All BSOD errors can be a headache to deal with. BSOD or Blue Screen of Death errors are the nasties and peskiest bugs that you can come across in the Windows 10 ecosystem. DPC_WATCHDOG_VIOLATION error is one of the most annoying BSOD bugs.
For the most part, you don’t know what went wrong and why it went wrong. If you don’t know the IT trade well, it can take up a better part of your day only to get your head around why the problem is occurring, let alone fix it.
Windows does provide you with an error code, which upon Googling, lands you in a dark forest of technical gibberish where 2+2 = 5 to the average joe.
Fret not and kick away all your anxiety! We have you covered with this extensive guide in which we take a deep dive into How you can fix DPC Watchdog violation in Windows 10, What is DPC Watchdog violation and Why it happens.
If you just want your PC to be fixed as soon as possible, below are probable fixes to terminate this error; if you wish to indulge further, do read through the entire length of the article.
How to Fix DPC Watchdog Violation in Windows?
DPC Watchdog violation can be caused by faults in both Hardware and Software. It’s hard to pin down the exact reason but, we provide you with a broad scope of possible solutions with the highest success rate.
In this guide, we walk you through a rundown of 7 approaches you can take to try and fix the error. The list is arranged in order from effective and quickest to more-time consuming solutions.
First, we deal with the Hardware aspect:
Solution 1: Remove and Reinstall all Storage Devices
Yes, it can be as easy as that. Sometimes, simply unplugging and replugging the storage devices( SSD, Hard Disk, NVMe, so on) fixes the issue. Loose wiring? Entangled connections? Nobody knows why but it works and that’s all that matters.
Solution 2: Remove , Clean and Reinstall your RAM
Sometimes, your RAM module can get dirty or moist if not cleaned properly from time to time. It causes various sorts of errors and performance issues which at first might mislead you into believing there’s a big issue with your system.
In reality, all it takes to fix all the issues in your system is to remove your RAM module, clean it with a clean eraser then pop it back into another DIMM slot. This will also clarify if your RAM or the DIMM slot is faulty.
Now, we look at the Software aspect:
Solution 3: Update SATA AHCI Controller Drivers
Outdated drivers are a well-known and most common cause of all sorts of BSOD. The most effective solution as per reports of a wide range of users is updating the SATA AHCI Controller Drivers.
In layman’s, these are the drivers that help the Operating System in communicating with storage devices in your system say, your Hard Disk, SSD, and so on.
1. Press Win + X and click on Device Manager. Alternatively, use the search function to find and fire up Device Manager.
2. Don’t be startled by the interface, we’ll light the way. Click and expand IDE ATA/ATAPI Controllers.
3. Right-click the SATA AHCI controller and click on Properties.
4. Navigate to the Driver tab there click on Update Driver. You will be prompted with a window asking about how you want to search for the drivers.
5. Click on Browse my computer for driver software.
6. A new window will appear where you will be asked to locate the driver. Click on ” Let me pick from a list of device drivers on my computer “.
7. Click on the Standard SATA AHCI Controller checkbox, then click on Next. Further, carry on with the rest of the procedure as instructed and finish it to successfully update your SATA AHCI Drivers.
After you are done with it, reboot your computer for the changes to take effect.
Solution 4: Update the Firmware of your SSD
In the present times, the growth of demand for SSD has matured quite a bit due to their high data Read-Write speeds and compact form factor. A lot of users are using SSD over an HDD as their primary data storage device.
Did you know that unsupported and outdated firmware in your SSD could cause DPC watchdog violation?
Here’s how to update the firmware of your SSD to fix DPC watchdog violation in Windows:
1. Fire up the Device Manager again. Refer to the first step of the previous solution to know how to do it.
2. Click and expand the Disk Drives.
3. Note down the model number of your SSD that is listed under the Disk Drives.
4. Head over to the SSD manufacturer’s site and search for the latest version of the firmware.
Alternatively, a simple Google search, for instance, ” BrandName SSD firmware driver download ” will land you the sites you need to visit.
5. Needless to say, download and install the drivers, reboot your computer for changes to take effect.
Solution 5: Check for Disk Errors using CHKDSK
After updating your drivers, you should perform an additional Hard Drive health checkup. There is no need to download any third-party software in order to do so.
Windows 10 has an inbuilt utility that checks for hard disk health and errors and tries to repair them. It’s called the chkdsk utility.
CHKDSK is a command line(it runs on the terminal or command prompt) utility that automatically checks for disk errors and attempts to fix them.
1. Fire up the command prompt. Press: Win+R, enter CMD and hit enter.
2. Type in chkdsk c: /f . This command checks for errors in the C drive. If you want to check for errors in any particular drive, just replace “c” with the letter of the drive.
Alternatively, you can also use the chkdsk /f /r command. It locates bad sectors of the drive and attempts to fix them.
3. Type in Y and hit enter. The process will start and may take up to 5 minutes.
Solution 6: Scan for errors in the system using SFC SCANNOW
Corrupted or damaged files can also be a potential trigger for DPC Watchdog violation errors. This is especially common after a failed Windows update.
To check for errors in the system, follow this:
1. Fire up an elevated command prompt with administrator privileges.
2. Run the SFC check with the sfc /scannow command and hit enter.
This process looks for errors in your system files thus, could take quite a bit of time. Make sure to have your coffee by your side when you start this.
After this process finishes repairing the errors, reboot your system.
We are sure that at least one of the above-listed solutions will resolve all your issues. However, if the error still persists, there’s still a way; much like Yoda prophesied “There is another”.
However, it’s the last resort hence, we avoided listing it beforehand.
Solution 7: Reset Windows Or Perform a Clean Install
If at all none of the solutions seem to bear fruit to your hard work, well, then it’s time to restore windows to an earlier version or perform a clean installation.
To restore Windows to an earlier version refer to this official Windows Article.
To perform a clean installation, download this official windows 10 installer.
If you have read till here, kudos to you for you are now equipped with ways to tackle this problem.
If you want to further feed your curiosity, let’s have a look at what the DPC Watchdog Violation issue is in the first place.
What is DPC Watchdog Violation in Windows?
Many users who encounter this error are left perplexed and unaware of its implications. To begin with, DPC is an abbreviation for Deferred Procedure Call.
Watchdog is an inbuilt bug-checker in Windows that monitors or track your Windows programmes, telemetry as well as the performance of your computer.
Many factors can cause the DPC watchdog violation blue screen of death error. It cannot really be pinpointed without experimenting with different solutions.
The blue screen of death problem may appear multiple times throughout the day. If you encounter this error frequently while working, it is bound to leave a significant dent in your productivity.
So, the best course of action in this scenario is to identify the causes and eliminate them which, if you read till here, are already dealt with.
Cause of DPC Watchdog Violation in Windows
Various factors can trigger DPC watchdog violations, including old and outdated drivers, unsupported firmware, software and hardware incompatibilities, and so on. Here are a few common causes for you to refer to.
1. Your system software or hardware is outdated, misconfigured or installed incorrectly.
2. You have a faulty RAM, Hard Disk or SSD.
3. Your Operating system is incompatible with freshly installed peripherals.
4. Two software are incompatible with each other and are clashing upon being run parallelly.
5. Your SSD firmware version is outdated.
6. Corrupted system files.
7. Failed or misconfigured Windows update.
End Note
That’s all for this guide. We all have been there and faced a BSOD in our lifetime as Windows users, it can cause you a bad headache and irritation.
We hope that the above listed 7 Solutions were useful to resolving your situation and freeing you of this burden. Have any queries? Comment down below or Leave a thanks if it helped!