Windows up gradation to windows 10 has brought many issues with its introduction. But, when Microsoft started releasing updates, most of the errors and issues were resolved, however on the contrary many issues remain unfixed and unresolved. Installation error 0xc000021a: STATUS_SYSTEM_PROCESS_TERMINATED being one of them.
Appearance of this error message and the root cause
0xC000021A error appears in a blue screen, which mentions that ‘Your PC ran into a problem and needs to restart’. The reason can be anything. Your PC might have a damaged or corrupted system file. In some cases this error also remains after a system restart.
In many cases, this issue has arrived when users have upgraded to Windows 10. After the update, when the system restarts, the blue screen appears. Winlogon.exe and csrss.exe are two files that are corrupted or missing and hence this error message displays.
There are many solutions to fix this error on Windows 10. All you need to do is try each method one by one and whatever works for you is fine.
Method 1: Try to fix corrupt files
This should be the basic thing to do. Using this method we are not actually making any changes to the system, but just fixing/replacing the new files with the old one. For this you need to use the windows 10 installation CD and boot the system. If you do not have the CD you can download Windows 10 ISO from Microsoft website and then make a bootable USB flash drive.
- Select Troubleshoot -> Advanced options -> Command Prompt
- In the command prompt window, type ‘chkdsk C: /f /r’
This command will perform a system check. /f – fixes all the errors on the disk. /r – locates and fixes all the bad sectors. Once the check completes, you might get a ‘y/n’ prompt. Type ‘ y ’ and hit ‘ Enter ’. Reboot your system. If the error 0xc000021a remains, try the next method.
Method 2: Perform startup repair
To perform this method you need to use the Windows 10 installation CD again. Boot the CD and then perform the below steps.
Go to Troubleshoot -> Advanced options -> Startup Repair
The startup repair program will start, look for issues and repair it automatically .
Method 3: Disable certain drivers
The previous 2 methods should be able to fix BSOD Error 0xc000021a up to 99%, but if the problem still persists, you can do the following. Boot the Windows 10 again and go to Troubleshoot -> Advanced options -> Startup Settings.
From the list of options, click on “ disable driver signature enforcement ” and restart the system. Then, follow the same method to go to the Startup Settings and select the option “ Disable early-launch anti-malware protection ” and restart your system again.
Method 4: Perform a clean boot
Performing a clean boot allows the system to troubleshoot Bug Check 0xC000021A in depth. Follow the steps below to perform a clean boot.
- Press ( Windows+R ) – This will open the Run Utility
- Type ‘ msconfig ’ and hit Enter. This will open the System Configuration Window
- Under the General tab , click ‘ Selective Startup ’
- Uncheck ‘ Load startup ’ items
- Go to Services -> check ‘ Hide all Microsoft services ’
- Click on ‘ Disable All ’
- Go to Startup tab and disable all the services
- Restart the computer
If the error is gone, then it is sure that one of the services was causing the error. If the error still persists, then try the next fix.
Method 5: Uninstall recently installed software
There is a high possibility that newly installed software or an updated driver might be causing the error and showing the message STATUS_SYSTEM_PROCESS_TERMINATED. To fix this you need to follow the below steps.
- Use the Windows 10 CD to reboot the system
- Go to Troubleshoot -> Advanced Options -> Startup Settings -> Restart
- Press F4 or select option 4 ‘ Enable Safe Mode ’ and let the system ‘ Restart ’
- Go to Control Panel -> Programs -> Programs and Features
- From the list, uninstall all the programs that were installed recently.
- On the left panel, click on ‘ View Installed Updates ’. This will show the list of Operating System updates
- Uninstall any recent updates, if you see
- Once done, Reboot your PC.
If the problem is still there then you may try the next method.
Method 6: Run SFC Scan
Repeat the previous methods to run the PC in Safe Mode and follow the below steps to remove hex code 0xc000021a .
- Go to Start -> type ‘ cmd ’ in the search box.
- Right click on the Command prompt option and select ‘ Run As Administrator ’
- Type ‘sfc /scannow ’ and hit Enter
- Reboot once the scan finishes
All your system files will be scanned and the corrupted files will be replaced and kept in the compressed folder at %WinDir%\System32\dllcache. This is a cached location.
Method 7: Run DISM command
You will need to follow the same method as mentioned above to boot the system in Safe Mode and then open Command Prompt and follow the below steps.
- Type ‘ dism /image:C:\ /cleanup-image /revertpendingactions ’ and hit Enter
- Additionally you can also run this command – ‘ cd C:\Windows\WinSxS ’
- Then run this command ‘ move pending.xml pending.old ’ – This only works if the system has created ‘ pending.xml ’ file.
You can also try the next method if this doesn’t work.
Method 8: Use the System Restore option
This is a great feature that helps you to come out of a lot of problems. System Restore roles back the system to an earlier time. To perform this restart the PC with having the Windows10 CD in the ROM or using the bootable flash drive and follow the below steps
- Go to Troubleshoot -> Advanced Options -> System Restore .
- From the System Restore section, click the restore point you want to roll back your system to.
- Click Next -> Finish . Click Yes at the warning prompt.
Wait for the system to finish the process and let the system restart. If the error still exists, you can follow what is mentioned next.
Method 9: Rebuild BCD
One of the main reasons why you are seeing Installation error 0xc000021a is because there is a high possibility that the boot sector is corrupted or deleted. To fix this you need to repair the boot sector and rebuild the BCD (Boot Configuration Data).
- Follow Method 2 to repair your computer
- Let the system restart then open Command Prompt
- Type the following command one by one and hit ‘Enter’ after every command.
- bootrec /FixMbr
- bootrec /FixBoot
- bootrec /ScanOs
- bootrec /RebuildBcd
This should repair BCD sector and you should be able to startup windows 10 without error.
Method 10: Disabling Driver Signature
By disabling the driver signature, Windows 10 will block the drivers that are not digitally signed to run on Windows 10. This can work if the error is being rooted because of the drivers installed and that are being used on startup.
- Boot the PC in the Recovery Options Menu
- Go to Troubleshoot -> Advanced options -> Startup settings and select Restart
- From the menu select ‘ Disable driver signature enforcement ’
Let the PC to re-boot and check if the error is still there. If yes then you need to try the next method.
Method 11: Reset the BIOS
There have been cases where just by resetting the BIOS have solved this issue. All you need to do is, remove the CMOS battery for a couple of minutes and then placing it back will solve the issue. Follow the simple steps to go ahead with this procedure.
- Turn of the computer completely
- Remove all the cables and make sure nothing is connected to main power.
- Open the CPU’s chassis
- Locate the CMOS battery on the motherboard
- Remove it and wait for 1-2 mins
- Replace it back
- Fit the chassis and turn on the computer.
The error message should have gone and the system should boot properly. If the problem is still there, go ahead with the next process.
Method 12: Replace corrupted Registry hive files with Backups
While the boot process, Windows try to access all registry hive files. There is a high possibility that while upgrading to Windows 10 a few registry files must have got corrupted or misplaced. Now, since the computer wont boot, the registry files have to be replaced using Command Prompt from Windows Recovery Environment.
- Use the Windows 10 CD or the bootable flash drive and reboot the system
- Let the system boot from either CD or Flash drive
- Go to Troubleshoot > Advanced options > Command Prompt
- Type ‘C:’ and hit Enter (The drive where Windows is loaded, that should be selected. In most cases it is Drive C)
- Type ‘cd windows\system32\config’ and hit Enter
- Type ‘dir’ and hit Enter. This will display the files and folders in that particular directory
- For each file, and not the folder, type ‘ren (File Name) (File Name).old’ and hit Enter
Eg: For ‘ren SECURITY SECURITY.old’ for the SECURITY and ‘ren SYSTEM SYSTEM.old’ for the SYSTEM file.
- Once all the files are renamed, type ‘cd RegBack’ and press Enter
- Type ‘dir’ and hit Enter. This will again show all the files & folders in the directory
- Type the below commands one by one and hit Enter after every command
Copy /Y SOFTWARE
Copy /Y SAM
Copy /Y SYSTEM
- Once done, type EXIT and close the command prompt and come out of the Windows Recovery Environment.
- Remove the installation media and Reboot the PC
The PC should boot properly without the error 0xc000021a on the screen. If you still see the issue, try the next method.
Method 13: Check HDD’s condition
If none of the steps have worked, there is a very high chance that the sectors of your HDD are spoilt. To confirm, you will need to run diagnostics for the HDD. Follow the below process
- Open File Explorer
- Right click on the partition where Windows is installed (It is C: in most cases) and go to Properties
- Under the ‘Tools’ tab, click on ‘Check button’ in the Error Checking section. The system will run the diagnostics
If you find an error message, just know that there is some issue with the HDD. Get in touch with your hardware engineer soon and seek their help.
These are a few ways, which you can use to get through the error message. If the problem still remains, you should get in touch with your hardware engineer and seek for his/her help.
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