Black Screen woes could affect millions on Windows 7, Vista and XP

120 comments so far

Friend Boy on Nov 28 11:46, 2009

Thanks for fix. It is really annoying to see black screen (no desktop) usually after malware removal. Your fix works for some of my clients computer today.

Friend Boy on Nov 28 11:53, 2009

Black screen (no desktop) is really annoying issue usually occurs after some malware removal. Your fix works for some of my client's computers. Previously I have to dig into registry via task manager to have some clue. Now it is easy to give a try to provided fix tool. Thanks for this fix.

Anonymous Coward on Nov 30 16:25, 2009

Hmmm 15 patches...so which one is the culprit? Do your readers a service and point out the alleged patch at fault instead of pushing your magic executable.

corndog on Nov 30 17:26, 2009

This is all well and good, but it would be really nice to know exactly what patch from Microsoft is causing this, so we can disable it in our WSUS servers before it renders thousands of machines black.

Robert on Nov 30 17:49, 2009

Can anyone be more specific as to the exact update which is believed to cause the problem?

Fred on Nov 30 18:31, 2009

Thank you Prevxx, very cool! Don't need it now but I have printed off your instructions if I or someone else needs it.

Questioner on Nov 30 18:49, 2009

Any intention of revealing which updates are suspected to cause the issues so, y'know...I can NOT install them kthxbye

Raul on Nov 30 20:09, 2009

Can you point to the bad patch in order to apply the remaining 14?

Thanks.

Judi on Nov 30 20:46, 2009

After updates , my machine rebooted and then stopped cold...it said ntoskrnl was missing. Last known good was no help. With recovery console, I have replaced ntoskrnl, but upon the next boot, it stopped at bootvid. Replaced that, then it stopped at kdcom.dll. Replacing that did not help at all. I've tried to follow instructions for recovery console, but I've had no luck at all. I will no longer be trusting of updates. I manage WSUS at work, and am not sure whether I can approve these updates for a thousand machines! MS, we deserve better than this! I cannot get my windows xp back. Linux is sounding much better to me every day that I fight with this! I did not want to reinstall my apps. Many companies these days get their undies in a bunch if a person has to reinstall several times. This will be the second time this year - I had to do this in January of this year..

Lars on Nov 30 21:16, 2009

I have not notised any problem, certainly no black screen...and I have installed all updates...but I am using MS Security Essentials and it seems to work quitly in thew background and cause no problem.

David on Nov 30 21:23, 2009

Should the fix still be run on a computer that is not showing this symptom as a preventive measure or is this only for computers having this particular problem?

MowGreen on Nov 30 21:48, 2009

Since I've been assisting Users in the Windows Update newsgroup for at least the last 9 years, can you specifically identify which update or updates is causing these KSODs ? I've not seen any posts in that NG about this issue being *specifically* caused by any of November's updates.

Source, please.

Tom O on Nov 30 22:56, 2009

What specific patch is causing the issues?

Brian on Dec 1 1:00, 2009

The woman at Microsoft acted like I was the only one, to bad I did not find this before. I had it dual booted with windows 7 rc so I got all my files back, but none of my backup discs worked and I tried doing like the woman said and by trying to boot from the DVD so much it finally broke the disc and when it starts to read disc just says error, I was assured vista ultimate would be safe and all I wanted was to send my stuff in and get another 32 bit disc, since I am not using the 64 bit DVD, anyway after so many emails no was basically the answer. That's great since it's 8 months old and after all that money and other problems I have to run windows 7 rc and I downloaded ubuntu, I am so upset after that and all the other problems the os and ms has given me. If you know what I can do now please let me know, I already installed windows 7 rc over it, but in spring it will run out. Please help//idiompost@gmail.com or the one above.

Paul M. Mrozinsky on Dec 1 1:21, 2009

Note this command assumes that you are using internet explorer as your browser, of not substitute your browser path and file details for thos of iexplore.exe or use the Browser option of Task manager to locate it.

Check Spelling.

max on Dec 1 4:45, 2009

i cant even get the task manager to come up with ctrl+alt+del !?!? on my vista home premium.....any suggestions ???

doug b on Dec 1 5:03, 2009

This just happened to me yesterday! I reloaded XP and it fixed the problem, I wished I had seen your posting first. No more Windows updates for me!

Triple Helix on Dec 1 6:06, 2009

Working great so far! I was wondering what the heck as going on!

Thanks Prevx Team!

Cheers,

TH

bruce on Dec 1 6:36, 2009

should we apply the fix if we have not had any black screen issues yet?

Dinh, Tran Duc on Dec 1 7:01, 2009

I followed your instructions but it's not solve black screen issue, my laptop is Dell Inspiron 6400, I using windows 7 Ultimate, can you show me solution in this situation

JP on Dec 1 8:57, 2009

That fix didn't work in server 2003, any ideas, how to repair that ?

Jerry Sanders on Dec 1 9:30, 2009

It's easy to make mistakes - like the spelling of adequately as adequatley in the blog above!

FAQ: Is a spelling mistake a bug in a piece of human code?

israel on Dec 1 9:56, 2009

I have a black screen problem, but my computer

can't connect any browser, and no window is available

a start point to download your patch.

I have only the mouse cursor working on my black screen

tried right mouse click to get a drop down menu - got -nothing!

can I use my recovery console with your ".exe" patch from

a floppy disk to fix my registry?

how is it done?

JohnnyB on Dec 1 10:18, 2009

Could this problem be part of an anti-Google ploy by MS?

I have two computers, and both have been affected by the Windows update. The laptop runs McAfee, and the desktop runs NOD 32, Spyware Doctor (from Google) and Spybot S&D.

After the update, the McAfee was severely corrupted (took 4 hours w/ a McAfee tech to clean and re-install) but no black screen. The laptop DID display a message at one point saying Google Desktop was unable to load.

The Desktop has the black screen. First System Restore failed, and then after a spyware scan/cleaning by Spyware doctor (from Google) it went to black screen on the next reboot.

Also, is there a way to run the fix if Task Manager won't open on the affected computer?

Kay on Dec 1 10:59, 2009

This happened to me yesterday. Trouble started after downloading and installing updates on Thursday last week. Contacted MS but so far no help from them. I'm not able to use the fix because all my directories are empty : ) I have not reinstalled Windows, but still it seems that my C disk is empty. Ideas to what I can do before reinstalling Windows? I tried running fixshell from DOS but that doesn't work. Thanks

Jackie T on Dec 1 11:24, 2009

Works perfectlyish - after running it, I now can't seem to get access to my VPN - help!

Stephenmorphey on Dec 1 12:16, 2009

Thanks for the useful information. I have had the same problem and no resolution to it. So finally tried the net and found your blog. Thanks for providing the patch.

jamesm on Dec 1 12:52, 2009

Thank you!

My Windows XP Pro install was just getting stuck on the boot screen and not even getting to desktop. Would be ok in Safe Mode, but not a normal boot. Ran this in safe mode and all OK now.

Thanks again!

roddyp on Dec 1 13:09, 2009

Not sure if this is related, but since the weekend, my Vista system has had problems with credentials:

Skype auto login failed - password needed reentering

Outlook can't access mail servers - again, rejected credentials

Remote desktop session credentials need reentering each time

Previously, all this worked seamlessly...

Roderz on Dec 1 13:43, 2009

Had this happen on XP but BEFORE login,

and pressing CTRL, ALT and DEL did nothing, only thing that got a response was pressing shit key 5 times (activates 'sticky keys') could hear the beep but even then did not display anything ;-(

Had to reinstall.

Thomas Allen on Dec 1 13:52, 2009

Downloaded the fix and put it on a USB flash drive (also dropped it on a server share), just in case. We have about 30 Windows machines in our office, but have had no black screen issues, so far.

Thanks for the fix.

Chris Dugan on Dec 1 14:11, 2009

Hi,

Do you have any more info to share on which update caused the problem and which registry keys are affected and how?

Thanks,

Chris

Karen Sweeney on Dec 1 14:43, 2009

Thanks for the free fix, don't need it at the moment, anyone know what the offending file is from Microsoft? KB????? I've had probs with their updates before, by a process of eliminatination rejected one of their optional downloads for my wireless adapter, after installing I couldn't access the net. NIce huh? Anyway be warned don't install microsoft updates automatically, best to get them and wait a couple of days to see if there's an alert like this one! Does anyone think that a flash drive with the fix on it would trigger the dialogue box during a black screen event to open the folder and view files??? I've got the fix in mine at the ready just in case :) PS, the anti google ploy...perhaps yes because the only way I could get online during my previous problem was by using IE8 instead, a new release from Mozilla later solved the block.

zz on Dec 1 15:13, 2009

Thanks, your utility finally fixed this problem that I've had for over 1.5 years now on my work laptop -- that noone could assist with. In the past I'd start explorer via task manager everytime.

If you dont mind -- can you share the details of what exactly this .exe does?

spiceuser on Dec 1 15:19, 2009

Thanks for your help with working through this. Haven't seen it yet but "situational awareness" is never a bad thing.

Tony on Dec 1 15:23, 2009

Are there any flags that can be set to run this silently so it can be dispatched remotely via PSEXEC?

Abhinav on Dec 1 15:27, 2009

Spyware Doctor is not from Google but PC Tools...

PatchManager on Dec 1 15:34, 2009

Could you please specify which updates caused the corruption?

I manage updates for our organization, and I want to decline them in WSUS without having to decline installation of the whole month's worth of updates and patches just to catch it.

-Thanks!

Slip on Dec 1 16:09, 2009

I never allow auto update for this reason. Give updates some time before applying them.

JG007 on Dec 1 16:11, 2009

Great that this issue hasbeen identified and a company is providing a fix but it is important top realise that it is still a pretty small percentage of users that 'may' have this issue, I hacve 2x Windows 7 and 1x XP machine at hoem and I always install windows updates immediately and have not been affected by this issue and have only once had even a minor issue with windows update that was resolved by roling back the network driver that was updated.

People realy need to understand that they should not simply decide not to install any MS updates ever because of this as this is leaving their system open to atacks which could cause them much more of a problem than this.

I would also say that it is pretty embarasing if anybody spoke to any real tech guys who could not help with this issue as the first thing I would try doing is starting explorer from task manager which as far as I can tell would work fine. also sorry but I really don't think it is possible to break a dvd by trying to read it too many times unless you have a slightly dodgy dvd drive, correct me if I am wrong..

wouter on Dec 1 16:14, 2009

you can also just typ explorer.exe as a new task if you enterd the CTRL, ALT and DEL keys simultaneously. you will have to do it every time that you start up your pc

greatz wouter

Dustin on Dec 1 16:17, 2009

Will this fix work if control alt delete doesn't work? I have a KSOD also but when windows 7 boots it only shows the mouse cursor and black screen. I can't access anything.

LarryH on Dec 1 16:42, 2009

I think I have been seeing this behavior sporadically for the past several months. For my machine, this usually happens the first time a user logs in to our XP Home machine after a cold boot. I get the user's background wallpaper but no other desktop elements and no Explorer window. What I have done in these cases is bring up the Task Manager and log off by clicking the "New Task" button and entering the command "shutdown -l". I then log in again and I get my desktop and startup apps as expected.

Daniel on Dec 1 16:48, 2009

Is it possible that this could affect your machine /before/ login? I updated Windows, and now my computer will not boot. Disks and fans spin, but I can't even get to my BIOS. I was assuming this was a bad mobo issue, but now I'm wondering...

eduardo on Dec 1 17:29, 2009

as Dustin says above ... in my case I just get a black screen and the mouse cursor, cant access anything ... any help in this case?

Justin on Dec 1 17:33, 2009

If the program is on a flash drive, assuming your OS still recognizes it when you plug it in, you should be able to launch it as a new task from task manager, as described above. Just instead of running IE, you run the app on the flash drive.....

Chris Aldridge on Dec 1 17:42, 2009

My BSOD has shown up in the VISTA envirionment. I end up with a completely black screen and only a mouse cursor showing. I'm on a Dell Inspiron 1545 and I can get into the preboot sequence with F2 and look at things with F12. I've no idea how to acces the internet from here. Ctl-alt-del doesen't seem to get me anything.

If I download the patch to flash drive, is there way to access and run it from there?

Don on Dec 1 18:23, 2009

What nobody is telling you is that this only happens when you use 3rd party software that tries to manage or manipulate Windows normal procedures. Mal-ware protection software is a prime candidate for doing this. Unfortunately there is no governance on software quality assurance so, software vendors are free to do as they please and then point the finger the other way when things don't go write.

Best advice, to avoid such troubles, do your homework and use good software. You get what you pay for and software is no different.

IT Engineer - of 18 yrs

Kenneth on Dec 1 18:41, 2009

I tried to run the command from the task manager and nothing happened. It seemed to access the Iexplorer but would not launch it. Needless to say that i was unable to connect to the web and download the file. I tried to run IE8.0 from the task manager alone by typing c:\program files\internet explorer\iexplorer.exe but nothing happened on the screen either.

any other alternate procedures would be appreciated.

Susan on Dec 1 18:47, 2009

915597 defender updates? 976098 And a time zone update? Can you specifically detail where these two patches have been changing permissions?

I have deployed these on servers and workstations with no issues.

justPaulo on Dec 1 18:53, 2009

Time to change operating system.

Clint on Dec 1 18:53, 2009

Often this issue is just a corrupt user profile. If you create a new user profile, transfer the old profiles data into the new profile and restart, you will be sweet. Just don't copy the NTUSER.dat file.

Ben on Dec 1 19:00, 2009

Do you have a version that can be executed with no user interaction? I couldn't figure out any sort of /silent sort of command line switch myself.

Nigel Holder on Dec 1 19:13, 2009

CTRL ALT DEL - task mgr - start new prog - type "explorer" then do a system restore to a date when all was OK. Then ignore all security updates until Microsoft fixes the problem....

chad on Dec 1 19:33, 2009

Ive had a problem since installing win 7 in october, whenever the computer goes into sleep or hibernate, upon waking up starts normal then I get a black screen with a white underscore flashing in the top left. A full restart prompts me that windows didnt shut down and if I want to restore windows. This happens every time, will this fix that problem?

Doug on Dec 1 19:36, 2009

It's been about 2 weeks that I've had this problem on Vista 64: Explorer.exe (taskbar doesn't respond) the mouse moves and vmware seems to continue but I can't seem to switch windows, nothing responds. Can't bring up the start menu or task manager. I have to hit the reset button and reboot. The system works fine for a while then I can't tell what it is but then it stops responding, explorer, etc.... The mouse always works. I'm in the crazy cycle. ctl-alt-del doesn't work.

I can triple boot this system (q6600 w/8gb & 2TB disk) and the other OS's don't seem to do this hanging thing and like I said it seems to be 2 weeks old.

I see KB915597 and KB976098 installed can I remove them?

Mene on Dec 1 20:21, 2009

On my system, I've just seen that the KB976098 update is already installed (from 11/25/09). Windows waited for me to authorize downloading and installing the other one (KB915597) but I fortunately didn't. Maybe the problem is with the second update only?

Version: Windows 7 Ultimate x64

Thank you for the solution,

Mene.

Michael Clark on Dec 1 20:33, 2009

This all seems very vague - what are the 10 scenarios that cause this? Is it a series of occurances that trigger this? Is it a combination of software and patches that cause this? Can we have some specifics?

Tom Hoffman on Dec 1 20:45, 2009

Thanks for this - was ready to replace everything from Inverter board to Mother board from all the blogs I've read. Mine went BLACK 3 days ago - & it was after Microsoft did an auto downlaod (which I turned off immediatly afterward as I was very busy on the pc that day).

I hope Microsoft will release a new download to fix this - though my pc's auto downlaod is now turned off. CNTL ALT DELETE yeild a black screen - but I will try the fix above somehow.

Thanks

SeanR on Dec 1 21:02, 2009

I do not get task manager.

I copied the fixtool to the machine via a network share and I am attempting to launch via Sysinternals PSExec however as the tool pops up a GUI I cannot actually make the tool run.

Any chance of a command line 'yes' switch to avoid the GUI?

Lynn on Dec 1 21:56, 2009

Sure wish I'd seen this before I lost everything via reload. Smart enough to back-up, but hadn't done it in awhile. Now I have to remember and redo everything I've done in the last month. Just admit your mistake... Then fix it ! Thanx Microsoft :-(

JotaSolano on Dec 1 22:10, 2009

THANK YOU SOOOO MUCH! I've been having this problem for the past 4 MONTHS or so... i was getting used to opening the tasks administrator and runing explorer.exe lol... i don't know what triggered this problem but again... thanks a lot! btw... im using Vista :S lol

Lars Cook on Dec 1 22:17, 2009

I have just checked update history andf the files appear. I do not have the problem at the moment. Should I uninstall all updates from the month of November?

john bradley on Dec 1 22:33, 2009

this happened to my daughters lap top, thought she caught a virus. i brought the lap to my repair man and he said there was a file missing and found a virus. he reloaded the missing file from ms and removed the so called virus and everything is fine.

should i down load this on my pc's and laptops even tough i'm not having a problem.

thanks

owen on Dec 1 22:43, 2009

I got a black screen and it also said in the lower right hand corner that the version of windows I had was not genuine fixed by putting the product code back in.

Simon Waddington on Dec 1 22:54, 2009

I was one of the many who phoned up Microsoft last week in the hope of sorting the problem. I'd explained that I'd tried every restore including updating Win7 over Win7, in situ from the install disc. I also explained that the boot process appeared to be hanging and that killing & restarting explorer.exe from the task manager didn't help. MS customer support told me that they would escalate my query and perhaps phone me the next day. Well, I've learned my lesson at last. I've started backing up the entire system, with Windows 7 backup and also Acronis 2010 Home. If it ever happens again, then at least I'll be able to differentiate between a software problem (restoring from the backup fixes the problem) or a hardware problem (restoring from backup makes no difference)

Nigel on Dec 1 23:13, 2009

I'd be suspicious of the latest Windows Defender update. Anyone remember the last disaster Microsoft had with that, with machines failing to recognise USB devices after the update ? I've only had the black screen problem after the Windows Defender update, so I've done a System Restore and have hidden the update reminder.

Darrell on Dec 2 0:12, 2009

I have more than 700 machines in my group. All XP Pro SP3.

I have seen this issue maybe a dozen times since these patches came out. Every machine it happened on had a bug of some sort.

I've had to reimage one machine.

PC-Tech 40 years experience.

If you're going to own a Windows PC you better have your installation disks handy or an image backup and a Good Bart-PE CD/USB ThumbDrive.

Charles on Dec 2 0:40, 2009

Glad to find this article since it disappeared from MSNBC's website in a matter of hours of my reading it! Searches only produced the updated article that shifted responsibility away from Microsoft.

fusseltier on Dec 2 0:55, 2009

of course microsoft denies it.

several years ago i allowed an update and then i lost all internet connections.

luckily when i called microsoft then, they told me how to fix it and for free.

but recently i installed sp2 in my xp pro and then i couldnt burn cd's anymore, i could only burn dvd's.

they wanted me to pay. but i was lucky, i found a firmware update for my dvd drive and that fixed it.

automatic update is not a good thing. i would like to turn off updates on my pc but then my norton always is red and says i have one problem needing fixed and that is to turn on my updates.

so i have to live with the annoying update notifictactions and that icon in my system tray.

Norval on Dec 2 1:01, 2009

I too had the Black Screen issues but I used the Backup and Restore on my PC via safe mode which in turn throw off some previous programs I had up and running correctly.

This article came to my attention to late but I did notice Windows patch KB976098 had download on my machine. So I ran your program. Thanks for helping us all.

Dave on Dec 2 1:32, 2009

I installed win 7, then had to format. After installation was complete, i dont even get a logon screen, just a black screen with a mouse cursor. I then try to run it in safe mode, and then get a screen saying that windows is being configured for first time use, then a popup box comes up and says that windows cannot finish installaiton in safe mode, and restarts, then i get back to the black screen. Any ideas?

Robert on Dec 2 3:40, 2009

Thank you so much!!! This worked!!!! Thank you!!!

voodkokk on Dec 2 3:56, 2009

Had a neighbor with same prob, could boot into safe mode however in normal mode screen black no task bar and had her do system restore to a few days before and she was back in business. System Restore only takes a few minutes and alot better than loading from scratch.

Adam on Dec 2 9:30, 2009

Have been running Vista premium on a new dektop(Acer) with no problems but now have discs for upgrade to Win7, should I disable updates until MS gives new patches?

Giorgio Bruzzone on Dec 2 9:55, 2009

Hi,

I have a Black Screen similar problem on my Vista desktop at home but it is a bit different because, after authentication, the black screen appears (totally black with the white arrow of my mouse only visible and responding when moving the mouse). I am able to launch the task manager with CTRL ALT DEL, but, if I don't do anything, after about 5 minutes , the desktop appears and the PC starts to work correctly. What I did before having this problem was to download the last version of Windows Messenger for my daughter. Do you think your fixShell.exe is suitable also for my problem? If I try to install it , do you you think the fix can cause damages?

Thank you

Regards

Giorgio Bruzzone

J on Dec 2 10:38, 2009

Turns out its nothing to do with the updates after all. Thats funny.

T on Dec 2 11:27, 2009

I have not experienced this problem yet, but for those who do - are you not able to launch explorer.exe via Task manager to bring windows ui back?

1) Press the CTRL, ALT and DEL keys simultaneously

2) When prompted, Click Start Task Manager

3) In Task Manager Click on the Application Tab

4) Next Click New Task: explorer.exe

Michael Millard on Dec 2 11:36, 2009

I've only seen the Black Screen of Death on my Microsoft Windows Vista Ultimate based Dell XPS M1210 Laptop following an update to the video drivers. It only occurred when I came out of "sleep" and required a restart to successfully bring it up. I backed them out returning to the original drivers and haven't seen the Black Screen of Death since. I have kept up to date with all of Microsoft's latest monthly updates.

Harry on Dec 2 11:59, 2009

I had problems four weeks ago and I just deleted the last update KB976098.

Everything seems tickityboo so far.

It may not work for everyone.

wINcHUMP on Dec 2 12:17, 2009

I had this problem on my Win XP HP desktop system and rebooted in safe mode, completed the reboot and then restarted in normal mode. No other action was required and when I completed the normal restart, the Windows Update shield in the icon tray told me that an automatic windows security update had been installed and that required a reboot of my PC. Everything seems to work fine now, no doubt this issue was caused by Microsoft.

john on Dec 2 12:49, 2009

My Dell PC at home freezes up but does not show the black screen. I have to do a system restore in safe mode to un-do the Microsoft fixes. It's been like this for 2 months.

Ianto on Dec 2 12:54, 2009

Same problem as listed before but no answer (unless i'm missed that post out), i haev the black screen with only a cursor (which is responsive) but ctrl-alt-del does nothing! what can i do?

Abuelo on Dec 2 12:59, 2009

I had several issues with Vista crashing, bombed by malware, lost IP address in router, deleted restore points, the list was endless. After re-installing Vista 3 times I had had enough. 30 years of MS and now, since March this year, I finally have peace.......

I use Linux... safe, free and extremely useable. Not to mention the increased fun element.

It's been 5 weeks and already Windows 7 is being attacked, or badly written, who knows the truth, and millions of innocent users inconvenienced, there's only one answer.

Make the change, it's worth it.

The only time it breaks is if I break it.

Harry Paphitis on Dec 2 13:02, 2009

The last update is the problem.A friend of me had a same problem on Windows XP Home.

The last update is the problem.A friend of mine had the same problem on Windows XP Home.

Black screen and a few minutes later a message NTOSKRNL.EXE is missing or corrupt.

First I tried to boot on safe mode, but was unsuccessful. I then tried to do system restore from the Windows CD but the system couldn't recognize windows (C:\WINDOWS) I don't know why..''still trying to find out''. I then tried this on another PC using Windows Vista with the same problem I fixed it by typing expand d:\i386\ntoskrnl.ex_ c:\windows\system32 to overwrite the existing file.

Finally on Windows XP I fixed it by restoring the System to a few days prior (Last Known Good Configuration).Once that was done everything was Ok.

Hope this helps, good luck.

Harry

Candace Chandler on Dec 2 14:41, 2009

I had the black screen problem before on my HP with Vista, then had Windows 7 installed and all was good for a couple weeks, now black screen every time I turn it on- no cursor, no nothing ! just the whirring of the computer . Cannot do anything with it. Unplugging it and removing the battery and holding down the power key for 20 secs before plugging in power cord and opening the screen all the way used to work but now does not. This is crummy- laptop is only 15 months old!

Harry Paphitis on Dec 2 17:04, 2009

When you boot press F8 then, restore the System to last know configuration

Try to see if your latest update is KB915597 or KB976098.If you still have problems, remove your latest update and wait the newest...

John Richards on Dec 2 17:18, 2009

Prevx, this blog post needs to be updated so reflect that your analysis was wrong WRT MS patches being involved with this problem. You've retracted your statements blaming the MS patches in another post, but this one remains incorrect and inaccurate...

reg on Dec 2 18:09, 2009

My Vista based laptop starts up fine, then goes to BLACK SCREEN before it gets chance to offer the login. Can only progress further when start up in SAFE MODE. HEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEELP!!!!!!!

Allan on Dec 2 18:22, 2009

I have KB976098 installed, and have NOT had the black-screen issue ... perhaps, it is just the other KP or only when they are combined, that they cause problems?

cw on Dec 2 18:38, 2009

I have turned off updates but hot blackscreen yesterday..??

Never had this before.

Also crashes games with strange symbols om the screen,like you get when the graphics card gets overheated..

very strange

cbemerine on Dec 2 21:11, 2009

You could turn off updates mid way through Win 2000, however the setting was ignored by Microsoft and the updates continued anyway. From that day forward, you have no guarantee that turning auto-updates off would actually, turn the dang things off.

And many will reply, you never want to turn auto update off, sorry, WRONG. When you are dealing with hundreds and thousands of desktops from a support prospective, to roll out ANYTHING without sufficient testing FIRST is a crap shoot and equivalent to playing Russian Roulette. As many are learning the hard way now with the BSODs. (Black/Blue, end result is the same)

Either you control your IT infrastructure or you do not. Leaving Auto anything on means you are relinquish control to others. Heard of mitigating risk?

I would suggest to all that is unwise under any circumstances.

Since you can not turn auto updates OFF, reinstalling does little or no good, as the bloat, junk, extra unneeded software & drivers, gets put back on at the very next update.

No one should be surprised that the days of BSODs have returned.

You want to remove unproductive down time from your life, you MUST control your IT infrastructure 100%. Nothing must get rolled out or updated without testing FIRST. How much are the BSODs costing you and your company in productivity and lost opportunity cost?

If the operating system will NOT let you control it 100%, you need to move to an operating system that will or such is your life, forever. Even when they fix the reasons for this, something else will happen to cause other outages and lost productivity.

Its not a matter of if, only when...

Boris on Dec 3 1:31, 2009

Thanks, your tools is excellent. My problem the black screen is over

Veronica Cannon on Dec 3 2:10, 2009

You guys so rock. This fix is great and helped us repair a customer's laptop. Thank you!

Jonathan Caners on Dec 3 6:23, 2009

I had trouble installing this under a regular login, but was able to install it via safe mode with networking. Worked great. Thanks!

Tézaln Flón on Dec 3 12:43, 2009

That's why I only install updates a couple years after they have existed. (I installed SP2 for XP a couple of months ago). That tactic has kept my system running smoothly. Also, I quadruple-boot (Debian 4.0r5, Ubuntu 8.07, Fedora 1, Windows XPP) so that if three die my system is still bootable in emergencies.

Stephen on Dec 3 15:15, 2009

I have both updates installed on my computer but up to now no black screen. May be it only effects certain computer manufacturers. My OS is Vista Home Premium 32 bit,my PC is an Advent T9307.

fertone on Dec 3 17:41, 2009

i got a blackscreen while installation WIN7 64 Ultimate.

Ist at the point, before windows schow the key window.

...before it turns black and all fans drives loud!

any help 4 this?

its an 9500GT Nvidia GPU!

Patrick on Dec 3 19:28, 2009

same problem, black screen ! safe mode or ctrl-alt-canc don´t work (also 5 times shift). But i noticed that the folder:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Drivers32

doesn´t exist anymore, could be the source of our problem?

steve on Dec 3 21:01, 2009

I have received KB915597(Definition 1.71.471.0) this very evening and have not yet allowed it to update. KB976098 was installed 25.11.09 on both Sony Vaio/Vista and Apple Mac with boot camp Vista with no problems so far. Now then; do I or don't I? I don't allow them to auto update,ever,as its good to be able to exercise SOME sort of control. They may only be home use laptops but we NEED them 24/7! Think I may wait at least until after Christmas and will follow the thread closely.... Thanks for your efforts,guys.It is some reassurance in an uncertain universe....

elhombrenuclear on Dec 3 21:53, 2009

you can try this too:

ctrl+alt+del then task manager,new task/ explore.exe and the desktop will appaer again.

clic on an empty space on the desktop,properties,desktop and make a choice for a sreen,clic ok.

this way your desktop will be the way you want it

no more black screen

elhombrenuclear on Dec 3 21:56, 2009

and yes,I have both updates and no problem on my MPC motherboard machine pc

windows xp pro sp3 completly updated

Felix Stephorst on Dec 4 16:36, 2009

@ elhombrenuclear:

I think it's explorer.exe instead of explore.exe

;-)

__________

Der_Profi

Anna on Dec 4 16:42, 2009

I have both updates, running on Vista. I have had no Black Screen incidents so far, fingers crossed, but I have noticed that since installing KB915597, which is a definitions update for Windows Defender, I keep getting warnings that Defender is turned off. Sometimes, when I then open it, it is clearly running OK and other times it is off although this never shows in Security Centre. I also noticed that when I went to Update History the update is there but when I go to Installed Updates, to uninstall it, is missing? This often happens after it has done a scan. If I do find it is it safe to uninstall?

I am no geek more a silver surfer so any ideas about this problem in plain English, please.

Giannis on Dec 6 10:56, 2009

Thanks for the fix. It was annoying that every time i had to press Ctrl+Alt+Del task manager and start a new task :explorer.exe.... I followed your instructions and now everything works PERFECT!!!

Joe on Feb 12 21:16

What do I do if nothing shows up when I Ctrl Alt Del?

Neil on Feb 13 11:01

Your fix worked perfect, thank you so much, glad i dident have to re-install windows, i would of lost a lot of data, thanks again, Neil.

John D on Feb 14 4:19

Thanks for the fix. It worked on my virtual Windows 7 machine. I have a MacBook Pro running Parallels. Thank God for Mac! LOL Good ol' Billy strikes again!!

Ralph on Feb 14 17:45

Thank you for sharing this! It worked for me!

Frank on Feb 16 22:33

Ah! Thank you for posting this!| There are tons of contradictary

information blogged about, this dispells, puts to rest

a lot of what I've heard.

Dakota on Feb 17 3:57

Dell computer - running XP IE8 - Intel Processor. Black screen popped up yesterday after normal shut down . Control-Alt-Delete just gets me into Dell's system info. I cannot access the Task Manager and gain access to the Internet to get the PrevX download fix. Using someone else's computer right now.

Any help will be much appreciated. Thank you.

Shekina on Feb 23 16:59

I plugged in the ethernet cable.... Block A - H appeared ... I called up the toll free number from microsoft.... Bingo everything was fine since...thanks for your support up here, but I haven't used your fix. I hope it will help people too as long as they have a legal Operating System

Ich habe das Internet Kabel an den Computer (Laptop) angeschlossen. Bevor ich den Computer angeschaltet hatte. Darauf erschien die kostenlose Telefon Nr. die ich anrufen konnte, Block A - H per Telefon eingegeben...seitdem laeuft der Rechner wieder. Danke fuer den Fix, ich hatte Glueck gehabt...brauchte ihn nicht....solange man ein legales Betriebssystem hat.....

Sometimes we are so helpless ♥

Roderick Davis on Feb 23 22:13

The fix doesnt work on my computer. When I run Ctrl,Alt,Delete my computer just reboots to black screen. Never prompted to click task manager. 2nd time I've been hit. If I reinstall windows again what can I do so this doesnt happen again. HELP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Gv3 on Mar 1 21:37

Thanks a lot guys! YOU ROCK! :D

Leticia on Mar 3 0:14

Absolutely perfect! Vista Business system. Ran drive scan prior, found no problems. During the scan, searched for other resolutions and found your link. Had to have saved me hours of work.

I believe it was due to updates performed last week. Client was looking at email one minute, a black screen the next.

Thank You!!!!

jeanette on Mar 5 3:57

i need help about my laptop it appears nothing after i login my password..what should i do??im so worried about this problem..my problems same to others but in my case its totally black, no screen at all..i tried already the suggestion above that you posted but i cant connect to the internet because the screen of my laptop is totally black after i login my password and the task manager has been disable..help me please i dont know what to do... please help..

i cant configure it because its all black and it shows nothing..

please i need a reply as soon as possible..

thanks in advance

Maltai on Mar 6 5:57

Got this problem just today. Ctrl+Alt+Del does not work in normal nor safe modes. Put Hotfix KB974719 on a flash drive, booted the device but could not get a command prompt to execute it from there. Any other ideas?

Marc on Mar 12 0:21

this has been pissing me off for some time... and all rumour mill put me off using the patch.

ran it.

fixed problem.

thanks.

DJC126 on Mar 18 7:35

Hi. Will give this fix a try soon.

My friend was away on holidays and upon return turned on the PC. It auto installed the WinUpdates and soon thereafter got a black screen on a subsequent startup. This was around the end of Nov.

I was able to get it to load in Safe mode and it had networking but no sound.

In normal mode, after manually loading IE from the Task Manager, there is no Internet access but there is sound. Finally, I tried removing some excess software via Program Features but now it won't enter Safe mode at all!

Tried all the suggestions on the Microsoft Technet articles except disabling all loaded services and adding them back one by one to isolate the possible problem. No virus, spyware, or malware found. Need to test the HDD yet.

On another client's VHP PC there was a white screen after the Welcome screen. After several minutes the desktop finally appeared. The HDD tested fine using WD tool at first but eventually went bad (it was slowly going although it seemed OK). The registry got messed up and restore points got lost after system shutdown. A new HDD and clean install worked fine.

On a 3rd VHP PC, couldn't get it to load any of the startup options. The Samsung HDD was bad.

Is Vista harder on HDDs or is there something wrong with a batch of WD and Samsung HDDs used in Compaq/HP PCs from 3-4 years ago?

Thanks.

Lampson on Mar 19 7:27

Will try the fix but if I go to task manager and run "explorer" it starts the bootup process again and I'm back in business but I have to do this on every bootup so it's only a temp solution.