How To Fix a Blue Screen of Death

How To Fix a Blue Screen of Death

A Blue Screen of Death (BSOD), technically called a STOP error, occurs when Windows suffers a serious error and is forced to "stop" completely.

Since a blue screen error gives you no choice but to restart, troubleshooting one can be difficult. Luckily, almost every STOP error includes a STOP code that can be used to research a fix.

1.The most important Blue Screen of Death troubleshooting step you can take is to ask yourself what you just did.

Did you just install a new program or a piece of hardware, update a driver, install an update, etc.? If so, there's a very good chance that the change you made caused the BSOD.

Undo the change you made and test again for the STOP Error. Depending on what change you made, some solutions might include:

Startup using Last Known Good Configuration. to undo recent registry and driver changes.Use System Restore to undo recent system changes.Roll Back device driver to version prior to your driver update.

2.Verify that a minimum amount of free space is available on your Windows partition. Blue Screens of Death and other serious issues, like data corruption, can occur if there's not enough free space on your primary partition used for the Windows operating system.

Note: Microsoft recommends that you maintain at least 100MB of free space

3.Scan your computer for viruses. Some viruses can cause a Blue Screen of Death, especially ones that infect the master boot record (MBR) or boot sector.

Important: Make sure your virus scanning software is completely up to date and that it's configured to scan the MBR and boot sector.

4.Apply all available Windows service packs and other updates.

5.Update drivers for your hardware. Most Blue Screens of Death are hardware or driver related so updated drivers could fix the cause of the STOP error.

6.Return hardware settings to default in Device Manager. Unless you have a specific reason to do so

7.Return BIOS settings to their default levels. An overclocked or misconfigured BIOS can cause all sorts of random issues, including BSODs.

Note: If you've made several customizations to your BIOS settings and don't wish to load the default ones then at least try returning clock speed, voltage settings, and BIOS memory options to their default settings and see if that fixes the STOP error.

8.Make sure all internal cables, cards, and other components are installed and seated properly. Hardware that's not firmly in place can cause a Blue Screen of Death so try reseating the following and then test for the STOP message again:

9.Update your BIOS. In some situations, and outdated BIOS could cause a Blue Screen of Death due to certain incompatibilities.

10.Start your PC with essential hardware only. A useful troubleshooting step in many situations, including BSOD issues, is to start your computer with the minimum hardware necessary to run the operating system. If your computer starts successfully it proves that one of the removed hardware devices was the cause of the STOP message.