Have you gotten the FAT_FILE_SYSTEM 0x00000023 BSOD error when booting your PC? How to fix the error? Don’t worry. This post from MiniTool will define this issue and provide several feasible solutions.
About FAT_FILE_SYSTEM 0x00000023 BSOD Error
The FAT_FILE_SYSTEM bug check has a value of 0x00000023. This indicates that a problem occurred in the FAT file system. Actually, it is a BSOD error message. Once you encounter the 0x00000023 BSOD error, your operating system will crash and fail to boot.
What are the reasons behind this issue? It is mainly caused by corrupt registry settings, bad sectors on the hard drive, damaged hardware, virus infection, incompatible drivers, and hardware devices. Based on the above possible factors, this post provides you with the following solutions to the 0x00000023 BSOD error.
Because the computer cannot boot successfully, in this case, you should boot the computer into Safe Mode and then perform these actions. For how to start a PC with a blue screen in Safe Mode, the steps are:
- Press Win + X and then click Shut down or sign out. Then press Shift and click Restart to enter Windows Recovery Environment (WinRE).
- When you are in WinRE, navigate to Troubleshoot > Advanced options > Startup Settings > Restart.
- After the computer restarts, there is a list of options. Press the F5 key to choose the Enable Safe Mode with Networking option.
How to Fix FAT_FILE_SYSTEM 0x00000023 BSOD Error
Now try the following solutions one by one to get rid of the 0x00000023 BSOD error. Before performing the following solutions, you should try to remove all peripheral devices. If it does not work, proceed to the solutions below.
Solution 1. Update Outdated Device Drivers
If you encounter the FAT_FILE_SYSTEM 0x00000023 BSOD error, it is possible that the driver is not compatible with your Windows operating system. So, you should try to update your device drivers.
Step 1: Press the Win + S key and type Device Manager in the Search box. Then press Enter.
Step 2: Expand your desired device category and right-click a driver to select Update Driver.
Step 3: In a pop-up window, select Search automatically for updated driver software. Then your Windows will automatically check, download, and install the latest and appropriate driver.
Solution 2. Run SFC and DISM Tools
The FAT_FILE_SYSTEM 0x00000023 BSOD error can also be caused by corrupted system files. You can repair them by running DISM and SFC tools. Here are the steps on how to use SFC and DISM in Command Prompt.
Step 1: Type cmd in the Windows search bar. Then right-click on Command Prompt and select Run as administrator.
Step 2: In the Command Prompt window, type sfc /scannow and press Enter.
Step 3: When the SFC tool completes its task, type DISM.exe /Online /Cleanup-image /Restorehealth and press Enter.
Then wait patiently until the process is 100% complete.
Solution 3: Check Hard Disk Errors
The 0x00000023 BSOD error may be caused by file system errors or bad sectors on your hard disk. So, it’s important to check if the hard drive is faulty. You can use CHKDSK or MiniTool Partition Wizard to do that.
Method 1: Use CHKDSK
CHKDSK is a disk error checking and repair utility built into Windows. It scans hard drive partitions for internal errors and repairs them at the same time. To use CHKDSK to repair a corrupted hard drive partition, follow these steps:
Step 1: Open Command Prompt as administrator again.
Step 2: In the Command Prompt window, type the chkdsk G: /f /r command and press Enter to fix the file system error and shield the bad sectors. Tip: “G” represents the hard drive partition letter.
Method 2: Use MiniTool Partition Wizard
If CHKDSK is write-protected or CHKDSK gets stuck, try using powerful disk partition software – MiniTool Partition Wizard. It can not only help you check bad sectors but also repair file system errors easily and quickly.
As a professional and comprehensive disk partition manager, it can help you do some basic operations like extend/move/resize/format/merge/split partitions and do some complex operations like clone a hard drive, convert MBR to GPT, etc.
When your computer is unbootable, you should create a bootable media via MiniTool Bootable Media Builder in advance, and then boot from it to check the hard drive for errors. The steps are as follows:
MiniTool Partition Wizard DemoClick to Download100%Clean & Safe
Step 1: Plug the prepared USB into the working computer or insert the prepared CD/DVD into its CD/DVD burner.
Step 2: Download the software and then launch it to access its main interface. Click Bootable Media in the upper right corner and follow the on-screen instructions to create a bootable USB, CD, or DVD.
Step 3: Plug the bootable USB into the original computer which the operating system cannot boot or put the bootable CD or DVD into it.
Step 4: Restart the computer and press F2 or another key to enter BIOS menu. Change boot order to make your computer boot from the USB or CD/DVD flash drive.
Step 5: In the main interface of MiniTool Partition Wizard, click on Check File System from the left action panel.
Step 6: Select Check & fix detected errors and click on the Start button. This tool will check and repair file system errors immediately.
Step 7: In the main interface, select the drive again and click on Surface Test from the left pane.
Step 8: Click on the Start Now button in the pop-up window. After that, this tool will scan the whole external drive immediately and show you the test result.
Step 9: When the hard drive error test process is completed, the bad sectors on the hard drive will be marked with red color. In this case, you can either use this bad sector repair guide or consider replacing it with a new one.
Solution 4. Scan Your Computer for Viruses
As malware and viruses can trigger the FAT_FILE_SYSTEM 0x00000023 BSOD error, you should run a system scan to get rid of them. To avoid third-party software conflicts, you’d better run the Windows built-in program – Windows Security.
Step 1: Press the Win + I key to open Settings. Then go to Update & Security > Windows Security > Virus & threat protection.
Step 2: Tap Scan Options and then choose a scan option based on your demands. Here are 4 scan options for you, including Quick scan, Full scan, Custom scan, and Microsoft Defender Offline scan.
Step 3: Click on Scan now to start the operation.
Solution 5. Run a Hardware Diagnostics Check
Damaged hardware can also cause the 0x00000023 BSOD error. So, you should run hardware diagnostics check.
Step 1: Open Command Prompt as administrator. In the Command Prompt window, type msdt.exe -id DeviceDiagnostic and press Enter.
Step 2: In the pop-up Hardware and Devices dialog box, click on Next.
Step 3: This tool will start scanning for any problems with your hardware and recommend a fix. After that, click on Apply this fix if any solutions are found.
Once done, restart your PC and check if the error still occurs.
Solution 6. Perform a Memory Test
To check if the Memory is the cause of the 0x00000023 BSOD error, you can run a memory test. The built-in tool of Windows system – Windows Memory Diagnostic helps you check if RAM works well. Here is how to do that:
Step 1: Type memory into the Windows search bar. Then click on Windows Memory Diagnostic under Best match.
Step 2: Once the memory test tool opens, click on the Restart now and check for problems (recommended) option.
Step 3: Wait until the computer finish memory diagnosis. This process will usually take a few minutes.
Step 4: After the process ends, your computer will boot up. You need to press the Win + X key and then choose Event viewer.
Step 5: Select the event log and get the memory diagnostics report. If any errors are displayed in the description, it indicates that there are RAM issues. In this case, you should replace the RAM with a new one.
If the above solutions can’t solve the FAT_FILE_SYSTEM 0x00000023 BSOD error, you can try to reinstall the OS to get rid of it. Follow this tutorial to complete the operation.
Recover Data from the 0x00000023 BSOD Error
BSOD errors often result in loss of important files, and the errors mentioned in this article are no exception. How to recover data from the 0x00000023 BSOD error? You can take advantage of a professional hard drive data recovery tool – MiniTool Partition Wizard.
MiniTool Partition Wizard DemoClick to Download100%Clean & Safe
Likewise, you need to boot your PC with the burned MiniTool bootable CD/DVD/USB flash drive and launch MiniTool Partition Wizard first. Then follow the steps below to begin the process.
Step 1: In the main interface of MiniTool Partition Wizard, click on Data Recovery from the top toolbar. Here Data Recovery will list 3 parts: Logical Drives, Devices, Recover From Specific Location.
Step 2: Now, select the target hard drive and click on the Scan button under the partition.
Step 3: After the scanning is completed, the scanning result is shown in the following picture. You can double-check each folder to view the contents. And check all items that you need to recover and click on Save.
Step 4: In the pop-up window, select a directory to save the selected files and click on OK.
You’d better save the recovered files to another drive. Otherwise, the lost/deleted data could be overwritten.
Bottom Line
What can you do if you receive the FAT_FILE_SYSTEM 0x00000023 BSOD error? You can find the answer in the post. Here, several solutions to this issue are provides for you. If you run into some problems during the fixing process, you can leave them in the following comment zone.
Certainly, if you have any questions about or suggestions for MiniTool Partition Wizard, please do not hesitate to contact us via [email protected].
About The Author
Position: Columnist
Vega joined MiniTool as an editor after graduation. She enjoys helping people with computer problems, including disk management, data recovery, and more. She is constantly expanding her knowledge in related fields. And she will continue to bring more easy-to-understand professional articles to help people solve various problems on the PC. In her daily life, Vega enjoys hanging out with friends, shopping online and listening to music. She is someone who knows how to enjoy life.