Windows 11 BSOD every few hours

Question

Windows 11 BSOD every few hours

William Kendell 0

I reinstalled my graphics drivers and wifi drivers from intel but it's still crashing with the same error code, DRIVER_IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL

there was a USB-A phone charger i plugged in before the crashes started but that was removed long before i reinstalled all of that other stuff

minidump: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1yXnJWLT__gWKSVNsuE71n6VVB-K2CS7P?usp=sharing

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2 answers

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Answer 1

DRIVER_IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL usually points to a faulty or incompatible kernel-mode driver. Since the Intel graphics and Wi-Fi drivers were already reinstalled and the same stop code continues, focus on identifying the exact driver or recently changed hardware/software.

Recommended next steps:

Check Event Viewer for the failing driver
Open Event Viewer and review the System log around the crash time for errors that identify the device or driver involved.
Check Device Manager for problem devices
Right-click Start > Device Manager. Look for any device with an exclamation mark.
- Right-click that device and select Update driver.
- If updating does not help, try Disable device or Uninstall device.
Install all Windows updates, including optional driver updates
Go to Start > Settings > Windows Update > Advanced options.
- Turn Receive updates for other Microsoft products to On.
- Open Optional updates and install all available updates.
- Return to Windows Update, select Check for updates, install everything available, and restart.
Use the PC manufacturer’s drivers, not only Intel’s generic packages
If Windows Update does not resolve it, install the latest device-specific drivers from the PC manufacturer, especially for:
- graphics
- Wi-Fi/network
- chipset
- BIOS/firmware
Remove any recently added hardware
If any hardware was added before the crashes started, remove it and test again.
Check free disk space
Keep roughly 10% to 15% free disk space available so Windows can create swap files and operate normally.
Test in Safe Mode
Start Windows in Safe Mode and observe whether the BSOD still occurs. If it stops in Safe Mode, that strongly suggests a driver or service loaded during normal startup.
Review non-driver causes called out for IRQL errors
This stop code can also be triggered by:
- faulty system memory
- a system service
- BIOS issues
- antivirus software
- incompatible software during or after upgrades
Temporarily remove or disable recently installed low-level software
If any antivirus, backup tool, VPN, anti-cheat, or hardware utility was installed or updated before the crashes began, disable or uninstall it temporarily and retest.
If the issue started after a recent change, use recovery
If the crashes continue, restore Windows using a restore point or another recovery option.

If a specific driver name appears in the bug check message or Event Viewer, that driver should be disabled or replaced with the version from the device manufacturer.

Answer 2

Hendrix-V 19,835 Microsoft External Staff Moderator

Hi William Kendell,

Since the crashes are occurring repeatedly with the DRIVER_IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL stop code and reinstalling the Intel graphics and Wi‑Fi drivers has not resolved the issue, the next step is to identify the specific driver or component triggering the crashes.

Please try the following checks:

1, Update your BIOS/firmware

Visit your PC manufacturer's support site.
Install the latest BIOS and chipset updates available for your model.

2, Run a memory diagnostic

Press Windows + R and enter mdsched.exe
Select Restart now and check for problems.

3, Perform a Clean Boot

Press Windows + R and enter msconfig
Hide Microsoft services and disable remaining third-party services.
Restart and monitor for further BSODs.

4, Analyze the dump files

Open the minidumps in WinDbg and run: !analyze -v
Share the resulting MODULE_NAME and IMAGE_NAME entries, as these can help identify the driver involved.

The stop code you're seeing is commonly associated with a driver accessing invalid memory, so identifying the exact driver from the dump analysis will help narrow the investigation considerably.

William Kendell 0 Reputation points

2026-10-07T10:55:02.6066667+00:00

It's tcpip and tcpip.sys.
Hendrix-V 19,835 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2026-10-08T02:07:04.1966667+00:00
Hi William Kendell,

Thank you for checking the dump files. Since the analysis points to tcpip.sys, the crashes appear to be occurring within the Windows networking stack. This does not necessarily mean tcpip.sys itself is the underlying cause, as a third-party network driver or filter can also trigger a crash at this point.

Since you have already reinstalled the Intel Wi-Fi driver, I suggest checking for other networking components:

Temporarily uninstall third-party VPN, firewall, or network-filtering software, if any is installed, then restart and monitor the PC.

Update the Ethernet/LAN driver from your PC or motherboard manufacturer's support page, even if you normally use Wi-Fi.

If the BSOD happens again, check the WinDbg !analyze -v output for IMAGE_NAME, MODULE_NAME, and the lines under STACK_TEXT immediately around tcpip.sys. A non-Microsoft driver listed there could help narrow down the actual cause.

I hope this helps narrow it down. If you can provide the relevant !analyze -v output, it should give us a much clearer direction for the next step.

William Kendell 0

I don't see anything out of the ordinary in the STACK_TEXT, what about you?

STACK_TEXT:  
ffffca8e`6c24e938 fffff804`9e0c26e9     : 00000000`0000000a ffff9c89`1a25bd10 00000000`00000002 00000000`00000000 : nt!KeBugCheckEx
ffffca8e`6c24e940 fffff804`9e0bd9a8     : ffff9c89`00000000 00000500`00000500 ffff9c88`de1fb4b0 ffff9c88`00000000 : nt!KiBugCheckDispatch+0x69
ffffca8e`6c24ea80 fffff804`3327f14a     : fffff804`331f0f3d 00000000`00000000 ffff9c88`de3cb000 ffffca8e`6c24ed20 : nt!KiPageFault+0x468
ffffca8e`6c24ec18 fffff804`331f0f3d     : 00000000`00000000 ffff9c88`de3cb000 ffffca8e`6c24ed20 fffff804`9dd96e7c : tcpip!INET_UNALIGNED_ADDR_EQUAL+0xa
ffffca8e`6c24ec20 fffff804`331efd2a     : ffff9c88`fc84bed9 ffff9c88`fc84bed8 ffff9c89`21a32600 ffff9c88`de3cb000 : tcpip!UdpDeliverDatagrams+0x3b5
ffffca8e`6c24ed70 fffff804`331ef8b0     : ffff9c89`1236ec50 fffff804`3322316d ffff9c88`de3f9910 00000000`00000000 : tcpip!UdpReceiveDatagrams+0x46a
ffffca8e`6c24ef70 fffff804`332131f9     : ffff9c89`1796d000 00000000`00000000 00000000`00000028 ffff9c88`de3cbbd0 : tcpip!UdpNlClientReceiveDatagrams+0x10
ffffca8e`6c24efa0 fffff804`3321262e     : fffff804`333e1150 00000000`00000011 00000000`00000001 ffffca8e`6c24f0f0 : tcpip!IppProcessDeliverList+0xa19
ffffca8e`6c24f0a0 fffff804`332160c2     : 00000000`00000011 ffff9c89`12b849a0 ffff9c88`de3cb000 ffffca8e`6c24f198 : tcpip!IppReceiveHeaderBatch+0x22e
ffffca8e`6c24f140 fffff804`3323f5ef     : ffff9c89`0ec91e30 ffff9c89`21a32480 00000000`00000001 ffffca8e`00000000 : tcpip!IppReceivePackets+0x35a
ffffca8e`6c24f270 fffff804`3323f926     : 00000000`00040201 00000000`00000000 fffff804`3328a990 ffffca8e`6c24f5d0 : tcpip!FlpReceiveNonPreValidatedNetBufferListChain+0x2cf
ffffca8e`6c24f370 fffff804`9dcbada4     : 00000000`00000017 fffff804`00000000 00000000`0000000a ffff9c88`00000001 : tcpip!FlReceiveNetBufferListChainCalloutRoutine+0xe6
ffffca8e`6c24f430 fffff804`9dcbae4d     : fffff804`3323f840 ffffca8e`6c24f560 ffff9c88`de416630 00000000`00000000 : nt!KeExpandKernelStackAndCalloutInternal+0xd4
ffffca8e`6c24f4a0 fffff804`33291798     : ffff407c`c4d3051c 00000002`00000048 ffff9c89`21854920 00000000`00000000 : nt!KeExpandKernelStackAndCalloutEx+0x1d
ffffca8e`6c24f4e0 fffff804`332915eb     : 00000000`0000000e ffffca8e`6c24f590 00000000`00000001 ffff9c89`1752c320 : tcpip!NetioExpandKernelStackAndCallout+0x58
ffffca8e`6c24f530 fffff804`3165aa81     : 00000000`0000002f ffff9c89`21a32480 ffffac81`0000000a fffffff6`0000000a : tcpip!FlReceiveNetBufferListChain+0x12b
ffffca8e`6c24f5c0 fffff804`3165a467     : ffff9c89`21854900 fffff804`3165a502 ffff9c89`00000000 00000000`0000000a : NDIS!ndisMIndicateNetBufferListsToOpen+0x4d1
ffffca8e`6c24f920 fffff804`3166309b     : 00000000`00000000 ffff9c88`de1a52a8 ffff9c88`de1a52a8 fffff804`9dc186dd : NDIS!ndisIndicateSortedNetBufferLists+0x67
ffffca8e`6c24f980 fffff804`31662b39     : ffff9c89`11c28101 00000000`0000000e 00000000`0000000a ffffac81`00000000 : NDIS!ndisDoPeriodicReceivesIndication+0x31b
ffffca8e`6c24fa00 fffff804`31684247     : 00000000`00000302 ffffca8e`6c24fac9 ffff9c88`d54d8040 ffffac81`4339a000 : NDIS!ndisPeriodicReceivesWorker+0x89
ffffca8e`6c24fa60 fffff804`9de944ca     : ffff9c88`de199040 ffff9c88`de199040 fffff804`316840c0 00000000`0000000e : NDIS!ndisReceiveWorkerThread+0x187
ffffca8e`6c24fb30 fffff804`9e0af7f4     : ffffac81`4338a180 ffff9c88`de199040 fffff804`9de94470 00000000`00000000 : nt!PspSystemThreadStartup+0x5a
ffffca8e`6c24fb80 00000000`00000000     : ffffca8e`6c250000 ffffca8e`6c249000 00000000`00000000 00000000`00000000 : nt!KiStartSystemThread+0x34

Hendrix-V 19,835 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2026-10-09T06:04:30.1766667+00:00
Hi William Kendell,

Thank you for sharing the stack trace, and I agree that there is no obvious third-party driver shown in the STACK_TEXT.

The crash occurs while the Windows networking stack is processing UDP network traffic, with tcpip.sys and NDIS appearing in the call stack. However, this does not necessarily mean tcpip.sys itself is the underlying cause, as another networking component could have passed invalid or corrupted data into the stack.

If you have additional dump files, please compare their WinDbg !analyze -v results, particularly:

FAULTING_IP

MODULE_NAME

IMAGE_NAME

FAILURE_BUCKET_ID

If several crashes consistently point to the same tcpip function or network receive path, that pattern may help narrow down what is triggering the BSOD.