Can the white screen of death be fixed?

Answered by Phillip Nicastro

The white screen of death issue in Windows 10 can often be fixed. This problem can occur due to various reasons, such as a problematic application or a minor operating system glitch. Fortunately, there are several troubleshooting steps you can take to resolve the issue.

One of the first and simplest solutions is to perform a power restart. To do this, click on the Power button on your computer and hold it for a few seconds. Continue to press the Power key until the PC shuts down completely. After the shutdown activity, you can turn on the computer again and check if the white screen of death problem is resolved. This method works in many cases where the issue is caused by a temporary software glitch.

If the power restart doesn’t fix the problem, you can try booting your computer into Safe Mode. Safe Mode is a diagnostic mode in Windows that loads only essential drivers and services, which can help identify and troubleshoot issues. To access Safe Mode, you can restart your computer and repeatedly press the F8 key before the Windows logo appears. From the Advanced Boot Options menu, select Safe Mode and press Enter. Once in Safe Mode, you can uninstall any recently installed applications or drivers that might be causing the white screen issue.

Another troubleshooting step you can take is to update your graphics card drivers. Outdated or incompatible graphics drivers can sometimes lead to display issues, including the white screen problem. To update your drivers, you can go to the manufacturer’s website and download the latest drivers for your specific graphics card model. Alternatively, you can use Windows Device Manager to check for driver updates and install them if available.

If updating the graphics drivers doesn’t resolve the issue, you can also try running a system file checker scan. This built-in Windows utility scans for corrupted system files and attempts to repair them. To run a system file checker scan, open the Command Prompt as an administrator and type the command “sfc /scannow” (without quotes) and press Enter. The scan may take some time to complete, and if any corrupted files are found, they will be automatically repaired.

In some cases, performing a system restore can also help fix the white screen problem. System Restore allows you to revert your computer’s settings to a previous point in time when everything was functioning correctly. To perform a system restore, you can search for “System Restore” in the Windows search bar and follow the on-screen instructions to choose a restore point and initiate the process.

If none of these solutions work, you may need to consider more advanced troubleshooting steps or seek professional assistance. It’s worth noting that the white screen of death can sometimes be a symptom of underlying hardware issues, such as a faulty graphics card or a failing display. In such cases, it may be necessary to replace the hardware component causing the problem.

While the white screen of death in Windows 10 can be frustrating, it is often fixable. By performing a power restart, booting into Safe Mode, updating graphics drivers, running a system file checker scan, or utilizing system restore, you can effectively troubleshoot and resolve the issue in many cases. However, if the problem persists, it may be indicative of a hardware problem that requires further attention.