How to Fix the Blue Screen of Death (BSOD) Problem.

If you are still using Windows NT, Windows 2000 or Windows XP, you might come across this very frustrating problem called Blue Screen errors, stop errors, or the Blue Screen of Death (BSOD).

See an example of the Blue Screen of Death in the image below:

BSOD or stop errors can be caused by any of the following:

• Installation of new hardware or new hardware device drivers,
• Low disk space,
• No reason at all – yes stop errors sometimes just occur for no apparent reason.

If you encounter the blue screen of death, trying the following might fix the problem:

• Restart your computer. When the BSOD is caused by a temporary condition, restarting your PC will solve this problem.
• Restart your computer in safe mode. When your computer start in safe mode, uninstall any newly installed hardware drivers or software. Then restart your computer normally to see if the problem goes away.
• Check to see if a newly installed hardware has been installed properly, and also make sure any hardware driver installed the hardware is compatible with your PC. You can check this by going to HCL (hardware compartibility list).

• Try to start your PC using a Last Know Good Configuration option - this will reset your system.
• If you have recently installed any hardware, remove the hardware and restart your computer to see if the problem goes away.
• Scan your computer for viruses.

For the technically savvy, you might also want to try the following:

• Disabling any memory or caching or shadowing options through the CMOS setup utility.
• Use a software diagnostic utility to start the PC and check for memory errors.
• Verify through the Add/Remove tool that the PC has the latest version of the service installed.

Microsoft's Support Center has information on specific stop error numbers.