IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL blue screen in Windows 11: how to fix it

Applies to: Windows 11 (and Windows 10) PCs that restart with the IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL stop code, whether once in a while, during games or heavy use, or right after an upgrade. Not sure which stop code you saw? Our guide on finding the stop code after a crash shows where Windows records it. A similar name, DRIVER_IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL, is a different stop code (0xD1), but the same driver-first approach applies to it.

What IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL means

Windows gives every piece of code a priority called the interrupt request level (IRQL). Code running at a raised level, such as a driver handling a network packet or a disk transfer, isn’t allowed to wait. It may only use memory that is guaranteed to be in RAM at that instant, not memory that Windows could have moved out to the page file.

Microsoft’s bug check 0xA reference says this error means “Microsoft Windows or a kernel-mode driver accessed paged memory at an invalid address while at a raised interrupt request level (IRQL),” and that the cause is typically a bad pointer or a pageability problem. Put simply, a driver followed an address that was wrong, empty or already freed. Rather than risk corrupting your data, Windows halts.

The same page lists the usual culprits: the error “usually occurs after the installation of a faulty device driver, system service, or BIOS.” During a Windows upgrade, it adds, the cause might be a device driver, system service, virus scanner or backup tool that doesn’t work with the new version. Microsoft’s advanced stop code troubleshooting article puts numbers on the broader picture: about 70% of all stop errors come from third-party driver code and about 10% from hardware. The bug check page also mentions bit-flipping as a possible source of bad pointers, which is why unstable or faulty memory is worth ruling out when no driver is to blame.

Because Windows itself is usually the one reporting the problem, the file blamed most often is ntoskrnl.exe (the Windows kernel). That rarely means the kernel is broken; it means the real culprit has to be found another way, which is what Fix 1 is for.

Match your situation

What you see	Likely cause	Start with
The blue screen or dump names a .sys file from a graphics, network, audio, VPN or antivirus product	That driver	Fix 1, Fix 3
Crashes began after new hardware, a driver or new software	The new device, driver or a service it installed	Fix 2
Crashes began after a Windows upgrade	A driver, antivirus or backup tool that doesn’t support the new version	Fix 2, Fix 3
Crashes under load or in games, with XMP/EXPO or an overclock on	Memory or CPU running beyond stable settings	Fix 4, Fix 5
Random crashes, different stop codes each time, only ntoskrnl.exe named	RAM, firmware or an unidentified driver	Fix 5, Fix 6, Fix 7
Windows crashes before or right after sign-in	A driver that loads at startup	The section below, then Fix 1

If Windows crashes before you can sign in

Microsoft’s guide to unexpected restarts and stop code errors says to start in Safe Mode if the PC can’t restart normally and carry on from there. Safe Mode loads only basic drivers, so a faulty third-party driver usually stays out of the way.

1. If Windows fails to start twice in a row, it normally opens the blue Choose an option recovery screen by itself. From the sign-in screen you can also hold Shift while selecting Power and then Restart.
2. Go to Troubleshoot > Advanced options > Startup Settings and select Restart.
3. When the list appears, press 4 for Safe Mode or 5 for Safe Mode with Networking if you need to download a driver.

If the recovery screen never appears, our WinRE guide explains how to open recovery when Windows won’t start, including from a USB installer. Most of the fixes below work from Safe Mode; Fix 8 also works from recovery.

Fix 1: Find the driver behind the crash

This step costs nothing and tells you where to aim everything else. Microsoft’s bug check page suggests three places to look.

The blue screen itself

Some crash screens show a What failed line with a file name under the stop code. A name ending in .sys is a driver. Write it down or take a photo; the screen disappears once the dump is saved.

Event Viewer

Microsoft suggests checking the System log for critical errors from the same time frame as the crash. Right-click Start, open Event Viewer and go to Windows Logs > System. Look for Critical and Error entries just before the restart. An entry from source BugCheck confirms the crash; errors from a named device or service a few seconds earlier are often more useful.

The crash dump

Windows saves a small memory dump for each crash in %SystemRoot%\Minidump, according to Microsoft’s advanced troubleshooting article; larger dumps go to %SystemRoot%\MEMORY.DMP. Microsoft’s free WinDbg debugger, from the Microsoft Store, can open them. Run it as administrator, open the newest .dmp file and enter !analyze -v, the command the bug check page starts with. In the output, MODULE_NAME and IMAGE_NAME point to the driver involved. Our KERNEL_SECURITY_CHECK_FAILURE guide walks through opening a minidump in WinDbg step by step.

Some file names you may come across, as examples: nvlddmkm.sys is the NVIDIA graphics driver, amdkmdag.sys an AMD graphics driver, and files starting with rt or Netwtw are often Realtek or Intel network drivers. If you don’t recognize a name, open its Properties in C:\Windows\System32\drivers and check the Details tab for the company and product. If the dump names only Windows files every time, go to Fix 4 and Fix 5 before blaming a driver.

Fix 2: Undo recent hardware and software changes

Both Microsoft pages put this near the top. It’s safe and easy to reverse.

1. Shut down and disconnect anything added shortly before the crashes started: a new graphics card, RAM, USB adapter, dock or capture device. Microsoft’s bug check page says to remove recently added hardware and see whether the error comes back.
2. Uninstall recently added software that runs its own driver or service, such as antivirus, VPN, RGB lighting, fan control, disk backup or virtualization tools. Use Settings > Apps > Installed apps. The bug check page names virus scanners and backup tools as possible causes, especially after an upgrade.
3. If you’d rather not uninstall a service yet, Microsoft suggests disabling it and checking whether the crashes stop. A clean boot, mentioned in the advanced article, does this for all non-Microsoft services at once: run msconfig, open the Services tab, tick Hide all Microsoft services, select Disable all and restart.
4. If the crashes began right after a monthly Windows update, go to Settings > Windows Update > Update history > Uninstall updates and remove the latest one.

If the error stops, add things back one at a time until it returns. The last thing you added is the one to update or replace; Microsoft’s advice is to contact that maker about a fixed version.

Fix 3: Update or roll back the driver

If Fix 1 named a driver, deal with that one. If it didn’t, graphics, network and storage drivers are the usual suspects. Which direction you go depends on timing: crashes that started after a driver update call for a rollback; an old driver on a newly upgraded Windows calls for an update.

Update through Windows Update and the maker

Microsoft’s support article for error 0xA starts here. Open Settings > Windows Update > Advanced options, turn on Receive updates for other Microsoft products, then install everything offered, including drivers under Optional updates, and restart. If Windows Update has nothing new, get the driver from the PC or component maker’s support site. Laptop makers often ship tuned graphics and chipset drivers, so their site is the better source for a laptop.

Roll back a driver in Device Manager

1. Right-click Start and select Device Manager.
2. Expand the category, for example Display adapters or Network adapters, right-click the device and choose Properties.
3. On the Driver tab, select Roll Back Driver. If it’s grayed out, Windows has no earlier version saved; install an older version from the maker’s site instead.

For graphics drivers, a clean install often helps where a normal update didn’t: NVIDIA’s and AMD’s installers typically offer a clean install or factory reset option that removes old settings before installing.

Fix 4: Turn off overclocking and XMP/EXPO

Microsoft’s 0xA pages don’t cover overclocking, but the reasoning follows from what they do say: unstable memory can flip bits, and a flipped bit in a pointer is exactly the kind of bad address this stop code reports. Memory profiles such as Intel XMP and AMD EXPO run RAM faster than the default speed. Many systems handle them fine, but if the crashes come under load, it’s a quick thing to rule out.

Warning: changing firmware settings can trigger a BitLocker recovery prompt on the next start. Make sure you can get your recovery key, usually saved to your Microsoft account, before you change anything, and note down the settings you change.

Open the BIOS/UEFI setup, turn off XMP, EXPO or any CPU and memory overclock or undervolt, save and restart. Use the PC normally for a few days. If the crashes stop, either leave the profile off or try a slower memory speed. Our WHEA guide shows how to open the firmware and switch these settings off. If you overclock with a Windows tool, close it and remove it from startup as well.

Fix 5: Test your memory

Microsoft’s support article for this error recommends the built-in Windows Memory Diagnostic. Save your work first, because the test restarts the PC.

1. Press Windows + R, type mdsched and press Enter.
2. Choose Restart now and check for problems (recommended).
3. For a deeper test, press F1 while it runs, change Test Mix from Standard to Extended and press F10 to apply. Microsoft suggests this if the standard test finds nothing.
4. After you sign in, a notification shows the result. If you miss it, open Event Viewer and look for the MemoryDiagnostics-Results entry. Microsoft notes that Event ID 2001 means no memory errors were found.

Any error means the memory needs attention: reseat the modules, run with one module at a time to find the bad one, and replace it. A clean result is reassuring but doesn’t prove the RAM is perfect, since some faults only show up under heat or with XMP turned on. Microsoft’s advanced article also suggests running the PC maker’s own hardware diagnostics, which many PCs include in the firmware.

Fix 6: Repair Windows files and update firmware

A damaged Windows file or a buggy BIOS can also produce this error. Run these in Terminal (Admin) or an administrator Command Prompt, one at a time:

DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth

sfc /scannow

DISM repairs the Windows image that SFC copies from, so running it first gives SFC good files to work with. Both can take a while, and DISM may pause at a percentage for several minutes. Our SFC and DISM guide explains the results and what to do if SFC reports files it couldn’t fix.

Microsoft’s advanced article also lists updating the BIOS and firmware as a general step, and the bug check page names a faulty BIOS as one possible cause. Check your PC or motherboard maker’s support page for a newer BIOS and chipset driver, and read its release notes. Follow the maker’s instructions exactly, keep laptops plugged in, and suspend BitLocker first if the maker’s tool doesn’t do it for you.

Fix 7: Driver Verifier (advanced, use with care)

When the crashes continue and no dump points to a driver, Driver Verifier can force a misbehaving driver to fail in a way that names it. The bug check page recommends it for this error, but it’s a developer tool, and it works by making crashes more likely.

Warning: Microsoft’s Driver Verifier documentation says it “could cause the computer to crash” and should only be run on computers you use for testing and debugging. The advanced article adds that it uses a lot of CPU and can slow the PC down significantly. Before you start: create a restore point, back up your files, have your BitLocker recovery key, and read the steps to turn it off below. Don’t select all drivers, and never select Microsoft drivers.

Turn it on

1. Right-click Start, open Terminal (Admin) or an administrator Command Prompt, type verifier and press Enter.
2. Select Create standard settings and then Next.
3. Choose Select driver names from a list and select Next.
4. Tick only non-Microsoft drivers, using the Provider column, starting with the ones you suspect. Microsoft’s advanced article suggests groups of 10 to 20 drivers, and the bug check page advises verifying as few as possible.
5. Select Finish and restart.

Use the PC normally for up to a day or two. If a verified driver misbehaves, Windows crashes, and the new dump usually names the driver, often with a Driver Verifier stop code rather than 0xA. Read it as in Fix 1, then turn Driver Verifier off before doing anything else.

Turn it off

In an administrator Command Prompt, run the command below and then restart. Microsoft’s documentation gives this command, or the Delete existing settings option in Driver Verifier Manager, followed by a restart:

verifier /reset

If Windows crashes at every start with Driver Verifier on, boot into Safe Mode as described above. Microsoft’s advanced article notes that the tool doesn’t run in Safe Mode, so you can sign in there, run verifier /reset and restart normally. Don’t leave Driver Verifier running once you have your answer.

Fix 8: System Restore or reset

System Restore

If restore points exist from before the crashes began, System Restore rolls back drivers, updates and settings without touching personal files. Microsoft’s unexpected restarts guide lists it as the step to try when nothing else works. Search for Create a restore point, select System Restore and pick a point from before the problem; if Windows won’t start, the same tool is under Troubleshoot > Advanced options > System Restore in recovery.

Reset this PC

Warning: Reset this PC with Keep my files keeps personal files but removes installed apps and drivers. Remove everything deletes your files. Back up first either way.

A reset reinstalls Windows and its own drivers, so it clears out any third-party driver at fault. Go to Settings > System > Recovery > Reset PC. If the error comes back on a fresh reset before you install any extra software, the cause is almost certainly hardware: test the memory again, check the drive and contact the PC maker.

Known issues

As of November 2026, Microsoft’s release health pages for Windows 11, version 25H2 and version 24H2 list no open or resolved known issue that causes IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL. If many PCs start crashing with it right after the same update, check those pages, since Microsoft posts confirmed problems and workarounds there.

Related guides

• Your PC ran into a problem and needs to restart: how to fix it
• KERNEL_SECURITY_CHECK_FAILURE: what it means and how to fix it
• DPC Watchdog Violation on Windows 11 and 10: how to fix it
• WHEA_UNCORRECTABLE_ERROR (0x124): how to fix it
• SYSTEM_PTE_MISUSE blue screen in Windows: causes and fixes
• How to run sfc /scannow in Windows 11 and 10 (and read the results)
• WinRE: what the Windows Recovery Environment is and how to open it
• MEMORY_MANAGEMENT blue screen in Windows 11: how to fix it

Official sources

• Microsoft: Bug check 0xA IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL
• Microsoft: Advanced troubleshooting for stop code errors
• Microsoft: Driver Verifier