BF3 multiplayer (PC) crashing to desktop after 30-45 mins of play (Oct. 2017)

[NewspaperNelson]

This problem only started about one week ago. I am on a new machine built in May of this year (Ryzen 5 1600 / EVGA GTX 1060 6GB / 16MB Corsair 3200 set to 2933). Before a week ago, BF3 has performed flawlessly. I don't know if it was a Windows update or a GeForce update (both of which are current), but something has gone crazy. Anyone else experiencing this?

[NewspaperNelson · Accepted solution]

You must have been correct. I sat down with the intention of doing a complete driver re-install and noticed an new GeForce Experience update. I installed it to see if it would correct the problem, and so far, it has. I guess the previous update was the culprit. 

[EA_Barry]

@NewspaperNelson

Sounds like either your CPU or GPU is overheating.

A handy way to check this is to download, install and run the following free version of Speccy:

https://www.piriform.com/speccy/download

Also, is your power supply of a high enough wattage for your system?

[NewspaperNelson]

Power Supply is 500W. It's plenty capable. The CPU and GPU temperatures are well within normal limits under idle. I will run MSI Afterburner and checking in-game temperatures.

[NewspaperNelson]

So, temperatures are not a problem. I monitored during gameplay and everything was very much normal. It has to be software-related.

Talking to guys on my favorite server, I have identified two pieces of (maybe not) evidence - the crashing happens when I'm using smoke a lot, and usually when I'm holding left shift to run. Driver problem, or windows shortcut key problem? If it's a GeForce driver problem, I would think lots of people would be affected.

[EA_Barry]

@NewspaperNelson

Much more likely to be a driver problem.

Can you identify any system change between when it last worked and now?

Undo that change if so and re-test.

A clean install of your video drivers may help, before that it may be worthwhile just resetting your GPU defaults via the nvidia control panel.

[NewspaperNelson · Accepted solution]

You must have been correct. I sat down with the intention of doing a complete driver re-install and noticed an new GeForce Experience update. I installed it to see if it would correct the problem, and so far, it has. I guess the previous update was the culprit. 

[EA_Barry]

@NewspaperNelson

Good news, thanks for your reply.