News about BlueScreen crashes on Western Digital or Sandisk SSD systems broke shortly after Microsoft’s release of Windows 11, version 24H2.
Affected user systems crashed regularly after the upgrade to the new version of Windows 11. Users started to collect information about the issue and even suggested a fix that involved making an edit to the Registry.
Microsoft, in the meantime, added an upgrade block for systems with affected hardware. This block prevents the upgrade to Windows 11, version 24H2 via Windows Update.
The block did not help users who upgraded already. Some downgraded their systems to resolve the issue, others applied the Registry fix.
Firmware Update
Western Digital and SanDisk have released a firmware update for affected storage devices that resolves the issue.
A page on the official SanDisk support website provides the details.
Note: it is recommended to back up important data before you apply firmware updates to storage devices. A BlueScreen crash during the process could corrupt the device and make the data unreadable.
In a nutshell:
- Download the Wester Digital Dashboard software using the provided links on the website.
- Run the downloaded application.
- Select the install button to install the application on the device.
- Keep “launch dashboard” checked and activate the finish button.
- Select the Tools section.
- Click on Update Firmware and then on proceed.
- Activate shutdown now at the end of the process.
- Power the computer on again.
The new firmware is now installed on the device and the crashes should be a thing of the past.
Affected Western Digital and SanDisk devices
The following Solid State Drives are affected by the issue:
| Name | Model Number Starting With | Updated Firmware Version |
| WD_BLACK SN770 NVMe SSD 2TB | WDBBDL0020BNC, WDS200T3X0E | 731130WD |
| WD_BLACK SN770M NVMe SSD 2TB | WDBDNH0020BBK, WDS200T3X0G | 731130WD |
| WD Blue SN580 NVMe SSD 2TB | WDBWMY0020BBL, WDS200T3B0E | 281050WD |
| WD Blue SN5000 NVMe SSD 2TB | WDBS3F0020BNC, WDS200T4B0E | 291020WD |
| SanDisk Extreme M.2 NVMe SSD 2TB | SDSSDX3N-2T00 |
Good info. I have the WD Dashboard software sitting on a storage drive. I haven’t installed it since we built the new PC’s.
This made me think though, I don’t have such a tool for our new Samsung NVMe’s. A quick search returned “Samsung Magician”. I’m going to go check that out.
Note: We’ve been using the free version of Macrium Reflect to handle backup duties since switching to Win 11. We set it up to do monthly full and daily incremental for the system drive and are happy with it. Setup is a bit technical but it’s fast and can wake the pc to do the task in the middle of the night.
You have to have the link to find the free version, I don’t think it you can find it through thier homepage anymore. You also have to be careful to check the boxes that say “personal use” during installtion so you don’t turn it into a trial version of the paid version.
I found the link on elevenforums.
I stopped using the backup software after they announced the end of the free version. Use Paragon Backup & Recovery Free now, and it is excellent. But if it still works for you, great!
Now my decision to stop upgrading Windows feels better and better. I do have Wester Digital SSD as internal drive and multiple Western Digital external drives. I bet some of them would have been effected.
Furthermore, I also never used Western Digital backup software and would not recommend it. I am fine with creating system restore points when installing and uninstalling software, “SyncFolders” is great for personal data backup, “Hekasoft Backup and Restore” useful to back up browsers’ profiles from time to time. Bigger individual stuff I would back up manually with “TeraCopy” assistance to an external hard drive.