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How to fix Red Screen of Death in Windows 10?

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While Windows is a pretty well-made and stable operating system, just like everything else tech, it isn’t immune to the occasional bugs and glitches that may hamper everyday usage out of the blue. 

The infamous BSOD or Blue Screen of Death is a well-known issue in Windows that generally happens when a fatal error crashes the system. However, there’s another such screen called the RSOD or the Red Screen of Death, which is rarer but can cause quite a headache.

In this article, we’re taking a look at a few fixes to resolve an RSOD.

Also read: Generic PnP Monitor issue in Windows 10: 5 Fixes


Remove external peripherals

The first thing you should do is try and remove any external peripherals you may have connected to your PC. External peripherals can sometimes conflict with some of their internal counterparts triggering hardware errors of all sorts.


Update your BIOS

Updating your BIOS is also a good idea if you’re frequently running into BSODs or, for that matter, their red counterparts. However, do keep in mind that the process for updating the BIOS differs greatly depending upon the make and model of your PC’s motherboard, so be sure to consult with an expert if you don’t know what you’re doing.


Dial back the overclock

If you’ve overclocked your system’s CPU or GPU, try dialling it back to stock settings to see if that resolves the issue. Overclocking beyond a certain limit can cause components to run hotter than their rated temperatures, eventually causing issues like RSODs and permanent damage to the hardware itself.

Also read: How to rate my PC on Windows 10?


Update your drivers

Out of date or corrupt drivers can also cause numerous hardware problems leading to RSODs. If you haven’t updated your drivers in a while, now’s the time to do so, especially for your display drivers.

Step 1: Right-click Start and select Device Manager from the menu.

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Step 2: Under Display Adaptors, find your graphics card’s name, right-click on it and click on Update Drivers.

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Step 3: Click on Search automatically for drivers. Windows will then automatically look for and download the latest drivers for your particular GPU.

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While this should help resolve the error, in case it doesn’t, click Uninstall device and restart your PC to force Windows to install the required drivers. You can then update them later. 

Also read: Faulty hardware corrupted page: 9 Fixes


Run the Windows hardware troubleshooter

Windows 10 comes with a few handy troubleshooters that can resolve a bunch of issues. However, for some reason, Microsoft has removed the hardware troubleshooter from the troubleshooter’s menu. So here’s an alternative way to run the hardware troubleshooter. 

 Step 1: Press Windows key + R to open the Run prompt. Type cmd and hit enter.

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Step 2: Type msdt.exe -id DeviceDiagnostic and press enter. This will launch the hardware troubleshooter. 

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Proceed along as instructed by the troubleshooter.


How to fix red screen on Battlefield Bad Company 2?

If you’ve got Battlefield Bad Company 2 installed on your PC, the game’s settings.ini file may by causing an RSOD. Head over to Documents, find the BFBC2 folder and edit the settings.ini file.

You need to edit the following line

DxVersion=auto

To this

DxVersion=9

Save the changes and restart your PC. The error should’ve been gone.

Also read: Windows 10 error code 0xc0000001: 6 Fixes

Yadullah Abidi

Yadullah Abidi

Yadullah is a Computer Science graduate who writes/edits/shoots/codes all things cybersecurity, gaming, and tech hardware. When he's not, he streams himself racing virtual cars. He's been writing and reporting on tech and cybersecurity with websites like Candid.Technology and MakeUseOf since 2018. You can contact him here: yadullahabidi@pm.me.

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