When you are experiencing frequent errors, system freezing, crashing or other unexpected problems, you may first check if your Windows system is corrupted. This article provides step-by-step instructions on how to use built-in utilities to check for and repair Windows system errors.
CHKDSK Utility
CHKDSK utility checks the file system and file system metadata of a volume for logical and physical errors. If you suspect that the file system is corrupted, CHKDSK would likely be the first one to run to ensure a corrupted file system doesn't create an issue for SFC and DISM utilities.
- Open Command Prompt or Windows PowerShell as Administrator.
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Type the following command and then press Enter.
chkdsk c:
The command checks the file system of the drive C which is the Windows partition by default. If your Windows is installed on another drive, or you want to check other drives, replace C with the drive letter of the target drive. - If the command found errors, we recommend specifying /F parameter to the command and run it again. /F will fix errors on the disk.
chkdsk c: /F
SFC Scan
SFC tool scans and repairs the systems files of a Windows system. This scan instantly takes action upon detecting a corrupted or modified file and replaces that file with its original version.
- Open Command Prompt or Windows PowerShell as Administrator.
- Type the following command and then press Enter.sfc /scannow
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Restart your computer if the SFC command found and repaired files. This way, the command will be completely effective.
DISM Utility
DISM stands for Deployment Image Servicing and Management. This tool is more powerful than an SFC scan because when the SFC scan fails, this one may get the job done.
- Open Command Prompt or Windows PowerShell as Administrator.
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First, run the following command because it will check whether the system image is corrupted or not without making any changes:Dism /Online /Cleanup-Image /CheckHealth
- Now, if the system doesn’t detect any corruption, you can run a more advanced-level DISM scan to identify whether the component store is restorative or not. This command will not make any changes to the system as well.Dism /Online /Cleanup-Image /ScanHealth
- But if the DISM utility reports some issues in the image of the Window system, we recommend running following DISM command. This command will connect the DISM to Windows for downloading and repairing the damaged files as necessary.Dism /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth
- Restart your computer and then run the SFC scan again if the DISM commands found and repaired files. This way, the DISM commands will be completely effective.