Microsoft Retires Iconic Blue Screen of Death, Unveils Black Restart Screen for Windows 11

Microsoft is replacing its iconic “blue screen of death” with a new black restart screen as part of Windows 11,  24-H2 updates, aiming to “streamline the unexpected restart experience.” Launching this summer, the new screen is designed to align with Windows 11’s aesthetic while reducing downtime to two seconds for most users. The blue screen, dating back to the early 1990s, became a symbol of system crashes, notably flooding devices worldwide during a faulty CrowdStrike update in July 2024. Microsoft says the change is part of broader efforts to reduce disruption for users during unexpected restarts while modernizing the recovery experience on Windows devices.