In this post, we look at what are the WHEA-Logger Fatal hardware and Event ID Errors as well as the associated fixes for affected PC users that may encounter the issue on their Windows 11 or Windows 10 computer.
What are the WHEA Error Event Logs?
The Windows Hardware Error Architecture (WHEA) Logger is an automated service that detects hardware errors and generates Event Tracking for Windows events when such an error occurs. The system log then records these hardware errors which can be reviewed for troubleshooting purposes. The WHEA-Logger events are simply generic error codes and only indicate that there might be a hardware or driver problem.
Apart from the system crash, this event can be logged or the issue can also normally happen after a system sleep or restart, right after boot, or even while the computer is idle. Typically, you may see the following generic or specific error message in Event Viewer depending on the hardware throwing the error:
A fatal hardware error has occurred. A record describing the condition is contained in the data section of this event.
A corrected hardware error has occurred.
Reported by component: Processor Core
Error Source: Unknown Error Source
Error Type: Cache Hierarchy Error
Processor APIC ID: 0
The details view of this entry contains further information.
A fatal hardware error has occurred.
Reported by component: Processor Core
Error Source: Machine Check Exception
Error Type: Cache Hierarchy Error
Processor APIC ID: 0
The details view of this entry contains further information.
From the above error messages, you can see the processor or CPU is identified as the hardware causing the issue for the second and third instances of the error. Investigations revealed that these errors are usually related to the Kernel-Power events like the Kernel-Power Event ID 41 Task 63, Event ID 55 Kernel-Processor-Power errors on Windows PC.
Fix WHEA-Logger Fatal hardware and Event ID Errors
If your Windows 11/10 computer keeps crashing and in Event Viewer you see the WHEA-Logger Fatal hardware with the associated Event ID 1, 17, 18, 19, 46, or 47 logged, then the generic fixes we have presented below in no particular order can be applied to resolve the issue on your system.
- Initial checklist
- Check the RAM modules
- Identify and manually update the faulty hardware driver
- Disable AMD or ATI External Events Utility (if applicable)
- Replace your motherboard and/or CPU
Let’s see these applicable fixes in detail.
1] Initial checklist
- Make sure Windows is updated to the latest version/build. Check for available BIOS updates and do the needful. Also make sure all drivers, especially the chipset drivers are updated on your system. In addition, you may have to troubleshoot in the Clean Boot state.
- For some affected PC users, they reported that disabling the C-state in BIOS did resolve the issue. To perform this task, you will need to check with your PC manufacturer to know the correct process to disable the C-state in BIOS as different brand computers may have a different process to disable the C-state in BIOS. Note that hibernation doesn’t work when this setting is disabled, but Sleep does.
- Uninstall NVIDIA GeForce Experience software. As strange as it might seem, reportedly this worked for some affected PC users. So, you can give the fix a try if it applies to your circumstance whereby you have an NVIDIA GPU installed on your system.
Read: Event ID 154, The IO Operation failed due to a hardware error
2] Check the RAM modules
Make sure you have installed the supported memory modules for your computer. If you have already, then you can run the Memtest86+ tool to test your RAM. Depending on the outcome of the memory test, if it’s a case of bad RAM, then you will have to replace the RAM modules. Otherwise, you can just reseat the module(s) and see if that solves the WHEA Logger Fatal hardware and Event ID errors on your Windows 11/10 system.
Read: MEMORY_MANAGEMENT 0x0000001A error
3] Identify and manually update the faulty hardware driver
First, you can run Driver Verifier, a utility built into the Windows OS that will often find the driver/drivers that are the underlying cause of BSOD/crashes. If you have taken the necessary actions regarding the driver(s) that were identified, but the issue persists, then you can follow the steps below to specifically identify and manually update the problematic hardware driver.
- Open Event Viewer.
- Navigate to the Windows Event Logs/System.
- Locate and view the WHEA-Logger errors. The Event ID could be any of the numbers we have identified above or any other number.
- Double-click on the error in the logs then click on the DETAILS tab.
- Expand the SYSTEM details.
- Now, look specifically for BUS, DEVICE, and FUNCTION numbers to identify which item in the Device Manager is causing the problem.
- Leave Event Viewer open, and now open Device Manager.
- Scroll down to the System Devices section. You will probably see something similar to the following, but the numbers on the far right will differ. You could have one or more instances.
Intel(r)5520/5500/x58 i/o hub pci express root port 3- 340a
Intel(r)5520/5500/x58 i/o hub pci express root port 7- 340e
- Double-click on each of these PCI Express Root Port items in Device Manager and note the location which will be something like this:
PCI bus 0, device 3, function 0.
- Now, find the one that matches what you found in the Windows logs and cross reference the error in the Windows system log with the item in Device Manager with the same BUS, DEVICE, and FUNCTION location.
- Double-click on that item and go to the Driver tab.
- Click Update driver > Browse > Let me Choose.
- From the compatible hardware driver list choose the PCI Express Standard Root Port driver.
- Click Next to complete the driver update.
Repeat for each of the errors but only if they have a different BUS, DEVICE LOCATION. If they are all the same, then it is not necessary.
4] Disable AMD or ATI External Events Utility (if applicable)
This fix applies if you have an AMD processor. To disable the AMD or ATI External Events Utility on your Windows 11/10 computer, follow these steps:
- Press the Windows key + R to invoke the Run dialog.
- In the Run dialog box, type services.msc and hit Enter to open Services.
- In the Services window, scroll and locate the AMD External Events Utility service.
- Double-click on the entry to edit its properties.
- In the properties window, click the drop-down on the Startup type and select Disabled.
- Next, click Stop under Service status to stop the service.
- Click Apply > OK to save changes.
Check if the issue is resolved. Otherwise, try the next solution.
5] Replace your motherboard and/or CPU
At this point, if the issue persists, then it could be you have an unsupported or incompatible (it should be the one that shipped with the device or the exact replacement) MOBO and/or CPU, or it could be one or either of the hardware is faulty – if this is the case, then you will need to replace this hardware by a PC hardware technician. Otherwise, if you’re sure your motherboard and CPU are supported and compatible, then you can perform System Restore which will likely resolve the issue if it’s software related.
Hopefully, any of these suggestions should work for you!
What can cause a WHEA error?
Generally, a WHEA error indicates that a hardware issue has occurred on your Windows 11/10 computer. The known issues could be related to such things as device drivers, hard drives, processors, power supply, and bad or corrupted memory (DRAM). Hardware components contain error detection mechanisms that can detect when a hardware error condition exists – these errors can be classified as either corrected errors or uncorrected errors.
Related post: WHEA_UNCORRECTABLE_ERROR, 0x00000124 BSOD [Fixed].
