You can use the Windows Event Viewer to determine the cause of your PC problems. Here's how

by
url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url url

When using Windows 11 (or any version for that matter), it's almost inevitable that you'll run into problems at some point, whether it's a simple app crash or the dreaded Blue Screen of Death. When these errors occur, they can be difficult to understand, but luckily there's a tool built right into Windows called Event Viewer that can help.




Windows Event Viewer lets you view logs for almost every major event on your PC, so if you're having a problem, this is the place to go. While it won't fix your problems, it can help diagnose them, and then you can use the Internet to figure out what's wrong.

How to use Event Viewer to view information about Windows errors

The Windows Event Viewer has a pretty confusing interface at first glance, but you can get to the basics relatively easily. Here's how it works:

  1. Open Event Viewer. You can use the Windows search bar to search for it.
    Screenshot of Windows 11 search with results for Event Viewer

  2. Once you are in the Event Viewer, use the menu on the left. Most likely you will find what you are looking for under Windows logsin particular the system or Application Protocols (the former is usually more important).
    Screenshot of Event Viewer with expanded Windows Log folder

  3. In the right window, select Filter current log….
    Screenshot of Event Viewer with Filter Current Log option highlighted

  4. Check the Critical And Mistake Check box. You can also select the Logged in And Event sources Drop-down menus to further narrow down the results once you have a good idea of ​​what is causing the problem. Click OK.
    Screenshot of log filters in Event Viewer with highlighted event level types


Now you can see all the critical errors that have occurred on your system during that time period. It's important to have both even if you have a system crash because often the critical level events are just related to a power outage on the PC and they are preceded by an error level event that actually caused it to get that far.

For each error, the source of the error and the event ID are displayed. You can use this ID to search online for information that can help you resolve the problem.

Screenshot of Windows Event Viewer showing the system log filtered for error and critical events. An error event is selected


For example, here we see event ID 56 from a source called Application popupand if you look, the most common solutions recommended are: installing the latest Windows updates (or rolling them back if you've recently installed one), installing BIOS updates, and reinstalling graphics drivers. In fact, graphics drivers are a fairly common cause of many BSOD errors, so you should always consider this.

In some cases you can also Details in the bottom view to get more information about the error. There are additional identifiers here that can be helpful in determining the exact cause of your problems. You can actually copy all the details at once by right-clicking on the error in the top view and Copy details as text.


Screenshot of Windows Event Viewer showing the Details tab for a specific event

Alternatively, you can save a copy of the event and send it to someone so they can view it in Event Viewer on their PC to help you diagnose the problem.

It is also worthwhile to search specifically for events with the Error checking Source. These events occur when your PC experiences a BSOD and they produce a dump file that can be analyzed to get more information. You can use an app like BlueScreenViewer to view these dump files and find so much more information and understand what is causing the errors you are seeing.


Easier troubleshooting of your PC

IT pros and power users are probably very familiar with the Windows Event Viewer, but if you're new to it, keep it in mind in the future as it will certainly help you troubleshoot any problems you may encounter. You can also add BlueScreenViewer to your arsenal to diagnose more specific errors.

Leave a Comment