Microsoft has reportedly identified a compatibility issue between its latest Windows 11 24H2 update and certain Western Digital SSDs. This issue can lead to the dreaded “Blue Screen of Death” (BSOD) error, rendering the system unusable. As a result, Microsoft is temporarily suspending the rollout of the 24H2 update to devices with the affected hardware.
The Root of the Problem:
The crashes seem to stem from an incompatibility between the storage drivers in Windows 11 24H2 and the RAID controllers used in conjunction with these specific SSDs. The issue lies in how the 24H2 update handles Host Memory Buffer (HMB) allocation.
HMB is a feature that allows SSDs to use a portion of system memory for caching, improving performance. While previous versions of Windows allocated a limited amount of memory (e.g., 64MB), the 24H2 update allocates the full HMB capacity requested by the SSD (e.g., 200MB in the case of the WD SN770). If the SSD’s firmware cannot handle this larger allocation, write operations fail, leading to file system corruption and ultimately, the BSOD.
Identifying the Issue:
Users experiencing this problem might find the following error message in the Event Viewer logs:
- “stornvme – Nvme Storage Driver”
- “The driver detected a controller error on \Device\RaidPort1 or 2”
Temporary Workaround:
A temporary workaround involves disabling the HMB policy through the Registry Editor:
- Open Registry Editor: Type “regedit” in the Windows search bar and press Enter.
- Navigate to the following path: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\stornvme\Parameters\Device
Create HMBAllocationPolicy entry (if not present): Right-click on the “Device” key and select “New” > “DWORD (32-bit) Value”. Name it “HMBAllocationPolicy”. - Disable HMB: Double-click on the newly created “HMBAllocationPolicy” value, set the “Value data” to 0, and click “OK”.
Important Notes:
Disabling HMB might impact SSD performance, although the extent will vary depending on the specific drive and usage patterns.
Microsoft is expected to release a permanent fix for this issue in a future update. If performance is critical, consider waiting for the official patch instead of
implementing the workaround.
This situation highlights the complexities of software and hardware interactions. While updates generally bring improvements and new features, they can also introduce unforeseen compatibility issues. It’s crucial for users to stay informed about potential problems and be prepared to troubleshoot or defer updates when
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