How to Fix the Windows Blue Screen of Death (BSOD) on Windows 10 and 11

The Blue Screen of Death is Windows telling you something has gone badly wrong at a level it can't recover from. It's frightening the first few times. Once you understand what it actually is, the fix is usually obvious, and the panic goes away.

This guide covers what causes BSODs in Windows 10 and 11, how to diagnose yours, the common fixes, and when to escalate to your IT support before you make things worse.

What a BSOD actually means

A blue screen (officially a "stop error") means Windows hit something so serious it had to shut down to protect your data. In Windows 11 the screen is technically black now, but it's the same thing.

There are two big buckets of cause:

• Hardware, failing RAM, dying SSD, overheating, dodgy USB device, GPU failure.
• Software / driver, a recently installed driver, a broken Windows update, malware, corrupted system files, antivirus conflict.

The single biggest clue is what changed recently.

The first 60 seconds

When you see a BSOD, photograph the screen, phone camera, full picture including the QR code and the stop code.

Capture: the stop code (e.g. CRITICAL_PROCESS_DIED), the failing module if shown, the QR code.

Common stop codes and what they mean

If you see WHEA_UNCORRECTABLE_ERROR repeatedly, stop using the machine.

Step-by-step fixes

1. Reboot and observe

A single BSOD that doesn't repeat is annoying but not necessarily a crisis.

2. Check Windows Update

Settings → Windows Update → Check for updates. Install everything. Restart.

3. Roll back recent drivers

If the BSOD started after you installed something, printer, dock, GPU, that's almost certainly the culprit. Device Manager → suspect device → Properties → Driver → Roll Back Driver.

4. Update graphics and chipset drivers

GPU drivers cause more BSODs than any other category. Get them direct from NVIDIA, AMD or Intel.

5. Run System File Checker and DISM

Open Command Prompt as administrator:

sfc /scannow
DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth

6. Test your memory

Windows Memory Diagnostic is built into Windows. For deeper testing, MemTest86 is the de-facto standard.

7. Test your storage

A failing SSD or HDD will produce intermittent BSODs that get worse. Use manufacturer tools (Samsung Magician, Crucial Storage Executive) or CrystalDiskInfo for SMART data. Back up immediately if SMART shows warnings.

8. Check for overheating

Use HWMonitor to check CPU temperatures. Idle 40–60°C, under load up to 90°C is normal; consistently 95°C+ is a problem. Clean air vents.

9. Boot into Safe Mode

If the BSOD happens at boot before you can do anything else: power on, then power off three times in a row at the Windows logo. Windows will boot into Recovery → Troubleshoot → Advanced options → Startup Settings → Restart → 4 (Safe Mode).

10. Use the minidump file

Every BSOD writes a small diagnostic file. WinDbg or BlueScreenView can analyse these and tell you exactly which driver caused the crash. This is where IT support comes in.

Global outage events

The CrowdStrike incident in July 2024 took down millions of Windows machines globally because of a bad security agent update. We covered the recovery process in our global IT outage recovery guide.

When to call IT support

Escalate to your managed IT provider if:

• The BSOD happens more than twice a week.
• You see WHEA_UNCORRECTABLE_ERROR or any code mentioning hardware.
• The PC won't boot at all.
• The machine is encrypted with BitLocker, you'll need the recovery key.

For Birmingham and West Midlands businesses this is exactly the kind of thing our helpdesk fixes daily, see our Birmingham IT support page.

Quick reference: the BSOD playbook

1. Photograph the stop code.
2. Reboot. Note if it happens again.
3. Update Windows fully.
4. Roll back drivers installed in the last week.
5. Update GPU and chipset drivers.
6. Run sfc /scannow and DISM.
7. Test RAM with Memory Diagnostic.
8. Test SSD/HDD with manufacturer tool.
9. Check temperatures.
10. Send the minidump to IT support.

A modern Windows PC should not BSOD regularly. Treat repeated BSODs as a real problem, they almost always have a fixable cause, but ignoring them tends to end in lost data.