The Fix for "System Thread Exception Not Handled" Error on Windows 10

Most of the time, when you press the power button on your computer tower or laptop, the computer should power up and load up without error. For those using Windows 10 computers who are unaware of what device drivers are or how to update them, they may be met with a blue screen of death instead. You may see the infamous blue screen of death immediately after booting up your computer or it may take ten to fifteen seconds before it runs into the error. System_thread_exception_not_handled is commonly seen on boot up, and it can get your computer stuck in a reboot loop, preventing you from using the computer at all. We will examine the meaning of this code, when it occurs, why it occurs, and 5 methods for fixing it in this article.

What does the “System Thread Exception Not Handled” error mean?

An error "system_thread_exception_not_handled" indicates that a system thread has generated an exception for an error that was not captured by the handler. It failed to detect and fix the error, resulting in a blue screen of death, causing the computer to try and collect information about the error. Typically, this stop code is accompanied by the following numbers: 0x0000007E, 0x1000007E, or if you are lucky, by the file name of the error, such as: atikmdag.sys, nvlddmkm.sys, igdkmd64.sys, etc. The computer almost always reboots with this error, forcing you to use safe mode to fix it.

When and why does it occur?

The “system_thread_exception_not_handled” error primarily occurs when you boot the computer up from shutdown or on restart. There is no way to prevent it from appearing occasionally, however, and it is known to occur when the user is running a program that requires specific graphics drivers. The error is usually caused by outdated, corrupted, or incorrect graphics drivers installed on the computer (most commonly graphic drivers). You can encounter the "system_thread_exception_not_handled" problem on Windows 10 if graphic drivers are manipulated by malware or incorrectly installed.

The error code comes with a file name: What Does It Mean?

You might be lucky enough to find a file name associated with the "system_thread_exception_not_handled" error code, which indicates which graphic driver is causing the issue. You will be able to fix the error completely if you update or repair this graphic driver. The following files usually accompany this BSOD error.

Atikmdag.sys - This graphic driver comes from the ATI Radeon series, which is connected to your video card. Your AMD graphics card is out of date or incorrectly installed if you have it installed in your computer.

Nvlddmkm.sys - This graphic driver is for the Nvidia Windows kernel driver and is associated with your Nvidia graphics card. The drivers for your Nvidia graphics card may be out of date or incorrectly installed if you have this installed.

Your DirectX drivers are associated with this file, Dxgmms2.sys.

Ntfs.sys – this is for the Windows NT Server.

Broadcom 802.11 Network Adaptor Bcmwl63a.sys. Broadcom Corporation develops a wireless driver for this adaptor. You will likely get the "system_thread_exception_not_handled" error if this is installed incorrectly or outdated.

CMUDA.sys - this is the USB audio driver.

If you encounter any of the above when the error occurs, you will need to uninstall the program and reinstall it or update the driver. To find out which driver is having a problem, you will need to search online for the file name of the system file attached with the error code. The error might not appear in any system file, so you will need to update all major drivers on your computer, including network, LAN, wireless, sound and audio, and display drivers (graphics).

How to Boot Into Safe Mode on Windows 10?

To break the reboot loop that is inevitably stuck on your computer, you need to boot into safe mode. We are going to boot you into Windows Recovery Environment (winRE) prior to safe mode because it is likely that you cannot access your settings.

Press and hold the power button for at least 10 seconds to turn off your computer. To turn it back on, press the power button once again after it has been turned off.
Once Windows starts (like the logo), hold down the power button for 10 seconds to turn it off again. When Windows starts again, press the power button.
If your device does not fully restart, try restarting it again.

You will want to choose "Troubleshoot" from the list to get to safe mode from winRE. Choose "Advanced options," "Startup settings," and "restart". A list of options will appear after your computer restarts. Press F5 to access Safe Mode with Networking.

5 Ways to Fix "System Thread Exception Not Handled" on Windows 10

1. Find out which driver is faulty

You can do this in several ways, but the easiest is to check the system log, which tracks events. You can do this by opening the event viewer.

Hit the Windows key + R on your keyboard to bring up the "run" dialogue box.
Enter "eventvwr" into the box and click OK.
Click the drop-down menu next to "Windows logs".
To view all recent events, click "system" in the drop-down menu.
See which driver is causing the "system_thread_exception_not_handled" error.

2. Reinstall, roll back, or update your drivers

To fix incompatible drivers, you can update them, roll them back to the previous version, or reinstall them if you have the most recent version. If you want to access your device manager, either type "device manager" into your computer's search or hit the Windows key + X and select "device manager".

Your drivers can be updated by right-clicking on every piece of hardware that has a driver and choosing "Update Driver.". Examples include disk drives, audio devices, network adapters, sound devices, and display adapters. If you click "update driver," it will automatically search for the most recent update.

If you want to roll back your drivers, go through your device list and right-click on each piece of hardware that has a driver, then select "properties". Afterwards, click on the "roll back" option under the "driver" tab. Be sure to click yes!

In order to reinstall a driver, you must first uninstall the device. You will then need to navigate to the device manufacturer’s website, find your device there, and download the appropriate driver and install it manually.

3. Rename the faulty driver

Windows will fetch a new copy of the driver automatically if you rename the file associated with the "system_thread_exception_not_handled" error code to something else. You must first determine which hard drive the driver is installed on.

You can find the command prompt app by searching for "command prompt" or by typing "cmd" in the computer's search bar.

Type into the command prompt box, C: (hit enter) cd windows\system32\drivers (hit enter) ren FILENAME.sys FILENAME.old (replace filename here with the faulty driver file listed with the error code).

Then type “exit” and restart the computer.

4. Make sure your system files are repaired

By running Windows repair programs, SFC and DISM, you can repair corrupted system files that are affecting your device drivers.

Run SFC as an administrator by opening the command prompt. In safe mode, the command prompt appears under the "advanced options" section.

Press the Enter key and type in "sfc /scannow". A new set of system files will be created.

If you experience an error when trying to run SFC /Scannow, please read our article on how to fix “Windows Resource Protection Could Not Perform The Requested Operation“.

If the problem persists after running SFC, you can run DISM to restore the “health” of your computer.

Open up the command prompt as administrator and type in the following one by one.
Exe /Online /Cleanup-image /Scanhealth
Exe /Online /Cleanup-image /Restorehealth

5. Restore your PC to an earlier version

You can restore your computer system to a previous point in time when you weren't receiving the "system_thread_exception_not_handled" error code. However, you will need either a Windows system repair disc or a recovery drive to do this.

Choose your language preference and insert the system repair disc into the computer.
Choose the troubleshoot, advanced options option under the repair option.
You will then be prompted to choose system restore.

If you still receive the error after completing all five of the above methods, you may want to consider a clean reinstall of your operating system. If you do a complete wipe and reinstall of the operating system, you will be returned to factory settings, so to speak, and you will have to update your operating system and update all of the basic drivers.

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