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DPC Latency problems with Intel 82579LM based Network Controller on Windows 8

BCoe
Beginner
10,654 Views

Hi,

After weeks of troubleshooting DPC latency problems on my Lenovo Thinkpad T420 laptop which were causing audio dropouts and mouse freezes every few mins I have finally tracked down the source of the issue. It appears that the Intel 82579LM based Network Controller driver may not be correctly optimised for Windows 8. I'm running Windows 8 Pro 64-bit and am using the latest Intel driver for the controller (12.6.45.0). In troubleshooting the issue I tried everything I could think of such as:

Update BIOS and all drivers to latest versions

Disable CPU and PCI Power Management in BIOS

Disabled onboard Sound (I use a separate professional audio sound card), Wifi, Bluetooth

Change power management settings to High Performance and Disabled USB selective suspend

Turn on all offloading settings on Ethernet NIC

Ran bcdedit /set disabledynamictick yes

Disabling Network Location Awareness in Windows

Nothing made any noticable difference at all. I had also been noticing that my network performance had been pretty poor intermittently on this machine for a while, occasionally experiencing dropouts and low download speeds (yes I know that can be caused by many other factors but please hear me out). Every few mins on the PC I would experience a DPC latency spike of around 95000us to 100000us which would occur right when the audio dropouts, mouse freezes, and probably network pauses would occur. I use the PC for audio production amongst other things so this causes me big issues.

I was totally baffled by the problem until I ran an xperf trace in the Windows Performance Toolkit and saw that the spike was being generated from ndis.sys and tcpip.sys. That got me thinking down the lines of a network related problem so I disabled the onboard Intel(R) 82579LM based Network Controller in Device Manager in Windows 8 and what do you know the problem disappeared competely!! No more DPC latency spikes ever (tested for hours and many times). I can do pretty much whatever I like on the PC and the problem does not reoccur. Not one single audio dropout in my Audio DAW either. The onboard Wifi is still running (Intel Centrino Advanced-N 6205 - v15.8.0.5) providing me with network access and download speeds through the wireless nic are both much faster and more stable surprisingly (should be the other way around if anything). As soon as I re-enable the 82579LM NIC the problem is immediately back within a few mins.

I am desperate to get this fixed as I cannot use wireless all of the time. Intel can you please fix the 82579LM driver to make it fully compatible with Windows 8 Pro 64-bit. I'm sure many other people out there are having the same issue and just don't know the cause, or put up with it it as real time applications such as audio are less important to them. I have read about other people having these issues and it only appears to be with Windows 8. I think the drivers are fine for Windows 7, although I haven't confirmed this for sure.

Intel please consider patching the 82579LM NIC driver ASAP for full Windows 8 support. I can assist in providing you information if you require as I'm very keen to get this sorted.

Thanks,

Brad

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35 Replies
Jose_H_Intel1
Employee
4,595 Views

Hello Brad,

Please note that the main support for the Intel® 82579LM Ethernet Controller is provided by the system or motherboard manufacturer.

The latest generic driver from Intel® is version 18.4 and can be found https://downloadcenter.intel.com/Detail_Desc.aspx?agr=Y&ProdId=3299&DwnldID=21642&keyword=82579LM&lang=eng here.

You may also get additional assistance from the /community/wired Intel® Wired Ethernet Communities.

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BCoe
Beginner
4,595 Views

Hi Joe,

Thank you very much for your reply. I did notice just after I posted this message that the 82579LM is an OEM adapter that is supported by the system manufacturer. I went on the Lenovo site and noticed that they don't even have a driver for Windows 8 for my laptop model!!! I had been updating my driver using the Intel Driver Update utility on this web site so was unaware of the Lenovo deficiency.

I updated to the driver you provided the link for and surprisingly the actual driver version of the NIC is the same (12.6.45.0) but the version of PROSet (18.4.59.0) may be newer (I didn't take notice of the version of PROSet I had previously unfortunately).

After installing this newer version of PROset my system ran for 30 mins without any DPC spikes. In the last hour of testing (with Audio running in my DAW full time) I have only had 2 DPC spikes which have dropped out the audio, so it is MUCH better, but the problem still exists. Hopefully Lenovo can release a Windows 8 driver, or hopefully one of the next generic drivers from Intel will fix the issue.

Thanks again for your help,

Brad

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BCoe
Beginner
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I think I just got lucky after the driver change with only 2 dropouts in an hour, as it still happens regularly now. Always at least once every 10 or so minutes, sometimes many more. I have posted this in the Lenovo forum as well to ask for assistance.

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BCoe
Beginner
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I fixed this problem by removing ProSet and going back to the base driver for the 82579LM that is supplied by Microsoft with Windows 8 (version 12.0.150.0 - 29/02/2012). The problem did not occur once in the last month of heavy use.

However, yesterday I upgraded to Windows 8.1 RTM. Looks like the newer version of the Proset driver has been supplied to Microsoft (12.6.47.1 - 28/03/2013) for Windows 8.1 and now the problem has resurfaced for me. I don't know what it is exactly, but there has been some regression in the driver code from 12.0.150.0 (29/02/2012) to 12.6.45.0 (and above) that is causing this issue.

I hope this can be identified and sorted. Thanks.

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DAmmo
Beginner
4,595 Views

I am having the exact same issue with this network controller. But I got a DELL Precision 4600 Laptop. I simply cannot upgrade to Windows 8.1 because of the broken driver. The base driver from Windows 8 is working just fine. But the stock driver from Windows 8.1 has the DPC issue as well as actual Intel Drivers or the couple of latest Windows 7/8 Intel-drivers. I tried to save the stock windows 8-driver and use it in Windows 8.1 but without luck. Please sort this out in any way. I would be fine with it if I could reinstall the 12.0.150-driver in Windows 8. It IS clearly a driver problem, so at the end of the day intel has to fix it anyway. Maybe there is a special combination of driver-settings that may prevent this problem, but I couldn't find it. Thanks in advance.

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Vmoes
Beginner
4,595 Views

I'm fighting with exact the same issue on my workstation, a Fujitsu W510. Had it already with Win7, then no issues with Win8 and now again the same pain with Win8.1.

My current workaround is using a very old driver which can be downloaded from HP. it is version 11.12.36.0.

See link here: http://forums.lenovo.com/t5/T400-T500-and-newer-T-series/DPC-latency-audio-mouse-skip-and-stutter-on-t420s/td-p/602481 DPC latency + audio/mouse skip and stutter on t420... - Lenovo Community

I did not find the Win8 version mentioned above as signed version so the mentioned driver is the only working I have at the moment. Would really be great to find a solution for this issue.

I'm working on a 1GBit Network.

Best regards,

jokey25

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BCoe
Beginner
4,595 Views

I fixed this issue a while back by creating my owned signed driver using the driver files from the base Win 8.0 install. Doing this requires that Windows 8.1 be permanently run in test mode (TESTSIGNING ON), but besides putting a watermark on the desktop I haven't come across any issues with this. I know creating your own drivers isn't for everyone and it isn't something we shouldn't have to do but here are the instructions for anyone interested....

Reference article : http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ff546236(v=vs.85).aspx http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ff546236(v=vs.85).aspxFrom C:\Program Files (x86)\Windows Kits\8.0\bin run the following commands in Administrator command prompt:

makecert -r -pe -ss PrivateCertStore -n CN=yourname.com(Test) c:\drvtest.cerstampinf -f c:\drivers-w8\net1ic64.inf -d 09/20/2013 -v 12.6.47.2Put the CatalogFile.NTAMD64 = net1ic64amd64.cat line in the inf file under [Version] sectionInf2cat.exe /driver:c:\Drivers-W8\ /os:8_X64Signtool sign /v /s PrivateCertStore /n yourname.com(Test) /t http://timestamp.verisign.com/scripts/timstamp.dll http://timestamp.verisign.com/scripts/timstamp.dll c:\Drivers-W8\net1ic64amd64.catBcdedit.exe -set TESTSIGNING ONcertmgr.exe /add c:\drvtest.cer /s /r localMachine rootSigntool verify /pa /v /c c:\drivers-w8\net1ic64amd64.cat c:\drivers-w8\net1ic64.infSigntool verify /pa /v c:\drivers-w8\net1ic64amd64.cat

Reboot PC (to activate Test Mode)Install driver in Windows

To do the above you need a system with the Windows Driver Kit (WDK) 8.1 installed and obviously need the cat and inf (and sys) driver files from Windows 8.0 (base install) that I reference in the commands above.

Intel tried to help with this issue but got to a point where they couldn't continue unless I could supply a laptop for them to perform the troubleshooting on (which I couldn't from Australia) which is fair enough, and Lenovo have been totally useless. No response at all from them.

I hope this can be fixed properly at some point.

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BCoe
Beginner
4,595 Views

Looks like Proset 18.8 just got released. I wonder if that fixes it? Couldn't see anything related to it in the release notes. I'll give it a go when I get a chance.

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BCoe
Beginner
4,595 Views
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NVazq
Beginner
4,595 Views

First all give many thanks to Brado about this post,he help me a lot.I was desperated with sames issues,i read this and i dont have same Net mine is Marvell Yukon 88E8040 pci-e fast internet controller,i have windows 8 too,my pc is a DEll inspiron 1525.I turn off net and then i used wifi and then all better.There are some lags sometimes but dont than before deactivated.I thing the problem dont are the drivers,the problem is Windows 8 system,so someone must comunicate this to Microsoft to solve this.Thanks intel,thanks Brado and i hope more people can found this solution,now i will try if there some way to solved this.

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idata
Employee
4,595 Views

I have had problems with high DPC latency using several different LAN adapters. Latency have spiked to around 8 ms for adapters connected to the MCH even when only surfing the internet on a 100 mb line. For adapters connected to the CPU directly we are talking around 4 ms.

I have mainly tested intels 82574, 82572, 82579 and i210 models. I doesn't surprise me at all if Marvells controllers can have the same DPC problem.

You see, my problem has been resolved simply by disabling "Home network Defense" in my McAfee Anti-virus software. I do that simply by not having McAfee trusting my home network. I can't remove the module entirely.

Now the DPC hovers around 0.2 ms measured with http://www.resplendence.com/download/LatencyMon.exe http://www.resplendence.com/download/LatencyMon.exe

So I do believe you should be looking at your software setup and not the controllers. Intels controllers are not very laggy at all. Especially if you use the i210 connected directly to a socket 2011 CPU.

By the way I'm using Windows 8.1 Pro 64 bit but have also tested on Windows 7 Pro 64 bit. The CPU is a Xeon E5 2630 v2.

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VBenk
Beginner
4,595 Views

Exact same issue here with an Intel 82579LM card. Kudos Brad! I'm glad I found your post. I have been fighting with this for a while now and am seeing the same behavior since upgrading to Windows 8.1 and/or updating my Intel driver. Seeing TCPIP spiking as identified by LatencyMon. Come on Intel, this is something that you have obviously caused.....fix it! This affects my audio playback, conference calls at work, and mouse movements. This is a major issue.

My configuration:

HP Z420 workstation with latest BIOS and driver updates as of today

Samsung SSD drive (problem existed before migrating from SAS drive to SSD drive)

NVidia NVS 510 with 3 monitors

Windows 8.1

Intel 82579LM network card

NO wireless

Logitech wireless keyboard and mouse

Logitech USB webcam

Logitech Bluetooth TouchPad (problem existed before adding this device)

Vishnu

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SCald1
Beginner
4,595 Views

Just found this thread and wanted to share that I'm using a Lenovo Thinkpad T420 with Windows 7 professional. My driver version is 12.10.29.0 and I'm having the same issue. DPC latency checker shows a spike every 4th tick that is around 6100 us. It is causing issues with pro audio recording.

If I unplug the ethernet cable or disable the driver in device manager, the spikes go away.

Any help would be appreciated. Sean

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JNg10
Beginner
4,595 Views

I have a Asus P8Z77-v Pro motherbaord with Intel i5 3570K, and Intel 82579V ethernet controller. OS is windows 8.1 using Version: 19.5 (Latest) 64bit. The DPC latency is horrible and there is intermittent audio drop for a split second. It is a full system not a laptop and the motherboard support DTS output. The optical cable is connected to a AV receiver. The receiver decodes DTS and the logo disappears whenever the audio dropout happens, so it is very annoying and obvious. This has never happen before, even when I play intensive games, the audio has never drop out in the previous driver version.

Look at the spike of up to 8000!. OMG Intel I thought you have good driver engineers and how can they missed this???

Once the adapter is disabled in Control Panel\Network and Internet\Network Connections, the latency spikes disappears!

Please do something to it. Stop the latency spike!

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YBond1
Novice
4,595 Views

yes please fix the issue, I have the Asus P8Z77-V with the 82579V and I have the same issue windows 7 x64 and 8.1 x64

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AKaga1
Novice
4,595 Views

This problem has been reported in this thread as well: /thread/54594 https://communities.intel.com/thread/54594 and still no response or fix. It would appear that win7 and win8 drivers are problematic with audio playback on both 82579LM and 82579V via USB audio. I noted in the other thread that audio playback via onboard soundcard (3.5mm front and rear audio panel) has no issues, but playback via USB soundcard to external speakers is impossible due to the horrific sound quality. I'm glad I'm not alone in this problem.

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RGabr
Novice
4,595 Views

This not only affects USB audio, but on-board and PCIe sound as well.

I am using an Asus P67 WS Revolution motherboard with Intel 82579 and 82574 gigabit ethernet chipsets. I first noticed audio pops and stuttering while gaming after upgrading my Intel NIC drivers in August 2014. Over the past month, I have swapped every component in my PC except the motherboard and CPU to try to narrow down the cause. It finally occurred to me to check the DPC latency, which revealed this issue. I reverted to the ProSet 16.1 package (drivers V11.10.84.0 and V11.7.32.0) from my manufacturer's web site and the high latency was resolved.

I suspect this issue affects a great many users, but most of them either ignore the problem or can't find the cause. Intel, please make this a higher priority. Thanks.

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st4
New Contributor III
4,595 Views

Hi Klaxian,

This is duplicate post. U may refer to for more info.

thanks,

wb

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RGabr
Novice
4,267 Views

While the Intel driver was causing high DPC latency for me, it turned out to NOT be responsible for my audio distortion and stuttering. The culprit in my case is a bug in the Nvidia HD Audio driver that occurs when ShadowPlay is enabled. It is a regression introduced within the last 6 months. The Nvidia virtual audio device causes a conflict with other audio drivers or timing issue. See the link to the Geforce forum thread regarding the issue. Uninstalling/disabling the Nvidia HD Audio device and/or disabling ShadowPlay in Geforce Experience resolved the problem. Nvidia seems to be actively investigating this issue, but there is no fix from them yet. I'm posting here in case others have a similar issue in the future.

https://forums.geforce.com/default/topic/781232/geforce-experience/shadowplay-stops-recording-audio/12/ https://forums.geforce.com/default/topic/781232/geforce-experience/shadowplay-stops-recording-audio/12/

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BartDG
Beginner
4,595 Views

Ok, I'm having the exact same problem with a Gigabyte G1 Sniper M3 motherboard which also uses this Intel 82579V NIC chipset. Today I tried connecting my Traktor S4 midi controller, which is essentially an external USB sound card. The sound was all choppy, full of hisses and pops.

I had experienced the same with my laptop before, so I knew what to do: I simply disabled the wired LAN, and wallaaa: problem solved. I checked it with LatencyMon and all was well again. But this is hardly a solution that can be taken seriously. Unfortunately I have no choice if I want to use my midi controller: with the internal LAN still enabled I can even hear pops every 3 to 4 seconds or so through the speakers, even when NOTHING is playing. When I disable the wired LAN in the device manager, the pops stop.

From what I've read, this problem exits with virtually every USB external soundcard. I don't have any problems when I play mp3's via the internal soundcard (a Sound Blaster chipset). Please Intel, this is clearly a driver issue. Could you please fix this? It's very annoying having to disable my internal NIC card everytime I want to use my midi controller. (the most annoying part being completely offline then since this effectively cuts the internet connection).

And to think I selected this motherboard BECAUSE its NIC chipset is Intel! (oh yeah, and because the onboard sound card was Creative) Because I believed Intel NIC chipsets are know for their stability and good drivers! So please Intel, restore my faith!

I've been reading here the problem didn't exist with the 19.1 driver version. Is this correct? If so, could somebody please point me towards a download link of this driver version then?

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