The Volsnap.sys is a Windows operating system file that is related to the Volume Shadow Copy Service or VSS. It is known to cause a Blue Screen of Death error. The main cause of the Volsnap.sys Blue Screen errors include conflicts with the RAM, issues with the hard disk, incompatible firmware, corrupted drivers, malware infection, and many more. Despite its many possible causes, its fixes are quite straightforward so won’t have any problem following them.
The Blue Screen errors that are related to the Volsnap.sys file are:
- KMODE EXCEPTION NOT HANDLED
- PAGE FAULT IN A NONPAGED AREA
- SYSTEM THREAD EXCEPTION NOT HANDLED
- IRQL NOT LESS OR EQUAL
You might want to try performing System Restore as it could resolve Blue Screen errors like the ones related to the Volsnap.sys before you proceed with the troubleshooting tips given below. To run System Restore, follow these steps:
- Tap the Win + R keys to open the Run dialog box.
- After that, type in “sysdm.cpl” in the field and tap Enter.
- Next, go to the System Protection tab then click the System Restore button. This will open a new window where you have to select your preferred System Restore point.
- After that, follow the on-screen instructions to finish the process and then restart your computer and check if the problem is fixed or not.
If System Restore didn’t help in fixing the Blue Screen error, now’s the time for you to resort to the troubleshooting tips provided below but before you get started, make sure that you create a System Restore point first.
Option 1 – Check if the Volume Shadow Copy service is running and restart it
The first thing you need to do is check if the Volume Shadow Copy service. To do that, refer to the following steps:
- Click on Start and type “cmd” and right-click on Command Prompt from the search results.
- Then select the “Run as administrator” option to open Command Prompt with admin privileges.
- After that, type “net stop sdrsvc” and hit Enter to execute the command in stopping the Volume Shadow Copy service.
- Next, type the “net start sdrsvc” command and hit Enter to start the service again.
Note: You can also restart the service using the Windows Services Manager.
- In the Cortana search box, type “services” and click on the Services icon to open the Services Manager. Alternatively, you can also tap the Win + R keys to launch the Run prompt and then type “services.msc” in the field and hit Enter to open the Services Manager.
- From there, look for the Volume Shadow Service (sdrsv) from the list of services. Its Startup type should be set to Manual by default.
- Restart the service and if you don’t encounter any error while you turn it on, re-run the backup service and see if the backup process runs successfully.
Option 2 – Try checking the Memory for the Errors using Memory Diagnostic Tool
The Memory Diagnostic tool in windows can help resolve the Volsnap.sys Blue Screen error by checking and automatically fixing any memory-based issues. To run it, refer to these steps:
- Tap the Win + R keys to open Run and type mdsched.exe and hit Enter to open the Windows Memory Diagnostic Tool.
- After that, it will give two options such as:
- Restart now and check for problems (Recommended)
- Check for problems the next time I start my computer
- Once your computer has restarted, perform a basic scan or you could also go for the “Advanced” options such as “Test mix” or “Pass count”. Simply tap the F10 key to start the test.
Note: After you select your preferred option, your computer will restart and check for memory-based issues. If it finds any issues, it will automatically fix them and if there’s no issue found, then it’s most likely not a memory-based issue so you should try the other options given below.
Option 3 – Try to update or rollback your device drivers
If the first option didn’t work for you, then it’s time to either update or rollback the device drivers. It is most likely that after you updated your Windows computer that your driver also needs a refresh. On the other hand, if you have just updated your device drivers then you need to roll back the drivers to their previous versions. Whichever applies to you, refer to the steps below.
- Open the Devices Manager from the Win X Menu.
- Then go to the section of IDE ATA/ATAPI controllers as well as Storage Controllers and right-click on them to open the Properties.
- After that, switch to the Driver tab and click on the Uninstall Device button.
- Follow the screen option to completely uninstall it.
- Finally, restart your computer. It will just reinstall the device drivers automatically.
Note: You can install a dedicated driver on your computer in case you have it or you could also look for it directly from the website of the manufacturer.
Option 4 – Try to run the CHKDSK utility
Running the CHKDSK utility might also help you resolve the Volsnap.sys Blue Screen error. If your hard drive has issues with integrity, the update will really fail as the system will think that it’s not healthy and that’s where the CHKDSK utility comes in. The CHKDSK utility repairs hard drive errors that might be causing the problem.
- Open Command Prompt with admin privileges.
- After opening Command Prompt, execute the following command and hit Enter:
chkdsk /f /r
- Wait for the process to be completed and then restart your computer.
Option 5 – Run the System File Checker Scan
System File Checker or SFC is a built-in command utility that helps in restoring corrupted files as well as missing files. It replaces bad and corrupted system files with good system files. To run the SFC command, follow the steps given below.
- Tap Win + R to launch Run.
- Type in cmd in the field and tap Enter.
- After opening Command Prompt, type in sfc /scannow
The command will start a system scan which will take a few whiles before it finishes. Once it’s done, you could get the following results:
- Windows Resource Protection did not find any integrity violations.
- Windows Resource Protection found corrupt files and successfully repaired them.
- Windows Resource Protection found corrupt files but was unable to fix some of them.
Option 6 – Run the Blue Screen Troubleshooter
The Blue Screen troubleshooter is a built-in tool in Windows 10 that helps users in fixing BSOD errors like Volsnap.sys. It can be found on the Settings Troubleshooters page. To use it, refer to these steps:
- Tap the Win + I keys to open the Settings panel.
- Then go to Update & Security > Troubleshoot.
- From there, look for the option called “Blue Screen” on your right-hand side and then click the “Run the troubleshooter” button to run the Blue Screen Troubleshooter and then follow the next on-screen options. Note that you might have to boot your PC into Safe Mode.