Fixed: Your PC Ran into a Problem and Needs to Restart in Windows 10

Sometimes, after installing a certain Windows update or while working on your PC, you may encounter an error message- ‘PC ran into a problem and needs to restart’ on your screen. (See Image 1). It is a Blue Screen of Death (BSOD) error that may appear with different stop codes such as:

• MEMORY MANAGEMENT
• SYSTEM THREAD EXCEPTION NOT HANDLED
• CRITICAL_PROCESS_DIED
• IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL
• UNMOUNTABLE BOOT VOLUME
• WHEA_UNCORRECTABLE_ERROR
• PFN_LIST_CORRUPT

You may also receive error codes such as 0xc0000001, 0x000000f4, 0x80070005, etc.

The ‘PC ran into a problem and needs to restart’ error may occur due to reasons such as,

• Problematic Windows update
• Corrupt or faulty device drivers
• Missing or corrupted system files
• Problematic third-party app/software
• Incorrect memory dump settings

It may cause your PC to shut down or restart unexpectedly, get stuck at a booting loop, or even lead to a total system crash. To help you fix this BSOD error, we have mentioned all the best possible troubleshooting methods.

Note: If the data is important, recover it using a professional data recovery software, and then fix it.  

Simple Methods to Fix Error – ‘Your PC Ran into a Problem and Needs to Restart’

Scenario 1: If you are able to boot your PC into Safe Mode

Method 1: Uninstall Problematic Windows Update

If you face the error “your pc ran into a problem” after installing a specific Windows 10 update, start your PC in safe mode and try to uninstall the problematic update. Follow these steps:

a. Press Windows + I to open Settings and navigate to Update & Security. (See Image 2)

b. Follow View update history > Uninstall updates. (See Image 3)

c. Locate the recently installed Windows update that is causing the problem.

d. Right-click on the update and click Uninstall. (See Image 4)

e. After uninstalling the Windows update, restart your system normally and check if the error still persists.

Method 2: Update Device Drivers

Sometimes corrupt, missing, or incompatible device drivers may result in the “your pc ran into a problem” error. You may try to fix the issue by updating the device drivers. To do so,

a. Press Windows + X to open Device Manager.

b. Select the driver with a Yellow exclamatory mark and follow the instruction to Update Driver. (See Image 5)  

c. Select the Search automatically for updated driver software option. (See Image 6)

d. Windows will find a latest driver software. You may update the driver and check if the issue is fixed.

Method 3: Roll Back/Disable/Uninstall Drivers

If updating the driver doesn’t work, you may rollback, disable, or uninstall the driver by following the given steps:

Roll Back Driver

a. Open Device Manager and expand the device that has the driver for rollback.

b. Right-click on the driver and select Properties > Driver > Roll Back Driver. (See Image 7)

c. Choose a reason from the available option and click Yes. (See Image 8)

Disable Driver

If the previous method doesn’t work or the option to roll back the driver is unavailable, you may disable the faulty driver with the help of the following steps:

a. Go to Device Manager and select and expand the device with the faulty driver you want to disable.

b. Right-click the selected driver and go to Properties > Driver > Disable Device > OK. (See Image 9)

Uninstall Driver

If you have tried to update, roll back and even disable drivers, but still facing this BSOD error, you may uninstall the corrupt or faulty driver and try to reinstall the compatible one with the following steps:

a. Open Device Manager, expand the device carrying the faulty driver and right-click on the driver.

b. If you see the option to “Uninstall device” from the available options, select it, and proceed.

c. If you see the Properties option, open it and go to Driver > Uninstall Device > OK. (See Image 10)

Method 4: Uninstall Problematic Third-Party Application/Software

Sometimes, a malicious or corrupt third-party app/software or program may be the cause of this error. You may uninstall the problematic program or software in Safe Mode using the given troubleshooting steps:

a. Open Settings and go to Apps. (See Image 11)

b. In the Apps & features window, select the application/software that may cause the problem, click on it, and select Uninstall. (See Image 12)

c. Once this process is completed, restart your system to check if the error is resolved.

Method 5: Modify the Memory Dump Setting

You may try modifying the emory dump settings to fix the error message “PC ran into a problem.” To do so, follow the given steps:

a. Click on View advanced system settings.  (See Image 13)

b. Go to the Advanced tab, and under the Start-up and Recovery, click Settings. (See Image 14)

c. On the next prompt, uncheck Automatically reset.

d. Under Write debugging information, select Complete memory dump from the drop-down list. (See Image 15)

e. Save the changes, restart the Windows, and see if the error is fixed.

Method 6: Run SFC (System File Checker)

Sometimes, corrupted system files may cause this BSOD error and such other errors. To fix this error, run SFC and DISM scans. Follow the below-said steps:

a. Press Windows + X and choose Command Prompt (Admin).

b. When Command Prompt screen appears, type SFC/scannow command and hit Enter. (See Image 16)

c. Once the process is done, check if the issue got fixed.

If the error is still there, you may run the DISM command.

a. Open Command Prompt, run it as an administrator, and type the following commands:

• DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /CheckHealth
• DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /ScanHealth

 (See Image 17)

b. Once done, reboot your PC.

Scenario 2: If you can’t boot into Safe Mode

Method 7: Perform Startup Repair

If you cannot boot into the Safe mode due to the “your pc ran into a problem and needs to restart windows 10’ error, you can perform the startup repair with the following steps:

a. Boot your system using a USB installation media (created using Windows’ media creation tool).

b. When you see the Windows Setup screen, click Repair your computer. (See Image 18)

c. While you enter in Automatic Repair environment, click Advanced options. (See Image 19)

d. Follow Troubleshoot > Advanced options. (See Image 20)

e. From the Advanced options screen, click Startup Repair, and proceed. (See Image 21)

f. Select your account and enter the password. (See Image 22)

g. Click Continue and follow the instructions given on the screen to complete the Startup Repair procedure. Check if the problem is fixed.

Method 8: Perform System Restore

Another troubleshooting method is System Restore that you may perform to fix the error “your pc ran into a problem.”

To perform System Restore, follow the given steps:

a. Enter in Automatic Repair environment and choose Advanced options as explained above.

b. Go to Troubleshoot > Advanced options > System Restore. (See Image 23)

c. Click Next. On the next prompt, click Scan for affected programs. (See Image 24)

d. Follow Click > Finish on the next prompt. (See Image 25)

Therefore, it is suggested to take the backup of your data first. You may also recover data with an efficient data recovery tool such as Stellar Data Recovery Professional.

This DIY (do-it-yourself) software helps you restore all kinds of data, including files, folders, documents, photos, videos, audio, etc. from Windows PCs and storage drives such as HDDs, SSDs, external USB drives & optical media. You can also get back data from lost or missing Windows partitions. The software features a ‘Create recovery drive’ utility, enabling you to create a bootable media drive to retrieve important files, folders, and more from a completely crashed, unbootable, or BSOD affected systems.

Method 9: Reset this PC

You may also try resetting the PC to get rid of the “pc ran into a problem and needs to restart” error. This method helps you remove unwanted applications, software, programs, settings, drivers, and more, causing problems for the system. You may also choose to keep files while resetting the system or delete everything stored on the PC.

a. Open Settings and go to Update & Security.

b. Navigate to Recovery and follow Reset this PC > Get Started. (See Image 26)

c. If you want to save your data, select Keep my files, or if the data is not very important, you may choose Remove everything.

d. You can select Remove everything to get rid of faulty or corrupt system settings, drivers, apps, software, etc. (See Image 27)

e. On the next prompt, click Just remove your files, and then click Next. (See Image 28)

f. On the next screen, a warning message will appear. Click Next.

g. Afterward, click Reset when prompted, and click Continue.  (See Image 29)

Method 10: Reinstall Windows

You may try reinstalling Windows 10 if you can’t fix the error ‘PC ran into a problem and needs to restart’ using the above troubleshooting methods. To do so, you will have to use the same USB installation media, which you used to boot into the system to perform Startup Repair, System Restore, and Resetting PC. Remember while you reinstall the Windows on a drive, it will clean the entire data stored on it. This process requires drive formatting and builds new partitions in the system. Therefore, we recommend to recover your essential data first using a reliable data recovery tool and then proceed with the re-installation.

Conclusion

“Your PC ran into a problem and needs to restart,” is a BSOD error, which can occur due to corrupt system files, device drivers, application/software, and virus attacks, etc. Such blue screen errors cause the system to shut down or restart unexpectedly, get stuck at a booting loop, or even lead to system crash. To fix this error, you may try the troubleshooting methods described above. However, a few methods, such as performing System Restore, or Windows re-installation, may lead to data loss. You may recover lost or inaccessible data with a powerful data recovery tool such as Stellar Data Recovery Professional. The software can extract data from Windows PCs, laptops, and all kinds of storage media devices such as HDDs, SSDs, USBs, and Memory cards. Additionally, you may restore data from BSOD affected, unbootable, or completely crashed systems.

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About The Author

Mansi Verma

Mansi Verma is a Senior Technology Writer at Stellar®. She is a Tech enthusiast, holding over a decade of experience in technical writing. She writes guides, articles, blogs and tips on Data Recovery, IoT, Artificial Intelligence, and Robotics. She loves providing DIY solutions to solve various Windows system related issues. In her spare time, she likes reading her favorite novels, and writing poetry. She is also an avid traveller.