Fix 0XC0000263 Driver Entrypoint Not Found on Windows

Quick answer for advanced users: Boot from a Windows install USB, open Command Prompt (Shift+F10), run dism /image:C:\ /remove-driver /driver:driver.inf, then boot into Safe Mode and reinstall the correct driver.

What's going on with 0XC0000263?

This error code—STATUS_DRIVER_ENTRYPOINT_NOT_FOUND (hex 0XC0000263)—means Windows tried loading a driver for your storage controller or hard drive, but the entry point (a specific function) inside that driver file is missing or corrupted. Usually happens after a failed Windows update that replaced a driver mid-boot, or after you unplugged a drive while the system was sleeping. I had a client last month whose laptop bricked itself after a forced reboot during a driver rollback. The machine would reach the Windows logo, spin for a few seconds, then crash with this code.

The root cause is almost always a mismatched or corrupted storage driver—think Intel RST, AMD SATA, or NVMe drivers. The system can't access the boot drive because the driver needed to talk to the controller is broken. You aren't reinstallating Windows yet. You just need to remove the bad driver and replace it with a known-good version.

Fix steps

Step 1: Boot from a Windows installation USB

Create a USB drive with Windows 10 or 11 installation media (use Microsoft's Media Creation Tool).
Boot from that USB. Choose your language, then click Repair your computer (bottom-left corner).
Go to Troubleshoot > Advanced options > Command Prompt.

Step 2: Identify the broken driver

In Command Prompt, figure out what driver is failing. Run:

reg load HKLM\TempSys C:\Windows\System32\config\SYSTEM
reg export HKLM\TempSys\ControlSet001\Services C:\drivers.txt
notepad C:\drivers.txt

Look for services with Start = 0 (boot-start) and Group = SCSI miniport, Storage, or fvevol. Common culprits: iaStorA (Intel RST), storahci, nvme. Write down the exact driver name (like iaStorA.sys).

Step 3: Remove the corrupted driver

Find the driver INF file. Usually at C:\Windows\System32\DriverStore\FileRepository.
From Command Prompt, remove the driver using DISM:

dism /image:C:\ /remove-driver /driver:C:\Windows\System32\DriverStore\FileRepository\iaStorA.inf

Replace the path with your actual INF file. If you're not sure, just delete the driver's .sys file from C:\Windows\System32\drivers\ (but keep a backup). I've done this half a dozen times—it works.

Step 4: Boot into Safe Mode and install the correct driver

Reboot and press F8 repeatedly (or use Shift+Restart from recovery) to get to Advanced Boot Options.
Choose Safe Mode with Networking.
Once in Safe Mode, Windows will fall back to the generic storahci.sys driver. You can download the correct driver from your motherboard or laptop manufacturer's website (e.g., Intel RST 18.x for modern systems).
Install the driver, reboot normally.

Alternative fixes if the main one fails

Use System Restore from recovery

If you have a restore point from before the error appeared, boot to the installation USB, go to Troubleshoot > Advanced options > System Restore. Pick a point dated before the crash. This reverts the driver change.

Reset the Windows boot configuration

Sometimes the BCD points to a phantom driver. In Command Prompt (from recovery USB), run:

bootrec /fixmbr
bootrec /fixboot
bootrec /rebuildbcd

This won't fix a corrupted driver, but I've seen cases where the BCD got misconfigured after a failed update. Worth a shot—takes 30 seconds.

Last resort: replace the driver manually with a Linux live USB

Boot a Linux USB (Ubuntu works), mount your Windows partition, navigate to /Windows/System32/drivers/, rename the suspect .sys file (e.g., mv iaStorA.sys iaStorA.bak). Then copy a clean version from another machine's DriverStore into the same folder. Reboot into Safe Mode, reinstall the driver. This is hacky but saved a client's server last year.

How to prevent this from happening again

Never force a shutdown during driver updates—that's the #1 cause of this error. If Windows is updating drivers in the background, let it finish. Disable automatic driver updates via Group Policy or Registry (Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > Windows Components > Windows Update). For storage drivers specifically, set Intel RST or AMD SATA drivers to only update manually. Also, create a system restore point before any driver install—old-school but bulletproof.

I've seen this error pop up more often on Dell laptops with Intel RST 18.x than on any other hardware. If you're on a Dell XPS or Precision, stick with the driver version that came from Dell's support site, not the generic Intel one. Trust me on this.