If you have ever encountered a corrupted file or folder on your Windows PC, you know how frustrating it can be to lose access to your important data. Corrupted files can also affect the performance and stability of your system, causing errors, crashes, and slowdowns. Fortunately, Windows has built-in tools that can help you repair and restore your files and folders. This article will show how to repair Windows and fix corrupt files.
How Do Windows Files Get Corrupted?
Windows files are essential for the proper functioning of your computer. They store information and instructions that allow your system to run smoothly and efficiently. However, sometimes these files can get corrupted due to various reasons. Some of the common causes of file corruption are:
- Malware attacks and viruses that infect your computer and modify, delete, or encrypt your files without your permission.
- Improperly saving files, such as shutting down your computer while a file is being written or updated.
- Incorrectly stopping a file relocation process, such as canceling a file transfer, disconnecting a USB drive, or experiencing a power outage while moving files.
- Unplugging storage devices from the computer without removing them safely can cause data loss or damage to the device’s file system.
- Bad disk sectors corrupt the files and folders stored on them, which can be caused by physical damage, wear and tear, or manufacturing defects.
Multiple Ways to Repair Windows and Fix Corrupt Files
Windows operating system comes with many utilities which can help users repair the system in case of issues relating to the operating system. These utilities are not widely known. In this section, we’ll look at a few of these popular utilities and how to use them to repair Windows and fix corrupted files. Here’s all that’ll be covered:
- CHKDSK
- SFC & DISM
- Startup Repair
- System Restore
- Windows Memory Diagnostic Tool
Let’s now have a detailed look at these tools.
1] CHKDSK
CHKDSK is a Windows utility that checks and repairs disk errors. To run a CHKDSK scan and fix errors on your disk drive hardware, follow these steps:
- Open File Explorer and go to This PC.
- Right-click on the drive you want to scan and choose Properties from the context menu.
- Hit the Check button in the Error-checking section of the Tools tab.
- The error-checking popup will let you know whether you need to run a scan or not.
- If you do, run the scan to repair errors it finds.
2] Run SFC & DISM Tools
SFC stands for system files checker. The Windows command line interface can access the utility to detect and repair corrupt system files. Follow our extensive guide to find out how to use the SFC tool.
- If you see the message Windows Resource Protection could not perform the requested operation, try running the SFC scan in safe mode.
- If you see the message Windows Resource Protection found corrupt files but was unable to fix some of them, you will have to replace the corrupted files with the new ones manually. You can find the details of the corrupted files and their locations in the CBS.Log file at %WinDir%\Logs\CBS\CBS.log.
If the System File checker doesn’t help, you can use the DISM tool. It is used to repair corrupted files in the Windows image and the operating system. Follow our detailed guide on how to use the DISM tool to repair Windows
4] Startup Repair
Startup repair is yet another utility built inside the Windows operating system. With startup repair, you can fix issues with files required for booting into your system. Here’s how to put it to use:
- Restart your PC using the start menu while holding the SHIFT key.
- On the boot screen, choose Troubleshoot.
- Click on Advanced options.
- Select Startup Repair and wait for it to finish.
- The startup repair can take up to several minutes to finish repairing.
Startup Repair also removes the most recently installed update if that installation immediately preceded the startup failure. The tool also creates a log file that someone can look at the following path %windir%\System32\LogFiles\Srt\Srttrail.txt
5] System Restore
System Restore is a Windows feature that lets you undo changes to your system files that might cause problems. It does not affect your files, only the system files. To use System Restore, follow these steps to use System Restore.
If you cannot access Windows, use the Advanced Recovery option to access System Restore. Go to Troubleshoot > Advanced Options > System Restore. Once you start this, it will show a familiar interface of Windows System Restore, where you can select a date and bring back the OS to a previous working state.
6] Windows Memory Diagnostic Tool
Windows memory diagnostic tool helps you diagnose any problems that cause your PC to run slowly, application crashes, and frequent BSODs. Here’s how to use it:
- Open the Run prompt, type MdSched.exe and press the Enter key
- It will open the Windows Memory Diagnostic tool
- Choose Restart now and check for problems to troubleshoot memory issues immediately.
- Wait for your device to reboot and run the Memory Diagnostic tool.
- View the results of the test after logging back into Windows.
Conclusion:
The Windows operating system is filled with utilities that even basic users can use to fix system issues without needing a technician. The utilities discussed in this article were some of the most useful ones. We hope you found the article to be insightful. Please make sure that you share it with everyone.
