BSOD with PAGE_FAULT_IN_NONPAGED_AREA during large file transfers to external USB HDD

The problem: System crashes with PAGE_FAULT_IN_NONPAGED_AREA specifically during large or sustained file transfers to an external USB-connected hard drive.

Symptoms: BSOD occurs reliably partway through large file copies to a specific external drive; smaller transfers or transfers to other drives complete without issue; crash dump may reference the USB storage driver stack or the drive's controller.

Likely cause: A failing or marginal USB-to-SATA bridge controller in the external drive enclosure, a driver issue with the USB storage stack under sustained transfer load, or the external drive developing bad sectors.

Category: Blue Screen / BSOD · Difficulty: Advanced · Windows: Both · Error code: PAGE_FAULT_IN_NONPAGED_AREA

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