Black screen after Windows 11 update
"Hi all! I have just updated my PC to Windows 11 under the developer setting. However, once it's updated and restarted, after showing the boot screen (of the motherboard) and the window circling dots, the screen is just shown as plain black. I can hear that the window is running cause there is sound coming from it and my keyboard all works, but there is just a plain black screen."
Microsoft has integrated many new features in Windows 11, such as a new, more Mac-like interface. One of the biggest changes is that Microsoft has changed its famous Blue Screen of Death (BSOD) to Black in Windows 11. As shown in the case above, some users encountered a black screen after the Windows 11 update. Others also encountered black screen with cursor after upgrading to Windows 11. Are you also bothered by this problem? Read on to learn more about this issue.
Before we jump on to how to fix it, it's necessary to know what causes the Windows 11 black screen of death. Since BSOD provides very little information about what caused the computer to crash, some diagnosis and troubleshooting may be required to find the root cause of the problem. Some possible reasons for black screen on Windows 11 are listed below:
✪ Applications incompatibility issues
✪ Memory stick incompatibility/corruption or poor contact
✪ Hardware corruption
✪ MBR or system file error
✪ Driver issues
✪ Virus or malware attack
In the following content, we have listed some of the most effective repair methods to solve the Windows 11 black screen after update.
Notes✍: Some of the solutions discussed below may cause data loss. Therefore, if you do not have a copy of your computer, it is recommended that you back up your computer in advance. The best free backup software is provided in the next part.
There are 7 solutions in total, if you use the last 6 solutions, please boot your PC in safe mode first to be on the safer side and prevent any problem that may occur while troubleshooting the black screen of death error.
Boot Windows 11 in Safe Mode:
Some of the most common issues that cause the black screen of death are related to hardware-related issues. If you continue to experience computer crashes, you may need to disconnect the peripheral device to see if the problem is resolved. This will include external hard drives, USB devices, printers, additional displays, and phones, etc.
The internal components of your computer (such as the RAM sticks) may also malfunction or be damaged, resulting in Windows 11 black screen of death. You may need to run memory diagnostics to find out if it is the cause.
A black screen error may also appear after the system is updated. If you started experiencing BSOD crashes after an update, you may want to roll back those updates. To uninstall recent updates, follow the steps below:
Just as system updates can cause problems for your system, incompatible or outdated drivers can also cause black screen errors. You may try updating, rolling back, disabling, or uninstalling device drivers to fix this issue.
♦ Update device driver
♦ Rollback device drivers
♦ Disable/Uninstall device drivers
If you still encounter the black screen error, you may need to completely disable or uninstall these drivers. To do so, go to the driver properties as you did earlier, select the Driver tab, and this time, click on Disable device or Uninstall Device.
Let the process end and check if this has solved the issue.
Damaged system files can also cause BSOD errors. You can use the SFC command tool to check if this is the problem.
It will take a while for the system file checker to diagnose any system file corruption and repair it. Wait until the process is complete, and then check if the error disappears.
Malware infection can also damage system files and cause Windows 11 black screen after upgrade. It is recommended that you perform regular scans to check for such infections and remove the cause of any malicious elements that may be the source of the problem.
Here, I will show you how to run virus scan through Windows Defender on Windows 11.
Restoring your system to a previous state should solve your black screen on Windows 11. Detailed steps are as follows.
Your computer will now restart and restore your PC to its best working condition.
As mentioned earlier, the solutions discussed above may result in data loss. For instance, the last method-System Restore, will bring your device to the default or selected restore point, which will affect your applications, programs, system files, etc.
In order not to lose any data due to Windows 11 black screen after update, or other vulnerabilities, you need to install the latest security patches, such as, November 2022 Patch Tuesday updates. And it is also recommended to back up your computer in advance. The full-featured free backup software – Qiling Disk Master Standard can help you create a copy of your computer with just a few clicks.
Qiling Disk Master enables you to backup files, system, disk, and partition and then restore them. You can back up to multiple destinations, such as internal or external hard drives, cloud drives, network locations, or NAS devices. It also lets you create bootable media to restore data from a BSOD-affected, unbootable, or crashed Windows system.
As long as you have created a computer backup when you encounter a black screen problem, you can easily use this software to restore to a working state previously. Learn how to back up your computer with the best free backup software from the graphical instructions. Firstly, download and install Qiling Disk Master on your computer.
Step 1. Launch Qiling Disk Master, click Backup on the left panel, then select Disk Backup.
Step 2. Click "+ Disks" to choose the source disk that you want to backup.
Step 3. Choose the destination place where you plan to store backup image to. It is recommended that you back up to an external disk.
Step 4. (Optional) You can click on "Options", "Schedule", "Scheme" on the left corner of this program as per your needs.
✧ Options: If you want to easily distinguish this task from other tasks, you can write comments for the task. You can also enable email notifications to inform you of the result of the operation. Encryption for backups is available after upgrading to higher versions.
✧ Schedule: It enables you to automatically back up data on a regular basis, which can improve data security to a large extent. You can choose daily, weekly, or monthly frequency, and so on.
✧ Scheme: 4 different backup schemes are supported. Delete old backups to free up disk space while keeping the latest backup versions (available on Qiling Disk Master Professional at least).
Step 5. After finishing all the settings, click Proceed.
♦ What if none of the above solutions resolve Windows 11 BSOD error
If the black screen of Windows 11 cannot be solved by the above methods, you can use Qiling Disk Master to perform a Universal Restore. You just need to find a working Windows 11 computer and create a system image backup and restore it to your computer.
Note✍: Remember to tick the Universal Restore feature while restoring system image created on different hardware ((available in higher edition).
After reading this article, the error of Windows 11 black screen after update will not appear. However finding the cause of this error can be tedious. The easiest is to use Qiling Disk Master to back up your computer in advance. No matter what happens, you can restore your computer to a working state by this backup.
If you are still troubled by the At the same time, it is the best alternative to If you are still troubled by the Windows 11 reset not working error, this software can also help you.