Since the early 1990s, Microsoft Windows has dominated the market for desktop operating systems, holding onto more than half of the total desktop OS market share for most of that time.

But if you have even acquainted a desktop computer since that time, then chances are you have encountered the dreaded “Blue Screen of Death” that comes to the least suspecting of computer users. You know the screen. Everything closes out and the only hope in getting it back is to decipher the lines of blue and white code sprawled across your monitor. Why does this happen, and how can you fix it?

Hardware or Software Drivers

The “Blue Screen of Death” (BSOD) can occur when there is a fatal problem with the computer hardware or the basic software drivers that allow Windows to communicate with each of its running programs.

If you see the BSOD despite having not made any changes to the hardware or software, then most likely either something broke or there was a change that took place unbeknownst to you.
These sorts of changes include automatic software updates that add, modify, or delete system drivers. Since drivers are the component of your computing that allow the computer and the operating system to speak the same language, when something is changed chaos can occur.

Formally, the BSOD is known as a “stop error,” and the details of the actual error message are known as “bug check codes.” For Windows 7 and earlier versions, the bug check code will be given as a long and cryptic series of hexadecimal numbers, 0 to 9, and A to F.

Understanding Bug Check Codes

The actual bug check code will be the first string of numbers, such as “0x0000007E” or “0x00000005,” after “STOP:”, and any additional numbers or information will refer to parameters and details to help you find the cause of the stop error. So what now? How do you fix the Blue Screen of Death and get back to your work?

Become a member at ATS Digital Services and call us about your Blue Screen of Death. We can use your bug check code to quickly and efficiently get your computer up and running again.

Photo credit: Justin Marty via VisualHunt.com / CC BY-SA