Fix Video TDR Failure | Blue Screen *.sys

Many Windows users have reported continuously facing Blue Screen of Death (BSOD) error with a STOP code VIDEO_TDR_FAILURE. This error interrupts you while you are using your Windows PC. It causes software crashes, leaving you with a blue screen and an error message. This error is common among users of the Windows 10 operating system.

However, even though you may spend a lot of time while trying to fix this error, it is fixable. In this article, I have provided some useful troubleshooting tips to help you fix video TDR failure.

What is Video TDR Failure

Video TDR Failure is also called A Blue Screen of Death (BSOD) is technically called a stop error. This type of error occurs when Windows is affected by a serious issue and is forced to stop completely. BSOD errors can occur in all Windows operating systems, including Windows 7, Windows 8, Windows 10, Windows Vista, Windows XP, and Windows 98/95. 

Since these blue screen errors give you no other choice than to restart, troubleshooting one could be difficult. But, almost every stop error comes with a hexadecimal-based stop code that can be used to research and fix it. 

The Blue Screen of Death (BSOD) error with a STOP code VIDEO_TDR_FAILURE occurs suddenly while using your Windows PC. The TDR in VIDEO_TDR_FAILURE represents Timeout, Detection, and Recovery components of Windows. This BSOD error mostly occurs when your graphics card drivers are either outdated or corrupt. 

The error message reads;

Your PC ran into a problem and needs to restart. We’re just collecting some error info, and then we’ll restart for you. (0% Complete)

Once a blue screen with this message appears on your screen, you will only have to wait for the process to reach 100% and then look for a solution. You can use the stop code VIDEO_TDR_FAILURE to troubleshoot this error.

How to Fix Video TDR Failure

Fortunately, fixing this BSOD error does not require any complicated operation. You may need to update your graphics card drivers to fix it. Every solution is dependent on the cause of the error. Sometimes troubleshooting this Video TDR Failure may take a lot of your time before you succeed.

Nonetheless, whatever is the source of this error, you can simply fix it by carefully following a few guidelines that I will show you. To fix this Video TDR Failure, you need to follow the directions below carefully.

Solution 1 – Update your Graphics Card Drivers

When you encounter this BSOD error, the problem is probably from your PC’s current drivers. Your graphics drivers are either corrupt or outdated. You can update your drivers manually or automatically. Just follow the steps below;

If you’re using an NVIDIA graphics card, follow the steps below.

Step 1: Press Win+R simultaneously. This operation will invoke the Run dialog box. Enter msconfig, click on OK to open System Configurations. Now, click on the Boot tab and check Safe boot. Click OK
Step 2: Click on Restart and boot into Safe Mode. Click on This PC > Local Disk C. You will see the NVIDIA folder. Delete the folder. Open the Run dialog by clicking  Start and then Run

Step 3:
Enter “devmgmt.msc” in the run box. Click the OK button. The Device Manager window will open.
Step 4: Open the “Display Adapters” field and right-click on the NVIDIA adapter you wish to uninstall. Then select “Uninstall.” Click “OK” to remove the adapter from the list and uninstall the driver
Step 5: Press Win+R simultaneously to invoke the Run box. Open Systems configuration by entering msconfig. Click on the Boot tab, uncheck Safe boot, and click OK. Now, click on Restart.
Step 6: Download the latest NVIDIA driver Once you are done, install the NVIDIA driver. Click the Custom installation option and tick all the boxes including the “perform clean install” box. Restart your PC

If you’re using an AMD graphics card, follow the steps below.

Step 1: Download the AMD Cleanup Utility
Step 2: Access the downloaded file and double-click on “AMDCleanupUtility.exe.’
Step 3: Reboot the system and run the utility in safe mode.
Step 4: A dialogue box will pop up stating that AMD Cleanup Utility will delete all AMD driver and application components. Click on OK
Step 5: Once the process is complete, click on Finish and reboot your PC

Now you need to install the latest driver update. To do this, just follow these steps;

Step 1: Visit the AMD Driver Support Page. Go to the section, Auto-Detect, and Install Radeon Graphics Drivers for Windows. Click  DOWNLOAD NOW 
Step 2: Run the downloaded file and click on Install 
Step 3: The tool will launch automatically. Click Accept and Install to proceed.
Step 4: The tool will detect the installed AMD graphics product and system configuration and display Recommended and Optional driver packages that are compatible with your graphics product
Step 5: Select the version you want and click Express installation. Once this process is done, restart your computer

If you have an integrated graphics (Intel)

Step 1: Press Win + R to launch a Run
Step 2: Enter devmgmt.msc into the Run dialog and press Enter. The Device Manager will open.
Step 3: Expand the Display adapters and right-click on your graphics drivers.
Step 4: Click Uninstall 
Step 5: Now restart your PC. Once your PC is on, it will automatically reinstall the graphics drivers. Check if you have fixed the issue.

If the issue is still not solved after updating your graphics drivers, move to the next potential solution below.

Solution 2 – Reinstalling the driver in Safe Mode

You can also fix video TDR failure by reinstalling your graphics driver in safe mode. You can perform his fix by following the steps below.

Step 1: Press the Windows Logo Key + R simultaneously and then type msconfig. Press the Enter button to open System Configuration.
Step 2: Switch to boot tab and tick mark the Safe Boot option.  Click Apply, followed by OK.
Step 3: Restart your computer. Your system will now boot into Safe Mode automatically. Now, go to Device Manager and expand Display adapters.
Step 4: Right-click on your Graphic card and click on uninstall. Perform the operation in this step for your Intel card. If you are prompted for confirmation, click on, OK.
Step 5: Reboot your computer into normal mode and install the latest version of the Intel chipset driver for your system.
Step 6: Now, restart your PC then download the latest version of your Graphic card drivers from your manufacturer’s website.

If the issue is still not solved after reinstalling the driver in safe mode, move to the next potential solution below.

Solution 3 – Installing the Old version Of The Driver

You can as well fix video TDR failure by installing the old version of your graphics card driver. You can perform his fix by following the steps below.

Step 1: Press the Windows Logo Key + R simultaneously. This operation will open the Run dialog box.  
Step 2: Now, type in the following command; devmgmt.msc. Hit the Enter button when you are done. This operation will open up the Device Manager.
Step 3: Expand the Display adapter and right-click on your graphics card. Now, click on Update Driver. Select the Browse my computer option for the driver software.
Step 4: Click on the option that says, let me pick from a list of available drivers on my computer.
Step 5: Choose your old drivers from the list and complete the installation. Reboot your computer to save the changes you made. 

This solution should rectify Video TDR Failure (atikmpag.sys) in Windows 10 operating system. But if you are still encountering it after installing the old version of your graphics card driver, move to the next potential solution below.

Solution 4 – Renaming atikmpag.sys or atikmdag.sys file

You can also fix video TDR failure as well by renaming the atikmpag.sys or atikmdag.sys file. You can perform his fix by following the steps below.

Step 1: Download the newest ATI or AMD graphics card driver first. 
Step 2: Once the download is complete, follow the path C:\Windows\System32\drivers and find the atikmdag.sys (or atikmpag.sys) file. When you see it, change the name to atikmdag.sys.old (or atikmpag.sys.old). 
Step 3: Make sure that you change just the one listed on your blue screen of death error. Navigate to the ATI directory (Usually in C:\ATI) and locate the file atikmdag.sy_ or atikmpag.sy_. When you see the file, copy it to your desktop. If you cannot find the file in the folder above, try typing the name of the file into the search box in the Start panel. 
Step 4: Press the Windows logo key on your keyboard and type in cmd. Now, click Command Prompt. 
Step 5: Type in chdir desktop and hit the Enter button on your keyboard. This operation will change the directory to your Desktop.  Type expand.exe atikmdag.sy_ atikmdag.sys and press the Enter button. Alternatively, type in expand -r atikmdag.sy_ atikmdag.sys and press the Enter button on your keyboard.
Step 6: When you have finished the expansion, copy the new atikmdag.sys file from your Desktop to C:\Windows\System32\Drivers. Restart your PC.

Now, you can check if you have resolved the problem. If the issue is still not solved after renaming the atikmpag.sys or atikmdag.sys file, move to the next potential solution below.

Solution 5 – Changing the Graphics Settings for Intel HD Graphics

If you are using Intel Graphics, you can also fix video TDR failure changing the graphics settings for Intel HD graphics on Windows 10. First of all, you have to download and install the Intel Driver Update Utility from the official site. Then, launch it and use it to check whether there is a new available graphics card driver to update. If a new update is available, update it by following the steps below.

Step 1: Right-click on anywhere on the Windows desktop and click on Graphics Properties.
Step 2: Click on the 3D option from the control panel. Now, access the Application Optimal and click on Enable.
Step 3: Click on Use Application settings under Anti-Aliasing. Make sure that you turn off Conservative Morphological Anti-Aliasing.
Step 4: Click on the option that says Balance mode in general settings. After performing these operations, you can go back to the Graphics Control panel and then perform the operations below. Click on Video settings.
Step 5: Click on the Application Settings under Standard Color Correction. Also click on the Application Settings under the Input range.
Step 6: Now, click on Save profile and Apply. This operation will implement the changes you made. Now, check if you have solved the issue.

Igdkmd64.sys Blue Screen of Death (BSOD) Errors

There are a lot of reasons you could be encountering issues with video TDR failure igdkmd64.sys. Most of the issues concerning SYS files involve Blue Screen of Death (BSOD) errors.

These types of igdkmd64.sys errors can be cause by outdated firmware, corrupt drivers, hardware problems, or other software-related (such as Windows update) issues. Some of these errors include:

The file igdkmd64.sys is missing or corrupt.
igdkmd64.sys failed to load.
 igdkmd64.sys could not be found
Windows failed to start – igdkmd64.sys.

You can solve this issue by running a Windows Update. Many igdkmd64.sys error messages that you may encounter can be caused to an outdated Windows Operating System. To run Windows Update, you have to follow these easy steps:

Step 1 – Press the Windows Start button.
Step 2 – In the search box, type in “Update” and press the ENTER button on your keyboard. This operation will open up a Windows update dialog box.
Step 3 – Inside the Windows Update dialog box, click on the option that says “Check for Updates” or a similar button depending on your Windows OS version.
Step 4 – If there are updates available for download, install them by clicking on Install Updates.
Step 5 – Once the update is completed, restart your computer.

You can also resolve the igdkmd64.sys error message by downloading and replacing your igdkmd64.sys File. This solution is for advanced PC users only. You can follow the steps below to download and properly return you file: 

Step 1 – Find the version of your Windows operating system from the list. You will see something like this “Download igdkmd64.sys Files”.
Step 2 – Click on the appropriate “Download Now” button and download the suitable Windows file version.
Step 3 – Copy the file into the right directory for your Windows version:

Windows 7: C:\Windows\System32\DriverStore\FileRepository\igdlh.inf_amd64_neutral_54a12b57f547d08e\
Windows Vista: C:\Windows\System32\DriverStore\FileRepository\igdlh.inf_dac4627c\

Step 4 – Now, restart your PC and check if you have fixed the problem.

What Causes This Video TDR Failure

When you look at user reports and the repair strategies used to fix this specific issue, you will find out that this BSOD error can result from several reasons. But the main reason for this BSOD error with a stop code VIDEO_TDR_FAILURE is a graphics card driver issue. However, I have compiled a couple of these reasons for you below. 

Outdated or corrupted graphics drivers:
This is the leading cause of this problem. When you troubleshoot further, you will find out that this error is caused thanks to two files, which are atikmpag.sys and nvlddmkm.sys in Windows 10. If you are using an NVIDIA Graphic card then Video TDR Failure error is due to the nvlddmkm.sys file but if you are using an AMD graphic card, then this error is due to the atikmpag.sys file. 


Windows upgrade:
When you have just upgraded Windows or manually downloaded the graphics card drivers, you will most likely face this error. 

Windows Updated automatically:
When Windows update automatically, it tends to download graphics card drivers that are incompatible with your system.  This incompatible graphics driver can cause this BSOD error.

Programs running in the background are too many: You may also encounter video TDR failure when you have too many programs running in your PC background.


Hardware issues:
You may also encounter video TDR failure due to hard issues such as over-clocked components, insufficient system power, inadequate system cooling, incorrect component compatibility & settings, and defective parts.

Nonetheless, whatever the case may be, once you encounter this video TDR failure, you should opt for a solution to fix it immediately.

Video TDR Failure on Startup

Sometimes you may encounter this BSOD error with a STOP code VIDEO_TDR_FAILURE when you boot your computer. To fix it, follow these steps.

Step 1: Download an ISO image of Windows 10 and use the Media Creation tool.
Step 2: Perform Startup Repair
Step 3: Reboot your system.

Conclusion

Many Windows users have reported continuously facing Blue Screen of Death (BSOD) error with a STOP code VIDEO_TDR_FAILURE. It may take time to fix sometimes. You would have to install the older version of your graphics driver to fix it. In this article, I have provided you with the solutions to help you fix it. Now it is your turn to perform these solutions and conquer this error.