If you need to fix dxgkrnl.sys blue screen of death on PC or Laptop, the instructions from this article may help.
Basically, This driver dxgkrnl.sys is related to the Microsoft DirectX. This is a feature that is used to provide hardware acceleration for games, HD videos, and 3D tasks. Users encounter this BSOD mainly because of the graphics card driver problem. However, Other things also can play a role here including physical damage to any hardware. So, Fixing dxgkrnl.sys blue screen error can be tricky but not impossible.
In fact, In many cases, you may not see the driver name dxgkrnl.sys on the blue screen. Instead, you will see some BSOD error codes or names. It includes critical process died, system service exception, driver IRQL not less or equal, KMOD exception not handled, thread stuck in the device driver, etc. After analyzing memory dump, you may be able to know that the dxgkrnl.sys is causing the BSOD.
In fact, dxgkrnl.sys doesn’t cause the BSOD by itself. Sometimes something may make this driver fail. As a result, you face the stop code error. However, whatever causes the problem is not the matter. You just have to fix the problem. So, You are here.
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How to Fix dxgkrnl.sys Blue Screen of Death on Windows 10
When you find any BSOD is related to this dxgkrnl.sys, you can take some very effective initiatives. Any of these should fix the problem. Here are the best methods you can try.
1. Update Graphics Card and Other Drivers
Updating the graphics card should be the best solution to fix dxgkrnl.sys blue screen of death. As the problem is mostly related to the graphics card whatever you have NVIDIA, AMD or Intel, it has a good chance that it will work. You also should update all the drivers. However, If you don’t know the way to update drivers. Here are the instructions:
Automatic Update:
There are some tools like Driver Booster, Driver Easy, Driver Genius, etc. These tools can update all of the drivers by a single click. Also, they can regularly check for the update and do it automatically.
Manual Update:
If you don’t want to use these tools, you also can do it. However, To update all the drivers, you will have to do it one by one. Here are steps.
- At first, Open the start menu, type devmgmt.msc and hit enter. It will open the Windows Device Manager.
- Now, Right-click on any of the drivers you wish to update for example the graphics card. You can find it by expanding Display Adapters.
- After right, click choose update driver.
- Then, Follow the onscreen instructions.
- After updating, restart your PC.
Now, See If it has fixed the dxgkrnl.sys related BSOD or not.
2. DirectX Diagnostic Tool
The DirectX diagnostic tool that comes as a built-in feature with all Windows is a great tool indeed. It helps to identify DirectX related problems and reasons. So, You can use it to troubleshoot the dxgkrnl.sys BSOD. Here are the instructions to run it.
- At first, Open the start menu, type dxdiag and hit enter. It will open the DirectX Diagnostic Tool.
- Now, It will automatically scan for problems. Just, Navigate to the tabs to see if everything is OK or not.
One of the most common problems users face is DirectDraw/Direct3D/AGP Texture Acceleration is not enabled. If this is the case, read: How to Fix DirectDraw and Direct3D Acceleration not Available
3. Reinstall Graphics Driver
To fix dxgkrnl.sys blue screen, reinstalling graphics card can be another great method. In many cases, It may solve the problem. However, If you don’t know how to re-install graphics card, you can follow the steps given below.
- At first, Open the Windows Device Manager like method 1.
- Now, Expand the expand the Display Adapters.
- Then, Right-click on the graphics driver and choose Uninstall Device.
- Follow the on-screen instructions to complete the uninstall process.
For safety, you can restart your computer now. Then, You can do following things.
- Now, You can use any of these third-party driver updaters I have mentioned in method 1 to install the Graphics card driver.
If you don’t want to use them, you also can do it manually. In this case, you can do the following steps.
- Follow any of the links given below to download the graphics card driver.
- To download the latest NVIDIA Driver, follow this link: http://www.nvidia.com/Download/index.aspx
- For AMD, follow this one: https://support.amd.com/en-us/download
- For Intel HD Graphics: https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/support/products/80939/graphics-drivers.html
- After that, install the driver and restart your computer.
Hopefully, It will fix the dxgkrnl.sys related BSOD.
4. Run SFC and DISM Commands
System File Checker (SFC) and DISM commands are two popular commands to repair corrupted system components on Microsoft Windows. In case, The driver problem is not case, it is possible that one or more system components are corrupted. As a result, You are having DirectX related BSODs. To learn how to run these commands and apply solutions, read: How to Repair Corrupted System Files
5. Disable SLI in NVIDIA
SLI is a great technology indeed. It allows getting maximum from multiple GPUs installed on your PC. However, According to various users and experts, it may also create a problem if anything goes wrong. So, To fix dxgkrnl.sys blue screen, you can disable it and see if it help.
To Disable SLI in NVIDIA Control Center, please follow these instructions.
- At first, Open the NVIDIA Control Panel.
- Then, Go to 3D Settings.
- Now, Find and select Set SLI Configuration.
- At last, Click on Do not Use SLI Technology.
- Apply and Save the settings.
- Then, Restart your computer.
After that see if it has fixed your problem or not.
6. Turn Off NVIDIA Surround
Another great solution to fix dxgkrnl.sys blue screen is turning off NVIDIA Surround. To do it, from the NVIDIA Control Panel, go to 3D Settings > Configure Surround, PhysX. Now, Turn the NVIDIA Surround off by unchecking it. For more details, I suggest you to got their official website.
7. Update BIOS
In case, the problem still exists on your PC, you can follow this one. If you don’t know the procedure, read: how to update BIOS/UEFI
7. Check for Possible Hardware Failure and Incompatibility
If the above methods fails to fix dxgkrnl.sys blue screen of death, this is the method you should follow. In many cases, a faulty, incompatible or problematic hardware installed on your PC is reponsible behind this type of problem. It can be your GPU or even the power supply. Even, If you are using a high end GPU but using a low capacity PSU, you may have this error. So, I suggest you to check every single details and find out if this is a hardware fault or not.
Basically, These are the most effective ways to fix dxgkrnl.sys blue screen on Windows 10. You may know any better solution. In that case, you can let everyone know in the comment box.
