Help! Windows Does Not Load Correctly After a Recent OS Update
In today’s Tech 911 – Lifehacker’s support column dedicated to your work from home questions all week – we turn to an old favorite: Microsoft Windows. Specifically, what happens when Windows starts throwing annoying error messages every time you try to start the operating system? If you are trying to log in during the day and are really working within the critical deadlines you have and you really don’t have an IT department to help, this is probably the worst place to work.
Before we leave you with a digital life circle , let us know the details of the reader Lifehacker Patchkek .
Question:
I have a Windows 10 desktop. Windows updated a few weeks ago, and a few days later when I turned it on, I got the message “Windows does not load properly”, a blue screen with several options. The ones I tried didn’t work until I found the “Return to Previous Date” option. It worked. The computer turned back on and worked fine. Unfortunately I still get windows not loading properly every few days. I have Windows 10 on a Mac. I was thinking about completely erasing windows and then reloading it. Can I have a virus or a bug? Thank you !!
Modest answer:
Be that as it may, you are not alone in this. Microsoft has been having issues with Windows 10 updates lately, which can sometimes give users more problems than they can fix. You may be in this camp, but the good news is that it is very, very unlikely that you have been hit by a virus or some sketchy malware. It’s just a Windows problem – I’m sure not very pleasant to hear when you experience it, but at least a little more comforting than “Your system is infected” (I hope).
Generally speaking, I like to skip shipping at the first sign of a problem that will likely take me longer – with mixed results – to fix than reinstalling Windows and all my applications. I suspect this may be the case here. And since you boot into Windows on your Mac, I’m less worried about you temporarily incapacitating you as you always have macOS to use if you absolutely need to do something on your computer.
However, before we move on to nuclear power, let’s try a few things. First, if you can boot into Windows – and it looks like you can – I’m not sure if you can uninstall anything that will help you. The last major Windows 10 update that could probably affect you was the big November 1909 update. There have been a few scattered updates since then, but I can’t think of a single one that was particularly problematic. Oh, apart from KB4535996, which even Microsoft suggested to users to remove.
So let’s start with this. Open Windows Update , click View Update History , click Uninstall Updates, and see if you can uninstall KB4535996. If you can – great! If not, then there is a troubleshooting method.
While you’re here, maybe check if there are any additional Windows updates you can install. It’s unlikely, but there may have been something popping up to fix any issues your Windows installation is struggling to deal with. And since you are using Boot Camp to run Windows on your Mac, run Apple Software Update and make sure there are no new drivers or updates to install.
Finally, try reinstalling the Windows Boot Camp Support Drivers , which can magically cure anything that causes your system to blue screen on startup. There is no guarantee that this will fix the situation, but it is worth investigating before taking more drastic measures.
While in Windows, you can also open an elevated Command Prompt (find “Command Prompt” in the Start menu, right-click it and select “Run as Administrator”). From there, try running a simple “chkdsk / f” to make sure your filesystem is okay. You can also try “chkdsk / r / f” for a more thorough analysis and fix, but it will take much longer. If your hard drive is failing and this is causing Windows problems, you may not be getting more information from chkdsk. You will want to use other methods to make sure you are okay (or heading for disaster).
You can also run sfc / verifyonly followed by sfc / scannow from the same elevated command prompt. If the first command found any damage to your Windows system files, the second command should fix it.
Once you’re done, consider invoking the Windows troubleshooter. Bring up the old Control Panel (via the Start Menu) and select Troubleshoot. Then click on “Fix problems with Windows Update” and see what the utility finds (if anything!)
Finally, click the Start menu, click the Power icon, hold down the Shift key on your keyboard, and click Restart. This should load you into the Windows 10 Advanced Startup Options menu. Click on Troubleshoot, click on Advanced Options and try using the Startup Repair option to see if it helps solve your Windows problem.
If all else fails, a cleanup and restore may be your best option. Save all your important Windows 10 files to a flash drive or cloud storage , then start macOS and use Boot Camp Assistant to uninstall Windows . Use the Microsoft Media Creation Tool to download a new, fresh .ISO for Windows 10, then use Boot Camp to reinstall it on your Mac. Once Windows is running, make sure you have installed all updates from Apple (the aforementioned Windows support drivers and Apple Software Update), then install all WIndows Updates offered by Microsoft, then start putting your files and applications back on your system … once you’ve made sure everything is in order.
Do not worry; it takes much less time than it seems.