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Latest versions (19.1.0 and 19.0.1) of Intel® Wireless-AC 7260 Plus Bluetooth* (7260HMW) WIFI driver (netwbw02.sys) on Win 10 64-bit is causing frequent system crashes

JJace
Novice
3,947 Views

Hi,

This is really puzzling. I tried both versions of mentioned drivers and all kinds of BIOS and driver settings, still my system would crash, sometimes just upon login attempt. I tried both WIFI drivers versions, e.g. 19.1.0 and 19.0.1, same effect. However, when using Microsoft supplied driver v. 17.15.0.5 the system would stay stable - but not the WIFI connection, which would drop quite often and not able to reconnect to the router; only driver reset using Win 10 network troubleshooting tool would fix the connection albeit only temporarily.

My system info:

Computer name: DELL-D630

 

Windows version: Windows 10 , 10.0, build: 14393

 

Windows dir: C:\WINDOWS

 

Hardware: Latitude D630 , Dell Inc.,

 

CPU: GenuineIntel Intel(R) Core(TM)2 Duo CPU T9500 @ 2.60GHz Intel586, level: 6

 

2 logical processors, active mask: 3

 

RAM: 8587792384 bytes total

Here is the crashdump info, as analyzed by WhoCrashed:

Crash Dump Analysis

 

Crash dump directory: C:\WINDOWS\Minidump

Crash dumps are enabled on your computer.

 

On Fri 8/19/2016 2:16:47 AM GMT your computer crashed

 

crash dump file: C:\WINDOWS\Minidump\081816-8828-01.dmp

 

This was probably caused by the following module: http://www.google.com/search?q=netwbw02.sys netwbw02.sys (0xFFFFF800E490C138)

 

Bugcheck code: 0xD1 (0x8, 0x2, 0x0, 0xFFFFF800E490C138)

 

Error: http://www.google.com/search?q=MSDN+bugcheck+DRIVER_IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL DRIVER_IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL

 

file path: C:\WINDOWS\system32\drivers\netwbw02.sys

 

product: http://www.google.com/search?q=Intel® Wireless WiFi Link Adapter Intel® Wireless WiFi Link Adapter

 

company: http://www.google.com/search?q=Intel Corporation Intel Corporation

 

description: Intel® Wireless WiFi Link Driver

 

Bug check description: This indicates that a kernel-mode driver attempted to access pageable memory at a process IRQL that was too high.

 

This appears to be a typical software driver bug and is not likely to be caused by a hardware problem.

 

A third party driver was identified as the probable root cause of this system error. It is suggested you look for an update for the following driver: netwbw02.sys (Intel® Wireless WiFi Link Driver, Intel Corporation).

 

Google query: http://www.google.com/search?q=netwbw02.sys+Intel Corporation+DRIVER_IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL Intel Corporation DRIVER_IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL

 

 

 

On Fri 8/19/2016 2:16:47 AM GMT your computer crashed

 

crash dump file: C:\WINDOWS\memory.dmp

 

This was probably caused by the following module: http://www.google.com/search?q=netwbw02.sys netwbw02.sys (Netwbw02+0x3C138)

 

Bugcheck code: 0xD1 (0x8, 0x2, 0x0, 0xFFFFF800E490C138)

 

Error: http://www.google.com/search?q=MSDN+bugcheck+DRIVER_IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL DRIVER_IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL

 

file path: C:\WINDOWS\system32\drivers\netwbw02.sys

 

product: http://www.google.com/search?q=Intel® Wireless WiFi Link Adapter Intel® Wireless WiFi Link Adapter

 

company: http://www.google.com/search?q=Intel Corporation Intel Corporation

 

description: Intel® Wireless WiFi Link Driver

 

Bug check description: This indicates that a kernel-mode driver attempted to access pageable memory at a process IRQL that was too high.

 

This appears to be a typical software driver bug and is not likely to be caused by a hardware problem.

 

A third party driver was identified as the probable root cause of this system error. It is suggested you look for an update for the following driver: netwbw02.sys (Intel® Wireless WiFi Link Driver, Intel Corporation).

 

Google query: http://www.google.com/search?q=netwbw02.sys+Intel Corporation+DRIVER_IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL Intel Corporation DRIVER_IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL

 

 

 

On Fri 8/19/2016 2:14:59 AM GMT your computer crashed

 

crash dump file: C:\WINDOWS\Minidump\081816-9140-01.dmp

 

This was probably caused by the following module: http://www.google.com/search?q=ntoskrnl.exe <span style="text-deco...
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8 Replies
idata
Employee
2,081 Views

JackMark,

Is this wireless adapter the one installed by factory? If so, Intel recommends to try the latest drivers provided by the computer manufacturer. For your convenience, here is a link where you may find the computer manufacturer's contact information: http://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/support/topics/OEMs.html Computer Manufacturer Support Websites

We understand you have tried latest drivers versions, could you please be so kind and confirm if you did a clean installation of the drivers? If not, please let us know so we can send you the step-by-step to it.

Another tip would be to check for any BIOS updates as we also understand you have tried all possible BIOS settings to no avail.

We are looking forward to hearing from you soon.

Best regards,

 

Aleki
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JJace
Novice
2,081 Views

No, this is not a factory installation but an upgrade on my Dell Lattitude D630 laptop.

In fact, my previous WIFI card was also an upgrade from the originally supplied Intel PRO/Wireless 3945AG (802.11a/g), which I upgraded back in 2014 to Intel Centrino Ultimate-N 6300, which worked in this setup without a hitch.

Now, since I have a new AC router, and since my house Is quite large and I had some coverage issues (couldn't get the signal in my basement den), I decided to solve the issue by upgrading to the AC standard. As you see, I am quite unsuccessful so far.

As per "the clean install", I did uninstall the driver in device manager, followed by uninstalling Intel ProSet software and installing a new one. Additionally, I recently upgraded to Windows 10 64 bit, but I uninstalled Intel Proset software before the upgrade and installed a new one for my then Centrino 6300 adapter without a hitch. I ran in that setup for about a month, with Intel Centrino 6300-N and didn't experience any issues.

The crashes clearly started happening after dropping in a new card and a new software. Incidentally, I wrote about the supposed "system stability" when running with Microsoft provided driver - the system would also crash, albeit less often. What would happen most often, is that the system would lose connectivity to the internet as if it could not talk to the router e.g. to the default gateway. Pinging the default gateway would render inconsistent results (50-50% packet loss). Only when running the built-in network troubleshooter which would "reset" the adapter, it allowed to connect to WIFI again, but not for long.

One more thing: today the adapter driver was updated to new Microsoft provided version, e.g. Intel v. 18.20.0.9 - not crashes as of yet, rather a constant loss of connectivity.

If I am doing something wrong with "the clean install" please advise me and I will gladly test it. Otherwise, I will need to return my three new Intel cards for my laptops back to the seller (an Amazon purchase).

That would certainly be a shame: a previous Intel "N" cards worked well and stable, yet not the new and shiny "AC" cards...

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JJace
Novice
2,081 Views

In the end, I just gave up. Went back to Intel Centrino dual band Ultimate 6300-N and with the newest drivers, e.g. v. 19.1.0. in fact, I am typing with one in now. No crashes, stable connection, as it used to be. And no DRIVER_IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL. Go figure...

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idata
Employee
2,081 Views

JackMark,

 

 

We would like to inform you that integration which is when the original wireless adapter is replaced, is not supported by Intel. This documentation online will clarify further as to why this procedure is not supported: http://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/support/network-and-i-o/wireless-networking/000005687.html?wapkw=regulatory+information+regarding+hardware+installation Regulatory Information Regarding Hardware Installation or Upgrade

 

 

AC speeds utilizes 5GHz channels and is more susceptible to interference such as physical obstacles like walls... etc. 5GHz or AC is ideal to be used in places that don't have many physical obstacles. 2.4GHz band, on the other hand, penetrates more through obstacles and depending how far you are from the basement and the amount of obstacles between the router and your wireless device, you may experience a weak signal.

 

 

Having an AC capable router does not always imply that you're going to have good signal depending on the distance you are from the router and the obstacles that may cause interference.

 

 

In order to help you further, you may want to take a look in the information provided by this link: http://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/wireless-products/80211ac-wifi-for-dummies.html 802.11ac Wi-Fi for Dummies

 

 

We understand you have returned to your previous adapter and we also understand it working without any inconvenient. We are glad to know that. Here are some tips that you might want to take a look in case you want to improve your connection.

 

1. http://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/support/network-and-i-o/wireless-networking/000005582.html?wapkw=technote Resolving Wi-Fi Connection Issues

 

2. http://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/support/network-and-i-o/wireless-networking/000005493.html Quick Checks to Improve or Fix Wireless Connection Issues

 

 

Let us know if you think there is anything else we can do to assist you.

 

 

Best regards,

 

Aleki

 

 

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JJace
Novice
2,081 Views

In reply to your last comment, I understand that my configuration may not be supported.

But it you scan this board, I am not the only one with these issues, and about a half of reported crashes happens on "supported" systems. I just thought it may be helpful for Intel to look into the core of the problem, if there really is one.

However, I do not understand why my "unsupported" configuration works well with Intel Centrino Ultimate-N 6300 wireless card, but not with Intel 7260 Wireless-AC card. And I am not talking about AC- versus N- connectivity but overall system stability. Anyway, if this helps, here is the info about my system, Dell Latitude D630 laptop:

1) Original Configuration - stable:

  • Windows XP SP3 Professional
  • Intel Core 2 Duo 7300 CPU
  • Dell Wireless 1390 WLAN (802.11g,54Mbps) Mini Card Latitude

2) Upgraded configuration - stable:

3) Recent upgrade - NOT STABLE, crashing:

  • Windows 10 64 bit latest edition
  • Intel(R) Core(TM)2 Duo CPU T9500 @ 2.60GHz
  • Intel® Dual Band Wireless-AC 7260 Plus Bluetooth

hence I went back to proven configuration nr 2.

If interested, I can provide crash minidumps if requested, and if someone wants to look into them...

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idata
Employee
2,081 Views

JackMark,

If this system came initially with Windows* XP, it may be that it is not fully compatible with Windows®10 and that may be the reason this particular adapter is not working as it should. If possible, please engage the computer manufacturer for additional support. For your convenience, here is a link where you may find their contact information: http://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/support/topics/OEMs.html Computer Manufacturer Support Websites

Since this is an integration, unfortunately our support gets limited. On our best effort to help you, here is some tips that might help you keep the adapter from crashing:

1. Optimize the Wireless Adapter Settings for best Wi-Fi* performance. You could change the wireless adapter power settings to get the best Wi-Fi performance. Go to "Power saving mode", which will result in Windows®10 and do the following:

2. Press "Windows Key + S" and choose "Power Options".

 

3.Locate the current plan of your computer ("Balanced") and click "Change plan settings" in order to change to High performance.

 

4.Click "Change advanced power settings".

 

5. Choose "Maximum Performance" under "Wireless Adapter settings".

 

Click "Apply", and then click "OK".

Best regards,

Aleki

 

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JJace
Novice
2,081 Views

Aleki,

Thank you for your input. I believe this was the setting when I was trying to use Intel 7260 wireless adapter, but I cannot test it any longer as I removed it from the system already.

I could not handle constant crashes, so I switched for the following adapter:

AzureWave AW-CE123H / 802.11ac/n/b/g + Bluetooth 4.0 / Half-Size PCI-Express MiniCard (Broadcom Model BCM84532HMB).

It turned out to be stable, no issues whatsoever. So you can close this thread, as unfortunately I wasn't able to find a workable solution for Intel card in setup.

Kind regards and thank you for all your help nevertheless.

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idata
Employee
2,081 Views

JackMark,

 

 

It was our pleasure to assist you. Please, should you have any further questions on the future, do not hesitate to contact us. We will be more than glad to assist you.

 

 

Best regards,

 

Aleki
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