Malwarebytes

[Sportster]

. . .

 

[The Penguin]

This thread I found might relate to your issue Malwarebytes causing Blue Screen of death at random

 

[Judge]

Sounds like the dreaded "bad_pool_header" error. Put your OS into Windows Safe Mode and uninstall the program. Then boot it up (offline) and see if it runs ok. At that point you can determine whether you want to reinstall the program or find another anti-virus application.

Hopefully you are not running this program with any other malware/spyware program running in resident memory at the same time.

 

[Judge]

Well, I do have MS Security Essentials running since I figured Malwarebytes protected from things that the other didn't. At least that's what I was led to believe. I never had problems with it before until a couple updates ago.

If it's the "bad pool header" that remains a separate (and old) issue with Malwarebytes. But simply on basic principle you don't want to run more than one of such security programs in resident memory at the same time. Too potentially problematic with the most common issue being false-positives reported.

Sometimes you can run them together for a long time...and then just one update changes that equation. I know from experience. Taught me once and for all to run only one at a time, with two other programs I run individually for which I temporarily turn off my primary anti-virus program.

 

[Judge]

I'll look into that "bad pool header" thing, but what you said about running the two programs together makes sense.

This BSOD error usually implies an issue with a device driver, but on less common situations may also imply a bad sector on your hard drive. You might also consider running scandisk through Windows Explorer (right-click on c drive and select properties/tools menu tab for error-checking) on the next boot up and let your OS determine if bad sectors exist and subsequently fixing the error where data is moved to a good sector.

Reinstalling the program may work fine, or not. If the issue comes back, you might consider another program.

 

[Judge]

Next time you get a BSOD, try to write down all the error codes it may show. You should be able to Google them to a Microsoft page that explains them more in detail.

 

[Judge]

I was able to do that, but what I found made no sense to me. It was "geek speak" way above my abilities. There were several suggestions made that had I tried them I'm confident that my machine and I would have both melted down.

It's in code. But the code can be translated.

Blue Screen of Death (BSOD) Codes... Decoded!

Do any of these error codes and their descriptions look familiar?

It could be a software driver issue with all those updates, or even the original installation of Malwarebytes which may have caused some kind of memory corruption. Though determining the exact driver would be anyone's guess. It could also be a thermal issue of a hardware component overheating. I suppose the error codes in the BSOD are your best bet to try to interpret if possible.

You may have to end up reinstalling the OS.

 

[Judge]

Okay, I'm getting closer . . . I think. I figured out how to find the event log. This is what I got. I have no idea what it means:

Very interesting. With that error I can only offer you two educated guesses.

1) That there's a remote possibility that you simply need to upgrade Microsoft .Net Framework. Check in Windows Update to see if this might be an optional, but "recommended" upgrade. Though what confuses me about this fix is that it seems mostly pertinent to server versions of Windows 7.

https://support.microsoft.com/en-za...r-in-a-snap-in-and-will-unload-it-error-messa

2) Otherwise the only thing I can offer is that for whatever reason, installing Malwarebytes did something to trip up and perhaps corrupt an existing snap-in function in the Microsoft Management Console (MMC). And that each time the OS tries to register the problem, it causes a BSOD.

I've read about people solving the problem by reinstalling the OS cleanly (not simply overwriting files). But I have no idea if reinstalling Malwarebytes would just recreate the problem or not. Though I could see how a program like CCleaner would not detect or purge such a function as opposed to things like registry values.

A third option would be to simply contact Microsoft, having cut and pasted all those error messages. I once did this some years ago with MS and they responded with the necessary solution with profuse apologies.

I can only say in summation that if it were me, I'd just "bite the big one" and reinstall the OS and skip Malwarebytes. Keep in mind you're on an old hardware platform using a 32-bit version of Windows 7. There's always a slight possibility that the latest drivers routinely upgraded may not play nicely with a legacy computer.

 

[Judge]

If I had a copy of the OS I'd reinstall it. That's what I had to do monthly with Windows ME; remember that travesty? Unfortunately, since this machine is "pre-owned," I bought it already loaded with all the software. It has behaved itself today, so I'll wait and see what happens. It seems like there's a series of events that take place before the blue screen of death happens, so I need to mindful the next time it does.

Ouch. That's one of what I'd call a "worst nightmare" in owning a computer. I would never own one where I didn't have the actual OS installation disk and motherboard disk- ever. Dell makes a point of backing it all up on a separate partition of their hard drive, but I wouldn't even tolerate that.

Not sure what else you can do other than perhaps upgrade Microsoft Net Framework just to see if it makes a difference.

 

[Judge]

My previous machine was an XP 32-bit, which had all the disks. However, the motherboard went south and I needed another machine fast. The one I bought is Windows 7, 64-bit, but it came with no disks. It was "pre-owned." That also caused another problem, because I had to buy new peripherals since all the others would not work on the new machine. Frankly, I hate computers. It's impossible to keep up with the technology without spending a ton of money and then it takes too much effort to learn something that is outdated by the time you get it home.

I may sidestep all those concerns with my next computer by simply buying a Mac. None of my existing software is likely to work on Windows 10 anyways. I don't have anything to lose switching, other than the overall cost being exorbitant with Macs. Unless I consider building a Linux system. Hmmmm.

 

[Judge]

At this point I'd think it becomes imperative to transcribe whatever information actually shows up on your BSOD even if it's utterly unintelligible to you. There is likely some concrete data there, which if properly interpreted may well shed light on what is happening. Though yes, thermal hardware issues can always be a possibility in the most general sense.

You might also access the Windows Task Manager when you're experiencing peak usage of your computer just to monitor how much in the way of system resources is being used. That should give you an idea of how much strain is being put upon your CPU and RAM.

Another thing to do is to go into Windows Explorer (File Manager) and right-click your "C" drive and choose "properties", then "tools". Then choose "error-checking" and reboot the system so it can run Scandisk and see if you have any bad sectors where data on them can be automatically moved elsewhere.

 

[puzzlingbill]

Okay, I think I have narrowed it down. I've followed the advice, checked the various things that were recommended to be checked, but found nothing. That is to say, found nothing that made any sense.

Since I've been having difficulties I've been using Firefox. Last night I switched over to Chrome since some sites do run better in Chrome. It wasn't a minute and a page transition before the Blue screen of Death hit. I am now convinced that Google Chrome is the problem, as it seems that the BSD occurs whenever Chrome is open; it has not happened with Firefox.

So, based on this latest revelation, should I completely remove Chrome and start over or just leave Chrome off since my machine obviously has a problem, with it?

Based on what you've said, I would uninstall Chrome completely. If it's on your machine, some of it will get loaded at startup even if you don't open Chrome (so Google can track you).