Help with BSOD

Bratey · February 23, 2020

Hello everyone, I’m in dire need of assistance. I have received a BSOD critical process died error on startup for windows, I have spent the past 5 hours trying to find a solution that would work but alas no luck. If it helps to find my solution, it happened after I took one of my RAM sticks out and put it back in, I’ve tried to figure out what to do and I can’t find anything on how to fix this problem that I haven’t tried yet.

Dedayog · February 23, 2020

What is the exact BSOD error message?

Did you try to reseat the RAM again to see if you put it in wrong?

lafrente · February 23, 2020

You don't need to look for a solution because its right there. If you removing the ram is the only variable then that caused the problem. Remove the ram and try with 1 stick. If it persist, move the ram to the other slot and try again.

Bratey · February 24, 2020

9 hours ago, jstudrawa said:

What is the exact BSOD error message?

Did you try to reseat the RAM again to see if you put it in wrong?

I assume the stop code is the error message if so then here it is, Stop code: Critical Process Died, I tried reseating the RAM, I tried with only one of the RAM sticks, I moved them around, I tried a decent amount of stuff to do with the RAM and the error persists.

Secame · February 24, 2020

21 minutes ago, Bratey said:

I assume the stop code is the error message

It can be, but often there will also be an alphanumeric code, looking something like this: 0x00000EF or 0xc0000359. If you get one that could be helpful, if not that's fine.
Was there any reason you were reseating your RAM? If you were looking to fix another issue, it may be relevant to the current issue.

Check if your ram didn't get dirty and all the pins/contacts look fine. You could try cleaning it with 99% isopropyl alcohol to be safe (careful, can dissolve the glue from the stickers lol) or an oldschool method I used to see is using an eraser to rub off grime. Check the slots too. Make sure the RAM is really seated correctly, it should be all the way in, it's not uncommon for it to require some force, and the mechanism on many boards will give an audible click. You can usually tell by the position of the release switch/hinge.

Finally, most motherboards actually have a preferred slot for RAM, check your mobo manual for yours. It can work without, and you can definitely test different configurations, but there definitely is a "best" one.

Check if you may have disconnected or unseated anything else while working on the RAM. Many boards will have some power cables near it, as well as USB and Sata (hard drive), though yours may vary. If you disconnected the power or a harddrive, it could prevent you from booting. Other things could too, these are just nearby and likely.