Windows 10: Chkdsk and sfc /scannow

For the most part I use 'chkdsk' in Windows 10 and 7 thinking that this helps prevent problems with my HDD and the Windows file system.

Recently after a black screen and Windows error message on another Windows 10 computer I tried 'sfc /scannow' but it looks like 'sfc /scannow' has mixed reviews.

I'm still not clear on the difference between 'chkdsk' and 'sfc /scannow' and when I should be using either or both...

Also is 'Event Viewer > Windows Logs > System' the best place to start trying to diagnose errors like black screens or error messages by looking at the Event ID and Task Category?

:)

 

SFC scannow not working but verify only is working

there is no problem in chkdsk I've checked When I select command prompt and sfc scannow from f8 and repair.. it shows that a reboot is required for pending repair and pending renames folder in winsxs is full of files.. what should I do??

 

sfc /scannow won't complete

Hi,

As per the information, I suggest that you run SFC in Safe Mode with admin privileges and check if the same issue occurs.

If the issue persist, you can check for the following:

1. Scan the Hard Drive for Errors

The first thing to do is to tell Windows you want to perform a file system check on the hard drive to ensure there are no errors. If there are errors on the drive, 'sfc /scannow' may fail.

To scan the drive for errors, do the following:

• Open an administrative command prompt. In Windows XP, click Start -> Run, and type in "cmd.exe" and press Enter. Click Start and type in "cmd" (no quotes). Wait for Command Prompt or CMD.EXE to appear in the list of options and right click it, then select
  "Run as Administrator".
• A black command prompt window will appear on the screen. Highlight the following text with your mouse: "chkdsk /x /f /r" (do not include the quotes), then right click over the highlighted text and select Copy. Next, go to the command prompt and right click
  in the middle of the window and select Paste from the dialogue menu. The command you copied should have output to the command prompt. If it did not, repeat this step until it does. After the command is output, press Enter on your keyboard to execute it. When
  prompted, press "Y" to have chkdsk scan your hard drive for errors on the next reboot.

2. Enable the Hidden Administrator Account

Next we'll enable the hidden administrator account so that you can perform the 'sfc /scannow' command in a clean environment.

To do so:

• Highlight the following text with your mouse: "net user administrator /active:yes" (do not include the quotes), then right click over the highlighted text and select Copy. Next, go to the command prompt and right click in the middle of the window and select
  Paste from the dialogue menu. The command you copied should have output to the command prompt. If it did not, repeat this step until it does. After the command is output, press Enter on your keyboard to execute it.
• Please note that you will most likely want to disable the administrator account after you have finished making changes listed in this document, otherwise anyone will be able to login to your computer as the administrator user without using a password and
  make changes to the system without any authorization. You can disable the administrator account using the exact steps you just took above, except you would replace "net user administrator /active:yes" with "net user administrator /active:no".

Hope this helps

Regards

 

chkdsk c: /F

It might be an error on the drive. We suggests that you follow the troubleshooting steps below:

• Run Disk Cleanup utility to clear your junk files.
• Open an elevated CMD type sfc /scannow and hit Enter to run the System File Checker.
  
• Once the scan is completed, restart your computer. Remember to exit ChkDsk
  during boot.
• Next, again open CMD as admin type
  Dism /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth and hit Enter to repair the Windows image.
• Now see if ChkDsk able to complete the scan.

Note: Before doing the steps, make sure you save a back up of your files.

Let us know how it goes.