If that's not possible then skip those steps. Note: Some of these steps may require you to start Windows in Safe Mode. Come back here if I don't have a troubleshooting guide for your specific STOP code or if you have no idea what your STOP code is. Please reference my List of Blue Screen Error Codes for individual STOP code troubleshooting steps. Important: Below are general Blue Screen of Death troubleshooting steps. Most BSODs show a STOP code that can be used to help figure out the root cause of the Blue Screen of Death.ĭid your PC restart after the BSOD? If the blue screen flashed and your computer rebooted automatically before you had time to read anything, see the tip at the bottom of the page. A Complete Troubleshooting Guide for BSODs in Windows 10, 8, 7, Vista, & XPĪ Blue Screen of Death (BSOD) in Windows 8 (0x5C / HAL_INITIALIZATION_FAILED).Ī Blue Screen of Death, also called a STOP Error, will appear when an issue is so serious that Windows must stop completely.Ī Blue Screen of Death is usually hardware or driver related.
