The infamous Blue Screen of Death is a rite of passage among PC users, the tell-tale sign that something Bad is happening. But the BSOD in Windows 11 is all-black instead of using the historically standard blue background. Apparently someone at Microsoft was feeling nostalgic: A forthcoming update will change it back to the classic blue hue.
The all-blue error message after an OS crash has been a part of Windows since pre-release versions of 1.0 in the ’80s, though it’s become more useful with error codes and QR codes that (at least sometimes) lead to online help. Some late cosmetic changes to Windows 11 shifted the BSOD to a black background this summer, though the background of the QR codes oddly remained blue.
Ars Technica spotted the change back to classic blue in the release notes for Windows 11 build 22000.346, currently in the Release Preview Channel. It’ll hit PCs for Windows Insiders first, then come to the rest of Windows 11 users a few weeks later. It’s not as if anyone ever seeks out a Blue Screen of Death, but now when they see one, maybe it’ll be a little more comforting.
Michael is a former graphic designer who’s been building and tweaking desktop computers for longer than he cares to admit. His interests include folk music, football, science fiction, and salsa verde, in no particular order.
