Blue Screen of Death (BSOD) in Windows and its Common Stop Error Codes

What is the Blue Screen of Death?

Blue Screen of Death (BSOD) is an error screen which displayed due to driver error or hardware failure in a Windows OS based computer system. It is called BSOD because it is one of the critical system errors at the Windows Kernel level. Hence, the system cannot be recovered from it.

The following picture depicts a Blue Screen of Death (BSOD) with a stop error code “CRITICAL_PROCESS_DIED”.

Whenever the Blue Screen of Death error occurs, the system stops working and a blue screen is displayed with an error message. The error message displayed on the blue screen gives important information about the error which is helpful in troubleshooting of the problem.

The phrase “Blue Screen of Death” is used to represent this stop error because a blue screen appears with white text that provides information about the error when it occurs.

Up to Windows 7 OS, the blue screen of death contains only hardware information, but from Windows 8 OS, the amount of information displayed is reduced and a large sad face emoji on the screen is shown.

When a computer system restarts after receiving the blue screen of death error, the system enters to an automatic troubleshooting process, but the system has crashed so badly that the Windows OS cannot repair it, and hence user must troubleshoot the issue manually.

Causes of Blue Screen of Death

The following are the major factors that cause the Blue Screen of Death −

• Hardware Failure Problems - The failure of hardware components like motherboard, RAM, Hard Disk Drive, etc. can cause the BSOD issue. Some other issues related to hardware components like incompatibility, overheating, incorrect installation, etc. may cause BSOD

• Issues Related to Device Drivers - The blue screen of death can also occur due to problems associated with device drivers like out dating, corruption, incompatibility, etc. Due to device driver issues, hardware components cannot communicate properly with the operating system, and can lead to the system crash and cause a blue screen of death.

• Operating System Related Issues - The blue screen of death can also be caused due to some operating system issues like missing system files, improper system configuration, etc

• Software Related Issues - The blue of error may also occur due to installation of incompatible software on the system. This mainly occurs when two or more incompatible software programs try access the same computer resource at the same time.

• Malicious Programs Related Issues - The blue screen of death can also be cause by the system infection with malicious programs like malware, virus, ransomware. These programs cause system instability, corrupt system files, change system configuration, etc. All these actions lead to system crash and display the blue screen of death.

All these are the significant issues that cause the blue screen of death (BSOD) in a Windows operating system. Therefore, to resolve this error, it is important to identify the exact cause of BSOD by analyzing the error message properly.

How to Fix the Blue Screen of Death?

A common step-by-step procedure to fix the blue screen of death (BSOD) in the Windows operating system is described as follows:

• Step 1 - Firstly, note the error message displayed on the blue screen. This error message contains a stop code, for example “STOP: 0×00000001”, and a short description of the issue occurred in the system. This information is valuable in resolving the issue

• Step 2 - – Secondly, restart the computer system. It is because, sometimes, the blue screen of death error might occur due to a temporary technical glitch. After restarting the system, if the BSOD does not occur, then there is no need of any kind of troubleshooting

• Step 3 - Check your system for any hardware related issues. Start by checking all cables and connections are connected properly. You can also use the bult-in hardware diagnostic tools of the operating system to scan hardware issues.

• Step 4 - Update device drivers. The outdated device drives can cause the BSOD. Therefore, visit the website of hardware component manufacturers to update the device drivers to their latest version.

• Step 5 - Scan the system for malware and other malicious programs. The malicious program can also cause BSOD. Therefore, scan your system with an anti-virus software to detect and remove malicious programs from the system.

• Step 6 - Check the system for any software related issues. If there is any incompatible software present on the system, uninstall it and restart the system.

• Step 7 - Scan your system for any corrupted or missing system files that can cause BSOD. For this, run the “sfc/scan now” common by using cmd as an administrator. This command will scan the system for any integrity violations and repair them automatically if required.

• Step 8 - Sometimes, third-party software cause BSOD. So, to detect this issue, perform a clean boot on your computer system which starts the computer with essential services and programs

• Step 9 - If the BSOD error still exists on your system, then it requires some more advanced technical troubleshooting procedure. In such situations, connect to a computer technician for assistance.

Common BSOD Error Codes

There are a lot of BSOD error codes, but the following table highlights some common BSOD error codes and their troubleshooting steps −

Error Code STOP 0×0000001A

Error Description − SYSTEM_THREAD_EXCEPTION_NOT_HANDLED

Follow these steps to troubleshoot this BSOD error −

• Check the RAM (Random Access Memory). Reset or replace it if required.

• Run the Windows memory diagnostic tool to detect errors associated with the RAM.

Error Code STOP 0x0000003B

Error Description − SYSTEM_SERVICE_EXCEPTION

Follow these steps to troubleshoot this BSOD error −

• Check and update graphics card driver.

• Remove/disable recently installed anti-virus temporarily.

• Check for any fault in hardware components.

• Run the “chkdsk” common to check the disk for errors.

Error Code STOP 0x0000007B

Error Description −

Follow these steps to troubleshoot this BSOD error −

• Check all cables and connections are secure.

• Verify that the BIOS can properly recognize the disk drive.

• Repair the MBR (Master Boot Record).

Error Code: STOP: 0x0000007E

Error Description −

Follow these steps to troubleshoot this BSOD error −

• Check your system for any incompatible device drivers.

• Remove any recently installed software or driver.

• Scan the system for malware infection.

• Check for latest windows updates.

Error Code: STOP: 0x000000D1

Error Description −

Follow these steps to troubleshoot this BSOD error −

• Update device drivers specified in the error message.

• Scan the system for malware infection.

• Verify that the BIOS firmware is up to date.

Error Code: STOP: 0x000000F4

Error Description −

Follow these steps to troubleshoot this BSOD error −

• Check for any hardware component failure.

• Check all the cables and connections are proper.

• Run the “chkdsk” command to check the disk for errors.

• Update the storage controller drivers.

Error Code: STOP: 0x00000050

Error Description −

Follow these steps to troubleshoot this BSOD error −

• Run Windows memory diagnostic tool to test the RAM for errors.

• Update device drivers.

• Check for any recently installed hardware or software that could be incompatible.

• Run a malware program to scan the system for malware infection.

It is important to note that these are some common BSOD codes, and there are many more. It is also clear that the troubleshooting process of each error depends on the error code and the system configuration. Therefore, while addressing BSOD error codes, you should refer to the official documents provided by the manufacture or seek computer technician assistance if needed.