There are multiple reasons why a computer will get a blue screen. The root cause of this all leads down to the type of operating system used and what was done right before the screen went blue. Most of the time, when a screen goes blue, it is hard to recover from it and may represent a software problem or hardware that cannot be recovered. Here is some causes of the blue screen on Windows Vista and XP and some minor tips:

Usually, when Vista runs into a problem, it will automatically shut down and restart on its own. In most cases, Vista will show a blue screen that reads, "Windows has been shut down to prevent damage to your computer". By this time, most people start to panic. There are other messages that Vista might display in order to inform a user of an error. Vista will offer the user advise for getting to the root of the problem through a message.

If a user experiences this, they should go to the 'check for solutions to problems' tab. This will only work if the computer is able to start or if it has blue screen errors. If the computer cannot start, the user will need to go to the section labeled, 'use startup repair'. Since Vista is an advanced software, it may be able to check the solution for the user without any problems.

Another method would be to click the 'start' tab and select, 'Control Panel'. After doing this, the user should double click on 'Problem Reports and Solutions'. Another option is to click on the tab labeled, 'System and Maintenance' followed by clicking on 'Problems Reports and Solutions'. Once in this window, in the upper left part of the window, click on 'Tasks'. This will lead to another option (click on 'Check for solutions'). After clicking on this tab, Windows will automatically start to search for a solution to the problem. The computer user may have to wait a couple of minutes depending on how fast the computer is. After a couple of minutes, the computer will give out a message. If the message reads, 'No new solutions found' then the next best option would be to close the message.

Another option left to the user would be to check and install updated drivers given by the manufacturer. This will help protect the computer against any other attacks and increase reliability. This can be done manually or automatically based on user settings. This is the best option for decreasing the chances of getting blue screen errors.