Microsoft’s Blue Screen of Death could go green or black

Microsoft is previewing a new, redesigned version of its infamous ‘Blue Screen of Death’ (BSOD) page that shows up when users run into technical problems, according to a company blog post.

The announcement came as part of Microsoft’s launch of the Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 26120.3653 (Beta Channel).

“We’re previewing a new, more streamlined UI for unexpected restarts which better aligns with Windows 11 design principles and supports our goal of getting users back into productivity as fast as possible. We’ve simplified your experience while preserving the technical information on the screen,” stated Microsoft in a blog post.

The company reminded users that Windows Insiders would see a “green screen”. However, tech outlet The Verge reported that users might get a black or a blue screen after deployment.

Microsoft’s Blue Screen of Death was instantly recognisable to users world over, along with the iconic, sad-faced “:(“ symbol that displayed on the screen.

The new, dark green screen is largely plain and displays the sentence, “Your device ran into a problem and needs to restart,” followed by a percentage counter that shows how close to completion the user is. Error details are provided at the bottom of the screen.

The update is rolling out to Windows Insiders on Windows 11, version 24H2 and higher in the Beta, Dev, and Canary Channels, per the company.