Windows 10 Blue Screen of Death with “Critical Process Died” Error Following System Restore

Resolving the “Critical Process Died” Blue Screen After System Restore on Windows 10: A Data Recovery Guide

Experiencing a blue screen error such as “Critical Process Died” after performing a system restore can be a distressing situation, especially when important files are at stake. If you’ve recently attempted a restore and now face this issue, you’re not alone—many users encounter similar frustrations, often feeling uncertain about the best course of action without risking data loss.

In this guide, we’ll explore potential solutions to address this problem and recover your vital files without resorting to complete drive wipes.

Understanding the Issue

The “Critical Process Died” error in Windows 10 typically indicates that a vital system process has unexpectedly terminated, leading to a blue screen of death (BSOD). This can occur after system restore if essential Windows files or services are damaged or missing.

It’s important to note that this error isn’t necessarily related to your personal files but rather critical system components. Wiping the drive might resolve the issue but at the expense of your data. Therefore, data recovery should be the priority before attempting drastic fixes.

Step-by-Step Guide to Data Recovery and Fixing the Issue

1. Avoid Wiping the Drive Immediately

Before considering a full reset or reinstall, try to access your drive to retrieve important files. Since you’ve mentioned using Linux Ubuntu, you already have a method for preliminary access—if the drive mounts successfully, you can copy your files to an external storage device.

2. Access Your Drive Using Linux Ubuntu

• Boot into your Ubuntu live environment (using a USB or DVD).
• Open the file manager and see if your drive is mounted automatically.
• If not, use the Disks utility or terminal commands such as lsblk or fdisk -l to identify your drive.
• Once identified, attempt to mount the drive manually:

bash
sudo mkdir /mnt/data
sudo mount /dev/sdXn /mnt/data

(Replace /dev/sdXn with your drive’s actual identifier, such as /dev/sda1.)

• Navigate to the mounted directory to locate and copy your important files to an external drive.

Note: If the drive is encrypted or inaccessible, specialized data recovery tools might be necessary.

3. Use Data Recovery Tools on Linux

If your files are not accessible directly:

• Consider tools like **