ACPI.sys driver causing large amount of DPC latency on Asus N550jk
Recently I upgraded my Asus N550JK with a 512GB SSD, MX100 from Crucial, and replaced my DVD drive with the old hard drive. I successfully wiped the 1tb hard drive I had in before and installed Windows 8.1 64-bit onto the SSD. Almost everything is working as intended.

When I opened task manager, I notice an odd thing, my cpu usage was higher when my computer was doing nothing at all. (seen here: http://i.imgur.com/bav1ACJ.png )

After doing some research I began using two tools to uncover the problem. The first of which, LatencyMon, told me that the ACPI.sys driver was causing issues. This is what I see: 

http://i.imgur.com/FBl0Bop.png
http://i.imgur.com/Z7ftcrd.png

I have also used the "Windows Performance Analyzer" developed my Microsoft, and found similar results:

http://i.imgur.com/E2xsz0L.png

I have updated my bios to version 208 and updated my chipset drivers to the latest version. I reinstalled the ATKAPCI package for the model N550JK and have had no luck.

I've contacted support many times and they cannot figure out what is wrong. I am slightly frustrated because my laptop only lasts for an hour on battery life due to this issue.

I can send you the .etl file if necessary, but I want to solve this issue. Research I've done indicates owners of computers with SSD's are more likely to have this issue, and it is surprisingly common in laptops.

Other people have suggested on various forums to rollback the bios to an earlier version of Asus Bios, I believe it was 205, but I can't and won't download from a random source.

Disabling various devices in the device manager does not seem to fix anything either. I believe there is a bug in the code.
December 11th, 2014 6:53am

Hi,

I would like to suggest you update all your drivers, and then follow this article to troubleshoot:

Troubleshooting Hardware & Software Compatibility Issues on Windows 8 and
Windows 8.1

http://social.technet.microsoft.com/wiki/contents/articles/4960.troubleshooting-hardware-software-compatibility-issues-on-windows-8-and-windows-8-1.aspx

In addition, boot into safe mode to check the result:

Windows Startup Settings (including safe mode)

http://windows.microsoft.com/en-in/windows-8/windows-startup-settings-safe-mode

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December 12th, 2014 8:24am

I have the most recent drivers from my manufacturers website. When I boot into safe mode I still have the same issue. I will look further into startup settings.
December 12th, 2014 5:51pm

I have created a pastebin of my ntbtlog.txt, if that would help.... That can be found here: http://pastebin.com/EatahZMb
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December 12th, 2014 6:49pm

Update and solution:

I've successfully fixed the problem.

On my HDD caddy, http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004Y8SGXW , there is a tiny switch on the side that when I switched it to the other position I no longer have any problem with ACPI.sys creating system interrupts. 

Another forum I was reading suggested that their HDD caddy had messy soldering so I took apart my caddy and only then did I realize that there was a switch. I tried to do some research on my caddy but couldn't find anything except in the reviews on Amazon, where other people suggested flicking the switch if they were having any sorts of problems. Flicking the switch solved all of my problems.
  • Marked as answer by Famzilla Sunday, December 14, 2014 8:43 AM
December 14th, 2014 8:43am

Update and solution:

I've successfully fixed the problem.

On my HDD caddy, http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004Y8SGXW , there is a tiny switch on the side that when I switched it to the other position I no longer have any problem with ACPI.sys creating system interrupts. 

Another forum I was reading suggested that their HDD caddy had messy soldering so I took apart my caddy and only then did I realize that there was a switch. I tried to do some research on my caddy but couldn't find anything except in the reviews on Amazon, where other people suggested flicking the switch if they were having any sorts of problems. Flicking the switch solved all of my problems.
  • Marked as answer by Famzilla Sunday, December 14, 2014 8:43 AM
Free Windows Admin Tool Kit Click here and download it now
December 14th, 2014 8:43am

Update and solution:

I've successfully fixed the problem.

On my HDD caddy, http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004Y8SGXW , there is a tiny switch on the side that when I switched it to the other position I no longer have any problem with ACPI.sys creating system interrupts. 

Another forum I was reading suggested that their HDD caddy had messy soldering so I took apart my caddy and only then did I realize that there was a switch. I tried to do some research on my caddy but couldn't find anything except in the reviews on Amazon, where other people suggested flicking the switch if they were having any sorts of problems. Flicking the switch solved all of my problems.
  • Marked as answer by Famzilla Sunday, December 14, 2014 8:43 AM
December 14th, 2014 8:43am

Hi

Same problem with N550Jv. Unfortunately, my HDD caddy lacks the switch you mentioned. Any new solutions to this problem?

Thanks

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March 20th, 2015 10:13am

Hi

Same problem with N550Jv. Unfortunately, my HDD caddy lacks the switch you mentioned. Any new solutions to this problem?

Thanks

Get a new caddy. On my Asus N56JR I have bought a regular caddy and all was working fine. Then I got one from amazon and ACPI.sys was killing me. Plus the computer would hand at restart, shutdown, etc. Then I saw this thread and found that switch on the amazon's caddy. Now everything works fine. In worst case, remove your caddy and see the difference. If that solves your problem go ahead and buy a new caddy.

BTW, the switch is right next to the inside SATA adapter.

July 1st, 2015 8:36pm

Update and solution:

I've successfully fixed the problem.

On my HDD caddy, http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004Y8SGXW , there is a tiny switch on the side that when I switched it to the other position I no longer have any problem with ACPI.sys creating system interrupts. 

Another forum I was reading suggested that their HDD caddy had messy soldering so I took apart my caddy and only then did I realize that there was a switch. I tried to do some research on my caddy but couldn't find anything except in the reviews on Amazon, where other people suggested flicking the switch if they were having any sorts of problems. Flicking the switch solved all of my problems.
Dude, you've made my day with your freaking switch. After destroying my Windows install with driver installs and uninstalls I finally managed to see that the caddy was the problem. Luckily I had another caddy and it was working fine. And then I saw the freaking switch on the caddy that I want to use. Now, all works fine.
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July 1st, 2015 8:38pm

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