Microsoft KB Archive/293078

= Error message in Windows XP: &quot;STOP 0x000000EA THREAD_STUCK_IN_DEVICE_DRIVER&quot; =

Article ID: 293078

Article Last Modified on 12/21/2007

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APPLIES TO


 * Microsoft Windows XP Professional
 * Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition
 * Microsoft Windows XP Professional x64 Edition

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This article was previously published under Q293078



SYMPTOMS
You may receive one of the following Stop error messages in Windows XP:

STOP 0x000000EA THREAD_STUCK_IN_DEVICE_DRIVER

STOP: 0x100000EA THREAD_STUCK_IN_DEVICE_DRIVER_M



CAUSE
This issue might occur if the graphics adapter is caught in an infinite loop while it waits for the video hardware to become idle. This issue typically indicates a problem with the video hardware or that the graphics adapter cannot program the hardware correctly.



Method 1: Use the Windows Error Reporting tool

 * 1) Click Send Error Report when you are prompted to send the error report to Microsoft.
 * 2) If a fix or a workaround is available, click More Information. This helps you obtain the fix or information about how to work around the issue.

Method 2: Install the latest driver for your video adapter
To detect and to install the latest driver for your video adapter in Windows XP, visit the following Microsoft Web site:

http://windowsupdate.microsoft.com

Method 3: Contact the video card manufacturer to obtain and install the latest driver
For information about how to contact the manufacturer, click the appropriate article number in the following list to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

65416 Hardware and software vendor contact information, A-K

60781 Hardware and software vendor contact information, L-P

60782 Hardware and software vendor contact information, Q-Z

Microsoft provides third-party contact information to help you find technical support. This contact information may change without notice. Microsoft does not guarantee the accuracy of this third-party contact information.

Method 4: Replace your video card
For information about how to replace your video card, please see the documentation that was included with your computer.

Advanced troubleshooting
These methods are intended for advanced computer users. If you are not comfortable with advanced troubleshooting, you might want to ask someone for help or contact support. For information about how to contact support, visit the following Microsoft Web site:

http://support.microsoft.com/contactus/

Method 1: Disable or update device drivers
 View the Microsoft Hardware Compatibility List (HCL) to determine whether the PCI devices in the computer are compatible with Windows XP. For information about the hardware compatibility list, visit the following Microsoft Web site:

http://www.microsoft.com/whdc/hcl/default.mspx

 Update the video adapter drivers to the latest versions. If a driver is listed by name in the Stop error message, disable or remove that driver. Disable or remove any drivers or services that you recently added.

Note If the error occurs during the startup sequence, and the system partition is using the NTFS file system, you may be able to use safe mode to rename or to delete the faulty driver. If the driver is used as part of the system startup process in safe mode, you must start the computer by using the Recovery Console to use the file. For more information about video adapter drivers in safe mode, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

292460 How to troubleshoot the video adapter driver in safe mode in Windows XP

Note If the problem is associated with the Win32k.sys file, the problem may be caused by a third-party remote control program. To remove the service, use the Recovery Console to start the computer, and then delete the specified system service file.

Method 2: Adjust the Hardware Acceleration

 * 1) Click Start, click Control Panel, and then double-click Display.
 * 2) On the Settings tab, click Advanced, and then click the Troubleshoot tab.
 * 3) Move the Hardware Acceleration slider to None, and then click to clear the Enable write combining check box.
 * 4) Click OK, and then click OK.

Note This procedure prevents the graphics adapter from programming the hardware incorrectly, but you may lose some display functionality and performance. Although you can increase the hardware acceleration settings higher than None to regain functionality and performance, these settings increase the possibility that the issue will occur again. For maximum stability, leave hardware acceleration off.



MORE INFORMATION
The Stop error message may also occur in video adapter drivers that do not represent a physical device. For example, this Stop error message may occur in the virtual video adapter driver that is used by Symantec PCAnywhere. If PCAnywhere is installed on a computer where this error message occurs, visit the Symantec Web site to determine whether there are any available fixes for your version of PCAnywhere.

The third-party products that this article discusses are manufactured by companies that are independent of Microsoft. Microsoft makes no warranty, implied or otherwise, about the performance or reliability of these products.

If this information does not help you resolve the problem or if you experience symptoms that differ from those that are described in this article, search the Microsoft Knowledge Base for more information. To search the Microsoft Knowledge Base, visit the following Microsoft Web site:

http://support.microsoft.com

Then, type the text of the error message that you receive, or type a description of the problem in the Search Support (KB) field.

Keywords: kbresolve kbtshoot kbenv kberrmsg kbhardware kbprb KB293078

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