Readers Questions.
IF01940
Q.
Why Doesn’t Scandisk work on Windows XP?
A reader
asks "I had the SCANDISK program in Windows 98. Now I'm running Windows XP and I
can't find ScanDisk. Is it under another name?" The short answer is YES.
A.
Old-timers (That would be ME) may remember that the DOS command to check a hard
disk for errors was
CHKDSK. When Windows 95/98 came along, the name changed to
SCANDISK. But under XP, the CHKDSK command lives again!
There are
two ways to do a disk check under Windows XP. If you are comfortable with a
command prompt, issue the command below from a DOS prompt or via the Windows/Run
command input box. (If you want to scan something other than the C: drive, then
change the command accordingly.)
CHKDSK C:
/F /R
The /F
option means to fix any errors found, and the /R option tells CHKDSK to check
scan for bad disk sectors and recover any readable information.
If you're
strictly a point & click person, you can still run CHKDSK. Click on My Computer,
then right-click on the C: line and select Properties. Now click the Tools tab
and under the Error Checking heading you see a button labeled Check Now.
NOTE:
Sometimes
CHKDSK cannot correct disk errors because it needs exclusive access to
certain files that are in use. In this case, CHKDSK will offer to run the check
automatically when the computer is re-started.
If CHKDSK
offers to "convert lost chains to files" or otherwise recover lost data, you
should accept. After CHKDSK finishes, you should look for files named
FILE0000.CHK, FILE0001.CHK, etc. You can open these files with Notepad or
another text editor to see if they contain any useful information.
It is
important to note that there is never one fix for a question.
What may work for one person might not for the next. Depending on the problem
and the way it is described by the Computer Owner there may be Six different
approaches to a positive outcome. If the first answer I give you to your
question doesn’t work let me know and I will send you another.
Just give me details.
Let me know if you need anything else.
Did this Article Give you the
Information You Were Looking For?
If you found this information useful,
please
