LAN driver freezes repeatedly on new install

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   Please help.
A new install of a Z170 Extreme7+ with Windows 10 Pro where the LAN driver completely freezes up the PC and must be hard power cycled. Updated successfully to latest BIOS, INF, ME, AUDIO, etc, but when installing LAN driver it hard freezes the PC within 10 seconds of starting. No blue screen, just utter freeze without any mouse/keyboard functionality. 

First I downloaded the driver myself and after two freezes, then I installed the APP Shop and let it try but it failed too.
Could there be some BIOS setting I need to do or undo that might cause something like this?

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Karlerm1 Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Newbie Joined: 04 Dec 2015 Location: Michigan, USA Status: Offline Points: 13	Post Options Post Reply Quote Karlerm1 Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Topic: LAN driver freezes repeatedly on new install Posted: 08 Apr 2016 at 9:24pm
	Please help. A new install of a Z170 Extreme7+ with Windows 10 Pro where the LAN driver completely freezes up the PC and must be hard power cycled. Updated successfully to latest BIOS, INF, ME, AUDIO, etc, but when installing LAN driver it hard freezes the PC within 10 seconds of starting. No blue screen, just utter freeze without any mouse/keyboard functionality. First I downloaded the driver myself and after two freezes, then I installed the APP Shop and let it try but it failed too. Could there be some BIOS setting I need to do or undo that might cause something like this?

Karlerm1 Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Newbie Joined: 04 Dec 2015 Location: Michigan, USA Status: Offline Points: 13	Post Options Post Reply Quote Karlerm1 Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: 08 Apr 2016 at 9:31pm
	I checked the BIOS and both ethernet ports are enabled in the chipset configuration screen. I've tried installing without the ethernet cable plugged in and with it plugged in.

parsec Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Moderator Group Joined: 04 May 2015 Location: USA Status: Offline Points: 4996	Post Options Post Reply Quote parsec Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: 08 Apr 2016 at 11:35pm
	That is a strange problem. I have the same board, Z170 Extreme7+, and have installed Windows 10 several times, simply because I've used several different drives for the OS. Of course I've installed the Intel network driver many times, multiple versions as well. I've never had a problem with the Intel network driver installer, or any other installation program, causing the PC to freeze or lock up. I assume you've used the Lan driver ver:20.2 from our board's download page, or from the driver disk supplied with the board? You said you installed the INF and IME software (in that order? INF before anything else?) and then the Intel network driver, correct? Do you left click on the installer, and select Run as administrator? Is your Win 10 Pro installation an upgrade installation from another Windows version, or a new, clean Win 10 Pro installation? Win 10 has caused some issues with the Intel network drivers, some features are still broken. Installing the Intel network driver with the network cables connected or not should not make a difference, I have done both. I should say this; given the annoying Win 10 automatic driver and updates, I always install Win 10 without the PC connected to my ISP/network. The Intel driver installs fine this way. I even have two network cables connected, one to each of the network ports, and then to a simple network switch. Are you using the networking jack at the "top" or bottom of the IO panel? Not that one or the other is required to be used, but I've found that the top network input tends to be primary for some reason. Have you ever had network connectivity working on that PC? Meaning with the Win 10 network driver installed, if that happened? This is a link to Intel's downloads for their networking drivers for Win 10. I don't know if you've tried any of these versions, but here they are: https://downloadcenter.intel.com/download/25016/Network-Adapter-Driver-for-Windows-10?v=t


Karlerm1 Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Newbie Joined: 04 Dec 2015 Location: Michigan, USA Status: Offline Points: 13	Post Options Post Reply Quote Karlerm1 Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: 09 Apr 2016 at 12:18am
	parsec, Thanks for the reply. My answers to your questions is yes to all. Using LAN driver ver:20.2. After O/S, then install INF first using Run as Administrator, then IME, then LAN driver. This is a NEW CLEAN Windows 10 Pro installation, not and upgrade. I just reinstalled Win10 from scratch, rebooted, copied downloaded drivers to desktop, ran INF driver with Admin, reboot, run IME driver with Admin, reboot, run LAN driver with Admin and it got to the "Intel Network Connections Install Wizard" where it was trying to install the Intel Network Connections, and then HARD FREEZE. I can only assume this is a motherboard issue.

clubfoot Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Newbie Joined: 28 Mar 2016 Location: Canada Status: Offline Points: 246	Post Options Post Reply Quote clubfoot Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: 09 Apr 2016 at 2:34am
	I have the same issue,...when both NIC are enabled in the BIOS. Disable the I219V in the BIOS, connect your LAN cable to the lower NIC and the drivers will install. What I haven't tried yet is disabling the I211AT in the BIOS and installing the drivers for the I219V by itself,...but the above works.

Karlerm1 Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Newbie Joined: 04 Dec 2015 Location: Michigan, USA Status: Offline Points: 13	Post Options Post Reply Quote Karlerm1 Report Post Thanks(1) Quote Reply Posted: 09 Apr 2016 at 2:55am
	I went to Device Manager and uninstalled the unknown network adapter, then did Update driver and pointed it to the LAN driver and it installed for both ports. But a new hard freeze while installing the Samsung Magician software. Then it occurs to me that the problem lies in BIOS Raid I created with my two Samsung 950 Pro M.2 drives. So I reboot into BIOS and delete the raid and reboot and then install Windows again on just an individual drive and everything installs just fine including the LAN driver and Samsung Magician. So, I think the BIOS Raid function is not stable. I will continue to install other stuff and test, but I think that is the problem. However, this is a bummer since I bought this motherboard for the express purpose of creating a bootable NVMe RAID1 system. I submitted a support ticket, so maybe ASRock can come up with a solution.

clubfoot Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Newbie Joined: 28 Mar 2016 Location: Canada Status: Offline Points: 246	Post Options Post Reply Quote clubfoot Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: 09 Apr 2016 at 3:13am
	Thanks for the tip I will give it a try for the NICs. I run a RADI0 setup on my 950 Pro M2s without any issues. The Magician software does not support RAID setups, that's why it will lockup! I have an 850 on SATA3 and it recognizes it. You do not need Magician with a RAID setup :)


clubfoot Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Newbie Joined: 28 Mar 2016 Location: Canada Status: Offline Points: 246	Post Options Post Reply Quote clubfoot Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: 09 Apr 2016 at 3:22am
	I re-enabled the NIC in the BIOS and windows installed the driver :) Thanks.


Karlerm1 Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Newbie Joined: 04 Dec 2015 Location: Michigan, USA Status: Offline Points: 13	Post Options Post Reply Quote Karlerm1 Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: 09 Apr 2016 at 3:38am
	clubfoot, Thanks. Good to know about Magician with RAIDs. I wonder though, I just checked Magician on my individual 950s and it doesn't recognize them as Samsung drives. Doesn't that seem strange? The Samsung website for the 950 drive lists Magician software for download, so I thought it would work with it, but now I'm not so sure. Are you doing your RAID in the BIOS? And you haven't had any trouble with it? Maybe the BIOS raid is not the problem after all. This whole thing has been such a pain and frustration. Bleeding edge is a time killer.