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Hello everyone,
I am reaching out because I am facing persistent BSODs on my Intel Core i7-14700K system, specifically:
HYPERVISOR_ERROR (0x20001)
INTERRUPT_EXCEPTION_NOT_HANDLED (0x3D)
Here is a complete overview of the situation:
Symptoms and observations:
After a few stable days, a random crash occurs (freeze or BSOD).
After the first crash, repeated reboots or additional freezes happen quickly (sometimes even before Windows login).
After 2-3 forced reboots, the system becomes stable again — until the next crash cycle days later.
Crashes happen under low to medium system load (e.g., web browsing, Discord running, or light background tasks).
Heavy loads (gaming, video rendering) sometimes trigger freezes, sometimes not — no clear correlation.
No signs of classic USB or driver issues (separate tests with and without SteelSeries Sonar, Discord, etc.).
Blackbox data and MiniDump analysis point towards intelppm.sys in connection with CPU idle state transitions.
It appears related to CPU idle handling and hypervisor interactions, possibly involving ACPI or platform timing.
Hardware details:
CPU: Intel Core i7-14700K
Mainboard: ASUS ROG MAXIMUS Z790 DARK HERO
PSU: ASUS Thor 1000W Platinum (replaced, no improvement)
RAM: 64GB DDR5 6000MT/s (both sticks tested individually, no change)
Storage: 2x NVMe SSDs
GPU: NVIDIA RTX 4090
Actions taken to stabilize the system:
Disabled C-States in BIOS (after recommendation based on similar cases).
Disabled Hyper-V-related features where possible.
Ensured all Windows security features like Memory Integrity are active (after BIOS reset).
Removed unnecessary startup programs (like iCUE Launcher, Discord Auto-Start).
Deactivated SteelSeries Sonar audio switching to rule out USB/audio subsystem conflicts.
Conclusion:
Given that all major hardware components have been ruled out and that the crash pattern consistently involves CPU idle and power management transitions (especially with intelppm.sys), I now wonder:
Could this be an issue with the i7-14700K series microcode or platform firmware interaction?
Is it a known issue affecting certain 14th Gen CPUs under Windows 11 26100 and newer?
Could upcoming microcode or platform driver updates solve this?
Or does Intel recommend RMA for the CPU in such cases?
I would greatly appreciate any insight or advice, as this problem has been ongoing for weeks and multiple hardware components have already been ruled out.
Thanks a lot for your time and support!
- Dennis
Attachments uploaded:
MiniDump files (for both BSOD types)
Event Logs
Link Copied
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Hello TenaciousDennis,
Thank you for posting in the community. It looks like you've already taken many troubleshooting steps to isolate the issue. I have a few follow-up questions that could help us further:
- If you have performed swap testing using an identical or compatible motherboard or processor, could you share the exact model of the processor with me?
- Are there any signs of physical damage on your processor, or have you delidded it?
- Have you tried overclocking your processor, either in the BIOS or through an application? If so, could you please provide the name of the application? Please note that overclocking, including adjusting voltage/frequency beyond the processor's supported specifications, may void the warranty.
Best regards,
Dhanniel M.
Intel Customer Support Technician
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thanks for the quick reply. To answer your questions:
If you have performed swap testing using an identical or compatible motherboard or processor, could you share the exact model of the processor with me?
- I never swapped the board or the CPU. I swapped the PSU. For the last few weeks, I tried to rule out as much as I can, hoping it would not be a problem with CPU or Board, but here we are.
Are there any signs of physical damage on your processor, or have you delidded it?
I did not take a look at my CPU, did not even touch my water cooling. So I cannot tell, did never touch it.
Have you tried overclocking your processor, either in the BIOS or through an application? If so, could you please provide the name of the application?
No, never overclocked, never tried, never needed to.
New Info: Today my PC is not even reaching Windows Login anymore, freezes right after BIOS just before Windows would Show up.
Kind regards,
Dennis
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Hi TenaciousDennis,
I've sent you an email; please take a moment to check your inbox. Thank you!
Best regards,
Dhanniel M.
Intel Customer Support Technician
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Hi TenaciousDennis,
Just want to follow up if you have since my email to you? Please let share the information I requested on that at your earliest convenience.
Best regards,
Dhanniel M.
Intel Customer Support Technician
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Hi TenaciousDennis,
It seems that I haven't received a response to my follow-up messages. As a result, I will be closing this inquiry. If you need further assistance, please feel free to submit a new question, as this thread will no longer be monitored. Thank you for your understanding.
Best regards,
Dhanniel M.
Intel Customer Support Technician
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Hi. I can report exactly the same issue as Dennis here, but with a i9-14900k. We even share the motherboard. Very high end spec PC.
This issue needs to be looked at!
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Potential Fix for 14th Gen CPU Instability (BSODs like HYPERVISOR_ERROR + intelppm.sys)
Hi Dennis,
I read through your post carefully and wanted to jump in — your issue sounds nearly identical to a problem I fought for weeks with my Intel Core i9-14900KF, and it's very likely related to how some P-cores are boosted too aggressively by default, especially on 14th Gen chips using “auto” ratios in BIOS.
Your system's behavior — stable after boot, crashes triggered after idle, intelppm.sys blamed, instability returning after sleep or idle — all scream power management + core ratio instability, not hardware failure.
Try This – Solved All My Crashes
The root cause on my system was that 2 of my P-cores were running at 6.0 GHz (x60) due to the CPU’s fused max ratio, while the others were at x57 or lower. This created random instability, especially under light loads or when exiting idle. The fix was simply to manually unify all P-core ratios.
Here’s what you can try:
BIOS Fix (ASUS Z790)
Go to BIOS > Extreme Tweaker
Set AI Overclock Tuner → Manual
Scroll to Performance Core Ratio or All Core Ratio Limit → Set all P-cores to the same value (try x56 or x57 to start)
Optionally:
Set “By Core Usage” manually if that’s available, and apply same ratio to all
Disable “Asynchronous Boost” if it appears
Keep E-Cores and cache ratios on auto for now
Save and reboot
Why This Works:
It stops favored P-cores from spiking too high (x60) during idle transitions or light loads
Reduces micro-instability from power state changes (C-State → Active)
Avoids erratic behavior involving intelppm.sys, ACPI, and Windows’ hypervisor layer
Extra Suggestions:
Keep C-States disabled (as you already did)
Try disabling Intel SpeedStep / EIST temporarily to see if behavior improves
Set SVID Behavior to “Typical” or “Intel’s Fail Safe”
Keep Memory Integrity on, but temporarily disable Core Isolation if enabled
Result:
After I unified all P-core ratios to 57x (instead of leaving 2 at 60x), my system has been rock-stable:
No BSODs
No crashes in idle
No Event Viewer red flags
Passed Cinebench, video editing, long gaming, stress tests
This kind of instability seems to affect many 14th Gen K-series chips, and may be worsened by:
High DDR5 frequencies (6000+)
Specific BIOS versions with aggressive default boost logic
Windows 11 24H2 builds (like 26100)
Let me know if this helped. You're not alone, and you might be just one tweak away from full stability!
Best Regards,
Evgeni
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