Repair Corrupted Windows System Files with SFC Command – Complete Guide

Windows OSes are pretty stable and the OS is built in such a way that the errors and issues are less. Even with good stability, the OS can encounter errors and issues. Well, to recover from these issues, Microsoft has built some simple tools like command prompt and developed commands that could fix the issue with ease. Windows OS is a package on its own, there are hundreds of tools in the OS that allows you to resolve everyday errors and issues in the OS.

Well, you may wonder that Windows OS is stable but, how come the OS has issues and errors? Well, issues and errors are not very common in the OS, they occur in rare instances. The OS may display errors when there is some difficulty faced by a program and it needs human intervention to fix the error. So, you may have seen some pop-ups with a red cross mark or a yellow exclamation mark which signifies errors. Well, these errors occur only when the computer needs help with something it can’t handle on its own. So, an error basically is a call for help the computer sends out so, users can react and take necessary steps to fix them.

How to use Windows 10's System File Checker (SFC) scannow

There are many common types of errors in Windows OS like Network errors, dll, errors, blue screen of death errors, update errors, errors due to corrupt system files. Here in this article, we wil focus on the error caused by corrupt Windows files. Well, the Windows OS is comprised of millions of files that have to do their part to keep the computer running and enable users to use applications and programs without hindrance, and when such Windows files fail to run or open the whole process is affected. So, some important Windows files are program files, page files, dll files, RUXIM, system volume information, WinSxS, D3DSCache etc. So, these files are very essential for running Windows OS and when there is an issue with these files,  Windows tends to display error messages and some functions will be hindered. Well, these times are annoying and you have to fix the error with a fix and then only you can use the computer effectively.

So, one major tool you can use to fix the corrupt files in Windows is the SFC tool. SFC stands for system file checker. It is more of a command than a tool and can be executed using either command prompt or PowerShell in Windows. As the name goes(system file checker) the main function of the command is to check for issues with system files. The SFC command runs and checks all the protected Windows files to pinpoint the corrupt file. So, once the corrupt files are pinpointed it becomes easier to fix them.

Recommended Post:- Fixed: Invalid Kernel Handle Error on Windows 10

Well, here are some sfc commands and their functions that you might learn so, you can use them at times when you feel the Windows files are corrupt. You can also run them just to make sure that there are no errors with the system files, like a system maintenance practice.

Simple to use SFC Commands

So, the basic command is SFC which stands for system file checker. Then follows the function like scannow, verifyonly and much more which will be explained in detail.

  • /Scannow function

Checks all the protected files for flaws or issues. When an issue is identified, the command will fix the issue by replacing the corrupted files.

  • /verifyonly function

This command checks the files for issues and flaws but doesn’t fix the issues.

  • /scanfiles function

Well, this function is a bit different, you have to mention the path of the file that you want to check and fix using /SCANFILE=<path file>. This will check the fie for issues and then fix it if an issue is found.

  • /verifyfiles function

This function will check a particular file mentioned in the syntax but will not rectify any issues. The syntax is SFC /VERIFYFILE=<file path>.

  • /offbootdir function

This function will repair Windows boot offline. This function can be used for Windows installation media. The syntax is /OFFBOOTDIR=<full file path>.

  • Offlogfile function

This function can be used to repair log files.

So, these are the functions that can be used with the SFC command. Well, now, let’s see how to use these commands. 

  1. The first thing you need to do is open up the Powershell or the command prompt. You can do it by going to the search bar and then searching for either of them and then running them as an administrator. Make sure, you run them as an administrator as any command that runs on these terminals need admin permissions to make changes to the computer.
  2. Now, you are in the Powershell/ Command prompt, here, just type “SFC” and use the syntaxes from above that you need. The most common syntax is the scannow, which will find and fix any issue with the system files on Windows. If you know which specific file is corrupt, you can use the syntax that involves path and fix the issues. You can copy and paste the path from Windows Explorer in the syntax and run it.

Well, using the SFC command in Windows is pretty easy and you just have to wait for some time for the command to run and complete the process. So, once the process is over, you will have to restart the computer to make the changes take effect. 

Hope the information provided above was helpful and informative. Now, that you have learned to use the SCF commands, you can effectively fix issues with system files.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *