SFC /scannow wrong disk error

If you’ve used SFC /scannow and it asks for a disk to replace system files, and gives the error “Wrong Disk” for whatever reason.

To fix the problem when you only have a restore CD you’ll have to search for a folder on your hard drive (or on the restore CD) that’s named “i386” (without the quotes). Once you find that, copy it to your hard drive at the root (C:\i386). Make sure that the directory is located at the root of your C: drive (C:\i386) – if not, then you’ll need to change the path to the proper entry in the registry edit.

Then perform this registry edit to point SFC.EXE at it:

So, the first step is to backup your registry. The easy way to do this is to set a System Restore point ( http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/using/h…temrestore.mspx )

Next, go to Start…Run…and type in “regedit.exe” (without the quotes) and press enter. You’ll see a folder-like view on the left, and entries on the right.

Navigate down the folder view on the left to: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\
CurrentVersion\Setup Just click on the + sign to expand the view of the next level – so, to start, you’ll click on the + next to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE and look for the SOFTWARE entry.

Then you’ll click on the + next to SOFTWARE and look for Microsoft, and so on until you get to the Setup key. Then just click once on the Setup key.

Look in the right hand pane and double click on the entry that says “SourcePath”.
In the box that pops up, type in “C:\” (without the quotes) and press Enter. Then close regedit and reboot your computer. SFC.EXE /SCANNOW should now run without problems for you.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.