Infrequently, but still on the Internet you can find posts screaming for help from those users who have personally experienced the appearance of Windows 10 error VIDEO_TDR_FAILURE. To fix such a failure, if the blue screen that appears as a result of its occurrence disappears after a certain period of time, it can be quite simple. But sometimes it happens that when the system boots at a certain stage, it freezes, which leads to the fact that even the “Desktop” does not appear on the screen of a stationary computer or laptop at all. What is the reason for such a failure?
Causes of VIDEO_TDR_FAILURE Error in Windows 10
To accurately identify the problem that has arisen, the first thing you need to do is look at the stop code and the system components specified in the description that caused the failure. As a rule, they are presented in the form of system files of the SYS format, which are related to graphics accelerator drivers. That is, the failure occurs at the level of interaction between the kernel of the operating system and the software responsible for the operation of the video card. If anyone does not know, at the stage of loading the OS, the graphics adapter plays one of the most important roles, providing information on the screen. If something happens to him (either it breaks, or the drivers “fly off”), respectively, and the operating system cannot start correctly.
The main types of failed components
But this is not so simple, since in some cases the decryption of the code indicating the failed element may have a different description. For example, the nvlddmkm component in the "VIDEO_TDR_FAILURE" Windows 10 error indicates a problem with the NVIDIA graphics chips, atikmapg refers to ATI Radeon cards, igdkmd corresponds to Intel integrated accelerators.
Very often, many computers and laptops are equipped with not one, but two graphics accelerators. One is integrated ("wired" into the system board), and the second is discrete. In such a situation, the elimination of the problem is greatly simplified.
Preliminary Actions
So, suppose that the system boot does not turn on (the “VIDEO_TDR_FAILURE” error in Windows 10 appears just at the start of the OS, but the blue screen does not disappear).
In this case, you can use the simplest solution, which, when you turn on your PC or laptop, first go to the settings of the primary system (BIOS / UEFI), find the parameters of graphics accelerators in it and switch from a discrete card to an integrated one (in the system the start will correspond to the basic Microsoft video adapter). After saving the exposed options and automatically rebooting, which usually happens in normal mode, you can begin to troubleshoot problems with the main adapter, which was temporarily disabled.
Removing failed drivers
Having found out that the error code VIDEO_TDR_FAILURE Windows 10 (0x00000116) corresponds to failed drivers of a discrete video card (for example, NVIDIA), in order to correct the failure, you must first remove the original driver. In principle, this can be done from the most common “Device Manager” or from the programs and components section, however, the operating system can instantly inform that new equipment has been found and install its own control software for it.
To prevent this, first turn off the graphics adapter using the PCM menu on the selected device, and then remove the drivers using the special Display Driver Uninstaller utility or using uninstallation programs like iObit Uninstaller. But the option of removing drivers from the programs and components section or using general-purpose uninstallers is applicable only if the control software is presented as a separate application and is displayed in the list of installed programs.
Search and install new drivers
Now, in order to completely get rid of the possible appearance of the VIDEO_TDR_FAILURE error in Windows 10, you need to install new drivers, which are highly recommended to be downloaded exclusively from the official website of the video card manufacturer.
If it is problematic to find the appropriate software by the model name, use the information tab in the equipment properties section of the “Device Manager”, copy the VEN and DEV identifiers, and then search for the most appropriate software based on this information.
Note: usually the installer comes in the form of an EXE file that must be run as administrator. In the case of INF-format objects, use the installation point via RMB, and if it is reported that this installation is not supported, update the driver through the appropriate RMB menu item in the Device Manager, either by automatically searching for drivers on the local computer, or by indicating their location on drive through the browse function.
Installing system updates and automatically fixing problems
Sometimes the VIDEO_TDR_FAILURE error in Windows 10 may appear not because of a failure of the "native" drivers, but after updating the system components themselves, which has been observed very often lately (especially after the October update). In such a situation, the best option would be to manually search for updates through the "Update Center" or to download the KV2665946 package independently, followed by integration into the system. According to experts at Microsoft, this update is designed to fix the problems described type.
Also, to get rid of the constant occurrence of the VIDEO_TDR_FAILURE error in Windows 10, you can use an automated troubleshooting utility called Fix It, which is available on the official Microsoft website for free access.
Registry Manipulation
A good way to eliminate the described failure is to manually set the timeout to restore the video card when the system boots. The above update is partially intended for this. However, you can perform this operation yourself.
To do this, go to the registry (regedit), in the HKLM branch, through the SYSTEM section, find the GaraphicDrivers directory, and then create a new DWORD or QWORD parameter (for 32 and 64 bit systems, respectively) with the name TdrDealy, assigning it a value of 8 (without such a key, the system uses a timeout of 2 seconds).
Windows 10 error VIDEO_TDR_FAILURE: "Desktop" does not start. What can be done?
If no action helps, or you just cannot boot the system in normal mode, try starting in Safe Mode (safe start mode). However, if you didn’t initially have the Legacy Boot boot enabled, which allows you to start the start menu for selecting an action by pressing the F8 key, you will have to use removable media with an installation distribution kit or boot disks like LiveCD.
Alternatively, if you used overclocking the video card, after starting the system, set the factory default settings for it, and use the balanced mode in the power scheme, and not high performance.
Note: if it is impossible to start the system normally, it may be necessary to boot from removable media and then rename the old drivers and copy new components to the hard drive.
What if nothing helps?
If nothing works at all, it seems that viruses have entered your system (some of them can directly affect the drivers of graphics accelerators). It is recommended to scan your computer for threats if Windows cannot start, using bootable media with the Kaspersky Rescue Disk utility recorded on them.