Solved: Video TDR Failure (atikmpag.sys) error windows 10
The error is generally triggered when the Timeout Detection and Recovery (TDR) mechanism of Windows detects that the GPU is unresponsive.

The Video TDR Failure error usually triggers if for some reason computer’s graphics card has stopped responding for too long, causing the system to reset itself. This Blue Screen of Death (BSOD) issue indicates problems with your graphics driver or hardware, such as the GPU or memory. Usually, you may encounter Video TDR Failure error during tasks that demand high graphical performance, such as gaming, video editing, or even casual web browsing. Outdated or Corrupt Graphics Drivers are common reasons for blue screen errors on Windows PC. Again software conflict, Faulty RAM or Storage, and corrupt system files also cause Video TDR Failure errors. Whatever the reason, this article helps you troubleshoot and fix Video TRD Failure on Windows 10.
What is Video TDR and What Does Video TDR Failure Mean?
Video TDR stands for Timeout Detection and Recovery. It’s a mechanism in Windows designed to detect when the GPU becomes unresponsive and attempt to recover it to prevent a system crash. When the system fails to recover the GPU within the allotted time, it triggers a Video TDR Failure error, leading to a BSOD.
Depending on the brand of your graphics card, you might encounter the error under different names:
- With an NVIDIA graphics card, the error shows up as
nvlddmkm.sys
. - With an Intel graphics card, the error shows up as
igdkmd64.sys
. - With an AMD or ATI graphics card, the error shows up as
atikmpag.sys
.
Problems with the graphics driver, hardware, or software conflicts are common reasons behind this.
- Outdated or Corrupt Graphics Drivers: Incorrect or outdated drivers for your AMD graphics card can lead to this issue.
- Overheating or Hardware Problems: Overheating GPUs or faulty hardware components can cause graphical instability.
- Software Conflicts: Conflicting applications or malware can interfere with GPU operations.
- Faulty RAM or Storage: Corruption in memory or storage can affect the system’s ability to communicate with the GPU.
- Improper Overclocking: Overclocking your GPU or CPU can destabilize your system.
Note: If this error triggers frequently, we recommend start Windows safe mode and perform the troubleshooting steps below.
Update or Reinstall Graphics Drivers
Outdated or corrupted drivers are the most common cause of this error. Updating or reinstalling your graphics driver resolves the issue for most users.
- Press
Windows + X
and select Device Manager. - Expand the Display Adapters section.
- Right-click your graphics card and select Update driver.
- Choose Search automatically for updated driver software.
This will download the latest compatible driver update from Microsoft server. Once done, reboot your PC and check if the error won’t trigger again.
Reinstall Drivers:
-
- Download the latest driver for your GPU from the manufacturer’s website.
- Uninstall the current driver:
- In Device Manager, right-click your graphics card and select Uninstall device.
- Check the option to delete the driver software and click Uninstall.
- Restart your computer and install the downloaded driver.
Direct links to download display drivers from the most common providers are
- NVIDIA http://www.nvidia.com/Download/index.aspx
- AMD http://support.amd.com/en-us/download
- Intel https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/support/products/80939/graphics-drivers.html
Install Graphics driver compatibility mode
If the above solutions don’t fix the problem, then Check and install the latest Windows 10 graphics card drivers for your device from the Manufacture’s website instead of from (the NVIDIA, AMD, or Intel website) and Install Graphics driver compatibility mode this Most probably it will fix the issue.
Note: If no updated drivers are available on the manufacturer’s website for Windows 10, then installing drivers in compatibility mode runs the program using settings from a previous version of Windows.
Steps to install the drivers in compatibility mode
- Download the latest and available driver from the manufacturer’s website.
- Uninstall the existing graphics card drivers from your PC through Control Panel.
- Right-click on the driver setup file and click on ‘Properties’.
- Click on the ‘Compatibility’ tab
- check the box ‘Run this program in compatibility mode for’ and select Windows 8/8.1 or 7 operating system from the drop-down menu and proceed with the installation.
- Follow on-screen instructions to install the driver software on your PC
- Once this is done, restart the computer and check if the issue persists.
Fix Video TDR Failure Error Atikmpag.SYS
If the atikmpag.sys
file is corrupt, replacing it can resolve the error. Note, the below steps are exclusively for AMD Radeon users.
- Open file explorer and browse to C:WindowsSystem32drivers
- Find the file Atikmpag.SYS and rename it to Atikmpag.OLD
- Click start type in CMD and open as administrator
- Run the command expand.exe C:ATIatikmdag.sy_ C:ATIatikmdag.sys
- Now copy the file C:ATIatikmdag.sys into the folder C:WindowsSystem32drivers
- Restart your machine
Fix Video TDR Failure Error nvlddmkm.sys
If you have installed Nvidia Graphic Driver on your system Do the same for nvlddmkm.sys
- Open file explorer and browse to C:WindowsSystem32drivers
- Find the file nvlddmkm.sys and rename it to nvlddmkm.OLD
- Click start and type in CMD and open as administrator
- Run the command expand.exe C:NVIDIAnvlddmkm.sy_ C:NVIDIAnvlddmkm.sys
- Now copy the file C:NVIDIAnvlddmkm.sys in to the folder C:WindowsSystem32drivers
- Restart your machine.
Fix Video TDR Failure Error igdkmd64.sys
To fix Video TDR Failure Error Atikmpag.SYS In Windows 10 follow these steps
- Open file explorer and browse to C:WindowsSystem32drivers
- Find the file igdkmd64.sys and rename it to igdkmd64.OLD
- Click start and type in CMD and open as administrator
- Run the command expand.exe C:INTELigdkmd64.sy_ C:INTELigdkmd64.sys
- Now copy the file C:INTELigdkmd64.sys in to the folder C:WindowsSystem32drivers
- Restart your machine
Repair Corrupt System Files
Corrupt system files can also cause this error. Use the built-in SFC and DISM tools to repair them.
Open the command prompt as administrator,
Type the following DISM command and press Enter:
DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth.
After 100% complete the scanning process, Run the SFC command below:
sfc /scannow
If this System File Checker finds out the protected files are overwritten by incorrect files, it will extract the correct system file from the system file backup (namely dllcache) and replace the incorrect file.
Restart windows after completing the scanning process and check if the BSOD problem is solved.
Adjust Power and Performance Settings
Sometimes, adjusting power settings can prevent GPU timeouts.
- Open Control Panel and go to Power Options.
- Select High Performance.
- Click Change plan settings > Change advanced power settings.
- Expand PCI Express and set Link State Power Management to Off.
- Save the settings and restart your computer.
In addition, if you have overclocked your GPU or CPU, revert to default clock speeds using your BIOS or overclocking software. Overclocking can cause instability, especially during intensive tasks.