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INTEL FINALLY ANNOUNCES A SOLUTION FOR CPU CRASHING AND INSTABILITY PROBLEMS —
CLAIMS ELEVATED VOLTAGES ARE THE ROOT CAUSE; PATCH COMING BY MID-AUGUST
[UPDATED]

News
By Paul Alcorn
published July 22, 2024

Patch is on the way.





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Comments (255)

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Intel has announced that it has found the root cause of the crashing issues
plaguing its CPUs. The company will issue a microcode update to address the
issues by mid-August, ostensibly ending the long-running saga that began when
the first sporadic reports of CPU crashing errors surfaced in December 2022 and
grew to a crescendo by the end of 2023. Intel's response comes after complaints
about the issue, which causes PCs to inexplicably crash/BSOD during gaming and
other workloads, reached a fever pitch in recent weeks. However, the microcode
update will not repair impacted processors. Intel also confirmed a rumored issue
with via oxidation in its 7nm node, but said those issues were corrected in 2023
and didn't contribute to the failures.



Intel's advisory says an erroneous CPU microcode is the root cause of the
incessant instability issues. The microcode caused the CPU to request elevated
voltage levels, resulting in the processor operating outside its safe
boundaries. Intel is now validating a microcode patch to correct the issues,
with its release slated for mid-August. This patch will be distributed through
BIOS updates from motherboard OEMs and via Windows updates, so the timing for
end-user availability could vary. 



The bug causes irreversible degradation of the impacted processors. We're told
that the microcode patch will not repair processors already experiencing
crashes, but it is expected to prevent issues on processors that aren't
currently impacted by the issue. For now, it is unclear if CPUs exposed to
excessive voltage have suffered from invisible degradation or damage that hasn't
resulted in crashes yet but could lead to errors or crashes in the future.

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Intel advises all customers having issues to seek help from its customer
support. Because the microcode update will not repair impacted processors, the
company will continue to replace them. Intel has pledged to grant RMAs to all
impacted customers.

LATEST VIDEOS FROM tomshardwareTom's Hardware



The company had previously advised its customers to stick with the basic power
guidelines for its processors, rather than running them at fully unlocked
settings, as it worked through the issues. Those instructions, which you can see
here, remain in effect for now, and Intel hasn't issued any new workarounds for
impacted customers. It is unclear if Intel will lift the existing restrictions
after it issues the patch. 



Intel had previously fixed an eTVB bug that contributed to the problems, but now
says microcode is the root cause. We're told that the microcode patch currently
doesn't exhibit any adverse performance impact (i.e., the chip running slower),
but testing is ongoing. We can expect Intel to share more information about
performance in the future. 

Intel isn't sharing many deep-dive details about the bug yet but says it will
continue its validation process to ensure the microcode fully addresses the
issues. The company will release more details about the bug itself in the
future.


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Policy and are aged 16 or over.

Today, the company also posted to Reddit that it had encountered rumored issues
via oxidation in its Intel 7 process node in 2023. Intel says that the issue was
resolved and isn't the source of the Raptor Lake crashes.

Intel has not issued a recall of its processors; sources close to the matter
tell us that isn't expected. We have both of Intel's statements below.


INTEL STATEMENT ON 13TH- AND 14TH-GEN INSTABILITY

"Based on extensive analysis of Intel Core 13th/14th Gen desktop processors
returned to us due to instability issues, we have determined that elevated
operating voltage is causing instability issues in some 13th/14th Gen desktop
processors. Our analysis of returned processors confirms that the elevated
operating voltage is stemming from a microcode algorithm resulting in incorrect
voltage requests to the processor."

"Intel is delivering a microcode patch which addresses the root cause of
exposure to elevated voltages. We are continuing validation to ensure that
scenarios of instability reported to Intel regarding its Core 13th/14th Gen
desktop processors are addressed. Intel is currently targeting mid-August for
patch release to partners following full validation."

"Intel is committed to making this right with our customers, and we continue
asking any customers currently experiencing instability issues on their Intel
Core 13th/14th Gen desktop processors reach out to Intel Customer Support for
further assistance."


INTEL STATEMENT ON VIA OXIDATION

Short answer: We can confirm there was a via Oxidation manufacturing issue
(addressed back in 2023) but it is not related to the instability issue.

Long answer: We can confirm that the via Oxidation manufacturing issue affected
some early Intel Core 13th Gen desktop processors. However, the issue was root
caused and addressed with manufacturing improvements and screens in 2023. We
have also looked at it from the instability reports on Intel Core 13th Gen
desktop processors and the analysis to-date has determined that only a small
number of instability reports can be connected to the manufacturing issue.

For the Instability issue, we are delivering a microcode patch which addresses
exposure to elevated voltages which is a key element of the Instability issue.
We are currently validating the microcode patch to ensure the instability issues
for 13th/14th Gen are addressed. - Intel representative via Reddit.




See more CPUs News


See all comments (255)
Paul Alcorn
Social Links Navigation
Managing Editor: News and Emerging Tech

Paul Alcorn is the Managing Editor: News and Emerging Tech for Tom's Hardware
US. He also writes news and reviews on CPUs, storage, and enterprise hardware.


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255 Comments Comment from the forums
 * bit_user
   > Intel said:
   > Intel is currently targeting mid-August for patch release to partners
   
   So, they think they've found the cause and a solution, but they're going to
   just let this problem fester for another month before a solution can
   realistically get into the hands of end users??
   
   Wow, I'm sure glad I don't have a Raptor Lake that's continuing to degrade,
   in the meantime. You'd think they could at least post some tips for
   enthusiasts to follow, in order to minimize damage until then. I guess the
   community is left to follow the advice people have discovered on their own.
   
   I'm guessing they're trying to ride a knife's edge of undervolting, to avoid
   sacrificing either too much performance or risking instability due to too
   little voltage. I'll bet the voltage window is really narrow, at those higher
   frequencies. That's the main reason I can see why it'd take them so long to
   perfect their solution, before letting anyone else even have a beta version.
   Reply
 * Notton
   I thought it was the cache or the interconnect between CPU and cache that was
   burning out?
   Reply
 * Eximo
   Too high of voltage could certainly have that effect.
   
   Oxidation of vias (degradation) is the rumored underlying symptom, and excess
   voltage could certainly do that too.
   Reply
 * sergeyn
   Nice that Intel has admitted the problem and got to the root cause of it.
   Reply
 * thestryker
   This would certainly explain why it has taken so long to narrow down and
   predominantly affects high clocking chips. The T series may be low power, but
   they have higher boost clocks than i5s.
   
   > bit_user said:
   > Wow, I'm sure glad I don't have a Raptor Lake that's continuing to degrade,
   > in the meantime. You'd think they could at least post some tips for
   > enthusiasts to follow, in order to minimize damage until then. I guess the
   > community is left to follow the advice people have discovered on their own.
   
   So much this as I understand why it's taking so long to fix, but to give no
   advice as to what to do in the meantime or mitigation techniques is bad. At
   this point I think Intel needs to add two years to the warranty period for
   boxed processors.
   Reply
 * DS426
   RMA for what? Get another defective same model or a step down to an i7 or i5?
   Get money back and then swap out the whole platform for AMD? (I know I would
   if I was one affected by this problem)
   
   I just want to know how Intel is going to make it right for the customers.
   While that's great that they finally came out and said something, they're
   leaving too many questions on the table this far into the debacle.
   Reply
 * hotaru251
   honestly I dont buy it as the real reason.
   
   theres claims of MB's that run tame settings that have issue (some server
   grade ones) and likely voltage on them was never near being too much so even
   if it was voltage issue likely wouldnt of been too high for those ones yet
   still had issue.
   
   this just sounds like a "best excuse w/o getting sued" statement.
   
   also if it IS true its hilariously comical as Intel's always been joke only
   getting better by pushing more voltage every generation and it biting em in
   butt finally would be icing on cake.
   Reply
 * Avro Arrow
   LOL, Intel
   Reply
 * -Fran-
   Hm... This doesn't pass the sniff test for me.
   
   I'm looking forward to hearing about this fix in systems which run these CPUs
   24/7 and independent media/testers.
   
   Regards.
   Reply
 * phitinh81
   > sergeyn said:
   > Nice that Intel has admitted the problem and got to the root cause of it.
   
   Root ? Not so fast.
   Reply
 * View All 255 Comments

Show more comments


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