Blender 4.0.2 CPU rendering is causing multiple 14900k users to BSOD

[VerySillyGoose123]

Hi, about a week ago someone posted a thread about blender crashing and blue screening on their 14900k, (https://community.intel.com/t5/Processors/Critical-Overheating-Issues-with-i9-14900K-PC-Crashes/m-p/1563723/thread-id/68588)

I'm posting because this is not an isolated issue, over the past week I have seen about 5 different users on the blender forums post about this issue with the 14900k.

they all report this error message occurring "CLOCK_WATCHDOG_TIMEOUT"
there is more information included in this forum thread on Blenders bug report page, including Mini dump files and crash logs, https://projects.blender.org/blender/blender/issues/117368

Please investigate this, its affecting multiple users.

[Samerstuff]

This is happening to me and it's extremely upsetting. I stress-tested my PC and ran a bunch of tests but it's definitely blender 4.0 and its incompatibility with the 14900k that's causing the issue. I really hope it gets looked into asap.

[VerySillyGoose123]

Hi can anyone from intel please respond when you get the chance so we at least know you're aware? thanks.

[RamyerM_Intel]

Hello VerySillyGoose123,

Upon reading the thread that you mentioned, I noticed it has been diagnosed as an overheating issue. However, I understand that you are experiencing the same error message of "CLOCK_WATCHDOG_TIMEOUT" with the Blender software. It's a good practice that you have also posted the issue on the blender forum as well. However, we still need to determine if the issue is with the software or the CPU. To do that please share the following information: 

1. When did the issue started? Was it sudden or gradual?
2. Was Blender 4.0.2 able to work before without any error message.
3. Have you made any changes before the issue occurred? If you do, kindly please indicate if it is a software or a hardware change.
4. Is the same error message happening on other modeling software? 
5. What specific activity on Blender is ongoing when the issue shows up?
6. It would really help us if we can get more information about your system. Please download and run our Intel® System Support Utility located at this link: https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/download/18377/intel-system-support-utility-for-windows.html.
7. After running it, you will be given an option to save the logs to a .txt file, please do so and attach the file on your reply.

As for Samerstuff, thank you for letting us know that you are experiencing the same issue as well. However, since you might have a different system, kindly please create a new thread.

Ramyer M. 

Intel Customer Support Technician 

[VerySillyGoose123]

1. its started with blender version 4.0.2 no issues with CPU before this
2. Yes, i have run the blender 4.0 benchmark tool and passed all test with an above average result(https://imgur.com/a/NAH0Xf6)
3. no.
4. I have tested CPU rendering in Cinebench2024 and the previous version of blender and had no problems at all
5. it happens when rendering a scene that is even moderately complex with CPU rendering option enabled in cycles under preferences
6. I have run the tool and included the file at the bottom called "SystemInfo.txt"

this issue is affecting many users please investigate this.

[RamyerM_Intel]

Hello VerySillyGoose123, 

Since you have open this thread, we are currently investigating this issue for you. Upon checking the SSU logs, I noticed that you can upgrade your graphic drivers to this version: 31.0.101.5234 (WHQL Certified). Kindly please try this for now and observe the system. You may download it using this link: https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/download/785597/intel-arc-iris-xe-graphics-windows.html. Kindly also please update your BIOS to the latest version at this link; https://www.msi.com/Motherboard/PRO-Z790-A-WIFI/support

If the issue still persists, kindly please isolate the issue by removing the graphics card and conducting a stress test using our Intel® Extreme Tuning Utility (Intel® XTU) at this link: https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/download/17881/intel-extreme-tuning-utility-intel-xtu.html. I understand that you have used Cinebench, however, since it is a third party app, we are not familiar on their standards for the benchmark scores. As such, we highly recommend using our Intel XTU instead. 

Ramyer M. 

Intel Customer Support Technician 

[VerySillyGoose123]

I think this is a much larger issue that requires an investigation by people at intel, this has been happening on many different users systems i can try updating drivers but I'm almost certain that wont change a thing, people in the blender bug report forum have been testing different settings in bios but the issue persists.

please report this to the team at intel, there is something seriously wrong and I'm sure that if someone at intel tests this they will run into the same issue this is not a configuration issue my CPU is running stock settings and has passed every test i have tried my system shows no instability.

[Samerstuff]

nah, man, it's always the user's fault it seems. Even after updating everything and running and passing all the stress tests in the world, it's our fault. Intel needs to do better. I regret getting the 14900k, it has handicapped my work so much, and now I spend most of my days trying to explain to my clients that I just can't work on 3D projects because I can't have more BSOD happening on a brand new maxed out PC. 

Maybe Intel just doesn't give a **bleep** anymore since all they do is tell us to update this and that. It's not our PCs that are the problems, it's your faulty products. We have every right to be mad since we haven't heard anything remotely close to the issue being internally investigated by the Intel team. I need to work on blender 4.0 because of the new node updates, if anyone comes out with any form of fix please let us know.

[VerySillyGoose123]

yes it's very frustrating, feel like i go through all this effort to report these issues only to be brushed off

[lsteady]

Hi,

Just off the back of this, I also have been facing issues of Blender crashing (And After Effects). I've managed to somewhat stabilise it by under-volting the CPU, which in turn means its now hitting high 80 degrees instead off 99 degrees when rendering.

However, its still crashing quite frequently on scenes that I previously could render with my previous Intel CPU (8700K).

This is a completely new build where I have upgraded all parts. I originally thought the issue was with my GPU (Nvidia RTX 4080), however the fact that the CPU was the hardware at constantly high temperatures when rendering and under-volting the CPU lessened the issue, I strongly believe the CPU is the culprit.

I've run the Intel Diagnostics software and this has come back with no issues, so I'm a bit stumped on how to proceed here.

All my drivers are completely up to date.

Thanks

[VerySillyGoose123]

Hi, can you please give us any updates as to if there has been any investigation into this issue? thank you.

[vmovups]

Can you try disabling P-cores or reducing the P-core or E-core frequency?

[wert5465]

Exactly the same problems! And I think that Intel released a very hot processor that even the water cooling that I have on the E 360 cannot handle, and this is a big problem, because all that Intel advised in advance are obvious answers and solutions that do not help! I don't know what to do with this very bad product from Intel.

Processor: Intel Core i9-14900K, 5700 MHz

Motherboard: Asus TUF Gaming Z790-Plus WiFi / BIOS AMI (02/04/2024)

DDR5: Kingston Fury 2x16GB

Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 (12282 МB)

Water cooling: MSI MAG Coreliquid E360

[VerySillyGoose123]

can someone from intel please respond to this?

[RamyerM_Intel]

Hello VerySillyGoose123, samerstuff, lsteady, 

Apologies for the delay in my response. I can assure you that we care about your satisfaction in using our products and we have been looking into this issue internally. We do apologize for the inconvenience but rest assured we are already investigating the crashes.

As for wert5465, from the symptoms you mention, it could be an overheating issue. I highly recommend creating a new thread so we can properly address the issue that you are experiencing. 

I will make sure to keep this thread posted once I receive an update with our team. We kindly ask if you can give us some time to properly investigate the BSOD's that is happening. Thank you for your patience and cooperation.

Ramyer M. 

Intel Customer Support Technician 

[wert5465]

Dear moderator, why should I create a separate topic, judging by most of the messages here, everyone is overheating! But for the sake of fairness, I will say that after a complete reinstallation of Windows, there is some stability in blender, the system even completely passed the test Blender Benchmark, and the blender does not suddenly turn off and does not cause a blue screen, but I continue to test further

Processor: Intel Core i9-14900K, 5700 MHz

Motherboard: Asus TUF Gaming Z790-Plus WiFi / BIOS AMI (02/04/2024)

DDR5: Kingston Fury 2x16GB

Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 (12282 МB)

Water cooling: MSI MAG Coreliquid E360

[VerySillyGoose123]

The blender benchmark tool does not cause crashes because it's running version 4.0, the problem specifically seems to be with ver 4.0.2

[wert5465]

Unfortunately, the problem continues, but Intel is silent

Processor: Intel Core i9-14900K, 5700 MHz

Motherboard: Asus TUF Gaming Z790-Plus WiFi / BIOS AMI (02/04/2024)

DDR5: Kingston Fury 2x16GB

Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 (12282 МB)

Water cooling: MSI MAG Coreliquid E360

[RamyerM_Intel]

Hello VerySillyGoose123, 

Thank you for patiently waiting. We apologize if it took us some time to discuss this internally; however, we attempted to reproduce the issue in our simulation room, but we did not encounter the crashing issue. We do have some troubleshooting steps here that you can try. Please try the following steps, as I can see you are using an MSI motherboard: 

1. In BIOS, select "OC," select "CPU Core Voltage Mode," select "Offset Mode," select "+(by PWM)", .Then, adjust the voltage until the system is stable. We recommend not exceeding 0.025V for a single increase. 
2. In BIOS, select "OC," select "DigitALL Power," change "CPU Loadline Calibration Control," . We recommend starting from "Mode 7" to a lower value until the system is stable.

Note: After trying out 1 or 2, run the XTU test again and see if the AVX2 test can pass. You may download Intel XTU at this link: https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/download/17881/intel-extreme-tuning-utility-intel-XTU.html. After that, try running Blender 4.0.2 to see if the crash will occur again. 

Please also let us know the thermal solution that you are using in your system if the issue still persists. 

As for wert5465, I can assure you that we are not remaining silent on your issues, and we aim to look for a solution as we value your satisfaction as well. The reason why we are asking for you to create a new thread is because it will help us focus on your issue without overtaking the original thread from VerySillyGoose123. Additionally, it will also help us increase the visibility of the issue and see how many are affected. I would like to apologize if it took us some time, but I can assure you that we are investigating each reported concern in detail. 

Ramyer M. 

Intel Customer Support Technician 

[VerySillyGoose123]

Hi, you say you weren't able to reproduce the crash? what was your process of testing, what version of blender did you use and what where you rendering during the test? I just want to make sure you tested it properly.

[lsteady]

Hi Raymer,

Would you be able to tell me how I would achieve the above two troubleshooting steps on an ASUS ROG STRIX Z790-F GAMING WIFI's BIOS?

Thanks