npu_kmd Causing Windows Kernel Crashes

[Jonathan_P]

Hello, I am having an issue where I have multiple HP EliteBook 640 14 inch G11 Notebook PCs that are Kernel Crashing

I have been updating the drivers and patching the OS, as well as wiping and reimaging the laptops. 

Tha

Here is the current info:

System info

• OS: Windows 11 25H2, Build 26200.8457
• CPU: Intel Meteor Lake Intel Core Ultra 7 165U
• NPU Driver: 32.0.100.4778 (installed via Intel Driver & Support Assistant)

Root cause from the dumps

• Faulting component: npu_kmd (Intel NPU kernel-mode driver)
• Every dump contains the same sequence:

  Feature change detected  IOMMU wait timeout  Guest code led to instruction timeout. Terminating partition.

• Fence counters (LastSubmitted, LastCompleted, LastReported) are all zero at crash time — NPU appears to fail before completing any work
• IOMMU errors began appearing with driver 4778

[Robin_Intel]

Hi ,

Thank you for reaching out to the Intel Community Forum. To assist us in investigating the issue, please provide the following details:

1. What NPU driver version were you running before 32.0.100.4778? Did the crashes start immediately after updating to this version?
2. Have you tried rolling back to the previous NPU driver version? If so, did the crashes stop?
3. What BIOS/UEFI firmware version are these EliteBooks running? Is it the latest available from HP?
4. How many total units are affected? Is this happening on ALL EliteBook 640 G11s or just some?
5. What specific applications or workloads are running when crashes occur? Any AI/ML applications, Windows Studio Effects, or NPU-accelerated features?
6. Are these domain-joined machines with specific group policies that might affect hardware acceleration or NPU functionality?
7. What imaging/deployment method are you using? Are drivers being injected during imaging or installed post-deployment?

If you have any questions, please let us know. Thank you.

Best regards,

Robin G.

Intel Customer Support Technician.

[Robin_Intel]

Hi Jonathan_P,

Thank you for reaching out to the Intel Community Forum. To assist us in investigating the issue, please provide the following details:

I wanted to check if you had the chance to review the questions I posted. Please let me know at your earliest convenience so that we can determine the best course of action to resolve this matter.

Best regards,

Robin G.

Intel Customer Support Technician.