There are a
lot of possible causes for blue screen errors,
but most of them relate to the computer hardware. The cause of a BSOD
error can be a
temperature problem, a
timing
error, a
resource conflict,
hardware
failure, a
corrupt registry, a
virus
or simply a
device incompatibility or driver error.
How to analyze blue screen errors
The first thing to do to analyze a blue screen error is to check the
meaning of the STOP error code. You need to
stop Windows from rebooting when a STOP error is
encountered. Once the blue screen of death is shown, you can check
the meaning of the STOP error code. Together with the filename of the
driver or module, this will give an indication of the error cause.
Another option to analyze the cause of the blue screen error is to
look at the Windows system event log or to debug the memory dump
(minidump) that Windows created when the error occurred. The event log
can be viewed using the event viewer. Right-click
Computer
in the
Start menu, and then select
Manage.
In the
Computer Management window select
Event
Viewer. The information in the event log can be of great help
to isolate the cause of the blue screen error.
Reading the minidump requires a bit more technical knowledge, but
Microsoft has
tools to read the minidump.
The most common cause of blue screen errors
In reality,
the most common cause of blue screen errors is a
device driver problem. Outdated, incorrect or corrupt drivers
can cause the system to encounter a STOP error, resulting in the BSOD.
So the easiest way to try and fix a blue screen error is to reinstall
and update your system's
device
drivers. This will ensure that all driver bugs are fixed and that
all hardware has the correct driver.
If you know which device caused the error, you can update or
reinstall that driver first. The file name in the blue screen of death
can help identify the driver. Look for a file with the .SYS extension
and search for that file name.
If you do not have the drivers for all devices, or are not
comfortable updating your PC's drivers manually, you can use a
driver
update tool to find, download and update all device drivers for you.
Such tools will accurately identify your computer hardware, including
any device causing an error, and automatically install the latest
drivers for it.
In most cases updating or reinstalling drivers will solve your blue
screen errors.
Other causes of blue screen errors
However, if updating device drivers does not fix the blue screen
error, there are a number of additional things to try:
- Load the default BIOS values - resource conflicts
and timing issues can be caused by incorrect BIOS settings.
- Update the BIOS - especially after adding new
hardware or installing a Windows service pack this can help fix issues.
- Update
Windows - missing updates, including service packs can be a source
of stop errors.
- Check your system - run a virus
scan and spyware
scan after updating your definition files.
- Driver rollback - if you have recently updated a
driver, you can use the driver rollback to revert back to the previous
driver version.
List of STOP Errors Causing BSOD:
- Stop 0×00000003 UNSYNCHRONIZED_ACCESS
- Stop 0x0000000A IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL
- Stop 0x0000001E KMODE_EXCEPTION_NOT_HANDLED
- Stop 0×00000023 FAT_FILE_SYSTEM
- Stop 0×00000024 NTFS_FILE_SYSTEM
- Stop 0x0000002E DATA_BUS_ERROR
- Stop 0x0000003F NO_MORE_SYSTEM_PTES
- Stop 0×00000044 MULTIPLE_IRP_COMPLETE_REQUESTS
Here are 2 solutions:
Solution #1 Scan your registry for
errors.
A Registry Cleaner scans your computer for errors in your
PC's registry. Your computer's registry contains information about your
Windows XP operating system, including driver, printer, software
information. Over time, your computer's registry may start to contain
obsolete data. A corrupt registry will easily slow down the speed of
your computer because applications and drivers are loaded even though
they're not in use. Fixing your registry of errors will not only prevent
the Windows XP Blue Screen Of Death, it'll allow your computer to boot
faster, open up multiple folders quicker. A listing of registry cleaners
can be found here.
Solution #2 Process of Elimination
When
the CPU calls certain functions from the RAM, or Random Access Memory,
and the data rests in a faulty section of the RAM, this will cause the
blue screen to appear. I recall a time whenever my computer booted up
and started loading the Norton Anti Virus program, the
blue
screen error message would appear. This happens because the CPU is
accessing data from faulty locations within the RAM when loading the
anti virus software.
This method involves having 2 sticks of RAM.
Remove 1 stick of RAM and wait to see if the blue screen surfaces, do
the same for the other.
Through process of elimination, you'll
find the cause of the Windows XP blue screen of death error.
Because
getting into the hardware can be a little techy for computer hardware
"adverse" readers, a simple 2 step plan is to first clear your PC of any
registry errors. Then if the blue screen of death goes away, we would
have saved ourselves the trouble of having to open up the PC casing and
touching the hardware components
yes...
Can the BIOs see the hard drive by chance?
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