I factory-reset my PC, but Windows had trouble completing updates and downloads. Resetting the BIOS seemed to help, so I installed Windows from a USB drive. After reaching the desktop, the computer began freezing completely, requiring a hard shutdown with the physical power button. It also randomly restarts and sometimes boots to a blue recovery screen showing error code 0xc0000001. The problems were happening even before the BIOS reset, although downloading or installing things seems to make them occur sooner. The PC remains stable while I'm in the BIOS. What hardware or BIOS settings should I check, and how can I determine whether the Windows installation or a component is faulty?
3 Answers
The Windows installer USB or the downloaded installation files could be corrupted, so recreating the installer on a different USB drive is worth trying. Before reinstalling, reset the BIOS to its default settings and avoid enabling overclocks or memory profiles. If the machine still freezes during a clean installation or while running a Linux live environment, Windows is probably not the root cause.
Missing or incorrect drivers could be involved, but the fact that it stays stable in the BIOS points more toward something that only fails under an operating-system workload. Try booting from a Linux live USB if possible. If Linux also freezes, that strongly suggests hardware trouble; if it runs normally, focus on the Windows installation, drivers, and BIOS settings. Also review anything changed in the BIOS, especially Secure Boot, boot mode, storage-controller mode, memory settings, and overclocking. Load optimized defaults before changing settings again.
Since the system is stable in the BIOS but becomes less reliable when downloading or installing files, check the hardware that handles sustained activity. Reseat the RAM, graphics card, power connectors, and storage drive, then test with only one RAM stick at a time if you have multiple sticks. A failing SSD, unstable memory, overheating, or a power-supply problem can all cause freezes and unexpected restarts. The recovery code by itself doesn’t identify one specific failed part.
I’m not sure what was changed in the BIOS because someone else reset it, and the freezing had already started before that. Secure Boot also seemed to have a problem when we tried enabling it. I don’t currently have another usable USB drive, so I’ll need to get one before testing Linux.