BSOD playing Elder Scrolls Online; "Thread Stuck in Device Driver"

Hello, I've been having an issue with BSODs. Usually it happens while playing a game, such as ESO or Morrowind, but sometimes it happens in other cases. The error code is "Thread Stuck in Device Driver." Since it usually happens while playing graphics-intensive games, I have tried uninstalling and reinstalling my graphics driver with Display Driver Uninstaller, but the problem persists. Below are system specs and system minidumps from over the past month.

Attachment 116721

Hello Flambda and welcome to TenForums :)

I notice that you have not updated the BIOS on your Inspiron 5545 and it is quite old. There is a newer version available and it could make a difference.

philc43 said:

Hello Flambda and welcome to TenForums :)

I notice that you have not updated the BIOS on your Inspiron 5545 and it is quite old. There is a newer version available and it could make a difference.

Thanks. :) I've actually been reading here (in the tutorial section) for quite a while, this is just the first time I've had a need to make a post about a problem.

Looking at the change log for the updated BIOS, the only thing listed is:

"Enhancements:

• Update SMM runtime support"

I'm guessing SMM is "System Management Mode." Is that something that would cause this kind of hanging? Because I don't want to risk flashing my BIOS without any actual need.

BIOS updates can include many subtle changes that are not always documented. I would have thought an SMM update could enhance the compatibility with W10 but I admit I don't really know if this is going to cure your BSOD.

philc43 said:

BIOS updates can include many subtle changes that are not always documented. I would have thought an SMM update could enhance the compatibility with W10 but I admit I don't really know if this is going to cure your BSOD.

True though that may be, I'd rather check other options first, see if there are more specific errors. I've always been of the understanding that you should update your BIOS only with a good reason, like if the change log specifically addresses a problem you're having.

Because it only affects me while I'm playing a game, and not while doing any actual work, if updating the BIOS is the only thing that can be done, then I think I'd rather just live with it than risk bricking the thing. However, I'm fairly certain there could be other things that could be causing the problem. Even though I updated the graphics driver, there could be things I haven't tried. Or, it's possible that it's not the graphics driver, but a different driver that's causing the problem, but it only manifests when sufficient load is put on the computer. Hopefully someone that can interpret the dumps can let me know what the problem is.

I did look at the crash dump files but they all suggest a problem with the graphics driver which you have already tried to sort out by updating your drivers. I would add that it is much better to remove all the Catalyst Control Centre software and just install the driver if you have not done this.