How to Fix the Yellow Screen of Death on Windows?

When a Windows PC crashes, it generally displays a blue screen of death or BSoD error. This color-coded screen indicates a critical system failure with its respective error code or value. Similarly, there are other color-coded screens like red, green, purple, pink, etc. Each color screen signifies a specific type of error on the system, and the troubleshooting steps vary accordingly.

One such unique error screen is the Yellow Screen of Death (YSoD). The screen seems unusual and confusing to a user, but it usually appears when the ASP.NET web application crashes or encounters some irrecoverable issues.

What is ASP.NET?

ASP.NET is a web application framework designed for creating and developing dynamic web pages. It is also used for creating web applications and services. Bugs inside the code or the application can result in an unexpected system crash, followed by a yellow screen of death.

However, we believe there could be other reasons behind this error screen.

• Unhandled exceptions triggering processes to end
• Crashing Internet Information Services (IIS) worker processes
• Incompatible dependencies
• Missing or corrupted system files
• Faulty web application
• Hardware issues

Methods to Fix the Yellow Screen of Death (YSoD) on Windows

If the yellow screen of death occurs right after the system boots, it could be due to damaged system files or some startup problems. This leads to an inaccessible drive and subsequent data loss. Fortunately, different methods are available to fix a Yellow Screen of Death.

Method 1: Restart your PC

A simple restart can eliminate the yellow screen of death on your PC as it fixes various minor bugs and issues. Restarting a system refreshes the system memory, restarts various processes, and finalizes the software patches that are waiting to be in effect. It also helps free up RAM, which is essential for running applications smoothly.

Method 2: Perform a Clean Boot

While running any web application, there are chances of conflicts occurring between the web application and background processes. These conflicts can result in unforeseen issues like the yellow screen of death.

In such a case, you can perform a clean boot to reduce the number of unnecessary tasks running in the background. When a clean boot is performed, Windows is launched with only the required drivers and applications. This excludes all third-party applications and processes. Here are the steps to clean boot your PC –

• Press WINDOWS + R and type msconfig.
• Press CTRL + SHIFT + ENTER to open it as an administrator.
• Go to the General tab and click on the Selective startup option.
• Uncheck the Load startup items option.

• Go to the Services tab and select the Hide Microsoft services option.
• Click on the Disable all button.

• Finally, go to the Startup tab, and click on Open Task Manager.

• Disable all the startup services and exit.

• Then, click on Apply and OK.
• Restart your PC using the clean boot.

Performing a clean boot will allow you to check whether the error is due to a system process. If there is no abrupt system crash, a third-party application or a process could be behind this error screen.

Method 3: Update Device Drivers

Outdated drivers can sometimes cause errors, which could stall or crash the related applications. In some cases, using outdated drivers for too long can result in errors like the yellow screen of death. In order to fix this error screen, you will need to install all the available device driver updates. Here’s what to do –

• Press WINDOWS + X and click on Device Manager.
• Expand all the devices and look for an exclamation mark on the entries.
• Right-click on an entry and click on Update drivers.
• Click on Search automatically for drivers.

Installing device drivers updates will eliminate various instability issues with the drivers.

Method 4: Perform Automatic Repair

If you encounter the yellow screen error right after booting your computer, there could be issues with the boot files. It could also occur during a system boot, indicating boot failure. You can fix this by repairing Windows files using installation media –

• Plug the Windows installation media into the affected PC and restart it.
• Go into the BIOS to change the boot order. Select the Windows Installation media as the boot drive.
• Restart the computer. It will automatically boot from the installation media.
• On the first screen, click on Repair your computer.
• Click on Troubleshoot > Advanced options > Automatic Repair.

Unbootable System Due to Yellow Screen of Death

The methods explained above can help you fix the yellow screen of death on your Windows PC. However, if nothing works and the yellow screen renders your system unbootable, you won’t be able to access your data To quickly retrieve your files from the unbootable PC, use professional data recovery software like Stellar Data Recovery Professional.

It is an advanced data recovery software that helps users recover lost files and data from error-riddled computers, including BSoDs, YSoDs, and more. From accidental deletion to formatting, it can recover your data from all types of OSs and storage media in no time. The software also lets users create bootable media to recover files from crashed or unbootable computers.

Conclusion

The yellow screen of death is a unique type of critical system failure that occurs due to a faulty web application, a bug, or an issue related to ASP.NET. It might seem impossible to resolve, but using a clean boot or repairing Windows files can help you eliminate this error. If you are facing the yellow screen of death after installing a new version of Windows OS, roll back the buggy updates.

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About The Author

Keshav Katyal

A passionate writer, driven by his interest in everything tech, Keshav Katyal has always been captivated by the latest gadgets since childhood. His interest in gadgets grew when he got his first gaming console, the Nintendo Game Boy Advanced. Hours and days of tinkering with gadgets encouraged the inner geek in him who now loves writing about the latest technologies.