If you are unlucky enough to be experiencing the DRIVER CORRUPTED EXPOOL Error on Windows 10, you just cannot afford to miss reading this article. This is one of those dreaded blue screen of death errors.
Getting a blue screen of death (BSOD) error is about one of the most irritating things that can happen to a Windows user. I know; I’ve been there. My reaction ranges from throwing my hands up in the air to really wanting to throw my computer out the window!
Luckily, I have never done that. With time and research, I have learned how to deal with the errors. The first thing to do (and I really do know how trying this is) would be to remain calm.
The second thing that you need to do would be to read through this article. In this tutorial, I will go through everything that you will need to know in order to fix this error yourself.
Whatever you do, just do not ignore blue screen of death errors because they are normally just a symptom of something that has seriously gone wrong.
Blue screen of death errors can be caused by a variety of different reasons. That is why there is never just one solution. Unfortunately, because of the nature of these errors, including the one this article tutorial is about, you might need to try out different methods before stumbling into one that would actually fix it for you.
“A lot of the really good features of Windows 10 – things like Windows 10 Hello, where you have facial log in and you don’t have to use all your passwords, the Start screen and your ability to go through that, the touch usages of gaming, as the new games come to this product – those are going to run with PCs that have the latest features”. – Brian Krzanich
But, do not worry. In this article, I will give you all the different potential solutions that I have found out about in my research. There are different ways in which you could approach all the different methods. You could, for example, skim read the whole article and find the method (or methods) that you suspect might tackle what has actually gone wrong (i.e., what is causing the error message and the blue screen of death). You could, instead, follow the methods in the order they are presented here. Or, you could even try them all in a random order. It is entirely up to you.
The important thing is that, no matter what is causing the error on your Windows 10 computer, you should be able to find a solution to it here.
So now, without much further ado, here are the different methods for fixing this annoying error:
Possible Fix Number 1:
Very often, this and other BSOD errors are caused by drivers that have not been updated.
I cannot emphasize strongly enough how important it is to update all your drivers regularly. This simple action can save you from experiencing problems further down the line.
The good news is that it is never too late for updating your Windows drivers. If you are getting the error message this article is about there is a strong chance that you have not updated your Windows drivers for a while. So, you need to do it now!
The first thing that you will need to do is to update Windows by downloading patches from the Windows website. This will take care of part of the problem but it will, most likely, not be enough if you have already encountered this error.
You should update your Windows operating system regularly. And by regularly, I mean that every time that Windows releases a new update, you should download it without any hesitation or delay. Basically, the next time you use your computer, check for updates and install them.
Once you have done that, you will need to update all your drivers. Do not worry if you do not know how to do that, I will show you the detailed steps in a moment. But first, I would like to make clear that this is not just something that you would do once. If you want to avoid future errors, you would need to do the following frequently.
So, here are the steps for this fix:
- Grab your Windows 10 computer.
- Hit the following two keys simultaneously: the Windows key and the X key. This action will open the “Power User Menu”.
- From all the different options on the “Power User Menu” and select “Device Manager”.
- Then, wait for the “Device Manager” to open. Once it does, find the driver that you want to update and right-click on it.
- Next, select the “Update Driver Software…” option. This action will generate an on-screen message with a couple of different options.
- Select the following option: “Search automatically for updated driver software”.
Then follow these steps for every single driver that you would like to update, one by one. Updating Windows from the official Windows website is quicker and easier but many users prefer to update each and every driver manually because it is a more meticulous method.
There are also third party updater tools you can download for free on the Internet. Using one of those tools will save you time but they would automatically check every single driver after just one click. The downside is that you would need to download and install the tool first, and not everybody is comfortable doing this. But it might be worth considering if you want to save yourself some time and some tediousness.
So those are your two options if the problem lies indeed with your drivers. If you are still experiencing this error, then you should move on to the second method.
Possible Fix Number 2:
So the second method has to do with anti-virus programs. If you are using the Windows Defender, then you might as well skip over this method. But if like many Windows 10 users, you are using a third-party anti virus program, you might want to look into this.
This is nothing to worry about. Your virus program is still probably great at protecting you from any unwanted viruses or malware.
However, it is also true that, sometimes, antivirus programs can cause problems. I will not pinpoint a specific third-party program in this section for the program because many have been highlighted as the cause of this error.
What you would need to do is to remove all your third-party antivirus programs. Deleting them is not often the solution because most of them come with install/uninstall tools attached. So make sure that you use the install/uninstall tool to remove all those programs from your computer.
Possible Fix Number 3:
In the same way that third-party anti-virus programs could be the cause for this error, it could also be the case that certain applications could be the reason for it.
Again, I am not going to pinpoint any particular app because it could be a number of them causing the error. In fact, potentially, any app could cause this error so there is no point pointing fingers at just a couple or even a few.
If you have many different applications, do not worry. You will NOT have to delete all of them. You can narrow it down to just the ones that you have recently downloaded and installed or updated.
Go through your list of applications and remove only the ones that you have most recently installed or updated.
Possible Fix Number 4:
If nothing else seems to work for you, then you might want to update BIOS.
Not all users feel comfortable doing this. Because it is a rather advanced procedure, I have decided not to include the step to do so here. Basically, if you do not already know how to update BIOS it most probably means that should not attempt to do it.
If you do know how and feel comfortable go ahead. Otherwise, you would be better off having a professional take a look.
Possible Fix Number 5:
The final solution is the closest thing to a fix-for-all method. As long as you have the Windows 10 installation media, you could try it out.
All you would need to do is reset Windows 10. This will get rid of this problem (and other potential issues) if the cause relates to the software.
If you decide that this is the right course of action for you, please ensure that you save and back up anything that you would want to save before following these steps:
- Grab your Windows 10 computer.
- Restart it and few times until you are able to access the Automatic Repair.
- Then head over to Troubleshoot.
- Next, got to Reset this PC.
- And then, select Remove everything.
- Introduce the Windows 10 Installation media.
- Choose the following option: “Only the drive where Windows is installed”.
- Then, select “Just remove my files”.
- Finally, click on Reset and follow the onscreen instructions to complete this process.
These are the methods to solve the DRIVER CORRUPTED EXPOOL Error on Windows 10. If you have any feedback for us or would like to share your own tips or experience with this error, please leave us a message in the comments section below!
