Although Patch Tuesday updates are usually released to provide the latest security updates to Windows, sometimes they can also cause problems. Microsoft says the latest December Patch Tuesday (KB5021233) update for Windows 10 22H2, 21H2, and 21H1 is producing a Blue Screen of Death (or BSOD) with error code “0xc000021a” on some systems. HIDPARSE system files (hidparse.sys) in two different system directories. On its health dashboard, Microsoft Explains:
Technical note: After installing KB5021233, there may be a mismatch between the file version of hidparse.sys in c:/windows/system32 and c:/windows/system32/drivers (assuming Windows is on your C: drive is installed), which can cause signatures. Validation to fail when cleanup occurs.
To mitigate this issue, Microsoft provides detailed steps:
work: To mitigate this issue on devices that are already experiencing it, you will need to use Windows Recovery Environment (WinRE) with the following steps.
- You will need to enter the Windows Recovery Environment. If your device has not started automatically in WinRE, please see Entry points into WinRE.
- select Troubleshooting Button
- Select “Launch recovery, troubleshooting, and diagnostic tools.“Button.
- Select “Advanced options“Button.
- Select “Command Promptbutton and wait for your device to restart if needed.
- Your device should restart to a command prompt window. You may need to sign in to your device with your password before going to the Command Prompt window.
- Run the following command (Important: If Windows is not installed on C:\windows you will need to modify the command in your environment): xcopy C:\windows\system32\drivers\hidparse.sys C:\windows\\system32\hidparse.sys
- After the previous command completes, type: Get out
- Select “Continued“Button.
- Windows should now start as expected.
Important: It is not recommended to follow any other work than recommended above. We do not recommend deleting hidparse.sys from your Windows\System32 folder.
Also, there are several other issues on Windows 10 as well as Windows 11 that you can read about here.
