scandisk versus disk cleanup

[Dean]

For the longest time I was thinking that scandisk had been renamed or
replaced by disk cleanup, i.e., for Windows XP. Now, I am starting to
realize that they are different. I do not see scandisk on my XP computer.
Why might that be?

Thanks!
Dean

 

[Gordon]

For the longest time I was thinking that scandisk had been renamed or
replaced by disk cleanup, i.e., for Windows XP. Now, I am starting to
realize that they are different. I do not see scandisk on my XP
computer. Why might that be?

Thanks!
Dean

Because the NT version of Scandisk is Chkdisk.

 

[Detlev Dreyer]

I do not see scandisk on my XP computer. Why might that be?

There is no "scandisk" (Win9x/Me). Start > Run: CMD > CHKDSK /?

 

[Richard Urban]

Because it doesn't exist, and never has, in any implementation of Windows
XP, Win2K, NT 4.0 etc.

It is, and always has been, chkdsk in these systems.

--
Regards,

Richard Urban
Microsoft MVP Windows Shell/User

If you knew as much as you think you know,
You would realize that you don't know what you thought you knew!

 

[Dean]

I thought NT referred to the more network-compatible versions of Windows
like 1998 and 2000, not ME and XP, which I understood to be personal, not
corporate style versions.

I could have sworn I've run scandisk tens of times on my computers, 2 of 3
which are XP, but I guess they must all have been run on the ME machine. I
guess after years of use, I am way overdue for my first run of scandisk, er
chkdsk, on the XP machines. Perhaps that's why one of them has been so
slow, for so long (the older XP Home, not the newer XP pro machine).

By the way, what is the difference between XP Home and Pro?

Can you tell me the exact DOS command I should use and if it requires any
intervention? With scandisk, I recall that you often have to close down a
number of programs first, sometimes even needing to run it in safe mode, or
else it does not finish. Are there any such problems with chkdsk?

Thanks!
Dean


Dean

 

[Dean]

It definitely exists in Windows ME, and it is accessible under System Tools.
It is unbelievable to me that I have never tried to run it on my XP
machines, perhaps the reason why one of them is so dreadfully slow.

Since I am not well versed in DOS commands, can you please give me a little
more detail on all the commands I'll need for chkdsk. With scan disk, you
needed to close a lot of things down first, sometimes it would run
successfully only in safe mode, I would often find, or it would never
finish.

Thanks!
Dean

 

[Alias]

I thought NT referred to the more network-compatible versions of Windows
like 1998 and 2000, not ME and XP, which I understood to be personal, not
corporate style versions.

I could have sworn I've run scandisk tens of times on my computers, 2 of 3
which are XP, but I guess they must all have been run on the ME machine.
I guess after years of use, I am way overdue for my first run of scandisk,
er chkdsk, on the XP machines. Perhaps that's why one of them has been so
slow, for so long (the older XP Home, not the newer XP pro machine).

By the way, what is the difference between XP Home and Pro?

Can you tell me the exact DOS command I should use and if it requires any
intervention? With scandisk, I recall that you often have to close down a
number of programs first, sometimes even needing to run it in safe mode,
or else it does not finish. Are there any such problems with chkdsk?

Thanks!
Dean


Dean

Disable your AV's auto scan. Open My Computer. Right click on your C drive
and go to Properties. Click on the Disk Clean Up. When that's done, click on
the Tools tab. You will see Check Now and Defrag Now. Click on the Check Now
(chkdsk) and it should make three passes. Do not enable either check boxes.
Once it's done, click on Defrag Now and do the analysis to see how
fragmented the drive is. Then do the defrag. Get out of there and reboot and
you're done.

Alias

 

[Ken Blake]

For the longest time I was thinking that scandisk had been renamed or
replaced by disk cleanup, i.e., for Windows XP. Now, I am starting to
realize that they are different. I do not see scandisk on my XP
computer. Why might that be?

Scandisk is the name given to that program in Windows 9x and Me. In all NT
versions, including XP (and in DOS), it's called chkdsk.

Disk cleanup is completely different, but you can also get to chkdsk by
right-clicking the drive in My Computer or Windows Explorer, choosing
Properties. It's called "Error Checking" and it's on the Tools tab.

 

[Dean]

Ah, yes. I didn't think they would make it harder than before. Thanks to
both you and alias.

Let's see if this helps my dreadfully slow XP Home computer.

Dean

 

[Dean]

Why should I not check the two check boxes? Isn't it just going to prompt
me as to whether I want to fix things, queries to which I would likely have
no clue, anyway?

Actually, I now, just ran it and it did not prompt me. But it only took a
few minutes, seemed even quicker than the short version of scandisk, though
perhaps about the same amount of time. Is there a more thorough version,
like there was for scandisk? As I recall that version ran for hours,
although some of that might have had something to do with the fact that it
had to restart - still, even when it didn't restart, it seemed to take an
hour, at least?

D

 

[Detlev Dreyer]

It definitely exists in Windows ME, and it is accessible under
System Tools.

Again, "Scandisk" exists under Win9x/Me (Win95/Win98/WinMe) only.
"Scandisk" does not exist under NT based Systems and never has.

Since I am not well versed in DOS commands, can you please give me a
little more detail on all the commands I'll need for chkdsk.

Start > Run:
%systemroot%\hh.exe ms-its:%systemroot%\help\ntcmds.chm::/chkdsk.htm

 

[Wesley Vogel]

Windows XP is really Windows NT 5.1

Scandisk has been retired. Use Error Checking (chkdsk.exe) in XP.
1. In My Computer or Windows Explorer, right-click the drive you want to
check, and then click Properties.
2. On the Tools tab, click Check Now.
3. Check both boxes:

Automatically fix file system errors
Runs Chkdsk by using the /f parameter.
[[Specifies whether Windows repairs file-system errors found during disk
checking. All files must be closed for this program to run. If the drive is
currently in use, a message asks if you want to reschedule
the disk checking for the next time you restart your computer. Your drive is
not available to run other tasks while the disk is being checked.]]

Scan for and attempt recovery of bad sectors
Runs Chkdsk by using the /r parameter.
[[Specifies whether Windows repairs file-system errors found during disk
checking, locates bad sectors, and recovers readable information. All files
must be closed for this program to run. If the drive is currently in use, a
message asks if you want to reschedule the disk checking for the next time
you restart your computer. Your drive is not available to run other tasks
while the disk is being checked. If you select this option, you do not need
to select Automatically fix file system errors. Windows fixes any errors on
the disk.]]

You have to reboot for Error-checking to run.

For a peek at the chkdsk log.

Open the Event Viewer...
Start | Run | Type: eventvwr | OK
Look in Application | Listed as Information |
Event ID: 1001
Source: Winlogon
[[Description: This includes file system type; drive letter or GUID, and
volume name or serial number to help determine what volume Chkdsk ran
against. Also included is whether Chkdsk ran because a user scheduled it or
because the dirty bit was set.]]

[[When Autochk runs against a volume at boot time it records its output to a
file called Bootex.log in the root of the volume being checked. The Winlogon
service then moves the contents of each Bootex.log file to the Application
Event log.]]

[[This file states whether Chkdsk encountered any errors and, if so,
whether they were fixed.]]

Bootex.log is then deleted. The Application Event log is AppEvent.Evt and
is viewed in the Event Viewer, under Application.

Bootex.log can be acessed with recovery software such as Restoration.

Chkdsk
http://www.microsoft.com/resources/...windows/xp/all/reskit/en-us/prmb_tol_pwfd.asp

Chkdsk
http://www.microsoft.com/resources/documentation/windows/xp/all/proddocs/en-us/chkdsk.mspx

Describes how to use the chkdsk command at the command line.
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/...WINDOWSXP/home/using/productdoc/en/chkdsk.asp

An Explanation of the New /C and /I Switches That Are Available to Use with
Chkdsk.exe
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;314835

--
Hope this helps. Let us know.

Wes
MS-MVP Windows Shell/User

In

 

[Dean]

Alias suggested I NOT check those check boxes, which didn't make sense to
me. I assume you disagree. If I got no prompts, with the boxes unchecked,
does that mean it found nothing in need of repair? Why is this so much
faster than the thorough version of scandisk - is it equally capable?

Also, in layman's terms, what is the difference between XP Pro and XP Home?
I have both.

Thanks very much!

Dean

Windows XP is really Windows NT 5.1

Scandisk has been retired. Use Error Checking (chkdsk.exe) in XP.
1. In My Computer or Windows Explorer, right-click the drive you want to
check, and then click Properties.
2. On the Tools tab, click Check Now.
3. Check both boxes:

Automatically fix file system errors
Runs Chkdsk by using the /f parameter.
[[Specifies whether Windows repairs file-system errors found during disk
checking. All files must be closed for this program to run. If the drive
is
currently in use, a message asks if you want to reschedule
the disk checking for the next time you restart your computer. Your drive
is
not available to run other tasks while the disk is being checked.]]

Scan for and attempt recovery of bad sectors
Runs Chkdsk by using the /r parameter.
[[Specifies whether Windows repairs file-system errors found during disk
checking, locates bad sectors, and recovers readable information. All
files
must be closed for this program to run. If the drive is currently in use,
a
message asks if you want to reschedule the disk checking for the next time
you restart your computer. Your drive is not available to run other tasks
while the disk is being checked. If you select this option, you do not
need
to select Automatically fix file system errors. Windows fixes any errors
on
the disk.]]

You have to reboot for Error-checking to run.

For a peek at the chkdsk log.

Open the Event Viewer...
Start | Run | Type: eventvwr | OK
Look in Application | Listed as Information |
Event ID: 1001
Source: Winlogon
[[Description: This includes file system type; drive letter or GUID, and
volume name or serial number to help determine what volume Chkdsk ran
against. Also included is whether Chkdsk ran because a user scheduled it
or
because the dirty bit was set.]]

[[When Autochk runs against a volume at boot time it records its output to
a
file called Bootex.log in the root of the volume being checked. The
Winlogon
service then moves the contents of each Bootex.log file to the Application
Event log.]]

[[This file states whether Chkdsk encountered any errors and, if so,
whether they were fixed.]]

Bootex.log is then deleted. The Application Event log is AppEvent.Evt and
is viewed in the Event Viewer, under Application.

Bootex.log can be acessed with recovery software such as Restoration.

Chkdsk
http://www.microsoft.com/resources/...windows/xp/all/reskit/en-us/prmb_tol_pwfd.asp

Chkdsk
http://www.microsoft.com/resources/documentation/windows/xp/all/proddocs/en-us/chkdsk.mspx

Describes how to use the chkdsk command at the command line.
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/...WINDOWSXP/home/using/productdoc/en/chkdsk.asp

An Explanation of the New /C and /I Switches That Are Available to Use
with
Chkdsk.exe
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;314835

--
Hope this helps. Let us know.

Wes
MS-MVP Windows Shell/User

In

I thought NT referred to the more network-compatible versions of Windows
like 1998 and 2000, not ME and XP, which I understood to be personal, not
corporate style versions.

I could have sworn I've run scandisk tens of times on my computers, 2 of
3
which are XP, but I guess they must all have been run on the ME machine.
I guess after years of use, I am way overdue for my first run of
scandisk, er chkdsk, on the XP machines. Perhaps that's why one of them
has been so slow, for so long (the older XP Home, not the newer XP pro
machine).

By the way, what is the difference between XP Home and Pro?

Can you tell me the exact DOS command I should use and if it requires any
intervention? With scandisk, I recall that you often have to close down
a
number of programs first, sometimes even needing to run it in safe mode,
or else it does not finish. Are there any such problems with chkdsk?

Thanks!
Dean


Dean

 

[Ken Blake]

Ah, yes. I didn't think they would make it harder than before. Thanks to
both you and alias.

You're welcome. I don't think it's really any harder, and scandisk wasn't
before chkdsk. In fact it was the other way around; chkdsk is the original,
older, name.

But, as far as I'm concerned, it was mistake to have two different names for
what is essentially the same function. You're not the first person to have
been confused because he couldn't find scandisk in Windows XP and you won't
be the last.When you give something a name, you should stick with it, even
if you can come up with a better name later. The confusion caused by
changing names overshadows the potential benefit of the name change.

 

[Dean]

I now see that chkdesk goes much slower, with those boxed checked.

Alias suggested I NOT check those check boxes, which didn't make sense to
me. I assume you disagree. If I got no prompts, with the boxes
unchecked, does that mean it found nothing in need of repair? Why is this
so much faster than the thorough version of scandisk - is it equally
capable?

Also, in layman's terms, what is the difference between XP Pro and XP
Home? I have both.

Thanks very much!

Dean

Windows XP is really Windows NT 5.1

Scandisk has been retired. Use Error Checking (chkdsk.exe) in XP.
1. In My Computer or Windows Explorer, right-click the drive you want to
check, and then click Properties.
2. On the Tools tab, click Check Now.
3. Check both boxes:

Automatically fix file system errors
Runs Chkdsk by using the /f parameter.
[[Specifies whether Windows repairs file-system errors found during disk
checking. All files must be closed for this program to run. If the drive
is
currently in use, a message asks if you want to reschedule
the disk checking for the next time you restart your computer. Your drive
is
not available to run other tasks while the disk is being checked.]]

Scan for and attempt recovery of bad sectors
Runs Chkdsk by using the /r parameter.
[[Specifies whether Windows repairs file-system errors found during disk
checking, locates bad sectors, and recovers readable information. All
files
must be closed for this program to run. If the drive is currently in use,
a
message asks if you want to reschedule the disk checking for the next
time
you restart your computer. Your drive is not available to run other tasks
while the disk is being checked. If you select this option, you do not
need
to select Automatically fix file system errors. Windows fixes any errors
on
the disk.]]

You have to reboot for Error-checking to run.

For a peek at the chkdsk log.

Open the Event Viewer...
Start | Run | Type: eventvwr | OK
Look in Application | Listed as Information |
Event ID: 1001
Source: Winlogon
[[Description: This includes file system type; drive letter or GUID, and
volume name or serial number to help determine what volume Chkdsk ran
against. Also included is whether Chkdsk ran because a user scheduled it
or
because the dirty bit was set.]]

[[When Autochk runs against a volume at boot time it records its output
to a
file called Bootex.log in the root of the volume being checked. The
Winlogon
service then moves the contents of each Bootex.log file to the
Application
Event log.]]

[[This file states whether Chkdsk encountered any errors and, if so,
whether they were fixed.]]

Bootex.log is then deleted. The Application Event log is AppEvent.Evt
and
is viewed in the Event Viewer, under Application.

Bootex.log can be acessed with recovery software such as Restoration.

Chkdsk
http://www.microsoft.com/resources/...windows/xp/all/reskit/en-us/prmb_tol_pwfd.asp

Chkdsk
http://www.microsoft.com/resources/documentation/windows/xp/all/proddocs/en-us/chkdsk.mspx

Describes how to use the chkdsk command at the command line.
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/...WINDOWSXP/home/using/productdoc/en/chkdsk.asp

An Explanation of the New /C and /I Switches That Are Available to Use
with
Chkdsk.exe
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;314835

--
Hope this helps. Let us know.

Wes
MS-MVP Windows Shell/User

In

I thought NT referred to the more network-compatible versions of Windows
like 1998 and 2000, not ME and XP, which I understood to be personal,
not
corporate style versions.

I could have sworn I've run scandisk tens of times on my computers, 2 of
3
which are XP, but I guess they must all have been run on the ME machine.
I guess after years of use, I am way overdue for my first run of
scandisk, er chkdsk, on the XP machines. Perhaps that's why one of them
has been so slow, for so long (the older XP Home, not the newer XP pro
machine).

By the way, what is the difference between XP Home and Pro?

Can you tell me the exact DOS command I should use and if it requires
any
intervention? With scandisk, I recall that you often have to close down
a
number of programs first, sometimes even needing to run it in safe mode,
or else it does not finish. Are there any such problems with chkdsk?

Thanks!
Dean


Dean

Dean wrote:
For the longest time I was thinking that scandisk had been renamed or
replaced by disk cleanup, i.e., for Windows XP. Now, I am starting to
realize that they are different. I do not see scandisk on my XP
computer. Why might that be?

Thanks!
Dean

Because the NT version of Scandisk is Chkdisk.

 

[Wesley Vogel]

Dean,

With no boxes checked you get CHKDSK in read-only mode.

Don't bother even running CHKDSK in read-only mode.

Many reasons below.

[[Chkdsk might not accurately report information in read-only mode.]]
From...
Chkdsk
http://www.microsoft.com/resources/...windows/xp/all/reskit/en-us/prmb_tol_pwfd.asp

[[If you run chkdsk without the /f command-line option on an active
partition, it might report spurious errors because it cannot lock the
drive.]]

[[Using chkdsk with open files
If you specify the /f command-line option, chkdsk sends an error message if
there are open files on the disk. If you do not specify the /f command-line
option and open files exist, chkdsk might report lost allocation units on
the disk. This could happen if open files have not yet been recorded in the
file allocation table. If chkdsk reports the loss of a large number of
allocation units, consider repairing the disk.]]
From...
Chkdsk
http://www.microsoft.com/resources/documentation/windows/xp/all/proddocs/en-us/chkdsk.mspx

[[In read-only mode, CHKDSK quits before it completes all three phases if it
encounters errors in earlier phases, and CHKDSK is prone to falsely
reporting errors. For example, CHKDSK may report disk corruption if NTFS
happens to modify areas of a disk while CHKDSK is examining the disk. For
correct verification, a volume must be static, and the only way to guarantee
a static state is to lock the volume. CHKDSK locks the volume only if you
specify the /F switch (or the /R switch, which implies /F). You may need to
run CHKDSK more than once to get CHKDSK to complete all its passes
in read-only mode. ]]
From...
An Explanation of the New C and I Switches That Are Available to Use with
Chkdsk.exe
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;314835

To take advantage of all the Chkdsk parameters, use the command-line version
of Chkdsk.

Describes how to use the chkdsk command at the command line.
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/...WINDOWSXP/home/using/productdoc/en/chkdsk.asp

--
Hope this helps. Let us know.

Wes
MS-MVP Windows Shell/User

In

Alias suggested I NOT check those check boxes, which didn't make sense to
me. I assume you disagree. If I got no prompts, with the boxes
unchecked, does that mean it found nothing in need of repair? Why is
this so much faster than the thorough version of scandisk - is it equally
capable?

Also, in layman's terms, what is the difference between XP Pro and XP
Home? I have both.

Thanks very much!

Dean

Windows XP is really Windows NT 5.1

Scandisk has been retired. Use Error Checking (chkdsk.exe) in XP.
1. In My Computer or Windows Explorer, right-click the drive you want to
check, and then click Properties.
2. On the Tools tab, click Check Now.
3. Check both boxes:

Automatically fix file system errors
Runs Chkdsk by using the /f parameter.
[[Specifies whether Windows repairs file-system errors found during disk
checking. All files must be closed for this program to run. If the drive
is
currently in use, a message asks if you want to reschedule
the disk checking for the next time you restart your computer. Your drive
is
not available to run other tasks while the disk is being checked.]]

Scan for and attempt recovery of bad sectors
Runs Chkdsk by using the /r parameter.
[[Specifies whether Windows repairs file-system errors found during disk
checking, locates bad sectors, and recovers readable information. All
files
must be closed for this program to run. If the drive is currently in use,
a
message asks if you want to reschedule the disk checking for the next
time you restart your computer. Your drive is not available to run other
tasks while the disk is being checked. If you select this option, you
do not need
to select Automatically fix file system errors. Windows fixes any errors
on
the disk.]]

You have to reboot for Error-checking to run.

For a peek at the chkdsk log.

Open the Event Viewer...
Start | Run | Type: eventvwr | OK
Look in Application | Listed as Information |
Event ID: 1001
Source: Winlogon
[[Description: This includes file system type; drive letter or GUID, and
volume name or serial number to help determine what volume Chkdsk ran
against. Also included is whether Chkdsk ran because a user scheduled it
or
because the dirty bit was set.]]

[[When Autochk runs against a volume at boot time it records its output
to a
file called Bootex.log in the root of the volume being checked. The
Winlogon
service then moves the contents of each Bootex.log file to the
Application Event log.]]

[[This file states whether Chkdsk encountered any errors and, if so,
whether they were fixed.]]

Bootex.log is then deleted. The Application Event log is AppEvent.Evt
and is viewed in the Event Viewer, under Application.

Bootex.log can be acessed with recovery software such as Restoration.

Chkdsk
http://www.microsoft.com/resources/...windows/xp/all/reskit/en-us/prmb_tol_pwfd.asp

Chkdsk
http://www.microsoft.com/resources/documentation/windows/xp/all/proddocs/en-us/chkdsk.mspx

Describes how to use the chkdsk command at the command line.
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/...WINDOWSXP/home/using/productdoc/en/chkdsk.asp

An Explanation of the New /C and /I Switches That Are Available to Use
with
Chkdsk.exe
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;314835

--
Hope this helps. Let us know.

Wes
MS-MVP Windows Shell/User

In

I thought NT referred to the more network-compatible versions of Windows
like 1998 and 2000, not ME and XP, which I understood to be personal,
not corporate style versions.

I could have sworn I've run scandisk tens of times on my computers, 2 of
3
which are XP, but I guess they must all have been run on the ME machine.
I guess after years of use, I am way overdue for my first run of
scandisk, er chkdsk, on the XP machines. Perhaps that's why one of them
has been so slow, for so long (the older XP Home, not the newer XP pro
machine).

By the way, what is the difference between XP Home and Pro?

Can you tell me the exact DOS command I should use and if it requires
any intervention? With scandisk, I recall that you often have to close
down a
number of programs first, sometimes even needing to run it in safe mode,
or else it does not finish. Are there any such problems with chkdsk?

Thanks!
Dean


Dean

Dean wrote:
For the longest time I was thinking that scandisk had been renamed or
replaced by disk cleanup, i.e., for Windows XP. Now, I am starting to
realize that they are different. I do not see scandisk on my XP
computer. Why might that be?

Thanks!
Dean

Because the NT version of Scandisk is Chkdisk.

 

[Wesley Vogel]

That's because chkdsk.exe is actually doing something.

--
Hope this helps. Let us know.

Wes
MS-MVP Windows Shell/User

In

I now see that chkdesk goes much slower, with those boxed checked.

Alias suggested I NOT check those check boxes, which didn't make sense to
me. I assume you disagree. If I got no prompts, with the boxes
unchecked, does that mean it found nothing in need of repair? Why is
this so much faster than the thorough version of scandisk - is it equally
capable?

Also, in layman's terms, what is the difference between XP Pro and XP
Home? I have both.

Thanks very much!

Dean

Windows XP is really Windows NT 5.1

Scandisk has been retired. Use Error Checking (chkdsk.exe) in XP.
1. In My Computer or Windows Explorer, right-click the drive you want to
check, and then click Properties.
2. On the Tools tab, click Check Now.
3. Check both boxes:

Automatically fix file system errors
Runs Chkdsk by using the /f parameter.
[[Specifies whether Windows repairs file-system errors found during disk
checking. All files must be closed for this program to run. If the drive
is
currently in use, a message asks if you want to reschedule
the disk checking for the next time you restart your computer. Your
drive is
not available to run other tasks while the disk is being checked.]]

Scan for and attempt recovery of bad sectors
Runs Chkdsk by using the /r parameter.
[[Specifies whether Windows repairs file-system errors found during disk
checking, locates bad sectors, and recovers readable information. All
files
must be closed for this program to run. If the drive is currently in
use, a
message asks if you want to reschedule the disk checking for the next
time
you restart your computer. Your drive is not available to run other
tasks while the disk is being checked. If you select this option, you
do not need
to select Automatically fix file system errors. Windows fixes any errors
on
the disk.]]

You have to reboot for Error-checking to run.

For a peek at the chkdsk log.

Open the Event Viewer...
Start | Run | Type: eventvwr | OK
Look in Application | Listed as Information |
Event ID: 1001
Source: Winlogon
[[Description: This includes file system type; drive letter or GUID, and
volume name or serial number to help determine what volume Chkdsk ran
against. Also included is whether Chkdsk ran because a user scheduled
it or
because the dirty bit was set.]]

[[When Autochk runs against a volume at boot time it records its output
to a
file called Bootex.log in the root of the volume being checked. The
Winlogon
service then moves the contents of each Bootex.log file to the
Application
Event log.]]

[[This file states whether Chkdsk encountered any errors and, if so,
whether they were fixed.]]

Bootex.log is then deleted. The Application Event log is AppEvent.Evt
and
is viewed in the Event Viewer, under Application.

Bootex.log can be acessed with recovery software such as Restoration.

Chkdsk
http://www.microsoft.com/resources/...windows/xp/all/reskit/en-us/prmb_tol_pwfd.asp

Chkdsk
http://www.microsoft.com/resources/documentation/windows/xp/all/proddocs/en-us/chkdsk.mspx

Describes how to use the chkdsk command at the command line.
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/...WINDOWSXP/home/using/productdoc/en/chkdsk.asp

An Explanation of the New /C and /I Switches That Are Available to Use
with
Chkdsk.exe
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;314835

--
Hope this helps. Let us know.

Wes
MS-MVP Windows Shell/User

In Dean <[email protected]> hunted and pecked:
I thought NT referred to the more network-compatible versions of
Windows like 1998 and 2000, not ME and XP, which I understood to be
personal, not
corporate style versions.

I could have sworn I've run scandisk tens of times on my computers, 2
of 3
which are XP, but I guess they must all have been run on the ME
machine. I guess after years of use, I am way overdue for my first run
of scandisk, er chkdsk, on the XP machines. Perhaps that's why one of
them has been so slow, for so long (the older XP Home, not the newer
XP pro machine).

By the way, what is the difference between XP Home and Pro?

Can you tell me the exact DOS command I should use and if it requires
any
intervention? With scandisk, I recall that you often have to close
down a
number of programs first, sometimes even needing to run it in safe
mode, or else it does not finish. Are there any such problems with
chkdsk?

Thanks!
Dean


Dean

Dean wrote:
For the longest time I was thinking that scandisk had been renamed or
replaced by disk cleanup, i.e., for Windows XP. Now, I am starting
to realize that they are different. I do not see scandisk on my XP
computer. Why might that be?

Thanks!
Dean

Because the NT version of Scandisk is Chkdisk.

 

[Alias]

I didn't know that. Thanks.

Alias

Dean,

With no boxes checked you get CHKDSK in read-only mode.

Don't bother even running CHKDSK in read-only mode.

Many reasons below.

[[Chkdsk might not accurately report information in read-only mode.]]
From...
Chkdsk
http://www.microsoft.com/resources/...windows/xp/all/reskit/en-us/prmb_tol_pwfd.asp

[[If you run chkdsk without the /f command-line option on an active
partition, it might report spurious errors because it cannot lock the
drive.]]

[[Using chkdsk with open files
If you specify the /f command-line option, chkdsk sends an error message
if
there are open files on the disk. If you do not specify the /f
command-line
option and open files exist, chkdsk might report lost allocation units on
the disk. This could happen if open files have not yet been recorded in
the
file allocation table. If chkdsk reports the loss of a large number of
allocation units, consider repairing the disk.]]
From...
Chkdsk
http://www.microsoft.com/resources/documentation/windows/xp/all/proddocs/en-us/chkdsk.mspx

[[In read-only mode, CHKDSK quits before it completes all three phases if
it
encounters errors in earlier phases, and CHKDSK is prone to falsely
reporting errors. For example, CHKDSK may report disk corruption if NTFS
happens to modify areas of a disk while CHKDSK is examining the disk. For
correct verification, a volume must be static, and the only way to
guarantee
a static state is to lock the volume. CHKDSK locks the volume only if you
specify the /F switch (or the /R switch, which implies /F). You may need
to
run CHKDSK more than once to get CHKDSK to complete all its passes
in read-only mode. ]]
From...
An Explanation of the New C and I Switches That Are Available to Use with
Chkdsk.exe
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;314835

To take advantage of all the Chkdsk parameters, use the command-line
version
of Chkdsk.

Describes how to use the chkdsk command at the command line.
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/...WINDOWSXP/home/using/productdoc/en/chkdsk.asp

--
Hope this helps. Let us know.

Wes
MS-MVP Windows Shell/User

In

Alias suggested I NOT check those check boxes, which didn't make sense to
me. I assume you disagree. If I got no prompts, with the boxes
unchecked, does that mean it found nothing in need of repair? Why is
this so much faster than the thorough version of scandisk - is it equally
capable?

Also, in layman's terms, what is the difference between XP Pro and XP
Home? I have both.

Thanks very much!

Dean

Windows XP is really Windows NT 5.1

Scandisk has been retired. Use Error Checking (chkdsk.exe) in XP.
1. In My Computer or Windows Explorer, right-click the drive you want to
check, and then click Properties.
2. On the Tools tab, click Check Now.
3. Check both boxes:

Automatically fix file system errors
Runs Chkdsk by using the /f parameter.
[[Specifies whether Windows repairs file-system errors found during disk
checking. All files must be closed for this program to run. If the drive
is
currently in use, a message asks if you want to reschedule
the disk checking for the next time you restart your computer. Your
drive
is
not available to run other tasks while the disk is being checked.]]

Scan for and attempt recovery of bad sectors
Runs Chkdsk by using the /r parameter.
[[Specifies whether Windows repairs file-system errors found during disk
checking, locates bad sectors, and recovers readable information. All
files
must be closed for this program to run. If the drive is currently in
use,
a
message asks if you want to reschedule the disk checking for the next
time you restart your computer. Your drive is not available to run other
tasks while the disk is being checked. If you select this option, you
do not need
to select Automatically fix file system errors. Windows fixes any errors
on
the disk.]]

You have to reboot for Error-checking to run.

For a peek at the chkdsk log.

Open the Event Viewer...
Start | Run | Type: eventvwr | OK
Look in Application | Listed as Information |
Event ID: 1001
Source: Winlogon
[[Description: This includes file system type; drive letter or GUID, and
volume name or serial number to help determine what volume Chkdsk ran
against. Also included is whether Chkdsk ran because a user scheduled
it
or
because the dirty bit was set.]]

[[When Autochk runs against a volume at boot time it records its output
to a
file called Bootex.log in the root of the volume being checked. The
Winlogon
service then moves the contents of each Bootex.log file to the
Application Event log.]]

[[This file states whether Chkdsk encountered any errors and, if so,
whether they were fixed.]]

Bootex.log is then deleted. The Application Event log is AppEvent.Evt
and is viewed in the Event Viewer, under Application.

Bootex.log can be acessed with recovery software such as Restoration.

Chkdsk
http://www.microsoft.com/resources/...windows/xp/all/reskit/en-us/prmb_tol_pwfd.asp

Chkdsk
http://www.microsoft.com/resources/documentation/windows/xp/all/proddocs/en-us/chkdsk.mspx

Describes how to use the chkdsk command at the command line.
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/...WINDOWSXP/home/using/productdoc/en/chkdsk.asp

An Explanation of the New /C and /I Switches That Are Available to Use
with
Chkdsk.exe
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;314835

--
Hope this helps. Let us know.

Wes
MS-MVP Windows Shell/User

In Dean <[email protected]> hunted and pecked:
I thought NT referred to the more network-compatible versions of
Windows
like 1998 and 2000, not ME and XP, which I understood to be personal,
not corporate style versions.

I could have sworn I've run scandisk tens of times on my computers, 2
of
3
which are XP, but I guess they must all have been run on the ME
machine.
I guess after years of use, I am way overdue for my first run of
scandisk, er chkdsk, on the XP machines. Perhaps that's why one of
them
has been so slow, for so long (the older XP Home, not the newer XP pro
machine).

By the way, what is the difference between XP Home and Pro?

Can you tell me the exact DOS command I should use and if it requires
any intervention? With scandisk, I recall that you often have to close
down a
number of programs first, sometimes even needing to run it in safe
mode,
or else it does not finish. Are there any such problems with chkdsk?

Thanks!
Dean


Dean

Dean wrote:
For the longest time I was thinking that scandisk had been renamed or
replaced by disk cleanup, i.e., for Windows XP. Now, I am starting
to
realize that they are different. I do not see scandisk on my XP
computer. Why might that be?

Thanks!
Dean

Because the NT version of Scandisk is Chkdisk.

 

[Wesley Vogel]

There's always something. Keep having fun.

--
Hope this helps. Let us know.

Wes
MS-MVP Windows Shell/User

In

I didn't know that. Thanks.

Alias

Dean,

With no boxes checked you get CHKDSK in read-only mode.

Don't bother even running CHKDSK in read-only mode.

Many reasons below.

[[Chkdsk might not accurately report information in read-only mode.]]
From...
Chkdsk
http://www.microsoft.com/resources/...windows/xp/all/reskit/en-us/prmb_tol_pwfd.asp

[[If you run chkdsk without the /f command-line option on an active
partition, it might report spurious errors because it cannot lock the
drive.]]

[[Using chkdsk with open files
If you specify the /f command-line option, chkdsk sends an error message
if
there are open files on the disk. If you do not specify the /f
command-line
option and open files exist, chkdsk might report lost allocation units on
the disk. This could happen if open files have not yet been recorded in
the
file allocation table. If chkdsk reports the loss of a large number of
allocation units, consider repairing the disk.]]
From...
Chkdsk
http://www.microsoft.com/resources/documentation/windows/xp/all/proddocs/en-us/chkdsk.mspx

[[In read-only mode, CHKDSK quits before it completes all three phases if
it
encounters errors in earlier phases, and CHKDSK is prone to falsely
reporting errors. For example, CHKDSK may report disk corruption if NTFS
happens to modify areas of a disk while CHKDSK is examining the disk. For
correct verification, a volume must be static, and the only way to
guarantee
a static state is to lock the volume. CHKDSK locks the volume only if
you specify the /F switch (or the /R switch, which implies /F). You may
need to
run CHKDSK more than once to get CHKDSK to complete all its passes
in read-only mode. ]]
From...
An Explanation of the New C and I Switches That Are Available to Use with
Chkdsk.exe
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;314835

To take advantage of all the Chkdsk parameters, use the command-line
version
of Chkdsk.

Describes how to use the chkdsk command at the command line.
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/...WINDOWSXP/home/using/productdoc/en/chkdsk.asp

--
Hope this helps. Let us know.

Wes
MS-MVP Windows Shell/User

In

Alias suggested I NOT check those check boxes, which didn't make sense
to me. I assume you disagree. If I got no prompts, with the boxes
unchecked, does that mean it found nothing in need of repair? Why is
this so much faster than the thorough version of scandisk - is it
equally capable?

Also, in layman's terms, what is the difference between XP Pro and XP
Home? I have both.

Thanks very much!

Dean

Windows XP is really Windows NT 5.1

Scandisk has been retired. Use Error Checking (chkdsk.exe) in XP.
1. In My Computer or Windows Explorer, right-click the drive you want
to check, and then click Properties.
2. On the Tools tab, click Check Now.
3. Check both boxes:

Automatically fix file system errors
Runs Chkdsk by using the /f parameter.
[[Specifies whether Windows repairs file-system errors found during
disk checking. All files must be closed for this program to run. If
the drive is
currently in use, a message asks if you want to reschedule
the disk checking for the next time you restart your computer. Your
drive
is
not available to run other tasks while the disk is being checked.]]

Scan for and attempt recovery of bad sectors
Runs Chkdsk by using the /r parameter.
[[Specifies whether Windows repairs file-system errors found during
disk checking, locates bad sectors, and recovers readable information.
All files
must be closed for this program to run. If the drive is currently in
use,
a
message asks if you want to reschedule the disk checking for the next
time you restart your computer. Your drive is not available to run
other tasks while the disk is being checked. If you select this
option, you do not need
to select Automatically fix file system errors. Windows fixes any
errors on
the disk.]]

You have to reboot for Error-checking to run.

For a peek at the chkdsk log.

Open the Event Viewer...
Start | Run | Type: eventvwr | OK
Look in Application | Listed as Information |
Event ID: 1001
Source: Winlogon
[[Description: This includes file system type; drive letter or GUID,
and volume name or serial number to help determine what volume Chkdsk
ran against. Also included is whether Chkdsk ran because a user
scheduled it
or
because the dirty bit was set.]]

[[When Autochk runs against a volume at boot time it records its output
to a
file called Bootex.log in the root of the volume being checked. The
Winlogon
service then moves the contents of each Bootex.log file to the
Application Event log.]]

[[This file states whether Chkdsk encountered any errors and, if so,
whether they were fixed.]]

Bootex.log is then deleted. The Application Event log is AppEvent.Evt
and is viewed in the Event Viewer, under Application.

Bootex.log can be acessed with recovery software such as Restoration.

Chkdsk

http://www.microsoft.com/resources/...windows/xp/all/reskit/en-us/prmb_tol_pwfd.asp

Chkdsk

http://www.microsoft.com/resources/documentation/windows/xp/all/proddocs/en-us/chkdsk.mspx

Describes how to use the chkdsk command at the command line.

http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/...WINDOWSXP/home/using/productdoc/en/chkdsk.asp

An Explanation of the New /C and /I Switches That Are Available to Use
with
Chkdsk.exe
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;314835

--
Hope this helps. Let us know.

Wes
MS-MVP Windows Shell/User

In Dean <[email protected]> hunted and pecked:
I thought NT referred to the more network-compatible versions of
Windows
like 1998 and 2000, not ME and XP, which I understood to be personal,
not corporate style versions.

I could have sworn I've run scandisk tens of times on my computers, 2
of
3
which are XP, but I guess they must all have been run on the ME
machine.
I guess after years of use, I am way overdue for my first run of
scandisk, er chkdsk, on the XP machines. Perhaps that's why one of
them
has been so slow, for so long (the older XP Home, not the newer XP pro
machine).

By the way, what is the difference between XP Home and Pro?

Can you tell me the exact DOS command I should use and if it requires
any intervention? With scandisk, I recall that you often have to
close down a
number of programs first, sometimes even needing to run it in safe
mode,
or else it does not finish. Are there any such problems with chkdsk?

Thanks!
Dean


Dean

Dean wrote:
For the longest time I was thinking that scandisk had been renamed
or replaced by disk cleanup, i.e., for Windows XP. Now, I am
starting to
realize that they are different. I do not see scandisk on my XP
computer. Why might that be?

Thanks!
Dean

Because the NT version of Scandisk is Chkdisk.

 

[Wesley Vogel]

MS is usually good at naming things similar to confuse people.

Outlook, Outlook Express. Windows Explorer, Internet Explorer. Messenger
Service, Windows Messenger and MSN Messenger. And don't forget the
Quicksilver Messenger Service. ;-)

Chkdsk.exe (MS-DOS version), scandisk.exe and chkdsk.exe (XP/NT version).

[[Chkdsk is a utility which checks the computers hard disk drives status for
any cross-linked or any additional errors with the hard disk drive.

MS-DOS versions 2.x - 4.x used chkdsk.com
MS-DOS versions 5.x and beyond used chkdsk.exe.]]
http://www.computerhope.com/chkdskh.htm

[[scandisk.exe from Microsoft is a system utility which runs Scandisk on
your computer, which scans the local disk drive for hardware errors.]]
http://www.liutilities.com/products/wintaskspro/processlibrary/scandisk/

[[Chkdsk (Chkdsk.exe) is a command-line tool that checks volumes for
problems and attempts to repair any that it finds. For example, Chkdsk can
repair problems related to bad sectors, lost clusters, cross-linked files]]
http://www.microsoft.com/resources/...windows/xp/all/reskit/en-us/prmb_tol_pwfd.asp

--
Hope this helps. Let us know.

Wes
MS-MVP Windows Shell/User

In