Dell Power
brick plugged into either 110 or 220 (the brick says it supports
both). Could a power problem be the culprit here? It's only been a
day, but so far it hasn't occurred since returning to the U.S.

Thanks again.

Don
The Dell Diagnostics are quick and dirty. I place little stock in them
except as a quick test to make sure that the hardware is kinda sorta OK.
Running a Live Linux CD is perhaps a better overall hardware
confidence test.

The MEMTEST CD causes a reboot for one of several reasons. If you have
MEMTEST 3.4, throw away the CD and use MEMTEST 3.3. MEMTEST 3.4, for
whatever reason, throws tons of error messages on most any computer on
which I've used it here, including a number of non-Dell computers. In
addition, your MEMTEST CD may be bad or you are simply seeing a VERY
quick indication of bad memory.

You can disable the on-board NIC in the BIOS setup of nearly all models
of computers, laptop and desktop alike.

It is highly probable that bad power in Brazil is the cause of the
BSODs, especially since you've no BSODs stateside.

.... Ben Myers

Hi Ben,

The Dell Diagnostics are quick and dirty. *I place little stock in them
except as a quick test to make sure that the hardware is kinda sorta OK.
* Running a Live Linux CD is perhaps a better overall hardware
confidence test.

Understood.

The MEMTEST CD causes a reboot for one of several reasons. *If you have
MEMTEST 3.4, throw away the CD and use MEMTEST 3.3. *MEMTEST 3.4, for
whatever reason, throws tons of error messages on most any computer on
which I've used it here, including a number of non-Dell computers. *In
addition, your MEMTEST CD may be bad or you are simply seeing a VERY
quick indication of bad memory.

Just checked, and I have the disk labeled MEMTEST86 V3.0.

You can disable the on-board NIC in the BIOS setup of nearly all models
of computers, laptop and desktop alike.

That simplifies things if I need to go that way.

It is highly probable that bad power in Brazil is the cause of the
BSODs, especially since you've no BSODs stateside.

This would be great news. I just had to replace my 6 1/2 year old
Gateway desktop, and I wasn't real anxious to have to buy a new Laptop
as well.

Could you elaborate on why/how you feel confident that the bad power
in Brazil is the root cause? I'm not doubting you, just wanting to
learn.

Don

Hello Robert,

Thanks for the reply. As I said to Ben, the responses I made to both
of you this morning, using the Alltel DSL connection I have at work,
didn't go through. I'm at home, responding through Google, and this
is working fine.

I'll keep your thoughts in mind as I work through this. I'm hoping
that Ben is right, and that the power in Brazil might have been the
cause of the BSOD's.

But even if they are, it is getting annoying having the "network cable
not connected" message coming up fairly regularly, and I might look
into a PCMCIA network adapter anyway.

Regards,

Don

wrote:
Hi Ben,

The Dell Diagnostics are quick and dirty. I place little stock in them
except as a quick test to make sure that the hardware is kinda sorta OK.
Running a Live Linux CD is perhaps a better overall hardware
confidence test.

Understood.

The MEMTEST CD causes a reboot for one of several reasons. If you have
MEMTEST 3.4, throw away the CD and use MEMTEST 3.3. MEMTEST 3.4, for
whatever reason, throws tons of error messages on most any computer on
which I've used it here, including a number of non-Dell computers. In
addition, your MEMTEST CD may be bad or you are simply seeing a VERY
quick indication of bad memory.

Just checked, and I have the disk labeled MEMTEST86 V3.0.

You can disable the on-board NIC in the BIOS setup of nearly all models
of computers, laptop and desktop alike.

That simplifies things if I need to go that way.

It is highly probable that bad power in Brazil is the cause of the
BSODs, especially since you've no BSODs stateside.

This would be great news. I just had to replace my 6 1/2 year old
Gateway desktop, and I wasn't real anxious to have to buy a new Laptop
as well.

Could you elaborate on why/how you feel confident that the bad power
in Brazil is the root cause? I'm not doubting you, just wanting to
learn.

Don
If a computer draws inadequate power, and its various electronics are
running below rated voltage, some part of the electronics often
malfunctions. In an extreme case a number of years ago, I delivered and
installed a new computer, only to receive phone calls that the computer
was rebooting itself every half hour. It turned out that the computer
shared a household electric line with a refrigerator with a compressor
that kicked in every half hour. If the voltage to the computer is not
too low to cause a reboot, it can still cause data corruption or
hardware CPU instructions to fail in strange and exotic ways.

Keep running the system to see if it has BSODs. If not, consider
Brazilian electricity to be the cause... Ben Myers

Ben Myers wrote on Tue, 11 Nov 2008 23:07:16 -0500:
... If the voltage to the computer is not
too low to cause a reboot, it can still cause data corruption or
hardware CPU instructions to fail in strange and exotic ways.

Sometimes the voltage doesn't drop too low like the refrigerator kicked
on, but spikes and causes the same rebooting, etc. And if it is this,
often a surge protector will fix it. And a good UPS will fix either problem.

--
Bill
Black Asus EEE PC 4GB 2GB SoDIMM Adata 16GB
Windows XP SP2 and Xandros Linux

wrote in message
...
Hi Ben,

The Dell Diagnostics are quick and dirty. I place little stock in them
except as a quick test to make sure that the hardware is kinda sorta OK.
Running a Live Linux CD is perhaps a better overall hardware
confidence test.

Understood.





They're so quick and dirty that I have a machine here that's not finished
its INITIAL extended loop of complete system diags and it has been running
over 11 hours.

The length/time of the loop is vastly affected by three variables:

1) The total amount of RAM in the system, and......

2) The total capacity of the hard disk(s).

3) CPU speed.


I don't know what you guys are running and calling "Dell diags".

You guys must be running only the "pre-boot assessment" suite of short
tests, which takes all of about 10-15 mins on many systems and are largely
ineffective against anything short of near castrophic component failures.

The Dell diags suite is completely helpful and damned thorough imo.

There's no other complete component diags testing out there that's better -
or if it is, I cannot find it.

Someone please link it so I can try it and buy it.

And with regard to your BSOD directed at your NIC, kill power management to
the NIC, reinstall the NIC driver to be sure the current driver isn't
corrupted, and if you still have problems then just investigate a PCMCIA NIC
card or go wireless.

-Stew