Microsoft has released an official Recovery Tool to address the aftermath of a global PC outage caused by a CrowdStrike software update. The issue affected more than 8.5 million Windows computers worldwide, paralyzing critical infrastructure.
Image source: Tom’s Hardware
Microsoft estimates that more than 8.5 million Windows computers were affected by the problematic update. Although this represents less than 1% of all Windows computers in the world, the failure had a significant impact on thousands of organizations and critical infrastructure. According to Tom’s Hardware, airports, airlines, media agencies (including the BBC), hospitals, and even 911 emergency services in several US states were among those affected. However, RBC reports that the infrastructure of Russian organizations was not affected, since almost no one in Russia uses the CrowdStrike antivirus.
As a reminder, the failure occurred last Thursday when a CrowdStrike update was automatically installed on devices. The problem is that CrowdStrike, as a security solution provider, operates at the kernel level of the operating system. An error at this level caused the computers to stop booting, displaying the so-called “blue screen of death” (BSoD).
Microsoft responded quickly to the situation, deploying engineers to assist customers. The company also worked with CrowdStrike, Google Cloud Platform, and Amazon Web Services to quickly identify the most effective ways to patch affected machines.
Microsoft’s new Recovery Tool is designed to make troubleshooting much easier and faster. Before it, there was only a step-by-step guide that required manual intervention, which could be time-consuming, especially for organizations with hundreds or thousands of affected devices.
The company has provided detailed instructions and a list of prerequisites for using the Recovery Tool. These include at least 8 GB of free space on the affected computer, administrator rights, a BitLocker recovery key (for encrypted computers), and a bootable USB drive with a capacity of at least 1 GB.
This incident, unfortunately, clearly demonstrated the vulnerability of modern IT systems and the potential risks associated with dependence on a limited number of software suppliers and, accordingly, a random error (possibly very insignificant) led to massive inconvenience and millions in losses.
If you notice an error, select it with your mouse and press CTRL+ENTER.
Source: 3dnews.ru
