Key Points
- Microsoft is replacing the famous Blue Screen of Death in a Windows 11 update this summer.
- The new crash screen will be a simple black screen with a message to restart.
- It will no longer display a frowny face or QR code, but will still show key technical data for IT support.
- The change is designed to provide clearer information, helping to resolve problems more quickly.
Get ready to say goodbye to an infamous part of the Windows experience. After nearly 40 years of frustrating users, the iconic Blue Screen of Death (BSOD) is finally being retired. Microsoft confirmed the change will happen in a Windows 11 update scheduled for later this summer.
Of course, your Windows computer will still crash, so a new error screen is taking its place. Instead of the familiar blue screen with a frowny face and a QR code, you’ll now see a stark Black Screen of Death. The new screen is much simpler, displaying only a brief message instructing you to restart your computer.
While it may appear simpler, the new black screen will still display important technical information, such as the stop code and the system driver that caused the crash. Microsoft says the change is all about clarity. The goal is to provide IT admins with cleaner, more accurate information, enabling them to identify and resolve issues more quickly.
The new crash screen is part of a larger update for Windows 11. It will arrive alongside a new tool called Quick Machine Recovery, which is designed to help restore machines that won’t boot up. These changes are a direct response to the massive CrowdStrike incident last year, which affected millions of Windows devices worldwide, impacting a range of industries, from banks to airlines.
