4 Ways: Use Check Disk on Windows 10/11 to Repair Hard Drives

About Check Disk

Check disk (or CHKDSK) is an important Windows tool that scans a disk's file system and metadata for logical and physical errors. It originated from disk operating systems (DOS) and has been included in the Windows operating system.

Check disk Windows 10/11 helps you solve the following problems repeatedly:

▶ Difficulty reading data from the hard disk.
▶ Sluggish or deteriorating performance when accessing computer files.
▶ Unexpected shutdowns during tasks.
▶ Boot errors like BSOD, 0x00000024, fatal error reading boot.ini, etc.

If you want to do bad sector check Windows 10 via Check Disk, and find the different solutions, you are in the right place. We have 4 different ways to check and fix disk errors Windows 10, let’s start to go!

How to check hard drives in Windows 10/11

Here are 4 different ways to enable check hard drives on Windows 10, namely, File Explorer, Command Prompt, PowerShell and Installation media when your computer cannot run normally.

# 1. Run disk check Windows 10 with GUI interface/ File explorer

The simplest way to check for hard drive errors is to use the check disk Windows 10/11function in File Explorer.

Step 1. Go to File Explorer, right-click on the drive you want to check and choose Properties.

Step 2. Navigate to the Tools tab and select Check under Error checking. Afterward, click OK and Apply to save the changes.

Step 3. If there are no errors on the disk, you may see this prompt. Click Scan drive to proceed with the scan and wait patiently.

✍Note: Once CHKDSK completes, click Show Details to see repaired errors, or click Close to exit the window.

# 2. Run disk check Windows 10 via Command Prompt

You can run CHKDSK from the Command Prompt. Follow these instructions to enter the CHKDSK command on Windows 11 and Windows 10. Here’s how to run CHKDSK from Command Prompt on Windows

Step 1. In the Search box, type cmd and choose Command Prompt and select Run as administrator.

Step 2. Enter chkdsk /r or chkdsk /f /r and press Enter to check for disk errors and initiate repairs.

✍Notes:
◆ When scanning in the command prompt, make sure to lock the chosen drive. Otherwise, you'll be prompted to run a Windows 10 disk check on startup.
◆ The /r parameter helps recover data before fixing and marking bad sectors. The recovered data is typically saved as text or coded information.
◆ To check a specific volume, like the system partition, include the drive letter, such as "chkdsk c: /f /r".

# 3. Run disk check Windows 10 via Power Shell

The Check Disk tool equivalent for PowerShell is the Repair-Volume cmdlet and it offers virtually the same usage as the command prompt, but with more control.

Step 1. In the Search box, type PowerShell and choose the result with administrator priority from the list and .

Step 2. Enter Repair-Volume -DriveLetter C -Scan and press Enter to scan for disk errors.

✍Tip: To show process details, type Repair-Volume -DriveLetter C -Scan -Verbose instead.

Step 3. Enter Repair-Volume -DriveLetter C -SpotFix command and press Enter to fix disk errors (if they exist).

✍Tip: If you want to check and fix disk errors Windows 10 at the same time, enter Repair-Volume -DriveLetter C -OfflineScanAndFix command.

# 4. Run disk check Windows 10 via Installation media

If your computer won't start or you encounter the "Blue Screen of Death" during startup, you can run CHKDSK from external media like a USB drive containing your Windows version.

This checks for errors and tries to fix them before your Windows boots up. It serves as a backup in case CHKDSK can't run due to the volume being in use or if you keep getting an "access denied" message. Here is the guide to run CHKDSK from installation media:

Step 1. Insert your bootable Windows installation media (CD, DVD, or USB) and restart your PC.

Step 2. Press the F8 key several times until the Windows logo appears.

Step 3. When prompted, choose Repair your computer > Troubleshoot > Advanced options.

Step 5. Then choose Command Prompt.

✍Note:
Make sure you know your home drive, which is the drive or partition containing Windows (usually the C drive). To check, type c: and press Enter. Then, type dir and press Enter.

If Windows items show up in the directory, that's your home drive. Repeat this process for all drives until Windows items appear.Now, type in the CHKDSK commands you prefer in the Command Prompt.

Supplement: how to upgrade faulty disk in Windows 10

Disk check Windows 10 efficiently resolves logical errors. However, for physical issues like hard bad sectors that could potentially harm your disk, this tool cannot repair them; it can only mark the sectors as unusable. To solve this, it's recommended to clone a hard drive with bad sectors and upgrade to a new one using reliable disk cloning software like AOMEI Backupper Professional, compatible with Windows 11, 10, 8, 7, XP, and Vista.

✍3 cloning solutions: this software supports System Clone, Disk Clone and Partition Clone to satisfy your different needs.
✍Intelligent Clone: Under the default situation, it will only clone the used sectors. So it allows you to clone a larger HDD to a smaller SSDeasily.
✍Live clone: This feature enables the clone task to run in the background, ensuring that the cloning process won't disrupt ongoing programs in Windows Server. You can continue working normally while the cloning is in progress.
✍SSD Alignment: This feature will accelerate the reading and writing speed of SSD.
✍Secure boot: After cloning, you can directly boot from the cloned SSD.

Download AOMEI Backupper and install it on your computer.

Step 1. Choose Clone and then select Disk Clone from the list.

Step 2. Then choose the hard drive with bad sectors as the source disk.

Step 3. Then select a disk to receive the data on the source disk. You will be told the target disk will be overwritten, so backup files to external hard drive if you need.

✍Tip: If the target hard drive is SSD, you can tick the box before the SSD Alignment to improve its performance.

Step 4. Confirm your settings on the operation summary and click Start Clone to upgrade the disk with error in Windows 10.

Further reading: check disc command Windows 10

Here are some CHKDSK commands on Windows 10/11 you can use according to your needs.

Conclusion

You can use check disk Windows 10 to maintain and fix disk errors using the 4 methods mentioned above. However, if the disk has bad sectors, it will ultimately fail. In such cases, it is recommended to replace it with a new one.
A powerful cloning tool like AOMEI Backupper Professional can assist you in this process. If the target disk lacks sufficient space, the System Clone feature can migrate the operating system to an SSD or HDD. Additionally, AOMEI Backupper Professional serves as comprehensive backup software for system, disk, partition, or files. Feel free to download it to explore its full capabilities.