What is the ‘System Service Exception’ error?
The ‘System Service Exception’ error is one of the most commonly occurring stop errors on the Windows operating system. These stop errors are also known as blue screen of death, BSoD or blue screen. These errors indicate a fatal system crash and can cause your system to be in an unsafe state of operation. There are several different BSoD errors that your system can come across, and ‘System Service Exception’ denoted with the error code of 0x0000003B is one of the common ones. Some of the other familiar BSoD errors are Bad Pool Header, Incompatible drivers, NMI Hardware Failure, and many more.
When the OS encounters a stop error, it causes the system to crash and restart; this could lead to data loss of unsaved data. When a BSoD error occurs, Windows creates a “mini-dump” and saves it onto the disk. The mini-dump contains all the crash related information on it; this can help you identify the cause and solution to eliminating the error.
Why does the “System Service Exception” error occur?
Before getting into the solution to the problem it’s important to understand the causes of it. Below mentioned are few of the most common causes of the ‘System Service Exception’ error:
- Viruses, Malware, or corrupted applications
- Incompatible or outdated drivers
- Corrupted system files
- Incompatible softwares
- Buggy updates
Now let’s look into some of the solutions to the 0x0000003B error on Windows10.
10 methods to fix the ‘System Service Exception’ error
Fix 1. – Run a malware scan
One of the common causes of such an error is the fact that your system has been infected with viruses or some malicious program. It is recommended to download and install a well rated anti-virus program to search and remove any malware from your system. Some of the top-rated antivirus programs are Norton Antivirus, McAfee Total Protection, and AVG internet security.
Fix 2. – Disable your webcam
Sometimes this error is caused due to faulty built-in hardware, such as the webcam. Try disabling the webcam and restarting your PC.
The steps to disable webcam on Windows10 are as follows:
- Click on the start button, search for Device Manager and open it up.
- Look for your webcam in the Device manager, right click on it and click on Disable.
Once you have disabled it, restart your PC and try again.
The error could also be caused by other built-in hardware. So if disabling the webcam has not worked for you, it’s a good idea to explore and check if there are other pieces of hardware that are causing the error.
Fix 3. – Repair any damaged Windows system files
Damaged system files can trigger some serious errors on your PC. Windows has a built-in tool called System File Checker that scans and helps to repair the errors with the cached versions stored on your PC previously.
Below are the steps to execute this solution successfully:
- Press Windows + R, This will open the run box. Then type “cmd” and click OK to open the command prompt.
- Now enter the following command: “sfc /scannow“. Then hit the enter key. This will begin a system scan immediately. This might take a while, so wait and let the process complete.
- Once the process is finished, close the command prompt and restart your PC.
Now check if the error still persists. If so, move on to the next solutions.
Note: If you run into an SFC /Scannow error when starting the scan, don’t worry. We have written dedicated articles on what to do if SFC scannow is not working, including:
- Windows Resource Protection Could Not Perform The Requested Operation
- Windows resource protection could not start the repair service
Fix 4. – Check for Windows updates
There is a good chance that the error is occurring due to outdated modules running on your PC. It is crucial that you check for system updates on a timely basis to avoid unnecessary errors.
Check for updates and install all available updates. Once you are done with this, reboot your PC and see if the error persists.
If you have recently installed new updates and have started to face this error since; You might want to uninstall the new updates as this could be causing the BSoD error on your PC. This is because, sometimes, the newer updates are not compatible with of your preinstalled applications.
The steps to check for updates on Windows 10 is as follows:
- Open the start menu and click on Settings.
- Then navigate to the “Update and Security” settings.
- Click on “Windows Update”.
- Hit the “Check for Updates” button.
If there are any new updates, the system will show them to you and you can move forward with downloading and installing them.
Fix 5. – Update your drivers
Faulty or incompatible drivers are one of main causes of the 0x0000003B error, but don’t worry, it’s usually not because of something you did. Your system is constantly changing and updating, this could lead to incompatibilities or out-of-sync drivers.
A lot of users have noticed that this error sometimes occurs due to an outdated graphics card. A solution to this would be update your GPU drivers.
Below are the steps to do so:
- Click on the start button, search for “Device Manager” and open it up.
- Click on “Display Adapters”.
- Right-click on your graphics card and click on “Update Driver”.
Your PC will automatically find new, updated drivers for your GPU and will perform the installation. Once the process is complete, reboot your PC and check if the error persists.
Fix 6. – Disable or uninstall any third party anti-virus software
Anti-virus software have the ability to block certain apps and also cause errors on your PC. Few reports suggest that a common cause of the system service exception error is a manually installed third party anti-virus software. This may or may not be the reason your PC is experiencing the error, but the only way to find out is by uninstalling or disabling these software tools.
You could also try to update the software version installed or switch to a different anti-virus tool.
Fix 7. – Check your hard drive for any issues
Another cause of BSoD errors could be due to a misconfigured hard rive or other hardware related issues. Below are the steps to follow to check your hard disk:
- Open the Command prompt.
- Enter the following command and press enter: “chkdsk /f C:“
- Let the process complete.
- Reboot your PC.
This should address any hard drive configuration issues and solve the BSoD error if that was the cause.
Fix 8. – Check your RAM
Apart from the hard drives, the 0x0000003B error could also be caused due to problems with your RAM. This can be diagnosed and fixed by using the Windows Memory Diagnostic tool.
Here are the steps to follow:
- Click on the start button, search for “Windows Memory Diagnostic” and open it up.
- When the new window opens, select the “Restart now and check for problems” option.
- Let your PC reboot.
Fix 9. – Run the Windows 10 Troubleshooter
If your Windows 10 is running one of the newer versions, then you have the option to use Microsoft’s built-in troubleshooter. This tool is capable of dealing with multiple PC errors including most of the BSoD errors (such as System Service Exception).
Here are the steps to run the troubleshooter:
- Open the start menu and click on Settings.
- Navigate to “Update & Security” and then “Troubleshoot”.
- Head to “BSOD” and click on “Run the troubleshooter”.
- Go ahead with the instructions mentioned on your screen.
- Reboot your computer.
Fix 10. – Perform a startup repair
Probably a solution that you might or might not have tried already but for us, Windows users, the startup repair is usually a go-to solution to our PC errors.
Here are the steps to use it:
- Restart your PC, and while it’s starting press Shift + F8.
- Your screen will display a “Choose an option” page, choose the “Troubleshoot” option.
- Now, from the troubleshoot screen, click on “Advanced options”.
- From the advanced options screen, click on “Startup/Automatic repair”.
- Reboot your PC.
The system will automatically check for errors and fix them.
