13 Fixes: BSOD “Link By Pointer” Error On Windows

Link by pointer BSOD error in Windows 10 may seem unusual, but it has started to haunt several users lately. Although there is no specific reason that leads to this error, the main culprits are believed to be bugs, malware, corrupted Windows update, graphics drivers, etc.

Read on as we discuss the most common causes of the error and explore the top 13 ways to fix it.

What Causes BSOD ‘Link by Pointer’ Error in Windows 10?

If you are wondering what is causing the link by pointer BSOD error in Windows 10/11, the issue is mostly related to your device drivers or system files.

The error message points to an incorrect number of references to running objects in Windows. This is another serious Blue Screen of Death error that freezes on Windows and leads to other problems in operation. When you receive a BSOD error message, the best thing to do is restart your computer to clear its active memory.

If everything is fine with the system files and drivers, the above error might be due to a bug present in your current software. Sometimes outdated graphic cards and network devices are also associated with the occurrence of this error. Aside from these, hardware failure can also lead to a link-by-pointer BSOD error.

How to fix BSoD “Link by pointer”error in Windows 10/11?

After identifying the potential cause of the Pointer Reference BSoD error, you can try the following fixes to resolve the error and protect your computer.

Switch to safe mode
Scan for malware
Temporarily disable your antivirus
Update your Windows
Clean boot your computer or remove problematic software
Update outdated or corrupted graphics drivers
Use the System File Checker (SFC) utility
Run the Deployment Image Servicing and Management command (DISM.exe)
Check if your computer is overheating
Check your equipment
Restore data and reinstall Windows
Roll back a recently installed driver or system update
Run the Memory Diagnostic Tool

Let’s discuss each of these solutions in detail below.

1. Switch to safe mode

Before trying any other fixes, we recommend that you switch to Safe Mode. This can be easily done by following the steps below.

Turn on the computer and wait until the Windows logo appears on the screen.
Select and hold the power button for a few seconds.
This will force restart your computer.
Repeat the above steps at least two times.

After completing these steps, Windows will boot into Automatic Repair mode as a result of failed boot attempts. Once you reach the automatic recovery menu, follow the steps given below.

Select the Advanced option.
Select Troubleshoot.
Select More Options again.
Click on the Launch Options option.
Then click “Restart”at the bottom right of the screen.

After that, you need to choose to boot in safe mode using the number keys or the function keys (F1-F9) on your keyboard. There will be the following options with a number:

Enable Debugging
Enable boot logging
Enable low resolution video
Enable safe mode
Enable Safe Mode with Networking
Enable Safe Mode Using Command Prompt
Disable Driver Signature Enforcement
Disable early launch anti-malware protection
Disable automatic restart after failure

Choose from 4, 5 and 6 options. And after that, the window will start loading with the safe mode you selected.

Check if the problem with pointer reference is solved after this or not. If not, check your computer for potential malware.

2. Scan for malware

Malware or viruses can be another reason for the pointer reference error to appear on your computer. To avoid this, you always scan your entire system for malware. This can be done by following the steps given below.

To open the Settings app, use the Windows + I keys.
Click on the Update & Security option among other options on the screen.

Click Windows Security.

There will be a “Protection scopes”section where you will see the “Virus and threat protection”option, click on it.

A pop-up window will appear on the screen. Click “Start a new advanced scan”.
Select the “Full Scan”option.
Then click “Scan Now”to start the scanning process immediately.
Close all screen prompts, and then restart your computer.

The issue should be resolved by now. If not, let’s disable your AV temporarily.

3. Temporarily disable your antivirus software.

If a thorough scan of your system didn’t reveal a virus or malware attack, it’s likely that your link-by-pointer issue is related to your third-party or pre-installed antivirus program.

Rarely, but sometimes an antivirus program interferes with your computer. In this case, you should try temporarily disabling the antivirus.

If this method doesn’t fix the BSOD error, you can turn your antivirus back on and try other fixes.

Tip: For greater accuracy, don’t forget to disable both third-party and pre-installed antivirus.

4. Update Windows

Microsoft releases frequent updates to address existing issues or bugs. Hence, it is advised to keep Windows up to date to avoid errors including BSOD. To do this, follow the steps given below:

Open the Settings app by pressing Windows + I.
Select Update & Security.
Click Windows Update.

Select Check for updates.

Windows will then start looking for any available update and you will see a prompt on the screen.

To install new updates, restart your system.

Advice. Turn on automatic updates to avoid manual installation.

5. Clean boot your computer or remove problematic software

Several third-party programs must be loaded on your system. Surprisingly, they can also cause a link by pointer BSOD error. Not only that, there might be some firmware that might be causing this error.

Therefore, clean boot your computer or uninstall this problematic software to resolve the error.

Follow the step below to do so.

Use the Windows + R keys to open the Run window on your PC.
Type the command – msConfig and press the Enter key. This command opens the System Configuration.
Select the Service tab.
Select the Hide all Microsoft services check box.
Click on the “Disable All”option.
Select the “Startup”tab.
Click on the “Task Manager”option.
Select a specific program and click Disable.
Repeat the above steps for any third-party or problematic programs on your PC.
Return to the system configuration window.
Click Apply and then OK.

After that, restart your computer and check if the error is resolved.

If this method fails to resolve the link by pointer error, it means that no preinstalled software should do anything about it. Thus, you can try other fixes.

6. Update outdated or corrupted graphics drivers

As discussed in the Pointer BSOD Error Reference Reasons section, your outdated or corrupted graphics drivers can also cause this stop code error. Hence, you must update your graphics drivers. Especially if you have AMD drivers.

To update your graphics drivers, follow the steps given below.

Click the Start button in the lower left corner of the screen. Or press the Windows key.
Type device manager and press the Enter key to open Device Manager.

Double-click Display Adapters.
Right click on Graphics Drivers. The menu will appear.
Click Update Drivers.

Click “Search automatically for updated driver software”.

Restart your computer to install the updates.

7. Use the System File Checker (SFC) utility

If certain files on your system are corrupted or missing, then the link-by-pointer error may haunt you. With the built-in system file checker, you can replace these files with cached copies and restore them.

To use this built-in tool, follow the steps given below.

Open the search bar and type cmd. You’ll find the “Command Prompt”option at the top.

Right-click it and select the “Run as administrator”option.

Click “Yes”on the required administrator rights window that appears on the screen.
Next, type SFC/ scannow command and press the Enter key on your keyboard.

The System File Checker tool will scan your system for corrupted or missing files. Once detected, it will automatically replace or repair them.

8. Run the Deployment Image Servicing and Management command (DISM.exe)

Sometimes the pointer link error occurs after you upgrade your computer to Windows 10. If you tried to perform an SFC scan and couldn’t resolve the issue, chances are that the Windows image files got corrupted in the process.

These faulty image files can be easily fixed using the DISM command.

To run this command, follow these steps.

Type cmd in the search field and press the Enter key. Command Prompt will open.
Run the command DISM.exe /Online /Cleanup-image /Restorehealth.
Restart Windows after completing this scanning process.

After reboot, check if the error is resolved or not.

9. Check if your computer is overheating

In most cases, it is high PC temperatures that lead to the BSOD access by pointer error. There is a chance that your computer will crash if the CPU temperature gets very high. Therefore, you should immediately check if your computer is overheating as soon as you receive this error.

You can take the help of any popular CPU temperature monitor to check your CPU temperature. And if it overheats, you can try the following ways to cool it down.

Clean your computer of dust. This has proven to be effective.
Disconnect it completely from any power source.
Use compressed air to clean components.

10. Check your equipment

Yes, the BSoD error can also occur due to an issue with your hardware. Hence, you should always check your hardware when you get this error on the screen. Especially if you have recently added new hardware, you should remove it and check if the error is resolved.

And if the problem is fixed, keep only the removed equipment and replace it with another one. You can also try to contact the manufacturer and discuss this issue with him.

11. Restore data and reinstall Windows

If your window is stuck with a pointer link error and you can’t access the Windows desktop, reinstall Windows. Since all your data will be gone when you reinstall, be sure to restore your important data first.

Any third-party tool is recommended for data recovery.

For example, in such a case, the MiniTool Partition Wizard tool will be useful.

Follow the steps below to complete the process.

Install MiniTool Partition Wizard Pro Ultimate and run it. This must be done on another working computer.
Now plug an empty USB drive into this computer. On the main interface, click “Bootable Media”.
Select the WinPE-based media with the MiniTool plug-in found on the next page.
You need to create a bootable USB flash drive, to do this, click on USB Flash Drive.
Disconnect this USB drive after the write process is complete. And connect to the computer with the BSoD error again.
Set the USB drive as the first boot option in BIOS and boot your computer.
After downloading this tool, select the data recovery module from the main interface.
Click on scan after selecting the section with important data.
After the full scan process is complete, select the files and folders you want to recover and click SAVE.

After that, the data will be restored and you can continue the process of reinstalling Windows.

Check if this method solves your problem. If not, move on to the next solution.

12. Roll back a recently installed driver or system update

There is a possibility of a bug appearing or introducing into your system if you recently updated a driver or went through a major system update. In the window, there is an option to roll back the driver and remove the latest updates that may be causing the error.

Follow the steps given below to roll back the newly installed driver.

Select Device Manager by right-clicking the Start menu.
Locate the device for which you recently updated the driver. Right-click the device and select the Properties options.
Click Roll Back Driver in the Properties window.
After that, the newly installed driver will be removed and you will be left with the previous version.
Now reboot your device by right clicking the start menu.
Click Shut Down and then Restart.

Follow the steps given below to restore the system update.

Select “Settings”from the Start menu.
Click Update & Security.
Click View Update History.
Select Uninstall updates.
Click Install Category to sort updates by date.
Here you can see the latest update that may be causing the error, select it and then click Uninstall.
Reboot your device by right-clicking the start menu.
Click Shut Down and then Restart.

If the uninstall option is not available for this system update, it is required and cannot be uninstalled by any process.

13. Run the Memory Diagnostic Tool

If you encounter this error, you can also run a memory check on your PC using the built-in tool known as the Memory Diagnostic Tool in Windows 10. This will help you check for memory issues on your PC that might be causing this error.

Conclusion

The link to the stop code on the BSOD error pointer should already be fixed with the quick fixes above. This error is very common in Windows 10 and is also known as error 0x00000018. You can easily spot this as your screen will turn blue with a warning on it. And all of the above fixes are simple and can be done by anyone.

And if this error still exists, you need to have it checked by professionals. In such a case, there may be serious damage or a problem with your software.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

What causes BSoD?

BSOD, or Blue Screen of Death, is a type of stop code error that causes Windows to freeze and cause other problems if not fixed in time. This is caused by errors in system files or codes in Windows. Interestingly, this can be treated with a few fixes.

What does the stop code mean in Windows?

This is a number that identifies a specific stop error in Windows, such as the Blue Screen of Death. The stop code appears when the computer detects a problem and therefore stops working and restarts itself.

What is a reference by pointer stop code?

This means that the object reference count is invalid for the current state.