How to Resolve IT Issues Caused by the CrowdStrike Global Outage Update  

Many Microsoft Windows users are experiencing problems because of a bug in CrowdStrike’s cybersecurity software, which has impacted businesses worldwide. However, CrowdStrike has issued a fix, and both Microsoft and CrowdStrike have suggested methods to work around the issue.

Key Facts

Some Windows users are encountering the dreaded “Blue Screen of Death” (BSOD) when trying to use their computers. This issue arose after a software update to CrowdStrike’s Falcon platform caused a global bug. The update affected systems by crashing them, making them unusable.

CrowdStrike has acknowledged the problem and deployed a fix. However, according to CrowdStrike CEO George Kurtz, it might take some time for all systems to recover, especially those that do not automatically recover on their own. Kurtz shared these details during an interview on NBC’s “Today” show.

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How to Fix the CrowdStrike Issue

Kurtz mentioned that some users have been able to resolve the problem simply by rebooting their computers. However, if the issue persists, CrowdStrike has provided a manual workaround for the blue screen error. This involves booting the system into Safe Mode or the Windows Recovery Environment. 

Once in Safe Mode, users need to navigate to the C:\Windows\System32\drivers\CrowdStrike directory and delete the file titled “C-00000291*.sys.” This process essentially puts the system into a mode where CrowdStrike and other third-party drivers are disabled, which should resolve the blue screen issue.

Will Restarting Your Computer 15 Times Work?

According to Microsoft, some customers using its Azure cloud service were able to fix their computers by rebooting the systems up to 15 times. This repetitive rebooting seems to help the system recover from the crash. Amazon has also suggested that rebooting might resolve the issue for customers using its AWS cloud software.

Expert Opinion

Brian Honan, the founder of Ireland’s Computer Emergency Response Team, told Forbes that these fixes require manual intervention on each impacted device. This could lead to a prolonged recovery time since each device needs to be addressed individually.

Affected Companies

The outage has had widespread repercussions, affecting companies and government agencies across the globe. It has caused thousands of flight delays and cancellations, forced hospitals to cancel elective procedures, suspended servers at fast food restaurants, and even caused 911 services in multiple states to go down. Fortunately, all 911 services have now been restored, but the impact highlights the severity of the issue.

While CrowdStrike has provided a fix for the global outage caused by its software update, users may need to take specific steps to resolve the issue on their own systems. Rebooting the computer or following the manual workaround can help, but the recovery process may take some time for all affected devices.