W8.1 need help resolving SFC /scannow issues

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My W8.1 system runs ok.  I have been using Macrium Reflect Pro to backup my system partition and my data partition. I save 3 copies of each backup image (full.)

The other day I decided to run SFC and came back saying that scannow found issues with some system files that it couldn’t fix.

Because I run backups so regularly I believe the system file issues have been there for a while and are earlier than my oldest backup.

I would appreciate any suggestions as to how I might resolve the issues that scannow found.

Thank you,

southieguy (aka Dick-Y)

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SFC sometimes gives errors that aren’t true.  If your system is performing well, I would ignore it.  But, do a malwarebytes or similar scan.

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southieguy

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I have found a very old backup and I was wondering 2 things:

From the CBS.log file Scannow puts out, how would I find any system files that are supposed to be bad; and

If I knew what they were, could I copy over them with ones from my old backup?

Thanks.

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In an elevated command prompt run “DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth” without the quotes.  Then run the SFC command again.

This Eightforums page has more information.

Win 11 home - 24H2
Attitude is a choice...Choose wisely

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southieguy

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Ran what’s indicated on the Eightforums page, after downloading and mounting a Windows 8.1 ISO file.

Got the error:”The source file could not be found.”

In a M-soft article called: “Configure a Windows Repair Source” there’s the following quote:

“Make sure the source is patched to the latest Cumulative Update. If the target OS is patched to a higher level than the source, adding features or repairing Operating Systems may fail because the target OS needs updated files that are not present in the source.”

Question: How do I patch the ISO or WM file to the latest Cumulative Update”?

Thanks

 

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You do not need an ISO to run the DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth command.  This command checks online for the source files.

Win 11 home - 24H2
Attitude is a choice...Choose wisely

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southieguy

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Did that and got Error:0x800f0906    “The source files could not be downloaded.”Dism_2

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Is windows update disabled / blocked?  DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth uses windows update.

Win 11 home - 24H2
Attitude is a choice...Choose wisely

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southieguy

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I have it set to not update automatically but to check and let me know of possible updates.

Should I change the setting to “automatic”?

Dick

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southieguy wrote:

Should I change the setting to “automatic”?

I think that would be worth a try.  The error message said “the source file could not be downloaded”.

Win 11 home - 24H2
Attitude is a choice...Choose wisely

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southieguy

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Made the change to Windows Update, rebooted, ran DISM . . . no joy.

DickDISM_3

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Rats… Still can not download the source file.   The DISM log may offer a clue.  Sometimes running the SFC command a second time will fix things it could not fix the first time.

I’m not going dark on you.  We are leaving for a family event and returning Monday.

Win 11 home - 24H2
Attitude is a choice...Choose wisely

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Thank you mledman.  Enjoy your week-end family event.

Dick

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southieguy wrote:

Ran what’s indicated on the Eightforums page, after downloading and mounting a Windows 8.1 ISO file.

Got the error:”The source file could not be found.”

Maybe my question is stupid, but what do you mean? Did you just mount an *.iso file downloaded from Microsoft’s site and pointed to it as a repairsource when you ran dism?

I am asking, since the *.iso files available at https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/software-download/windows8ISO are actually images of Windows installation medium(which of course contain image of Windows).

In case your answer for my question is YES:

To use the image as your repairsource, open elevated command prompt and type, replacing text in italics between %signs and skipping % signs:

DISM /Get-WimInfo /WimFile:”%path_to_where_you_mounted_an_ISO_file%\sources\install.wim”
to obtain an index number of image corresponding to your edition of Windows.

If you are unsure, you can check which edition your system is typing :
DISM /Online /Get-CurrentEdition

then, point to the image as a repairsource, typing:
DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth /Source:WIM:”%path_to_where_you_mounted_an_ISO_file%\sources\install.wim:%index_number_from_first_command%“ /LimitAccess

after that, you can also run:

SFC /scannow

and (this time do not neither remove % signs nor replace text between them, because these are envinonmental variables, unless you want to save SFC scan reult in other place than your desktop):

findstr /c:”[SR]” %windir%\Logs\CBS\CBS.log >”%userprofile%\Desktop\sfcdetails.txt”

The last comand (findstr…) will give you some information about problems found by SFC /scannow command.

All paths in above commands are placed between quotation marks so that they can contain special characters, like \/-,.

 

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southieguy, wavy

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Anon.

I’m trying to follow your suggestions but having trouble. I ran the 1st command and it cam back “Professional.”

I’ve tried all kinds of permutations with the 2nd suggestion, but none have worked.

I’ve included a picture of the ISO mounted on E:

Can you fill in the way the ISO should be referenced rather than showing the italics, please?

Thank you,

DickISO_Mounted

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So, when you run DISM /Online /Get-CurrentEdition, you get “Professional“, am I correct? If yes, then your Windows is Windows 8.1 Pro (and you should look for that description in the output of next command).

If you mounted ISO on E: you just need to type “E:” instead of “%path_to_where_you_mounted_an_ISO_file%“.

Below are commands from my previous post with already replaced paths:

DISM /Get-WimInfo /WimFile:E:\sources\install.wim

Your output should look like (example):

Index: 1
Name: Windows 8.1 Pro
Description: Windows 8.1 Pro
Size: xxxx bytes

Index: 2
Name: Windows 8.1
Description: Windows 8.1
Size: xxxx bytes

In this example, you will need image index 1.

Then, run:

DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth /Source:WIM:E:\sources\install.wim:index_number_from_previous_command /LimitAccess

In the command above, you replace whole index_number_from_first_command by only one number.

For given example:
DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth /Source:WIM:E:\sources\install.wim:1 /LimitAccess

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southieguy

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Ran it once with LimitAccess and once without LimitAccess.

Neither worked.

Picture included.

DickNo_Joy

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What was the output when you ran

DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth /Source:WIM:E:\sources\install.wim:1 /LimitAccess

 

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southieguy wrote:

Error:0x800f0906 “The source files could not be downloaded.”

Everything I’ve seen with this error relates to windows update.  Either windows update itself broken or a necessary update not installed.  Suggestions have been to run the update troubleshooter, install any missing updates, restore to an earlier restore point and run the restorehealth command, and reset windows update.  With patch Tuesday imminent, you might want to wait as everything is working OK.  One other suggestion was to make sure the date and time are correct.

HTH

Win 11 home - 24H2
Attitude is a choice...Choose wisely

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southieguy

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Thank you all for your help.  My issue is solved.  I had done various searches for issues with SFC /Scannow and came across a site called Sysnative.com.

One of the volunteer specialist worked with me and provided me with a solution.

They have a tool the use and work with cbs.log to create their solution and it worked.

Based on their help, I highly recommend anyone dealing with SFC and/or Windows Update issues visit their site.

Dick

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mledman

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Glad you got it resolved. Thanks for the recommendation of sysnative.com. It is always good to know of other sites that can provide good help since debugging Windows issues can be very tricky.

--Joe

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