Is there a specific NVIDIA Driver / Windows 10 Version that works with XPlane 11.26?

Question

I recently went through BSODs on Windows 10 caused by the 1803 (and subsequent updates) and the latest drivers from NVIDIA for the GTX 970.  As soon as I rolled back the NVIDIA drivers, the Blue Screens stopped and Windows 10 became pseudo-stable.  

Is there a specific combination of Windows 10 + NVIDIA drivers that will allow XPlane 11 to run?  I can start XPlane 11 but it locks up my machine (requiring a hard re-start) within 2 to 5 minutes.

This is using Windows 10 1803 (Cumulative Update as on 8-Sep-2018) - Windows updates have been disabled to minimize down time.

The NVIDIA driver that seems to work with Windows 10 is NVIDIA GeForce GTX 970 23-Jan-2018 Version 23.21.13.9077.  Using newer drivers causes Blue Screens every 5 to 10 minutes (this is for Windows 10).

Checking Log.Txt - no diagnostic info about the crash:

log.txt for X-Plane 11.26r2 (build 112601 64-bit)
 compiled on Aug 21 2018 21:49:25
X-Plane started on Sun Sep  9 10:14:05 2018

This log file is generated automatically by Laminar Research applications and contains diagnostics about your graphics hardware, installation, and any error conditions.
If you need to contact tech support or file a bug, please send us this file. NOTE: this file is rewritten every time you start ANY of your X-System applications.

Windows 10.0 (build 17134/2)
This is a 64-bit version of Windows.
CPU type: 8664
Physical Memory (total for computer): 34298515456
Maximum Virtual Memory (for X-Plane only): 140737488224256
CPU 0: Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-6700K CPU @ 4.00GHz  Speed (mhz): 4008
CPU 0: Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-6700K CPU @ 4.00GHz  Speed (mhz): 4008
CPU 0: Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-6700K CPU @ 4.00GHz  Speed (mhz): 4008
CPU 0: Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-6700K CPU @ 4.00GHz  Speed (mhz): 4008
CPU 0: Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-6700K CPU @ 4.00GHz  Speed (mhz): 4008
CPU 0: Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-6700K CPU @ 4.00GHz  Speed (mhz): 4008
CPU 0: Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-6700K CPU @ 4.00GHz  Speed (mhz): 4008
CPU 0: Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-6700K CPU @ 4.00GHz  Speed (mhz): 4008

X-System folder:'E:\XPlane 11 Program/X-Plane 11/', case sensitive=0

Answer 1

These are the specs listed on Amazon for the app. I purchased a new computer from Dell that had exactly these specs and it works fine after it downloaded incorrectly and I had to clean out the old files and reload it.

Aw, @#$% this site won't let me copy and past and I'm having to retype it:

CPU:Intel Core i5 6600 at 3.5 ghz or faster. RAM:16 GB (my note, this is a minimum) VIDEO CARD:DirectX 12-capable video card from NVIDA, AMDw/4 GB VRAM.

Comments

 Thanks for the reply.  Just to clarify, are you suggesting the steps below?

1.  Uninstall XPlane 11.

2.  Delete any remaining XPlane 11 files that were not deleted in the uninstall.

     Do I need to remove any XPlane 11 registry settings in this step?

3.  Re-install XPlane 11.

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I answered this question: Aw, damn this site that I can't cut and past!!!!

You asked if there is a specific combination of Windows 10 and NVIDIA drivers that work with X-Plane. I gave you a copy of the minimum requirements. I'm also telling you that it didn't load right the first time (DVDs) and I had to clean up a mess of files all over my C drive and then reload X-Plane and then it worked for me. The Micorsoft techs don't know what went wrong with the download but know this App has a history of messed up downloads. Those messed up downloads cause a variety of glitches when trying to run the app. It's worth a try if you have a DVD copy of X-Plane and your computer has the minimum requirements or better.

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If I am reading this correctly, my best option is to:

1. Obtain an XPlane 11 DVD.
2. Uninstall the XPlane 11 on my Windows 10 box.
3. Install XPlane 11 from the DVDs.

Could you direct me to a references for the Microsoft Tech's determination that the XPlane 11 Download is faulty?

I am wondering if this is another casualty of the Windows 1803 update.

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I have no idea why your computer isn't working right. I answered one simple question about the technical specs that are listed for X-Plane and then I explained that I had trouble loading the DVDs and had to re-install it after cleaning off the first download mess. I have no  written documentation of problems with X-Plane installation. The second Microsoft tech who finished cleaning the old files off my computer and watched as I reloaded it told me on the phone that X-Plane had its own installer and that he was aware that some other people had problems with downloading it. I'm not otherwise an expert on Microsoft systems or software compatibility issues between Windows 10 and other software. Contact Microsoft for more detailed help. I do know that X-Plane didn't install on a computer I had that didn't meet the minimum requirements, so I bought a new computer just to run X-Plane on and I had problems with my first attempt at downloading it.

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Thanks for the replies.  The PC itself exceeds the minimum requirements.  One of the biggest problems was that Windows 10 became unstable after the initial 1803 updates.  After digging and experimentation, we found that the latest NVIDIA drivers for GTX 1070 were not working well in Windows 10 after the 1803 updates.  The Microsoft Bluescreen Troubleshooter does not do anything useful - so we purchased some third-party diagnostic tools.  After rolling back the NVIDIA drivers, Windows 10 became more or less stable.  

Unfortunately, Xplane 11 now does a hard freeze after 5 to 10 minutes of use. This requires a hard re-boot to recover.  No messages are written in the event logs.  I will try a complete re-install of downloaded XPlane 11 files.