Atapi.sys Blue Screen Error: Here Are Some Solutions!

Some people report that they encounter the atapi.sys blue screen error while trying to open their Windows PC or run any applications on their PC. This error bothers them a lot as it delays the process of their work and study.

Have you also encountered the same error? Do you know how to fix it? This post provides the causes of the atapi.sys blue screen error and how to fix it.

Common Causes of Atapi.sys Blue Screen Error

After investigating extensive user reports and posts, I find that the atapi.sys BSOD mainly occurs on Windows XP, Windows 7, and Windows 10. Here are the common causes of the atapi.sys BSOD error:

• Outdated or incompatible device drivers.
• Wrongly configured or damaged MSDN Disc 5 device drivers.
• Malware or virus infections.
• Hardware issues.
• Registry errors.
• RAM corruption.
• Corrupted or damaged hard disk.
• The Atapi.sys file gets misplaced or removed.

How to Fix the Atapi.sys Blue Screen Error?

How to fix the atapi.sys blue screen error? In this section, I summarize 10 practical solutions to help you get rid of the atapi errors.

Solution 1. Update Windows & Drivers

Outdated Windows and drivers can cause the atapi.sys blue screen error easily. In this case, you can try updating Windows and drivers to fix the error. To update Windows 10, you just need to go to Settings > Update & Security > Windows Update, and click Check for updates.

After updating Windows to the latest version if you also encounter the atapi.sys BSOD error, you can try following the guide in this post How to Update Device Drivers Windows 10 (2 Ways) to update drivers to fix the error.

Solution 2. Rollback your Device Drivers

If updating Windows and drivers to the latest version is unable to help you fix the atapi.sys blue screen error, you can try rolling back the driver to fix the error. To do that, you can refer to this post: How to Roll Back a Driver in Windows? A Step-by-Step Guide.

Solution 3. Scan for Virus

Viruses and malware infections on your PC can also cause the atapi.sys blue screen error. In this case, you can try to run a full scan for the virus to fix the error. Here’s how to do it:

For Windows 7:

1. Click on Start icon and type “windows defender” in the search box.
2. Select Windows Defender from the search results.
3. In the pop-up window, click the down arrow beside Scan, and select Full scan from the menu.

For Windows 10:

1. Press the Win + S to open the Search window.
2. Type “virus & threats protection” and click Open in the right pane.
3. In the pop-up window, click Scan options, and then choose Full scan.
4. After that, click Scan now.

Solution 4. Disable the Third-Party Antivirus

Sometimes, the third-party antivirus may wrongly block the essential programs of your PC and then result in the atapi.sys blue screen error. In this case, you can try disabling the third-party antivirus to fix the error.

Solution 5. Run the SFC and DISM

Corrupted system files can also cause the atapi.sys blue screen error. You can try running the SFC and DISM to fix the error in this situation. Here’s the way:

Step 1. Open the Search window. Type “cmd” in the search box, right-click Command Prompt under Best Match, and then select Run as administrator.

Step 2. In the elevated Command Prompt window, type “sfc /scannow” and press Enter.

Step 3. Once the process is complete, restart your PC and check if the error has been resolved. If not, pro If not, proceed by initiating a DISM scan. Here are the DISM commands:

• DISM.exe /Online /Cleanup-image /Scanhealth
• DISM.exe /Online /Cleanup-image /Checkhealth
• DISM.exe /Online /Cleanup-image /Restorehealth

Solution 6. Check Disk Errors

Corrupted or damaged hard disk may also cause the atapi.sys blue screen error. So, you can run CHKDSK to check if there are disk errors. However, some people may encounter errors when running the CHKDSK. If you also encounter errors when running CHKDSK, you can use MiniTool Partition Wizard as an alternative.

It provides the Check File System feature to help you check and fix disk errors, and the Surface Test feature to help you scan bad sectors on disk. In addition, this feature-rich tool can also help you format SD card FAT32, convert MBR to GPT, recover data from hard drive, and so on.

MiniTool Partition Wizard FreeClick to Download100%Clean & Safe

Solution 7. Run a Memory Test

RAM corruption is also one of the reasons for the atapi.sys BSOD error. So, you can also try running a memory test to check for any issues with your RAM. To run a memory test, follow these steps:

Step 1. Press the Win + R keys to open the Run window, type “mdsched.exe” in the box, and then press Enter.

Step 2. Select Restart now and check for problems (recommended) in the Windows Memory Diagnostic window.

Step 3. Then, your PC will restart and the test will begin. The test will run automatically and may take several minutes to complete.

Solution 8. Boot your System with Necessary Hardware

Hardware issues can also cause the atapi.sys BSOD error. So, you can try booting your system with the minimum hardware which is necessary to run the operating system to find out the culprit. After finding it out, you can remove or replace it to fix the error.

Solution 9. Try a System Restore

If you have created a system restore point, you can use it to revert your system to a previous state. After the system is restored, the atapi.sys BSOD error may be fixed successfully. If you don’t know how to run a system restore, you can refer to this post: How to Restore Computer to Earlier Date in Win10/8/7 (2 Ways).

Have A Try Now

Here comes the end of the post. It provides 10 useful solutions to fix the atapi.sys BSOD error. You can try these solutions one by one until you solve the atapi.sys blue screen error on your PC successfully.