How to fix a general protection fault.

Issue

How to fix a general protection fault.

Cause

There are several possibilities and reasons a computer receives a General Protection Fault error, below is a listing of some of the more common reasons.

1. The program being used is calling a section of memory that is already being used by another program or TSR.
2. The program has not been programmed properly or is still in testing and is calling an invalid portion of memory.

Solution

The following are recommendations for finding the cause of a GPF or resolving a GPF. It is important to know that GPFs are always likely to occur on the computer and if you are experiencing a GPF rarely such as once every few weeks to not worry about attempting to locate the root cause of that GPF. However, if you are experiencing GPF error messages often it is recommended you follow the following recommendations to help resolve your issues. 

Remove all TSRs

Disable or unload any TSRs or programs currently running before running the program causing the GPF.

• How to remove TSRs and startup programs.

Delete all program temporary files

Delete all temporary files that may still be residing on the hard disk drive from currently or previously running programs.

• How to remove temporary program files.

Run ScanDisk and Defrag

Run Scandisk and run Defrag on the hard disk drive as it could be possible your hard disk drive may have an issue causing the swap file or data files to become corrupt or invalid.

Verify your computer has more than 200 MB available

If your computer is running low on hard disk space, your Windows Swap File will be unable to increase in size when needed, causing programs to be swapped between memory and the hard disk drive more frequently. When this occurs it is more likely that a GPF can occur.

• Determining available hard drive space.

Recently installed software or hardware

If you have recently installed new software or hardware uninstall or reinstall that software / hardware to verify it is not causing your issue.

• Uninstalling Windows software.

Disable external cache

If your CPU utilizes external cache disable it temporarily to verify if it is causing your GPF error messages. If available, you will be able to disable your external cache through CMOS Setup.

If this resolves your issue it is recommended that you contact your computer, motherboard, or CPU manufacturer for additional recommendations or BIOS updates that may resolve your issue.

Disable Power Management and screen savers

If you are receiving GPFs when away from the computer or during durations when your computer is inactive, disable Power Management and screen savers to ensure that they are not causing your issue.

• Power management help and support.

Operating System issue

It is possible for Windows or an overwritten Windows related file to cause a General Protection fault.  Most commonly the General Protection Fault with Explorer and KRNL386.EXE. Reinstall Windows to resolve the issue.

Bad memory or other bad hardware

If you have followed all of the above recommendations and continue to experience GPFs it's possible hardware inside your computer may also be bad. Often bad memory is the primary cause for random GPFs.

• How can I test my memory to determine if it is bad?

Additional information

• See the GPF definition for further information about this term and related links.