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

A blue screen means Windows hit a critical error it couldn't recover from. The stop code tells you exactly what went wrong — if you know how to read it. In most cases it's fixed in 10-20 minutes.

First, Check: Is This the Known 24H2 Update Incident?

Starting March 2026, Microsoft confirmed a series of BSOD crashes caused by Windows 11 24H2 cumulative updates. If your PC crashed immediately after a restart following a Windows Update, check this table first — it's a much faster fix than general diagnostics below.

Error Code	Name	Cause
`0x0000018B`	SECURE_KERNEL_ERROR	Conflict from KB5053656 / KB5055523
`0x000000C5`	DRIVER_CORRUPTED_EXPOOL	Corrupted driver post-update
`0xC000021A`	SYSTEM_PROCESS_TERMINATED	Critical system process crashed
`0x0000007E`	SYSTEM_THREAD_EXCEPTION	Incompatible driver
`UNSUPPORTED_PROCESSOR`	—	MSI/Intel motherboard conflict

Most reports involve:

KB5053656 (March 2026) — triggers SECURE_KERNEL_ERROR with stop code 0x18B
KB5055523 (April 2026) — expanded the issue to more devices
KB5029351 (earlier) — UNSUPPORTED_PROCESSOR BSOD on MSI boards

Microsoft deployed a Known Issue Rollback (KIR) — an automatic fix that rolls back the problematic changes. It can take up to 24 hours to reach your device and doesn't always trigger automatically.

Step 1: Check for the Microsoft KIR Fix

(New-Object -ComObject Microsoft.Update.SystemInfo).RebootRequired

Win + I → Windows Update → Check for updates → install everything available and restart.

Step 2: Boot into Safe Mode if PC Won't Start

Interrupt the boot 3 times with the power button → Recovery Mode → Troubleshoot → Advanced options → Startup Settings → Restart → F4 (Safe Mode). All subsequent steps can be done from Safe Mode.

Step 3: Remove the Problematic Update

# View recently installed updates
Get-HotFix | Sort-Object InstalledOn -Descending | Select-Object -First 10

# Remove specific update (replace KB number with yours)
wusa /uninstall /kb:5053656 /quiet /norestart
wusa /uninstall /kb:5055523 /quiet /norestart

Via GUI: Win + I → Windows Update → Update history → Uninstall updates → find KB and remove.

Step 4: Repair System Files and Check for Driver Conflicts

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

BSOD after an update is often caused by a conflict between the update and GPU or chipset drivers:

Get-WinEvent -FilterHashtable @{LogName='System'; Id=7034,7023} -MaxEvents 10 |
  Select-Object TimeCreated, Message

Get-PnpDevice | Where-Object {$_.Status -ne 'OK'} | Select-Object Name, Status, Class

NVIDIA/AMD GPU: download the latest driver from the manufacturer's website — not through Windows Update.

Step 5: Update BIOS (MSI, ASUS, Gigabyte boards)

Several BSODs are caused by incompatibility between the Windows update and old BIOS firmware.

# Check current BIOS version
(Get-WmiObject Win32_BIOS).SMBIOSBIOSVersion

# Motherboard model
(Get-WmiObject Win32_BaseBoard) | Select-Object Manufacturer, Product, Version

Step 6: Pause Updates to Prevent Recurrence

$pause = (Get-Date).AddDays(35).ToString("yyyy-MM-ddTHH:mm:ssZ")
Set-ItemProperty "HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\WindowsUpdate\UX\Settings" `
  -Name "PauseQualityUpdatesEndTime" -Value $pause
Set-ItemProperty "HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\WindowsUpdate\UX\Settings" `
  -Name "PauseFeatureUpdatesEndTime" -Value $pause

Or via Settings: Win + I → Windows Update → Pause for 1-4 weeks.

Step 7: Reset Windows if Nothing Else Works

Recovery → Troubleshoot → Reset this PC → Remove everything → Cloud download. Cloud download gets a fresh Windows image from Microsoft — guaranteed clean without the corrupted update.

General BSOD Diagnostics (if the cause isn't a specific update)

Read the Stop Code

When a BSOD occurs, Windows shows a stop code like MEMORY_MANAGEMENT or DRIVER_IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL. Write it down or photograph the screen.

If it rebooted too fast to read:

Get-EventLog -LogName System -EntryType Error -Newest 10 | Where-Object {$_.Source -eq "BugCheck"}

Or check Event Viewer: Win + R → eventvwr.msc → Windows Logs → System → filter by Critical.

Find the Crash Dump File

Windows saves crash details to a minidump file:

Get-ChildItem C:\Windows\Minidump\ | Sort-Object LastWriteTime -Descending | Select-Object -First 5

To read minidumps, use WinDbg or the free tool WhoCrashed — it reads the dump and tells you which driver caused the crash in plain English.

Most Common BSODs and How to Fix Them

MEMORY_MANAGEMENT

Points to RAM problems.

Run Windows Memory Diagnostic: Win + R → mdsched.exe → Restart now and check for problems
If errors found — test sticks individually to find the bad one
Reseat RAM modules (remove and reinsert)

# Check RAM in use
Get-WmiObject Win32_PhysicalMemory | Select-Object Capacity, Speed, Manufacturer

DRIVER_IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL

A driver tried to access memory it shouldn't. Usually caused by a recently installed or updated driver.

Check which driver: the BSOD screen often shows a .sys filename (e.g. nvlddmkm.sys = NVIDIA driver).

# Find recently installed drivers
Get-WinEvent -LogName System | Where-Object {$_.Id -eq 7045} | Select-Object -First 10 TimeCreated, Message

Roll back the driver: Device Manager → find the device → Properties → Driver → Roll Back Driver.

CRITICAL_PROCESS_DIED

A core Windows process crashed. Usually caused by corrupted system files or a bad update.

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

If that doesn't help, try System Restore to a point before the BSODs started.

KERNEL_SECURITY_CHECK_FAILURE

Often caused by incompatible drivers or RAM issues. Run memory diagnostic first, then check for driver updates.

Also check disk health:

chkdsk C: /f /r

Requires a restart to run on the system drive.

PAGE_FAULT_IN_NONPAGED_AREA

Windows tried to access a memory page that doesn't exist. Causes: bad RAM, failing SSD/HDD, or corrupt drivers.

Check disk:

Get-PhysicalDisk | Select-Object FriendlyName, OperationalStatus, HealthStatus

Check SMART status:

wmic diskdrive get status

If status is anything other than OK — back up immediately, the drive is failing.

IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL

Similar to DRIVER_IRQL — usually a driver or hardware issue. Run Driver Verifier to identify the problematic driver:

verifier /standard /all

Restart. If a BSOD occurs, it will name the offending driver. Then disable Driver Verifier:

verifier /reset

General Fixes for Any BSOD

1. Update all drivers — especially GPU, chipset, and network drivers. Don't use Windows Update for this — download directly from manufacturer websites.

2. Check for Windows Updates — sometimes a patch fixes a known BSOD-causing bug.

3. Uninstall recent software — if BSODs started after installing something, uninstall it.

4. Test RAM — use MemTest86 for thorough testing (runs outside Windows, more reliable than mdsched).

5. Check temperatures — overheating causes BSODs.

# Check CPU temp (requires OpenHardwareMonitor or similar)
Get-WmiObject MSAcpi_ThermalZoneTemperature -Namespace "root/wmi" |
  Select-Object @{n='Temp(C)';e={($_.CurrentTemperature - 2732) / 10}}

6. Run SFC and DISM — corrupted Windows files cause many BSODs (see CRITICAL_PROCESS_DIED section above).

If BSODs Happen in a Loop (Can't Boot)

Boot into Safe Mode: hold Shift while clicking Restart → Troubleshoot → Advanced options → Startup Settings → Restart → press F4.

In Safe Mode, uninstall recently added drivers or run SFC.

If Safe Mode also crashes: boot from Windows installation USB → Repair your computer → Startup Repair or System Restore.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I tell if it's a driver or failing hardware?

Driver: BSOD appears right after installing/updating software, always shows the same code, and stops after removing or rolling back the driver. Hardware: random BSODs with different codes that keep recurring even after a clean Windows reinstall.

The PC restarts too fast to read the stop code

Disable automatic restart: sysdm.cpl → Advanced → Startup and Recovery → uncheck Automatically restart. The BSOD will then stay on screen until you restart manually.

The BSOD appeared right after a Windows update — where do I start?

Check the "24H2 Update Incident" section above first — if your code matches the table, that fix is much faster than the general diagnostics below it.

Summary

If the BSOD happened right after a Windows update: check the known error code table above, remove the problematic update (wusa /uninstall /kb:NUMBER), or go through Recovery Mode.

For everything else: note the stop code → undo the last change (driver/update/new software) → DISM /RestoreHealth + sfc /scannow → test RAM (mdsched) and disk (chkdsk) → check temperatures. The error code points you in a direction — it isn't a verdict.

🔍 Not sure what a Windows error code means?

If Windows shows a code like 0x80070005, 0x80070002 or 0xC000021A — use this free tool:

→ Windows Error Decoder — enter the code and instantly find out what it means and how to fix it.

Most BSODs are caused by three things: bad drivers, failing RAM, or corrupted system files.