Stop code lenovo

Microsoft has discovered the source of a mysterious bug that is causing Windows 10 to hang on Lenovo ThinkPad laptops.

The crashes are affecting users who have installed the July security update for the latest version of Windows 10 [version 2004, or the May update]. The bug causes the system to crash with the infamous Blue Screen of Death - a full-screen error message on a blue background that forces you to restart the computer, losing all work in the progress.

The flaw appears to have been caused by Windows biometric software [the software that controls things such as fingerprint readers and face recognition] conflicting with Lenovos own Vantage utility. The bug only appears to affect Lenovo laptops released since 2019.

In laymans terms, the July security update introduce new controls that restricted how software could access whats called the peripheral component interconnect [PCI] device configuration space. It seems that some version of Lenovos Vantage software was continuing to try and access that space, causing the PC to crash with an error message stating SYSTEM_THREAD_EXCEPTION_NOT_HANDLED.

How to stop the crashes

Microsoft and Lenovo are putting their heads together to work on a fix, which should be rolled out automatically in either Windows or Vantage software updates in due course.

In the meantime, however, users can work around the problem by disabling biometric security on their laptops. This does mean that youll be forced to rely on less secure passwords or PIN codes for the time being, but thats almost certainly preferable to a laptop that crashes!

To switch off the Enhanced Windows Biometric Security, users have to enter the UEFI configuration, which you normally enter by pressing the F1 button on your keyboard when the Lenovo logo is displayed after the computer is first switched on. When you reach the UEFI controls, visit Security then Virtualization and switch off Enhanced Windows Biometric Security. Lenovos support page details the process.

Version 2004 of Windows 10 has been dogged by a series of problems since it was first made available for public download. Microsoft is on the cusp of releasing another of the biannual Windows 10 updates, which will hopefully prove less bothersome.