I keep getting BSODs... PFN List Corrupt, Memory Management 0x1A, and IRQL Less or Not Equal (points to ntoskrnl)

Question

Hello! I have recently reinstalled Windows 11, and I have been getting crashes that have become more and more frequent. I have updated drivers, rolled back drivers, reseated the RAM and GPU, ran hard drive scans (no problems detected), and so on. It mainly crashes when I do certain things (like open or close programs), but it also just happens randomly sometimes. I can sometimes use certain programs after my computer crashes a few times, but once I start using something else or I close what I have open, my computer will likely crash right after.

I suspect it is faulty RAM, but I would really like for someone to analyze my dump files just to make sure it is what I think it is. I've attached the 5 most recent ones in this dropbox link:

https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fo/takdp3vqz4qsnjgsu4pam/AAbRVdHe4is5p1K9wUfhUCg?rlkey=ebm8p6h2fdzvdswj833swzf30&st=tio53vem&dl=0

Thank you!

Answer 1

I checked the three dump files. They show:

0x1A MEMORY_MANAGEMENT with parameter 0x404, meaning an inconsistency was detected between the PFN and page-table data.

0xA IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL and 0x1E KMODE_EXCEPTION_NOT_HANDLED, both failing inside ntoskrnl.exe with invalid memory access.

ntoskrnl.exe is most likely where the corruption was detected, not the actual cause. No specific third-party driver is consistently identified. Together with PFN_LIST_CORRUPT and the different random stop codes, this strongly suggests memory corruption. Faulty RAM is the leading suspect, but unstable XMP/overclocking, the CPU memory controller or motherboard can cause the same symptoms. Microsoft’s explanation is here: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-hardware/drivers/debugger/bug-check-0x1a--memory-management

Enter BIOS, load the default settings and disable XMP/EXPO, CPU overclocking and undervolting. Update the BIOS from the computer or motherboard manufacturer.

Then test one RAM stick at a time in the same slot using MemTest86, allowing at least four complete passes: https://www.memtest86.com/

Any error is unacceptable. If one stick fails, replace it. If both pass separately but crashes return when installed together, suspect XMP compatibility, the motherboard or the CPU memory controller rather than Windows.