Troubleshooting Game Crashes

Article ID: 7169-TIAV-5361 FAQ ID: 397 Created: May 19, 2009

http://support.steampowered.com/cgi-bin/steampowered.cfg/php/enduser/std_adp.php?p_faqid=397

If you try and start the game and end up at your desktop you should download and install the latest version of directx 9.0c found here:

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/search.aspx?displaylang=en&categoryid=2

If you are locking up at the Loading screen you need to manually re-add the hl2.exe for each of your Steam games to your exceptions list. Once the game exe has been updated on your Firewall you should no longer lock up at the Loading screen.

On machines using nForce audio go to Options > Audio and switch to 2 speakers. This should stop you from crashing when joining your game.

There is also a crash that can happen with nVidia based video cards that is corrected with the following Beta drivers from nVidia:

http://www.nzone.com/object/nzone_downloads_winxp_2k_78.05.html

If you are still having crashes while playing your game please try the following steps:

Clean booting to free up memory on machines that have 512mb of ram.

When you start Windows, typically there are a number of programs that start automatically and run in the background that may interfere with the game. These programs may include antivirus and system utility programs. When you perform a clean boot, you prevent these programs from starting automatically. You must be logged on as an administrator or a member of the Administrators group to complete this procedure.

1. Click Start, and then click Run.
2. In the Open box, type msconfig, and then click OK.
3. On the General tab, click Selective Startup.
4. Under Selective Startup, click to clear the following check boxes:
   • Process SYSTEM.INI File
   • Process WIN.INI File
   • Load Startup Items
5. On the Services tab, click to select the Hide All Microsoft Services check box, and then click Disable All.
6. Click OK, and then click Restart.

Note: To restore your normal boot sequence re-open msconfig and place a check in the items you previously disabled.

For lag issues in game or if you're still not able to get to the main menu try specifying a different DXLevel in launch options. This update replaced any tweaks that may have been made to improve game performance. If you are crashing or locking up when starting your game go to the Launch Options for the game and add -dxlevel 81.

If you are able to play with -window - console, but crash without these two launch options try copying the avi.dll from:

Steam\SteamApps\accountname\counter-strike source\bin folder to the Steam\SteamApps\accountname\counter-strike source folder

This will also work for HL2 and DoD: S.