How to use Windows 10's System File Checker

(SFC) scannow command to fix problems

If corrupted system files are causing problems on Windows 10, this guide will help you fix this issue
with the System File Checker tool.
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Jump to:
• System File Checker online
• System File Checker offline
• Manual repair
On Windows 10, when you no ce issues star ng your laptop, random errors occur, or features don't
work correctly, there is a good chance that some system files might be corrupted or missing for
unknown reasons. Usually, you may experience problems with system files a er installing a cumula ve
update or driver or making installa on changes manually.
Regardless of the reason, if you come across any related issues, Windows 10 includes the System File
Checker (SFC), a command-line tool designed to scan the integrity and restore missing or corrupted
system files with working replacements.
This guide will walk you through the steps to use the System File Checker tool to repair damaged
system files automa cally or manually on Windows 10.
Warning: This is a friendly reminder that edi ng a system file is risky and can cause irreversible
damage to your installa on if you don't do it correctly. It is recommended to make a temporary full
backup of your PC before proceeding.
How to repair Windows 10 from System File Checker
To repair an installa on of Windows 10 using the System File Checker tool, use these steps:
1. Open Start.
2. Search for Command Prompt, right-click the top result, and select the Run as administrator
op on.
3. Type the following command to repair the Windows 10 system files and press Enter: sfc
/scannow

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4. Confirm the command results:
• Windows Resource Protec on did not find any integrity viola ons – this indicates that the
system does not have any corrupted or missing files.
• Windows Resource Protec on could not perform the requested opera on – indicates a
problem during the scan, and an offline scan is required.
• Windows Resource Protec on found corrupt files and successfully repaired them. Details are
included in the CBS.Log %WinDir%\Logs\CBS\CBS.log – this indicates that the tool detected
problems and was able to fix them.
• Windows Resource Protec on found corrupt files but was unable to fix some of them.
Details are included in the CBS.Log %WinDir%\Logs\CBS\CBS.log – this indicates you may
need to repair the corrupted files manually.
Once you complete the steps, the SFC command-line tool will scan, detect, and fix Windows 10 system
file problems.
When the tool detects an issue, it is recommended to run the command around three mes to ensure
that all the problems have been corrected properly.
 • If you find problems running the tool, use this DISM command tool guide to use the
Deployment Image Servicing and Management tool to repair the local Windows 10 image files
to allow SFC to complete successfully.
System File Checker logs
To view the details stored in the CBS.Log file from an SFC scan, use these steps:
1. Open Start.
2. Search for Command Prompt, right-click the top result, and select the Run as administrator
op on.
3. Type the following command and press Enter: findstr /c:"[SR]" %windir%\Logs\CBS\CBS.log >
C:\sfclogs.txt"

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4. Open File Explorer (Windows key + E).
5. Click on This PC from the le pane.
6. Under the "Devices and drives" sec on, open the Local Disk (the "C" drive).
7. Double-click the sfclogs.txt file to open it with the default text editor app.
A er you complete the steps, the log file will reveal all the scanned system files and informa on for
the unrepairable files.
This op on is only available when performing a scan within Windows 10, not when performing an
offline scan with Command Prompt.

How to repair Windows 10 from System File Checker offline

To repair Windows 10 using SFC with the offline op on, use these steps:
1. Open Se ngs.
2. Click on Update & Security.
3. Click on Recovery.
4. Under the "Advanced startup" sec on, click the Restart now bu on.
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5. Click on Troubleshoot.
6. Click on Advanced op ons.
7. Click on Command Prompt. (A er selec ng the op on, the device will reboot.)

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8. Select your account in the Advanced startup op ons.
9. Confirm the account password.
10.Click the Con nue bu on.
11.Type the following command to start the diskpart tool and press Enter: diskpart
12.Type the following command to determine the loca on of the Windows and System Reserved
par ons and press Enter: list volume
13.Confirm the current drive le er assignment for the System Reserved par on (the one close to
500MB) and Windows 10 par on, usually the volume with the largest size.
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14.Type the following command to exit diskpart and press Enter: exit
15.Type the following command to run the System File Checker offline and press Enter: sfc
/scannow /o ootdir=e:\ /offwindir=C:\Windows
In the command, we are using the /o oodir op on to specify the drive le er of the System Reserved
par on, which in this case is F. Also, the /offwindir op on specifies the loca on of the Windows 10
files, which in this case is C:\Windows.

(Image credit: Future)

16.Click the X bu on to close Command Prompt.
17.Click on Con nue.
Once you complete the steps, the tool will fix problems with system files, and the device will start
normally.

How to repair Windows 10 manually without System File Checker

If the System File Checker cannot fix the damaged files, you may need to repair them manually.
Determine corrupted system files
To find out which files need replacing on Windows 10, use these steps:
1. Open Start.
2. Search for Command Prompt, right-click the top result, and select the Run as administrator
op on.
3. Type the following command and press Enter: findstr /c:"[SR]" %windir%\Logs\CBS\CBS.log >
C:\sfclogs.txt"

(Image credit: Future)

4. Open File Explorer (Windows key + E).
5. Click on This PC from the le pane.
6. Under the "Devices and drives" sec on, open the Local Disk (the "C" drive).
7. Double-click the sfclogs.txt file to open it with the default text editor app.
A er you complete the steps, the log file will reveal all the scanned system files and informa on for
files that could not be repaired.
While in the file, you can use the find op on (Ctrl + F) in the text editor and look for the term: "Cannot
repair member file" to iden fy the corrupted files that need replacing.
Repair system files manually
You may be able to get good working files to replace your installa on from another computer running
the exact edi on and version of Windows 10. If you do not know the loca on of the damaged file, you
may need to perform an online search with the informa on in the SFC log file.
To repair damaged system files on Windows 10 manually, use these steps:
1. Open Start.
2. Search for Command Prompt, right-click the top result, and select the Run as administrator
op on.
3. Type the following command to take ownership of the corrupted files and press Enter:
takeown /f C:\PATH\TO\FILE
In the command, replace C:\PATH\TO\FILE with the actual path to the file that you are trying to fix.
This example takes ownership of the "acproxy.dll" file: takeown /f C:\Windows\System32\acproxy.dll
4. Type the following command to grant full administrator access to the corrupted file and press
Enter: icacls C:\PATH\TO\FILE /Grant Administrators:F
In the command, replace C:\PATH\TO\FILE with the actual path to the file you are trying to fix. This
example grants access to the "acproxy.dll" file: icacls C:\Windows\System32\acproxy.dll /Grant
Administrators:F

(Image credit: Future)

5. Type the following command to replace the corrupted files with a good-known version and
press Enter: copy C:\PATH\TO\SOURCE\GOOD\FILE C:\PATH\TO\DESTINATION\BROKEN\FILE
In the command, replace C:\PATH\TO\SOURCE\GOOD\FILE with the path of the new file and C:\
PATH\TO\DESTINATION\BROKEN\FILE with the path of the corrupted file.
• Quick p: If you get a message saying you cannot replace the file because another process is
using it, then either find and terminate the process or perform this task offline. (See above
steps). This example replaces the "acproxy.dll" file in the System32 folder: copy C:\Files\
acproxy.dll C:\Windows\System32\acproxy.dll
6. Type the following command to verify the integrity of the Windows 10 system files and press
Enter: sfc /verifyonly
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7. (Op onal) Type the following command to verify the integrity of the replacement file and press
Enter: sfc /verifyfile=C:\PATH\TO\REPLACED\FILE
In the command, replace C:\PATH\TO\REPLACED\FILE with the path of the file you replaced. This
example verifies the integrity of the "acproxy.dll" file inside the System32 folder: sfc /verifyfile=C:\
Windows\System32\acproxy.dll
Once you complete the steps, if the new files pass the integrity check, you have resolved the problems
with Windows 10.
If you cannot repair the installa on using the System File Checker, you may consider star ng fresh with
a clean installa on of Windows 10.