BSOD or Blue Screen Of Death

DIY-Computer-Repair can help!

You will find more Troubleshooting techniques in the Self Computer Repair Unleashed! Manual.

Or how to decode infamous BSOD or Error Stop Screen for Microsoft Products

The phone is ringing, you look at the clock it is o'dark thirty. When you answer the phone the Data Center Control guy is on the phone saying that the server EEPAO-12098Z1 has failed. You get dressed and head to the Data Center. When you get there you see on the monitor:

Driver_IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL

Stop 0X000000D1 (0X000000003,0X0000000A1,0X000000000,0XC741193C)

**Clsabrf.SYS - Address C751193C Base At B23FE0A0, Datestamp 41d7CF10

Awwwww CR**! Now what?

Well you have a couple of choices, go home and go back to bed (you probably won't have a pay check any more either)

Or you can troubleshoot this error. Your best bet for finding out what this error is will be MS Tech Net at http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/default.aspx

You can put in the 'Driver_IRQ....' or the 'Stop 0x00....' in the search box and normally find results (at the time of this writing it was over 800). You may want to refine your search to a smaller area and use the last line to do the search - '**Clsabrf.SYS - ...'.

Now if you have the fix all you have to do is apply it either through the 'Safe Mode' the 'Emergency Console' or a Boot OS.

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Once you fix the problem the next thing is to test the system, if it starts normally all is good.

But what if the fix caused a different error and BSOD? What if the search doesn't turn up any fixes? What then?

Your next choice is to make the 'Memory Dump' file big enough to capture the error, normally a 64K dump file will be big enough to capture a start up error but not if the system is up and running when it crashes.

Or if you have the dump file turned off for performance purposes you will need to get in to the system and turn it on, you can do this either by the 'Safe Mode' or with a boot OS such as BartPE or ERD Commander (If you happen to have a copy).

Once you start the system with ERD, BartPE, or in the Safe Mode then go to the System Properties and set the memory dump file, you may want to put the dump file at the root of the OS drive to make finding it easier, also you may want to use a custom size if you suspect that the error is happening after the OS is started and has been running for some time.

Start it up and let it crash - yes you need to get the reporting program to write the dump file. Once it has crashed restart the system with your trusty emergency boot OS, copy the file off the effected system.

Now you need to have either MS Support that can debug the dump file or do it yourself. If you are sending it off to MS Support then all you need to do now is contact them, get the support ticket number and where to send the file then wait for the answer from MS.

If you are doing the debugging yourself you need to have this program installed on your computer:

http://www.microsoft.com/whdc/devtools/debugging/installx86.mspx,

See this page for the setup instructions:

http://www.microsoft.com/whdc/devtools/debugging/default.mspx

Now you are ready to delve deeper in to your problem.

See this page for very descriptive instructions on how to find the error:

http://blogs.technet.com/petergal/archive/2006/03/23/422993.aspx

Once you figure out what the problem is you can fix it.

I know that some of these procedures are 'obscure' and this is a lot of Geek but there isn't anyway around it, if you feel this is beyond your expertise then you will either have to contact MS for support or hire an expert such as a freelance MCSE.

Oh! BTW - I did the 0'dark thirty routine for nine years... Folgers loves me!

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