The blue screen of death (BSOD) is a critical Windows error that typically indicates a major system fault. When it appears, your computer will freeze and display a blue screen with an error message. The blue screen of death prevents your computer from operating normally and should be addressed as soon as possible. Depending on the error code, a BSOD can be caused by many different factors and can vary in severity.
This article will explain what to do if you are getting the blue screen of death.
Step 1: Restart Your Computer
If you see the BSOD, your first step should be to restart your computer. There is a chance that the BSOD might be a temporary problem that can be fixed by simply rebooting your system. To restart your computer, press and hold the power button for several seconds until it shuts down. Once the computer has powered off, press the power button again to turn it back on.
Step 2: Check Your System For Damage
If restarting your computer does not fix the blue screen of death, then you will want to check your system for any damage or corruption. You can run the System File Checker to scan your computer for any corrupt or missing system files. To open the tool, type “sfc /scannow” into the command prompt and press Enter. This will run a scan and check for any issues with your system files.
Step 3: Update Your Drivers
Outdated or corrupt drivers can also cause the blue screen of death. It may be a good idea to update your device drivers to make sure you have the latest and most stable versions available. To do this, head over to the manufacturer’s website and download the correct driver for your model. Once you’ve done that, install the driver and reboot your system.
Step 4: Run a Virus Scan
It is possible that the BSOD could be caused by a virus or malware. To check for any malicious software, you should run a full virus scan using an anti-malware program such as Malwarebytes. This will scan your system for any malicious programs and remove them if found.
Step 5: Roll Back Your Drivers
If you recently updated your device drivers, then it is possible that the new driver is causing the blue screen of death. To fix this, you can roll back the driver to the previous version. To do this, open Device Manager, find the driver in question, right-click on it, and select “Roll Back Driver”. Select the previous version and click “OK” to save the changes.
Step 6: Restore Your System
If none of the above steps work, then you might need to restore your system to an earlier point in time. This will revert your system to a state before the BSOD appeared. To do this, open the System Restore tool and choose a restore point before the BSOD occurred. Restoring your system can take some time, so make sure you have a backup of your important data before proceeding.
Step 7: Check Your Hardware
If the BSOD persists despite all of your attempts to resolve it, then it could be caused by a hardware issue. In this case, you will want to run a diagnostics test to check your system for any hardware problems. Depending on your system, you may need to access the BIOS settings to run the diagnostics.
Step 8: Reinstall Windows
If none of the above steps work, then you might have to reinstall Windows. To do this, insert the Windows installation disk and follow the on-screen instructions. This will wipe your system clean and reinstall Windows on your computer. Make sure you have a backup of your important data before proceeding.
Conclusion
If you are getting the blue screen of death, these steps can help you troubleshoot and resolve the issue. While some of these steps may seem daunting, they are necessary to fix the BSOD and get your computer running smoothly again. If you followed all of these steps and the BSOD still persists, you should contact a professional for help.