BSOD 26 (MEMORY_MANAGEMENT): causes and diagnosis

Status / error code:		Category:

Constant name:
Source:		Operating System:
Description: MEMORY_MANAGEMENT the memory manager detected a severe inconsistency. Parameter 1 identifies the subtype, and the remaining parameters describe the page.

Could be also:
Constant	Type	OS
ERROR_NOT_DOS_DISK	Win32 error	Windows
KERN_INVALID_PROCESSOR_SET	Kern return	Mac
ippStsOvermuchStrings	Intel Ipp Status	Any
ETXTBSY	errno	Linux
ETXTBSY	errno	Mac
ETXTBSY	errno	Solaris

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BAD_POOL_HEADER	PFN_SHARE_COUNT

MEMORY_MANAGEMENT

MEMORY_MANAGEMENT meaning

MEMORY_MANAGEMENT is bug check 0x0000001A. The memory manager detected a severe inconsistency. Parameter 1 identifies the subtype, and the remaining parameters describe the page, PTE, PFN entry, process, or internal structure involved.

How to analyze the result

Decode Parameter 1 before choosing tests. Inspect PTE/PFN state, page-table hierarchy, pool and MDL activity, process mappings, storage errors affecting paging, ECC or memory diagnostics, and drivers that lock or map pages.

Preserve the complete dump, all four parameters, Windows build, loaded modules, and the event timeline before changing drivers or firmware while investigating this result.
Run !analyze -v and follow the parameter-specific objects and the stack associated with this result rather than relying only on the symbolic name or a single probable-cause line.
Compare multiple dumps when available; a stable instruction or object path associated with this result is stronger evidence than a module that appears only after earlier corruption.

Recovery boundary

Use the subtype and dump to separate hardware corruption from driver accounting or overwrite. Replacing RAM without subtype evidence can miss a repeatable mapping or lifetime bug.

Official references

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