Microsoft DOS sfc command
Quick links
About sfc
Availability
Syntax
Examples
About sfc
Scans and replaces any Microsoft Windows file on the computer and replaces any changed file with the correct version. This is a great command to run when you are running into an issue that is difficult to troubleshoot.
Availability
The sfc.exe command is an external command that is available in the below Microsoft operating systems.
Windows 2000
Windows XP
Windows Vista
Windows 7
Syntax
Microsoft Windows 2000 Syntax
Microsoft(R) Windows 2000 Windows File Checker Version 5.00
(C) 1999 Microsoft Corp. All rights reserved
Scans all protected system files and replaces incorrect versions with correct Microsoft versions.
SFC [/SCANNOW] [/SCANONCE] [/SCANBOOT] [/CANCEL] [/ENABLE] [/PURGECACHE] [/CACHE SIZE=x] [/QUIET]
| /SCANNOW |
Scans all protected system files immediately. |
| /SCANONCE |
Scans all protected system files once at the next boot. |
| /SCANBOOT |
Scans all protected system files at every boot. |
| /CANCEL |
Cancels all pending scans of protected system files. |
| /QUIET |
Replaces all incorrect file versions without prompting the user. |
| /ENABLE |
Enables Windows File Protection for normal operation |
| /PURGECACHE |
Purges the file cache and scans all protected system files immediately. |
| /CACHESIZE=x |
Sets the file cache size |
Microsoft Windows XP Syntax
Microsoft(R) Windows XP Windows File Checker Version 5.1
(C) 1999-2000 Microsoft Corp. All rights reserved
Scans all protected system files and replaces incorrect versions with correct Microsoft versions.
SFC [/SCANNOW] [/SCANONCE] [/SCANBOOT] [/REVERT] [/PURGECACHE] [/CACHESIZE=x]
| /SCANNOW |
Scans all protected system files immediately. |
| /SCANONCE |
Scans all protected system files once at the next boot. |
| /SCANBOOT |
Scans all protected system files at every boot. |
| /REVERT |
Return scan to default setting. |
| /PURGECACHE |
Purges the file cache. |
| /CACHESIZE=x |
Sets the file cache size. |
Examples
sfc /scannow
Begins the scan of all system files. |
