Starfield completely freezes the system

[Adminiuga]

Hi All,

This is a new computer, Gigabyte X870e Aorus Master + AMD Ryzen 7 9800x3d. Bios updated to the latest version and loaded with "optimized defaults". Fresh install of windows 11 23H2 (old partition completely removed, cold install without retaining any old data).

Starfield is installed using Xbox app, with latest intel driver and B580 GPU. The system freezes hard, without dumping anything or any reaction to ctrl+alt+delete. It freezes within 5min, regardless if I start a new game or continue my old save. It makes weird sound for about 1s and after that everything freezes, but the picture is not destroyed. Every other window stays as is. 

I have created all the registry entries as per Need help? Reporting a bug or issue with Arc GPU? - PLEASE READ THIS FIRST! - Intel Community but no dumps, because the system freezes and not getting even a BSOD

I've tried different version of the drivers, including WHQL and the default one which come with Windows.
Cinebench runs for 2 hours without any issues. GFXBench runs without any issues. I have not tried any other games, beside Minecraft, which worked flawlessly.

If I disable the B580 and use the iGPU, then the game works fine for hours. 

I have disabled the "GPU Scheduling" because I found some posts stating that it is currently not supported, but it fails with or without GPU scheduling.

Edit 1: The symptoms are very much similar to Re: PC with B580 freezes in Death Stranding - Intel Community

[VonM_Intel]

Hi, Adminiuga.

Thank you for posting in our Community. I noticed that you've already done a thorough job troubleshooting, which is great. Since the issue is isolated to your B580 GPU and doesn't occur when using the iGPU, this points to a possible driver, firmware, or hardware compatibility issue. I appreciate the detailed information you've provided, and I will need to conduct further research on this matter. I’ll share an update in this thread as soon as I have more insights.

Have a nice day!

Best regards,

Von M.

Intel Customer Support Technician

[MarySmith]

Is Resizable BAR enabled?

Arc GPUs rely heavily on resizable bar, and it’s pretty much a must for proper performance. Go into your BIOS and check if it’s enabled. If it’s off, turn it on and try again.

Try older drivers.

Sometimes the latest drivers aren’t the most stable—they can actually cause more issues. So, it’s worth rolling back a bit and trying older WHQL versions like 31.0.101.4669  to see if they work better.

[VonM_Intel]

Hello, Adminiuga.

Thanks for your input. To further investigate the issue, it would be helpful if you could share your game settings with me. This will allow us to attempt to replicate the problem on my end. Additionally, could you confirm whether the freezing occurs when the game is starting to load (such as when opening the application), or if it only happens while you're inside the game itself?

If you're unable to share the game settings, that's perfectly fine we're just trying to isolate the issue using your current settings. Let me know how you'd like to proceed.

Best regards,

Von M.

Intel Customer Support Technician

[Adminiuga]

I have tried with all the graphic settings set to:
- High

- Medium

- Low

I want to say that the locking seems to be completely random, unexpected and not necessarily during the "heavy scenes" when a lot is changing on the screen.

In the very beginning I've tried with my old save and it was randomly freezing between 2 to 5min.

I then have tried to start a new game and at least a couple of times it crashed on the very first "intro scene" where it's just the logo rolling, 15s from the game.

Then, I randomly was able to play for about 5min and got to the character selection screen and it froze there. I have tried deleting the pipeline.cache file from the %localappdata%\Starfield folder, but no change.

and also anecdotally, after I have disabled my second screen LG Monitor (I have a Dell U2520D and LG HDR 4k) it seems that I could play twice as longer, but in the end it still would freeze. Last time, the screen froze and I couldn't move the cursor in the game menu, but music played for another 3s and only after that it made the weird sound and everything froze completele. The screen did not pixelate, but it kind of got something very similiar to video compression artifacts, but overall looked like a normal, in game menu screen

[VonM_Intel]

Hello, Adminiuga.

Thank you for providing such a detailed description of the issue you're experiencing. Based on what you've shared, it seems like the freezing is occurring at random intervals and not necessarily tied to heavy scenes, which can be tricky to diagnose. 

In the meantime, I will need to isolate and replicate the issue further, and post the response on this thread once available.

Best regards,

Von M.

Intel Customer Support Technician

[Adminiuga]

Yup, this is going to be tricky, since it does not even produce a crashdump. In the mean while, I'll install the "Monster Hunter" and try the crash.

Also, since I could not get a crash dump, I build a Proxmox VM using PCIE passthrough for the GPU. I wanted to use the emulated CPUs to see if it would make a difference, but the driver refused to start with the emulated CPUs. It only worked with the "host CPU" type QEM U / KVM CPU model configuration — QEMU documentation

and the results were interesting. It still crashed/froze but:

1. Most of the times, the HOST OS would survive a couple more minutes, before crashing too

2. Rarer, the HOST OS would freeze too very shortly after the guest os freezes

3. very rare, the host os would not notice/die, but may complain about the "soft locked up" CPUs

@VonM_Intel  I could get the guest OS memory dump, after it freezes. Would it help the case? If it would, is there a DM to share the link? I don't want to share the memory dump publicly on the internet, cause most likely it contains some sensitive information. 

[Kovacj]

Hello all I do have the very same issue with intel GPU B580, Iam open to any way of debugging from intel team. This issue has to adressed ASAP !

[Adminiuga]

I need to test it more closely. I've installed the latest Interl driver updates (From Feb 27th) and played the game for 2 hours and a physical machine. This time however, I had the iGPU enabled, but the screen/display turned off via windows settings. I know I have played it on Monitor connected to B580, so either it works, or I did something differently. One thing for sure, the game still froze in VM even with the new drivers installed. I wonder if the iGPU avaiability is the "variable" here, because in all my previous testing, I had iGPU disabled via bios. Same for VM. Will be doing more testing.

[VonM_Intel]

Hello, Adminiuga.

I appreciate for your patience as we work through the issue. To assist you further, could you please provide screenshots of the game settings you've mentioned? This will help us better understand the configuration you're using and ensure we address the issue accurately. Additionally, I'd like to inform you that the Intel Arc B580 does not support virtualization. 

@MarySmith & @Kovacj ,

I understand the difficulty you're experiencing, and I truly empathize with your situation. However, I kindly ask that you create a new thread for your case. This will help us give your specific issue the attention it deserves and provide more effective support.

Best regards,

Von M.

Intel Customer Support Technician

[Adminiuga]

Today the card is back to square 1. Freezes within 10 minutes max.

Here're the settings:

[VonM_Intel]

Hello, Adminiuga.

Thank you for getting so fast to me and for sharing the screenshot. I’m sorry to hear that the issue has returned, and I completely understand how frustrating that must be. In the meantime, I will need to conduct additional research on this issue and post an update in this thread once I have more information.

Best regards,

Von M.

Intel Customer Support Technician

[NormanS_Intel]

Hello Adminiuga,

I wanted to let you know that we are still investigating the issue you're experiencing with Starfield, which includes replicating the game according to the settings you've shared. I'll keep you updated with more detailed information as it becomes available and will update you on this thread.

Best regards,

Norman S.

Intel Customer Support Engineer

[VonM_Intel]

Hello, Adminiuga.

I appreciate your patience. We've tested the game for three hours using the Arc B580 GPU, Windows 11 24H2, and driver version 32.0.101.6647 without encountering any freezing issues. I would like to confirm this with you and if the issue persists you may also try using the latest driver 32.0.101.6651. To further investigate, could you provide us with any crash logs or dump files from your system? This will help us analyze the issue more thoroughly.

Additionally, system-specific factors such as faulty RAM, incorrect XMP profile, a faulty CPU, or disk drive issues could contribute to freezing. We recommend testing each component individually to rule out potential hardware-related causes.

Kindly share the results along with any crash logs or dump files as soon as they are available.

Best regards,

Von M.

Intel Customer Support Technician

[VonM_Intel]

Hello, Adminiuga.

I wanted to follow up regarding the information I shared with you recently. Have you had a chance to review them? Please let us know if you require any further assistance. I'm here to help.

Best regards,

Von M.

Intel Customer Support Technician

[Adminiuga]

I can pretty much exclude the hard drives, as this are relatively new Samsung Evo pro SSD which came from a different build and were thoroughly tested. Also, it freezes exactly the same, even with the OS installed on different drives.
Can't completely exclude the RAM, but I can tell that it freezes the same without any xmp profile and with the safe bios default loaded.
I'll test the ram with the memtest and will replace the GPU and run the game. If it is stable with a different GPU, then the only possibility left are the drivers for b580

[VonM_Intel]

Hello, Adminiuga.

Thanks for the update and for sharing your troubleshooting steps. Since you've ruled out the SSDs and are testing the RAM with MemTest, that’s a solid approach. Swapping the GPU to check for stability is also a great idea, if the issue disappears with a different GPU, then the B580 chipset drivers could indeed be the culprit. Moreover, kindly provide us with any crash logs or dump files from your system. This will help us analyze the issue more thoroughly.

Let me know what you find after testing, and we can explore the next steps if needed. Appreciate your patience and thorough testing.

Best regards,

Von M.

Intel Customer Support Technician

[Adminiuga]

I'll keep you posted. It's running the memtest86+ and I'll leave it over the night.

Unfortunately, I cannot get any logs or crash dumps, because once it freezes, it is solidly frozen and does not respond to CTRL-ALT-DELETE nor do I get the blue screen once it crashes.

The most I could do, is to run it under a VM and get the guest VM memory snapshot. 

[VonM_Intel]

Hello, Adminiuga.

That sounds like a solid plan. Running MemTest86+ overnight should help identify any potential memory-related issues. Since the system is completely freezing without generating logs or crash dumps, it could indicate a hardware-level problem rather than just a software-related crash.

Please keep me updated on the test results, and we can determine the next steps if necessary. I appreciate your patience and thorough troubleshooting.

Best regards,

Von M.

Intel Customer Support Technician

[Baconsnake]

I'd like to add to this thread with my issue, which matches all the above.

I have a brand-new build where I'm getting the exact same lock ups at various points when playing Starfield, although it seems to always occur when clicking on a menu-like action:

• Opening a container
• Entering the inventory
• Changing equipment

It's never in the middle of a battle or random - always when I've mouse clicked something menu'ish.  I also cannot get any crash dumps since the entire system hard locks and requires a physical restart.  Event logs do not contain any info related to the crash.

Things I've troubleshooted

• Memory set to Expo profile and no profile
• Changed every graphics preset from low to ultra
• Confirmed drivers were up to date
• EDIT:  Memtest86+ run for 5 passing cycles

Build:

• AMD 9800x3d
• MSI x670e Carbon
• 2x16 Corsair DDR5
• Acer ARC B580 Nitro
  
  • 32.0.101.6653
  • Rebar active

[VonM_Intel]

Hello, Adminiuga.

Have you had a chance to review my previous response? Please let us know if you require any further assistance. I'm here to help.

@Baconsnake , I empathize with your situation and the issue you are facing. However, I kindly request that you create a new thread for your case. This will allow us to focus on your specific problem and provide you with better assistance.

Best regards,

Von M.

Intel Customer Support Technician