BSOD Netio.sys

[Vex]

Hey support team,

 

Since April 11th I constantly BSOD on startup whenever I logged in. Checking forums I found web protection may be the cause and proceeded to turn off and the BSOD stopped. I checked the mini-dump files and found that mwac.sys was causing the issue through windows debug. Since then I've carried out a clean install of Malwarebytes using the support tool and it was still Blue screening, decided to keep web protection off.

Over the course of April I randomly turned web protection on to see if the problem was resolved with any updates. It was not.

Things I've done while scouring forums over the past month.

-Uninstalled My VPN (Private Internet Access) Still BSOD on startup.

-Used OpenVPN instead of WireGuard through my VPN. Still BSOD

-Carried out check and update of any of my LAN components. 

 

I'll attach the logs that I've seen be requested.

Let me know if you need more info, Cheers

 

Dump.zip mbst-grab-results.zip

[Malwarebytes]

***This is an automated reply***

Hi,

Thanks for posting in the Malwarebytes for Windows Help forum.

If you are having technical issues with our Windows product, please do the following:

Malwarebytes Support Tool - Advanced Options

This feature is designed for the following reasons:

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[exile360]

Greetings,

There is a known conflict with the Web Protection in Malwarebytes and PIA VPN.  Please see if the following instructions allow you to work around the issue without needing to keep Web Protection disabled:

Switch Private Internet Access from OpenVPN to WireGuard and enable option “Use small packets”

• Update PIA to the latest version (v2.7.1 or newer)

• Turn PIA VPN off

• Switch from OpenVPN to WireGuard

• Enable "Use small pockets"

• Turn PIA VPN back on

• Restart your web browser

• The image below illustrates where the above options in PIA are located:

 

Please let us know how it goes and if the issue is resolved or not.

Thanks

[Vex]

I changed to small packets in PIA

I BSOD pretty much as soon as I turned Web Protection on. About 10-20 seconds.

 

[exile360]

Thanks for letting us know.  I was hoping it would help, but I guess not.  Unfortunately for the time being you'll have to keep Web Protection disabled to use PIA then.

I would recommend installing Malwarebytes Browser Guard in your web browser(s) as that will at least partially supplement the protection you lose by keeping Web Protection disabled.

Alternatively, you may try a different VPN product.  A list of third party security products known to conflict with Malwarebytes can be found in this support article, however it is not a complete list so be sure to test first using a free trial if possible before committing to any particular solution.

Malwarebytes also offers a VPN solution, Malwarebytes Privacy, if you wish to give that a try to see if it suits your needs.  A free trial is available and bundle pricing is available to receive a discount when paying for both Malwarebytes Premium and Malwarebytes Privacy.

[Vex]

I don't think PIA is the sole cause. Before posting, I tried everything. I even uninstalled PIA completely and was still getting BSOD with Web Protection Enabled

[exile360]

OK, it might be that either some component of PIA was left behind when you uninstalled it, or there is also something else on the system that might be triggering the BSOD.

Please do the following and we can take a look and try to see what might be going on:

1. Download and run the Malwarebytes Support Tool
2. Accept the EULA and click Advanced tab on the left (not Start Repair)
3. Click the Gather Logs button, and once it completes, attach the zip file it creates on your desktop to your next reply
   

Thanks

[Vex]

The file should be in my first post. Unless it didnt upload correctly

 

[exile360]

Apologies, I wanted to see a fresh set of logs once you removed PIA, but that's OK.

If you haven't tried it yet, please try uninstalling NetLimiter, then restart the system and see if it still BSODs or not with Web Protection active.  NetLimiter also has a WFP (Windows Filtering Platform) driver installed, which is typically what causes conflicts with the Web Protection in Malwarebytes.

[exile360]

Hello again,

A new version of Malwarebytes was just released which may address this issue.  Please refer to the information in this post for additional details.

To install the new version, open Malwarebytes and navigate to settings by clicking the small gear icon in the upper right, then click the Check for updates button located near the top of the General tab and allow it to download and install the new version.

Once the update completes, restart the system and test to see if the issue has been resolved or not and let us know how it went.

Thanks

[Vex]

Since removing NetLimiter and updating MalwareBytes to 4.3.0.98 I'm no longer BSOD on startup or afterwards so far. Cheers for the tip on Netlimiter, didn't even cross my mind that might be a cause.

Thanks for the help Exile, 

[exile360]

You're welcome, I'm glad that it helped.