Event ID 18 — WHEA Hardware Error (CPU) (EVENT_WHEA_18)
What is this error?
Windows Hardware Error Architecture logged a corrected machine check error. Event 18 indicates a CPU hardware error that was corrected but may indicate degradation.
Common causes
- CPU degradation (Intel 13th/14th gen)
- CPU overclock instability
- insufficient CPU voltage
- CPU overheating
- motherboard VRM issue
How to fix it
- Update BIOS microcode
- disable CPU overclock
- check CPU temps
- apply Intel voltage fix if applicable
Too many steps? Crashless can diagnose this automatically — checks your drivers, temps, VRAM, and 400+ known error patterns.
Get free AI diagnosis Detailed analysis
Event ID 18 (Source: WHEA-Logger) is a corrected hardware error from the CPU. While 'corrected' sounds good, frequent WHEA errors indicate CPU instability or degradation — the CPU made errors but caught and fixed them in time.
This is ESPECIALLY important for Intel 13th and 14th gen CPU owners — these processors have a known degradation issue.
How to diagnose:
- Open Event Viewer > Windows Logs > System, filter by Source 'WHEA-Logger' and Event ID 18
- Check frequency — a few per week is concerning, multiple per day is serious
- Check the error details for the processor core number and error type
How to fix it:
- UPDATE BIOS IMMEDIATELY — Intel released microcode updates (0x129+) to prevent further degradation on 13th/14th gen CPUs. Check your motherboard manufacturer's website
- Disable any CPU overclock and remove XMP/EXPO profiles temporarily
- Monitor CPU temperature with HWiNFO64 — sustained temps above 90C accelerate degradation
- If you have an Intel 13th/14th gen i7 or i9, contact Intel for RMA — they extended the warranty for affected CPUs
- For non-Intel issues: check CPU voltage in BIOS, ensure it's not set too low
- Run Intel Processor Diagnostic Tool or Prime95 small FFTs for 30 minutes — if errors appear, the CPU is unstable
When to seek help
If this error keeps happening after trying the fixes above, it may point to a deeper hardware or system issue. Consider professional help if:
- The crash occurs across multiple games or applications
- You see the same error after a clean Windows install
- Your PC is less than a year old (could be a warranty issue)
- You smell burning or hear unusual sounds from your PC
Or let Crashless do the deep analysis for you -- our AI checks drivers, temps, event logs, and 400+ known patterns automatically.
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