Fix ATTEMPTED_WRITE_TO_CM_PROTECTED_STORAGE Error BSOD in Windows 10

Windows 10 often generates blue screen errors that make the system inoperable and sometimes inaccessible too. These issues mainly occur as a result of critical system crashes and in some cases, the situation becomes very hard to recover from. ATTEMPTED_WRITE_TO_CM_PROTECTED_STORAGE is one rare BSOD that appears all of a sudden while using the computer. With bug check code 0x0000011C, this blue screen of death points out that an attempt was made to write to the read-only protected storage of the configuration manager.

When Windows PC sense any unexpected error codes like ATTEMPTED WRITE TO CM PROTECTED STORAGE, the first thing you will notice is random restarts. Though the system does it to avoid any further damage or data loss, you may find it annoying as using the device becomes difficult. Blue screen errors mainly show up because of corrupted system elements, missing dll files, hardware trouble, outdated operating system as well as device drivers. There might be other reasons too such as malware infection, software conflict, faulty update files, memory issues, and so on.

ATTEMPTED_WRITE_TO_CM_PROTECTED_STORAGE

Here is how to fix ATTEMPTED_WRITE_TO_CM_PROTECTED_STORAGE Error BSOD in Windows 10

1] Start Windows 10 in Safe Mode with Networking

Not all blue screen errors but some exceptional ones prevent you from accessing Windows 10 devices. In such a case, enter into safe mode so that you can deploy some workarounds to fix the issue. This startup helps to troubleshoot critical errors quite easily as it allows Windows to load with basic programs and services only. Once in Safe mode, you can find out whether a third-party program is generating ATTEMPTED WRITE TO CM PROTECTED STORAGE or a genuine Microsoft component.

If any particular incident brings forth blue screen errors on your Windows 10 device, re-create the situation after entering into Safe mode. The main intention to do so is forcing the system. After doing so, if the blue screen appears, you can be sure that Windows is problematic itself. Once you know what actually caused the issue, take the necessary steps properly. To start Safe mode with networking –

1. Press – Windows + S.
2. Type – advanced startup.
3. Hit – Enter.
4. Click – Restart now.

5. From the next screen, select Troubleshoot => Advanced options => Startup Settings successively.
6. Next, click – Restart.
7. When the system powers up, press 5 or f5 to enable Safe Mode with Networking.

2] Disable Automatic restart

Windows 10 has an advanced feature that helps the system sense if anything unusual happening. Once the system gets hints about the abnormality, it reboots itself time and again. As this happens without any prior notice, you cannot even save any in-progress tasks. Furthermore, the troubleshooting turns out to be a difficult process because the system remains unstable.

The built-in feature Automatic Restart comes enabled by default. Fortunately, such settings are flexible and you can override them whenever needed. However, disabling automatic restart might not help to fix ATTEMPTED_WRITE_TO_CM_PROTECTED_STORAGE but it will definitely help to deploy workarounds properly. Here are the steps to follow –

1. Save and close all ongoing tasks.
2. Press – Windows + S.
3. Insert – advanced system settings.
4. Hit – Enter.
5. Once in the Advanced tab of System Properties, click Settings located beneath Startup and Recovery.
6. Uncheck the box that reads – Automatically restart.
7. Click – OK.
8. Close System Properties wizard.

3] Rollback driver to restore default version

An outdated driver can give rise to several issues on Windows 10 devices so does the incompatible one. What is more important is getting the correct and compatible version of the driver that goes with the system configuration. If you have recently installed updates for any of your drivers, there is a possibility that the edition was either incompatible or defective. To restore the default version, follow the steps given below –

1. Click the taskbar search icon.
2. Type in – devmgmt.
3. Hit – Enter.
4. Double-click the device that has received an update recently.
5. Right-click the driver you want to rollback and choose – Properties.
6. Shift to – Driver tab.
7. Click – Roll back Driver.
8. Provide a reason for the rollback and hit – Yes.
9. When the process is done, close Device Manager.
10. If the system asks to restart the PC, give consent.

In case the Roll back button is disabled or rolling back didn’t work to solve ATTEMPTED_WRITE_TO_CM_PROTECTED_STORAGE, try uninstalling the driver. To do so –

1. From Device Manager, expand the device whose driver you want to uninstall.
2. Right-click the problematic driver, select – Uninstall device.
3. If a pop-up appears to ask permission, click – Uninstall.
4. Restart Windows device and check if the issue is fixed.
5. Later on, you can install the latest version of the same driver from the manufacturer’s website.

4] Install latest Windows patches

Microsoft provides updates for Windows 10 quiet regularly in order to keep the OS healthy as well as bug free. Though installing an update won’t make your PC super fast, it will surely improve the overall performance. Windows 10 generally receives updates automatically but for that, your system must be connected with a stable internet connection. If you restricted the system from receiving updates or there is a limit on data usage, you will have to download newer patches manually. To do so –

1. Press – Windows + I.
2. Click – Update & Security.
3. From the right-hand side, click – Check for updates.

4. Hit – Download and install.
5. Once the system finishes the installation process, click – Restart now.

5] Update outdated Device Drivers

ATTEMPTED_WRITE_TO_CM_PROTECTED_STORAGE is often caused by outdated device drivers. Obsolete drivers not only give rise to blue screen error but also make the system unstable moreover non-functional. Usually, these drivers get updated when you install updates for Windows 10. But if you did exclude drivers from updates, you will have to update drivers manually.

In order to look for updates, Device Manager is the best application Windows offers. As each outdated device has a yellow indication on them, it’s easy to identify which driver needs an update actually.

1. Press – Windows + X.
2. Select – Device Manager.
3. Double-click the device that has an exclamation sign beside them.
4. Right-click the driver with a yellow indication and choose – Update driver.
5. Click the option – Search automatically for drivers.
6. Let the system search available updates online and install them.
7. If the utility indicates that the best-suited version is already installed, visit the manufactures website and check for the latest as well as the compatible version of the driver.
8. After getting the right one, download and install the same.
9. In the end, restart the device.

6] Get rid of virus to fix ATTEMPTED_WRITE_TO_CM_PROTECTED_STORAGE

In recent days, you will hardly get a Windows 10 user who doesn’t have access to the internet. While surfing the web, there is a chance to get affected by malware if your antivirus program is disabled. Viruses can be anywhere from spam mail to downloaded exe files to hacked websites. Once they manage to enter into the system, they start spreading their existence to affect genuine Windows files. As a result, the system loses original components which are responsible to initiate blue screen error ATTEMPTED_WRITE_TO_CM_PROTECTED_STORAGE.

Since when malware attacks the OS, the system starts giving us hints by abnormal activity. But in most cases, we ignore the indication which later causes unexpected critical issues. The main reason to neglect any malware at first glance is its nature of keeping its identity intact. It generally stay in disguise and pretends to be a genuine Microsoft component. However, you can obstruct the viruses from being spread in the full system. Here is how to proceed –

1. Click Start button.
2. Type – Virus & threat protection.
3. Hit – Enter.
4. From the right-pane, click – Scan options.
5. Hit the radio button present before – Full scan.
6. Click – Scan now.
7. If the utility tracks down the existence of malware, hit – Clean Threat.
8. After that, click Remove and then Start actions.
9. Complete the process by rebooting Windows.

7] Remove unnecessary apps to avoid software conflict

Developers nowadays build so many software programs that reduce human efforts to a great extent. There are plenty of applications available on the web and dedicated stores that perform different functionalities. But sometimes, we end up installing several programs with similar features. Though the name of each application is different, some of it might work to accomplish the same task.

Programs with similar congruence cause software conflicts and result in missing system elements. As we said earlier, lost components are one of the causes to generate ATTEMPTED_WRITE_TO_CM_PROTECTED_STORAGE error. Therefore, it’s necessary to stop further collision by removing apps that perform the same task. This procedure will not only stop software conflict but also free up disk space.

1. Right-click the Start icon.
2. Select – Apps and Features.
3. Move to the right side of the appearing settings page.
4. Look for the application that may cause the issue.
5. Select the same and click – Uninstall.
6. For final consent, again hit – Uninstall.
7. Follow further instructions if any.
8. Similarly, delete all unwanted programs.
9. After removing the apps, restart the device.

8] Unplug external peripherals to fix ATTEMPTED_WRITE_TO_CM_PROTECTED_STORAGE

To increase work productivity, often we use external peripherals like a mouse, keyboard, printer, scanner, or Bluetooth devices. How these devices create an issue is not clear but most probably USB adapter is the culprit. If any peripheral is bringing forth ATTEMPTED WRITE TO CM PROTECTED STORAGE BSOD on your Windows 10 PC, the issue should go away after disconnecting them. However, you can keep the mouse and keyboard connected.

After unplugging all devices from the USB ports, reboot the device and check if the error turns up anymore. If the issue doesn’t appear, reconnect the peripherals again. This time plug them in one after another and change the USB port too. While doing so, watch out if any particular device or port is generating the blue screen of death. In case that happens, you might need to change the USB port or the device.

9] Fix hard disk error

Hard disk is the sole of a system and any malfunction or cluster in the same can cause serious issues. Bad sectors can be formed in magnetic drives and also in the external ones. There are two types of bad areas that you may come across. When the device is damaged due to fall off or excessive heat, it’s called physical bad sector. Another one is logical aka soft bad area and it usually originates from a sudden power surge, malware infection, or forcibly disconnected cable.

To find out what actually made the hard disk bad, Windows offers a built-in utility named Disk checking tool. Once you run its dedicated command-line in elevated Command Prompt, the utility will start scanning your full system. If the tool traces out any logical bad area, it will be solved automatically. In case of a physical bad area, you need to change the hard disk. Let’s see how to run chkdsk –

1. Press – Windows key.
2. Type – cmd.exe.
3. Choose – Run as administrator.
4. To provide consent, click – Yes.
5. In the black panel, insert the following and hit Enter –

chkdsk C: /f /r /x

6. Once the scanning process ends, review the report.
7. If the found issues are resolved, reboot the device. Or else, take the next step according to the report.

10] Reinstall defective device driver to fix ATTEMPTED_WRITE_TO_CM_PROTECTED_STORAGE

Previously, we said to roll back and update device driver as many users found these resolutions effective. But some people fail to find out the real defective driver and that’s why neither roll back nor update works for them. Therefore, knowing the inappropriate as well as wrongly coded device driver is the key factor here. To find out the culprit driver, follow the below steps precisely –

1. Press – Windows + Q.
2. Type in – verifier.
3. Hit – Enter.
4. For the appearing User Account Control, click – Yes.
5. Hit the radio button set for Create custom settings (for code developers).
6. Click – Next.
7. From the next window, check all the boxes except DDI compliance checking and Randomized low resources simulation.
8. Hit – Next.
9. Select – Select driver names from a list.
10. Click – Next.
11. Select the drivers that are not from Microsoft.
12. Hit – Finish.

After enabling Driver Verifier, often it doesn’t run properly. Before you move to the next steps, you must ensure that the utility is active. For that –

1. Open Command Prompt as administrator.
2. Put verifier /querysettings after winking cursor.
3. Hit – Enter.
4. If the utility is running, the system will return a list of drivers.
5. Otherwise, perform the above steps again to activate Driver Verifier.
6. After ensuring that the tool is working, reboot your Windows device.
7. Once the system powers up, use it as usual.
8. Let the system bring forth ATTEMPTED_WRITE_TO_CM_PROTECTED_STORAGE BSOD.
9. When the blue screen appears, you will see the troublesome driver’s name on the screen.
10. Reinstall the driver.

Driver Verifier takes a maximum of 36 hours to let you know which driver is causing the issue in your system. If you are in hurry, force the system to crash so that you can find out the faulty driver as soon as possible. To do so, you will have to recreate the situation that generates blue screen of death. Keep doing the same until you see  DRIVER_VERIFIED_DETECTED_VIOLATION (abcdef.sys). Here, abcdef.sys is the name of the driver you need to reinstall.

11] Make your BIOS up-to-date

Basic Input/Output System in short BIOS is a micro semiconductor chip that remains placed on the Motherboard. It basically energizes the system when you turn on the device for the first time moreover helps the system to set up from the initial stage. This firmware also in charge of controlling data flow between Windows 10 and external peripherals.

Outdated BIOS are more likely to generate issues on Windows PC. Therefore, keeping it updated is necessary to assure the smooth functioning of your system. To accomplish the task –

1. Press – Windows + R.
2. In the empty text bar, type in – msinfo32.
3. Click – OK.
4. Note down the information set beside BIOS Version/Date.

5. Close System Information window.
6. Launch a web browser.
7. Visit the manufacturers’ website of your BIOS.
8. Find the most recent at the same time compatible version of BIOS.
9. Download the setup file.
10. Double-click the downloaded file to start the installation process.
11. After installing, reboot the device.

12] Check for RAM issues

Though RAM is not the fixed data storage, the memory stick is one of the sole parts of a device. This memory unit holds all temporary files that the system produces after executing every single task. When corruption takes place in the same, the system starts running slowly furthermore give rise to blue screen errors.

RAM usually becomes faulty due to overheating, sudden power surges, or an accidental fall. If the RAM issues originate from a software problem, it can be fixed. In case of physical damage, you have no way left other than change the memory stick. Before you jump to replace the RAM, run Memory Diagnostic tool to check what the problem really is. Here are the steps to follow –

1. Click search icon from the taskbar.
2. Type in – mdsched.exe.
3. Press – Enter.
4. Pick – Restart now and check for problems (Recommended).
5. Once the system finishes detecting RAM issues, Windows will restart itself.
6. After signing back in, check the notification bar to find the diagnosis report.

13] Resolve system corruption to fix ATTEMPTED_WRITE_TO_CM_PROTECTED_STORAGE

System components are the core element of Windows 10 and they usually don’t get corrupted automatically. System files generally go missing or faulty due to incompatible modifications that don’t go with the normal functioning of the PC. Other major reasons to make the system elements defective are malware infection and software conflict. To rectify the corruption at the same time get back the missing system components, System File Checker will be handy. Steps are as followed –

1. Press – Windows key.
2. Type – cmd.exe.
3. Right-click on Command Prompt and select – Run as administrator
4. When User Account Control appears, click – Yes.
5. Insert – Sfc /scannow.
6. Hit – Enter.
7. When the scanning process ends, check the report.
8. If the existing corruption is fixed, close Command Prompt and restart Windows.
9. Or else, do what the utility suggests.

14] Uninstall faulty Windows update

Sometimes, the patches Microsoft provides come faulty moreover buggy. On the other hand, poor internet connection oftentimes obstructs the update process and for that, the downloading and installing process gets stuck in between. Even if the system shows it’s hundred percent complete, there might be some broken or defective files that give rise to unexpected error codes later on. ATTEMPTED_WRITE_TO_CM_PROTECTED_STORAGE blue screen error can be a result of same.

1. Press – Windows key.
2. Type in – view update history.
3. Hit – Enter.
4. Click the link – Uninstall updates.
5. Find the most recent build you received.
6. Select the same KB and click – Uninstall.
7. Comply with on-screen instructions to complete the removal process.
8. Restart the device.

15] Turn off Fast boot

Fast Startup is a special feature of Windows 10 as it makes the booting process faster than usual. This special startup is basically a combination of normal Shut down and hibernate. When enabled, the feature collects all information from the current session before shutting down the PC. As a result, the system boots up faster in the next power-up.

Turning off Fast boot often helps users to eradicate ATTEMPTED_WRITE_TO_CM_PROTECTED_STORAGE. That’s because your system won’t remember anything about the blue screen error you are getting in the current session. Here are the steps to follow –

1. Right-click the battery icon from System tray.
2. Select – Power Options.
3. From the left sidebar, click the link that says – What the power buttons do.
4. Hit – Change settings that are currently unavailable.
5. Once the unavailable option becomes visible, uncheck – Turn on fast startup (recommended).
6. Click – Save Changes.

16] Delete old Windows files to fix ATTEMPTED_WRITE_TO_CM_PROTECTED_STORAGE

ATTEMPTED WRITE TO CM PROTECTED STORAGE error can be originated from low disk space too. If this the case for you, wiping out the junks as well as old update files may work to eradicate the issue. Disk cleanup is a built-in utility that lets you know how much space the system can free up by removing necessary files. To run the tool –

1. Press – Windows + S.
2. Type – cleanmgr.
3. Hit – Enter.
4. For the Driver selection pop-up, click – OK.
5. Hit – Clean up system files.
6. Again, click – Yes.
7. Select all the checkboxes present beneath Files to delete.
8. Leave Downloads and Recycle Bin unchecked if you have important files in them.
9. Click – OK.
10. When the process ends, reboot the device.

17] Restore last known good configuration

Oftentimes system throws blue screen errors because of faulty Windows updates, virus attacks, software conflicts, or wrongly modified registries. Even after solving these issues, the BSOD doesn’t go away as some corruption may still remain hidden. To undo the scenario, you can go back to a state where there was no error. For that –

1. Press – Windows key.
2. Type – rstrui.
3. Hit – Enter.
4. When System Restore wizard turns up, select – Choose a different restore point.
5. Hit – Next.
6. Click the checkbox – Show more restore points.
7. Select the date when your PC was working fine without blue screen error.
8. Click – Next.
9. Hit – Finish.
10. A pop-up will appear to warn you. Click – Yes.

18] Clean install Windows 10

If you are still struggling to fix ATTEMPTED_WRITE_TO_CM_PROTECTED_STORAGE BSOD, clean install Windows 10 as last resort. This way, you will get a fresh OS that doesn’t evolve any issue. Let’s see the procedure –

1. Visit Official Software Download webpage by Microsoft.
2. Click – Download tool now.
3. Go to the directory where the system saves downloaded items.
4. Double-click the downloaded setup file.
5. To give consent, select – Yes.
6. When Windows setup wizard turns up, click Accept for the terms and conditions.
7. Select the radio button set before – Create installation media (USB flash drive, DVD, or ISO file) for another PC.
8. Hit – Next.
9. Make sure that the Language, Edition, and Architecture are correct.
10. Click – Next.
11. Select – ISO file.
12. Hit – Next.
13. Choose a location where you want to store the file.
14. Click – Save.
15. Finally, hit – Finish.
16. Double-click the setup file you just got.
17. Follow on-screen guidelines to complete the installation process.

Methods list
1] Start Windows 10 in Safe Mode with Networking
2] Disable Automatic restart
3] Rollback driver to restore default version
4] Install latest Windows patches
5] Update outdated Device Drivers
6] Get rid of virus
7] Remove unnecessary apps to avoid software conflict
8] Unplug external peripherals
9] Fix hard disk error
10] Reinstall defective device driver
11] Make your BIOS up-to-date
12] Check for RAM issues
13] Resolve system corruption
14] Uninstall faulty Windows update
15] Turn off Fast boot
16] Delete old Windows files
17] Restore last known good configuration
18] Clean install Windows 10

That’s all!!