HP ZBook Ultra 14 G1a BSOD/Reliability?

[Lukas85]

Thank you very much, I've updated it. Now I'll test it and let you know if it helped.💪

[Lukas85]

Hi Reflex25,

Installing the new driver directly from AMD resolved the issue with freezing and subsequent restarts.

Thak you very much.

[Stiggy_C]

Just got mine and got the same issue. Model code is C0HL7PT with 385 & 32 GB ram with BIOS 1.03.02 released in June. Constantly spinning to 100% even with light CPU and GPU load when using edge!! Annoying as hell. Hopefully HP can deal with this soon or I may consider returning it.

[Reflex25]

Try the patch above https://www.amd.com/en/support/downloads/drivers.html/processors/ryzen-pro/ryzen-ai-max-pro-300-seri... 

looks like link truncated and you need to find the latest version.

[Stiggy_C]

Did not do anything. Fans still constantly spinning with less than 10% CPU & GPU usage. AMD software reports 39 - 40 degrees C temperature. Bios is 1.03.02 and I tried to downgrade which get refused even u chose allow downgrade within BIOS. This is driving me nuts!!

[Reflex25]

When our Zbook Ultra G1a was new there were two problems: -
1. Freezing ad then either crashing and rebooting or reuiring manual reboot.
2. Unidentified backgrounf activity resulting in fans running fast and the laptop getting hot.

Updating everthing HP offers and this AMD one: -

https://www.amd.com/en/support/downloads/drivers.html/processors/ryzen-pro/ryzen-ai-max-pro-300-seri... 
Fixed both.

If the usage levels are low and the components cool [as stated] then it could be a temperature sensor / hardware fault.

[Stiggy_C]

Appreciate for trying to help. I hope is just a BIOS issue after all. I have been a MacBook guy for awhile. Strix Halo convinced me to give PC another try. But so far the experience is definitely sub-par. I am already a software engineer at work I don’t want to be a QA engineer at home.

[ecthelion]

Same here. About 30 minutes after unpacking the machine and turning it on for the first time, I experienced a random freeze ( the mouse and keyboard became unresponsive) and I had to force a shutdown. No BSOD though, just a complete freeze requiring a hard reset. This issue kept happening randomly. Sometime a few times in a day, and sometimes just normal behavior along the day.

I updated Windows and all the drivers, but the problem persisted. I even tried running Linux, and the same freezes occurred, so it’s clearly not a “Windows update issue.” I assumed it was just a fixable issue, until I started loosing ours of work that I couldn't save because of the freezing. 

I’m now in contact with HP support. They instructed me to perform a clean installation of Windows. After a day of normal operation with the fresh install, I was hopeful, but the sudden freezes just started again.

I’m sending the report to HP support to see what the next step will be.

[hughesfleming]

I had a lot of problems in the beginning. I don't have them any more. The main issue for me was the use of Thunderbolt 4 and power problems. Even though I have a monitor that supports TB4 I have to connect via HDMI. It seems absolutely necessary to have power delivery from the original power brick that ships with the laptop.  If I had TB4 connected, the laptop would crash under load after about 40 or 50 minutes. I have a Dell 32 inch monitor with a TB4 hub.  The TB4 connection between the two devices just does not work reliably. It does not matter if I use the active 140w or the passive connection with the HP power supply.
By getting an HDMI cable that supports 4k at 120hz and using the original power brick, my problems went away. The laptop is silent with barely any fan noise. It doesn't crash randomly like before. The TB4 implementation is flawed. 
I will say that I expected much better. This is a product that was rushed to market to be the first. The Strix Halo 395+ is a great performer. I would like to get one as a desktop. I just might not get the HP version.

[hughesfleming]

In my opinion all the problems come from the charging. Additional TB4 connections just add to the problems, I have no problems anymore. I am getting work done daily without problems. The hope of having a single cable rated for 140w between the laptop and the monitor was not realistic. It just doesn't work. I also tried TB4 to DisplayPort. That works but also causes problems. I don't even attach external drives to the TB4 ports. I just don't trust them.