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Repairing Corrupted Windows Vista Files

admin — Sun, 06 Sep 2009 13:05:08 +0000

Some Windows Vista errors are caused by corrupt system files causing instabilities, but troubleshooting these problems manually can be almost impossible. Thankfully, Vista includes a “System File Checker” application that will verify the integrity of core system files.

There are 2 types of scan, a verification and a scan/repair mode. The former will only check the files without repairing them automatically, the latter will fix any errors it finds.

To begin, load the command prompt by starting “cmd” from the run box (Press WINDOWS KEY + R to access this):

Then, type in one of the following commands (followed by the enter key) depending on the type of scan you wish to perform:

sfc /verifyonly – To verify any corrupt files only.
sfc /scannow – To verify and fix any corrupt files.
This will then start the scan and inform you of any files that require fixing:

Windows Vista System Stability Index

admin — Sun, 06 Sep 2009 13:02:36 +0000

Windows Vista contains a very clever tool that lets you monitor the stability of your system, allowing you to troubleshoot potential problems where necessary. This rating (from 0-10) gives an indication of how stable your system is in relation to normal.

To load the tool, click the following options:

Control Panel > System and Maintenance > Performance Information and Tools > Advanced Tools > Open Reliability and Performance Manager > Reliability Monitor

The chart presented here shows your stability index rating over the past month, along with icons for every event that could effect stability. Clicking on a specific day brings up a list of Application, Hardware, Windows and Miscellaneous failures with details of the modules or processes that caused the failure.

It is most likely that driver problems and incompatibilities will cause most stability problems and this tool helps identify the modules at fault. Changes can be made and then the system stability index rated at a later date to check for improvements.

Windows Vista System Health Report

admin — Sun, 06 Sep 2009 13:00:23 +0000

Vista is able to generate a System Health Report that is great for troubleshooting potential problems with your system. This 60 second process will create a list of system technical details, earmarking those which could cause system performance problems.

To load the application, run “perfmon /report” from the command line or find it in the control panel by visiting:

Control Panel > System and Maintenance > Performance Information and Tools > Advanced Tools > Generate System Health Report
Most of the likely problems encountered will be missing drivers or high usage of system resources, which will quite often be the memory but could be poor disk I/O performance or a whole other range of unexpected issues. This information is a great basic diagnostic tool for problems that you may not have realised you had, and resolving them could result in a more stable, faster system.

Once the report is generated, any problem areas will be marked with a warning symbol or a red light, followed by information and links to help troubleshoot the problems. It won?t be possible to detail how to fix every problem you encounter within this page, however most of the suggested resolutions are actually really useful (unlike previous versions of Windows that would go round in circles).