Credit: Digvijay Kumar / MakeUseOf
Published Apr 20, 2026, 2:40 PM EDT
Dave Schafer is a passionate storyteller and tech enthusiast. He’s been writing professionally since 2014 and has covered a wide range of topics, from cable and internet providers to VPNs to web hosting. Dave’s work has been featured on publications like All About Cookies, SatelliteInternet.com, and HighSpeedInternet.com, among others.
As a writer, Dave enjoys taking complex topics and making them understandable and relatable to everyday readers — whether that’s exploring the intricacies of a VPN or helping someone choose a better piece of software.
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Summary
- The Windows 11 April update is triggering boot loops for certain users.
- The problem has been shown on HP and Dell PCs, but it's unclear if it's limited to these brands.
- If you're affected, try System Restore and Startup Repair. If these fail, you may need to reset the PC.
April 14th was Patch Tuesday, and, as usual, Microsoft released its monthly Windows 11 update. In keeping with tradition, some users are reporting boot loops and other odd issues following installation.
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Windows Update woes
Nothing like a boot loop to start your day off right
On April 17, users began posting to Microsoft's support forums complaining of boot loops following the installation of update KB5083769. Affected users found that their screens showed a "mosaic of weird pixels followed by an intermediate blue screen saying that Windows needed to be recovered." Following the on-screen instructions resulted in a boot loop — much worse than just an annoying process coming back after every update.
Several others chimed in with similar issues. One user's PC would reboot to the pre-update state, so it was usable but unable to update. However, several others found their PCs entirely unusable.
PCs from both HP and Dell appear to be affected, but it's unclear what specifically is causing these issues. A response to the thread from Microsoft's Q&A Assist bot seemed to indicate this is not necessarily a new issue: "The behavior matches a failed Windows update that leaves the system unable to boot and stuck in an automatic repair loop. Similar issues are documented when a cumulative/security update corrupts boot-critical components or drivers, especially on some AMD-based systems."
How to get your system back to normal
Simple troubleshooting steps
Q&A Assist also provided some steps to get your PC up and running again if you find yourself affected:
- Boot into the Windows Recovery Environment (WinRE): Power on the PC, and then as soon as the logo appears, press and hold the power button until it turns off. Repeat this cycle 2–3 times until Windows boots into WinRE.
- Run System Restore: In WinRE, select Troubleshoot > Advanced Options > System Restore. Choose a restore point before installing the April update.
- If that fails, try Startup Repair: Head to Troubleshoot > Advanced Options > Startup Repair.
- If that still doesn't work, you can try resetting the PC: In WinRE, head to Troubleshoot > Reset this PC. You can either choose to keep your files or do a total wipe. When prompted, choose Local reinstall and let it run.
C'mon, Microsoft
These issues aren't abnormal, and given the sheer number of different devices Windows runs on, it's understandable that some would encounter problems. However, Microsoft has had a tough run recently (remember when they blocked the accounts of a bunch of major developers?), and these sorts of issues don't help the company's image— especially when they render devices unusable.