Acer Predator PH16-72-Getting Blue Screen with Error Message: IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL (0xA) What failed: ntoskrnl.exe

Levoon17

Hello,

I’m experiencing a recurring blue screen error on my Acer Predator PH16-72 laptop.

The error message shows:

IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL

What failed: ntoskrnl.exe

SYSTEM_SERVICE_EXCEPTION (0x3B)

It usually happens randomly — sometimes during normal use, and sometimes right after startup.

I have already reinstalled Windows 11 (clean installation from Microsoft’s official website),

updated all drivers, and scanned the system for malware, but the issue still appears.

Device: Acer Predator PH16-72

OS: Windows 11 (official clean install)

BIOS: (1.17)

Could this be related to hardware — for example, faulty RAM, SSD, or a driver conflict?

Any diagnostic steps or suggestions from Acer Support would be appreciated.

Thank you.

[Edited the thread to add model name to the title]
[Edited the thread to add issue detail]

Accepted answers

All comments

Puraw

Hi Levoon17

If the IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL error doesn’t appear in Safe Mode, it’s likely caused by a rogue driver—often the Nvidia dGPU. You can try the following steps:

Boot into Safe Mode and stay offline for a while to confirm stability.
If stable, uninstall the Nvidia graphics driver using DDU (Display Driver Uninstaller) in Safe Mode.
In DDU, select “Clean and restart” to fully remove the driver.
After reboot, Windows will either reinstall the driver automatically or offer a fresh one via Windows Update.

You can download DDU from: https://www.wagnardsoft.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=1256

StevenGen

Btw, the last bios version of the PH16-72 is version 1.11 not 1.17, where did you get that version from?

For the errors see the solution of how to fix the IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL error that is a common Blue Screen of Death (BSOD) issue in Windows, often related to memory or driver problems. This error occurs when a system process or device driver attempts to access a memory address without proper permission

The SYSTEM_SERVICE_EXCEPTION error with the bug check code 0x0000003 indicates that an exception occurred while executing a system service routine. This error often results in a Blue Screen of Death (BSOD) and can be caused by various factors, including faulty drivers, memory issues, or corrupted system files.

Do all the above as your PH16-72 laptop should not be getting these errors, it could be from bad or incompatible ram module, if you have upgraded the ram or software issues. Do a clean install of windows as that should solve the software side to Win-11 25H2 and all updates to OS build: 26200.6899. Good luck.

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Johancruffy

Wah, itu memang bikin frustasi banget kalau udah reinstall Windows tapi masih kena BSOD. Bisa jadi memang ada masalah di hardware, terutama RAM atau SSD. Coba jalankan Windows Memory Diagnostic atau MemTest86 buat ngecek RAM-nya, dan pastikan juga semua driver dari situs resmi Acer sudah versi terbaru. Semoga cepat ketemu penyebabnya dan laptopmu bisa normal lagi!