Latest news with #BlueScreenofDeath
Ammon
an hour ago
- Ammon
Windows is getting rid of the Blue Screen of Death after 40 years
Ammon News - The Blue Screen of Death (BSOD) has held strong in Windows for nearly 40 years, but that's about to change. Microsoft revealed earlier this year that it was overhauling its BSOD error message in Windows 11, and the company has now confirmed that it will soon be known as the Black Screen of Death. The new design drops the traditional blue color, frowning face, and QR code in favor of a simplified black screen. The simplified BSOD looks a lot more like the black screen you'd see during a Windows update. But it will list the stop code and faulty system driver that you wouldn't always see during a crash dump. IT admins shouldn't need to pull crash dumps off PCs and analyze them with tools like WinDbg just to find out what could be causing issues. 'This is really an attempt on clarity and providing better information and allowing us and customers to really get to what the core of the issue is so we can fix it faster,' says David Weston, vice president of enterprise and OS security at Microsoft, in an interview with The Verge. 'Part of it just cleaner information on what exactly went wrong, where it's Windows versus a component.' Microsoft says it will roll out this new BSOD design in an update to Windows 11 'later this summer,' alongside its new Quick Machine Recovery feature, which is designed to quickly restore machines that can't boot. The changes to the BSOD are part of a broader effort by Microsoft to improve the resiliency of Windows in the wake of last year's CrowdStrike incident, which left millions of Windows machines booting to a BSOD. The Verge
WIRED
17 hours ago
- WIRED
So Long, Blue Screen of Death. Amazingly, You'll Be Missed
Jun 27, 2025 1:37 PM After a long and storied history, the BSOD is being replaced. WIRED takes a trip down memory lane to wave goodbye to the iconic screen we all love to hate. A blue Windows error message is shown on a laptop. Photograph:For decades, the Blue Screen of Death, or BSOD to its friends, has instilled a mix of panic, dread, exasperation, and rage across countless Windows users. But now, Microsoft is getting ready to retire it. According to a Microsoft blog post, the Windows 11 crash screen—or, as the company puts it, 'unexpected restart screen'—will soon adopt a distinctly more minimalist vibe. Along with scrapping the blue (in favor of a perhaps even more dread-inducing black), the revamp also ditches the sad face emoji and QR code. All that remains is a single ominous sentence—'Your device ran into a problem and needs to restart'—along with a stop code and details of the errant driver that contributed to your PC's misfortune. A Black Screen of Death is something Microsoft has teased before. But why now? Why no more blue? And where did the Blue Screen of Death come from in the first place? Out of the Blue: Before the BSOD To be clear, there was no grand plan behind the Blue Screen of Death. Its origin story is a patchwork of coincidences and iteration. Even the term itself likely evolved organically, perhaps derived from 'Black Screen of Death,' used by InfoWorld's Robert X. Cringely while writing about a bug that affected networked PCs running Windows 3.1. That screen, you'll note, wasn't even blue. Early versions of Windows did have blue screens, but they weren't really about death. Windows 1 (1985) would spew white-on-blue garbage when confronted with the wrong version of DOS during boot. Windows 3.1 (1992) used the same scheme for important system messages that required user input and for the rudimentary task manager that let you kill unruly apps or reboot. At most, this was Blue Screen of Mild Dilemma territory. When things went really bad, you'd get dumped back into DOS. Which also wasn't blue. Windows 95 moved things on a bit by not kicking you back to DOS when it imploded. But its system error screens still gave you the option to limp along, even if Windows by then was one wobble from collapse. A Blue Screen of Potentially Delayed Death, then. But BSOPDD never caught on as an acronym because it's far too silly . Blue-Sky Thinking: Evolution of the BSOD The real BSOD, the one burned into tech lore, arguably arrived with Windows NT 3.1 (1993). When the system hit a critical error, it threw up a wall of white text on a blue background, which might help engineers diagnose an issue—or make the average user stare at it and weep. So why blue? Years ago, former Microsoft architect John Vert explained that the color scheme matched his workstation boot screen and text editor. And when Windows crashed, the display adapter was forced into text mode with a basic color palette. Vert added that he was unaware of other Windows blue screens. In short, then, he chose what he knew and liked. Yet those arbitrary decisions stuck for nearly two decades, aside from minor tweaks to simplify the output to make it a little less terrifying. Significant changes arrived with Windows 8 (2012), which was the first real attempt to make the crash screen user-friendly. But this being Microsoft, that effort included a huge, obnoxious, almost sarcastic sad-face emoji above text that read, 'Your PC ran into a problem that it couldn't handle, and now it needs to restart.' At least the shade of blue was nicer. Later, Windows 10 (2016) added a QR code, so that rather than scrawl down error messages, you could use your phone to quickly jump to a support page. (And then probably reboot anyway, when you realized it wasn't any help.) Then came Windows 11 (2021), which briefly made the dramatic visual change of turning the BSOD black, matching the system's login and shutdown screens. That was subsequently reverted, perhaps in response to the anguished cries of confused users and support desk engineers alike. So, what's different this time? Back in Black: Why Microsoft Is Ditching the Blue In 2024, a botched CrowdStrike update rendered countless PCs unusable, taking down airlines, railways, banks, TV stations, and more. What had they in common? All proudly displayed the Blue Screen of Death. It's not hard to imagine Microsoft wanting to distance itself from that imagery by making its crash screen less iconic, less memorable, less memeable , and less noticeable. Not that Microsoft would ever say that. Officially, the new crash screen is part of the broader Windows Resiliency Initiative, designed to, well, make Windows more resilient. And the redesign specifically is all about clarity and simplicity. According to David Weston, Microsoft Vice President, Enterprise and OS Security, it 'improves readability and aligns better with Windows 11 design principles, while preserving the technical information on the screen for when it is needed.' There's arguably an added bonus, too: removing all distinct visuals from the Windows crash screen gives Apple one less thing to poke fun at. So no more sneakily adding BSOD colors and :( to macOS PC icons. Sad face indeed. Feeling Blue: Microsoft Might Regret the Change But before WIRED suggests black looks good on everyone, including the Windows Lock Screen, let's ask: Should Microsoft think again, as it did in 2021? A whistle-stop tour of color theory books will tell you blue is widely regarded as positive, right across cultures. It's the most favored hue and associated with calmness, serenity, and competence. It's the sky and the sea—the 'everything's probably fine' shade. By contrast, black is the absence of color. Cold. Ominous. The void. More importantly, the Blue Screen of Death is recognizable . You can spot it across the room and instantly know something has gone very wrong. A black crash screen, though, risks blending in with update screens. And something you definitely don't want to do is have users in any way confuse the two. As a commenter WIRED spotted put it, 'You wouldn't change the colors of road signs, so why do that to the computer equivalent?' Whatever the reason—ditching a negative image, unifying design, simplifying an experience, or just change for the sake of it—the Blue Screen of Death is on borrowed time. Still, the BSOD acronym will surely live on, because there's no chance Microsoft's 'unexpected restart screen' term will stick. That's not a name; it's a euphemism. It'll always be a Screen of Death to WIRED, whatever its hue, black or blue. The BSOD is dead. Long live the BSOD.
News18
a day ago
- News18
From Blue To Black Error: Windows PCs Will Now Crash With A New Message
Last Updated: Windows 11 users will soon get a new black screen error message whenever their system crashes and without any emoji. Windows error message called the Blue Screen of Death is getting a new version after 40 years and Microsoft is replacing the colour blue with black for PC crashes from now on. The company had earlier teased that, 'It is previewing a new, more streamlined UI for unexpected restarts, which better aligns with Windows 11 design principles." And now the changes are gradually going to reflect on the affected Windows screens. BSOD was introduced with Windows 1.0 and has experienced various cosmetic alterations. However, this is the first time in recent years that the Windows error page will undergo a significant update. The Black BSOD Message Upgrade You have probably heard of the infamous Blue Screen of Death (BSOD) error message, even if you have never used Windows. Although no one wants the error to appear on their computer, you will likely see it more often than you would like. The iconic Blue message of Death with a frowning emoji is now being replaced with a simple green message that reads, 'Your device ran into a problem and needs to restart." It is quite certain that Microsoft had enough of the BSOD screen message during the ill fated Crowdstrike update error situation that caused a massive outage globally. Switching from Blue to black and changing the message is also part of the new Windows identity and the error code now moves to the bottom of the screen. The BSOD error message didn't do much to alleviate the concerns of the consumers and it feels the company wanted a more clearer approach to this situation. Having said that, blue is definitely a more subtle colour than black and some of them might see it as a colour of destruction. So, when does Microsoft plan to incorporate the new black BSOD error message for Windows users? The company says the error message colour upgrade and UI will be available for Windows PCs later this summer on all Windows 11 PCs that are running on version 24H2. 40 years is a really long time for any feature to continue and just like the Notepad getting a new lease of life with Windows 11, it is time to see something different if at all when your system crashes. First Published: June 27, 2025, 15:32 IST
Time of India
a day ago
- Time of India
Microsoft kills the Blue Screen of Death error that shut down 8 million windows laptop last year, here's what replaces it
After a period of four decades, Microsoft is officially bidding farewell to the iconic "Blue Screen of Death" (BSoD). Microsoft is now replacing the famous Blue error screen with a redesigned and black interface. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now The company revealed that the change is part of a broader ' Windows Resiliency Initiative ' which is aimed at making the operating system more robust. The company announced the change in Windows blog post. The company said that with this change it aims to modernise and improve the user experience. The company also wishes to reduce the disruption caused by system crashes. The new screen for Windows comes with a simplified message which does not consists of the sad-face emoji and QR code as it aligns with Windows 11's design language. 'We're introducing a simplified user interface (UI) that pairs with the shortened experience. The updated UI improves readability and aligns better with Windows 11 design principles, while preserving the technical information on the screen for when it is needed,' said the company. The simplified UI for unexpected restarts will be available starting later this summer on all Windows 11, version 24H2 devices. In the case of consecutive unexpected restarts, devices can get stuck in the Windows Recovery Environment (Windows RE), impacting productivity and often requiring IT teams to spend significant time troubleshooting and restoring affected devices. The Windows update comes a year after Crowdstrike outage , which impacted over 8 million Windows devices globally. Many of the affected devices showed the dreaded blue screen. In response, Microsoft launched the Windows Resiliency Initiative to embed deeper security and recovery features into the OS. 'This is where quick machine recovery (QMR) can help. When a widespread outage affects devices from starting properly, Microsoft can broadly deploy targeted remediations to affected devices via Windows RE—automating fixes with QMR and quickly getting users to a productive state without requiring complex manual intervention from IT,' added Microsoft. The Black Screen of Death will roll out with Windows 11 version 24H2 later this summer.
Scottish Sun
a day ago
- Scottish Sun
Iconic blue screen of death is killed off after 40 YEARS – Microsoft reveals new sign your computer is broken
Replacement will start to appear later this summer OUT OF THE BLUE OUT OF THE BLUE Iconic blue screen of death is killed off after 40 YEARS – Microsoft reveals new sign your computer is broken THE blue screen of death is disappearing from computer screens after 40 years of filling people with dread. Microsoft is set to replace the iconic slate that no one wants to see later this summer. Advertisement 2 Microsoft is making the changes later this summer Credit: AP 2 Instead users will see a simple black screen Credit: Microsoft In a bittersweet announcement, the tech giant said it is "streamlining the unexpected restart experience". "This change is part of a larger continued effort to reduce disruption in the event of an unexpected restart," David Weston, Microsoft's Vice President of Enterprise and OS Security revealed. A part of that is slashing the downtime during the worrying unexpected restart to about two seconds for most people. The blue screen of death will be replaced by a simpler black screen of death instead. Advertisement Read more about Microsoft PASS PANIC Billions of Microsoft passwords to be deleted in WEEKS blocking log-ins There's also no longer a frowning face or a QR code. It'll start to appear on Windows 11 machines running version 24H2. Despite being a symbol of doom, users on social media said the change marks the "end of an era". "The Blue Screen of Death is dying for one last time and Windows crashes just won't be the same ever again!" one person wrote on X. Advertisement "One of the most unnecessary changes ever – and that says a lot when it's Windows 11 we're talking about," another commented. "But… I was literally just getting used to it," a third joked. Microsoft outage cancels flights, forces jets to stay airborne, crashes banks and sees Sky News off air The overhaul comes amid a slew of improvements to deal with technical crashes following the crippling global IT meltdown last year. Organisations across the globe were severely affected by a botched up security update from IT firm CrowdStrike which caused havoc for banks, hospitals and airlines.
