Windows has several built-in tools to check and repair the system files on Windows, you’ll need basic computer knowledge to get your system. Read this article to learn how to fix system files easily.
If you are experiencing issues in your Windows and can’t figure out the root of the problem if your Windows is showing errors constantly if your operating system is unable to operate desirably and crashes usually, it can be classified as one of the most common occurrences which arise due to ‘system file corruption’.
You can check the event viewer in order to get a general idea about the issues your system is facing such as ‘file system corruption’ error or hard drive error, but these are useful if your computer does not crash, if the computer crashes constantly and blue screen appears which is generally termed as ‘Blue Screen of death’ error, it's due to the corruption in system files or indicates missing system files.
Often, there are times for Windows users find themselves trapped in fixing or understanding a system anomaly. It gets more disturbing if the fault has occurred from within the Windows file system itself, it creates several difficulties like crashes and dysfunctional Windows functionality. System files in Windows are exposed to a number of conditions where they are vulnerable and are under a constant threat of corruption and/or deletion; the reason may vary from an improper update of the Operating system to deleting files or modification due to malware in the system.
Note: At times, a corrupt system file might also result in corrupting the Recycle Bin. If your Windows Bin folder has gotten corrupt. Then follow this article to fix the corrupted Recycle Bin.
Here are a few things you should try for the smooth functioning of your windows in case your system files are corrupted or dysfunctional due to above mentioned or any other reasons;
This tool is provided by Windows to check for corrupt or missing system files in Windows and help restore them. This is a utility that performs the system file restoration automatically.
Using the SFC.exe tool: This tool is accessible using the command prompt window. Windows 11, 10, 8 – Go to Start > Search ‘cmd’ or ‘command prompt’ > Run as Administrator.
Now type in sfc /scannow
The command prompt will run the system file checker tool and will check and try to fix all the system file errors.
For all the corrupt or deleted files in the system, the system file checker will replace files with the corresponding copies from the cached copies saved in system32/dllcache.
However, during the execution of Windows resource protection files, the outcome may be the below-mentioned responses:
Just like the SF command DISM can also repair and fix the Windows system files:
The process will take 10-15 minutes to complete the process and after the process is completed you can restart the computer.
If the response from the system file checker is negative and you are unable to repair the corrupt system files, a manual restoration of such files is required, but in order to do that, we have to look out for the details from the system file checker.
The details from the system file checker can be obtained using the CBS.log file; to call for the file log file in the command prompt follow the steps mentioned below:
This will contain the details from all the operations when the system file checker has been executed. The detailed log can be viewed using the sfcdetail.txt file.
Replace the corrupted-file-location-and-file-name with the actual location of the file.
This method will work only if you have enabled system restore previously on your computer.
Note: All the above-listed troubleshooting methods may lead to the loss of your personal data and change in the system functionality, if you are resilient enough to stick to your current settings and file system, here's software for repairing corrupted files manually by following the instructions provided.