🛠️ System Recovery

How to Perform Windows Startup Repair

📅 Updated: Jan 12, 2026 ⏱️ 30-90 min to fix ✅ 85% Success Rate

🚀 Quick Fix Summary

Problem Type: Windows System Recovery / Boot Repair

Common Symptoms: Windows won't boot, stuck on loading screen, "Automatic Repair couldn't fix your PC", blue/black screen, boot loop, missing/corrupt system files

Primary Causes: Corrupted boot configuration (BCD) (40%), damaged system files (25%), bad Windows Update (15%), disk errors (10%), driver conflicts (10%)

Time to Fix: 30-90 minutes

Difficulty: Moderate

Success Rate: 85% with Startup Repair + command-line tools

Startup Repair is Windows' built-in recovery tool designed to automatically diagnose and fix boot problems when your PC fails to start normally—displaying errors like "Your PC did not start correctly," freezing on the Windows logo with spinning dots, showing black/blue screens, entering automatic repair loops, or simply refusing to load past BIOS—but despite its critical importance as the first line of defense against boot failures, many users struggle to access it when needed most, especially when Windows won't even reach the Advanced Startup menu, and even when successfully launched, Startup Repair sometimes fails with "Startup Repair couldn't repair your PC" requiring manual command-line intervention with powerful tools like bootrec, chkdsk, and sfc to rebuild boot sectors, repair disk errors, and restore system integrity.

Performing Startup Repair correctly requires understanding multiple access methods—from force-shutting down three times to trigger Automatic Repair, using Windows installation media (USB/DVD) to boot into recovery environment, leveraging Windows 10/11's shift-restart technique for Advanced Options, or even booting from a recovery drive created beforehand—and knowing when to escalate beyond the automated repair to manual fixes when automatic repair fails. This comprehensive guide walks through five proven methods to perform Startup Repair step-by-step: triggering Automatic Repair through forced shutdowns, accessing it via Windows installation media for unbootable systems, using built-in Advanced Startup Options, performing command-line repairs with bootrec and BCDboot when automatic repair fails, and using System Restore as fallback—ensuring you can recover from virtually any boot failure scenario, whether caused by corrupted Boot Configuration Data (BCD) that prevents Windows from locating OS files (40% of cases), damaged system files from improper shutdowns or malware (25%), problematic Windows Updates that break boot process (15%), disk errors corrupting boot sectors (10%), or driver conflicts causing boot loops (10%), with each method explained in clear steps suitable for both beginners and advanced users tackling stubborn boot problems.

Method 1: Trigger Automatic Repair (Force Shutdown 3 Times)

Windows 10/11 automatically enters repair mode after 3 failed boot attempts. Simplest method when PC won't start.

Triggering Windows Automatic Repair
  1. Press Power button to turn on PC
  2. When Windows logo appears (with spinning dots), press and hold Power button 5-10 seconds to force shutdown
  3. Repeat 2 more times: Turn on → See logo → Force shutdown
  4. On 4th startup, Windows displays: "Preparing Automatic Repair"
  5. Wait—PC may take 5-10 minutes analyzing
  6. Screen shows: "Automatic Repair"
  7. Click Advanced options
  8. Select Troubleshoot → Advanced options → Startup Repair
  9. Choose your account, enter password
  10. Startup Repair runs diagnostics—takes 15-60 minutes
  11. If successful: PC restarts normally
  12. If failed: Proceed to Method 4 (manual repair)

Method 2: Use Windows Installation Media (USB/DVD)

When PC completely unbootable, boot from Windows installation USB to access repair tools.

Booting from Windows installation media

Create Windows Installation USB (on working PC):

  1. Download Windows Media Creation Tool from Microsoft website
  2. Run tool, select Create installation media for another PC
  3. Insert USB drive (8GB+ recommended)
  4. Follow wizard to create bootable USB

Boot from USB and Run Startup Repair:

  1. Insert USB into problem PC
  2. Restart PC, press Boot Menu key during startup:
    • Dell: F12
    • HP: F9 or Esc
    • Lenovo/ThinkPad: F12
    • ASUS: F8 or Esc
    • Acer: F12
    • MSI: F11
  3. Select USB drive from boot menu
  4. Windows Setup loads
  5. Click Next, then bottom-left: Repair your computer
  6. Select Troubleshoot → Advanced options → Startup Repair
  7. Choose target Windows installation (usually C:)
  8. Startup Repair runs—wait 15-60 minutes
  9. After completion, remove USB, restart

Method 3: Access from Windows (Shift + Restart)

If Windows partially boots (reaches login screen or Safe Mode), access Startup Repair via Settings.

Accessing Advanced Startup Options from Windows Settings
  1. Hold Shift key
  2. Click Start → Power → Restart (while holding Shift)
  3. PC reboots to Advanced Startup blue screen
  4. Select Troubleshoot → Advanced options → Startup Repair
  5. Enter password if prompted
  6. Startup Repair analyzes and fixes boot issues

Alternative: Via Settings (if Windows boots):

  1. Press Windows + I → System → Recovery
  2. Under "Advanced startup," click Restart now
  3. Proceed to Troubleshoot → Startup Repair

Method 4: Manual Startup Repair (Command Line Tools)

When automatic repair fails, use command-line tools to manually rebuild boot configuration, repair MBR, and fix BCD.

Running manual boot repair commands

Access Command Prompt:

  1. Boot to Advanced Startup (Method 1 or 2)
  2. Select Troubleshoot → Advanced options → Command Prompt
  3. Enter password if prompted

Run Bootrec Commands:

  1. Scan for Windows installations:
    bootrec /scanos
  2. Wait—shows detected Windows installations
  3. Rebuild Master Boot Record:
    bootrec /fixmbr
  4. Output: "The operation completed successfully"
  5. Rebuild Boot Sector:
    bootrec /fixboot
  6. Rebuild BCD (Boot Configuration Data):
    bootrec /rebuildbcd
  7. When prompted "Add installation to boot list?" → Type Y, press Enter
  8. Close Command Prompt
  9. Restart PC

If Bootrec Fails—Full BCD Rebuild:

  1. In Command Prompt, run:
  2. bcdedit /export C:\bcdbackup (backup existing BCD)
  3. attrib c:\boot\bcd -h -r -s
  4. ren c:\boot\bcd bcd.old (rename old BCD)
  5. bootrec /rebuildbcd
  6. Type Y to add Windows installation
  7. Restart

Check Disk for Errors:

  1. chkdsk C: /f /r /x
  2. Takes 30-90 minutes
  3. Scans and repairs disk errors affecting boot

Repair System Files:

  1. sfc /scannow /offbootdir=C:\ /offwindir=C:\Windows
  2. Scans and replaces corrupted system files

Method 5: Use System Restore

If recent changes (updates, drivers, software) broke boot, restore PC to earlier working state.

Using System Restore to fix boot issues
  1. Boot to Advanced Startup (Method 1 or 2)
  2. Select Troubleshoot → Advanced options → System Restore
  3. Choose your account, enter password
  4. Click Next
  5. Select restore point dated before boot problem started
  6. Click Next → Finish
  7. Confirm: "Once started, System Restore cannot be interrupted"
  8. Click Yes
  9. PC restarts, restores system files/drivers/registry to earlier state
  10. Takes 20-60 minutes
  11. After completion, PC should boot normally

💡 Pro Tip: Create Recovery Drive NOW

Prevent future boot disasters by creating USB recovery drive while Windows works: Search "Create recovery drive" → Follow wizard → Select USB (16GB+) → Backup system files → Create drive. Keep this USB safe—invaluable when PC won't boot and you lack installation media.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Startup Repair says "Startup Repair couldn't repair your PC." What now?

A: Automatic repair failure common with severe BCD corruption or disk errors. Solution: Boot to Advanced Startup → Command Prompt → Run manual bootrec commands (Method 4): bootrec /fixmbr, /fixboot, /scanos, /rebuildbcd. If BCD rebuild fails, perform full BCD recreation with bcdedit /export → ren c:\boot\bcd bcd.old → bootrec /rebuildbcd. Also run chkdsk C: /f /r to fix disk errors preventing boot.

Q: How many times should I run Startup Repair if it fails?

A: Run automatic Startup Repair twice maximum. If fails both times, automatic mode can't fix issue—escalate to manual command-line repair (Method 4). Repeatedly running automatic repair wastes time without addressing underlying problems like corrupted BCD, damaged MBR, or disk errors requiring manual intervention.

Q: Can Startup Repair delete my files?

A: No, Startup Repair only modifies boot configuration files (BCD, MBR, boot sector) and system files, never touches user files (Documents, Pictures, Desktop). However, advanced repairs like chkdsk /r may move data from bad sectors or System Restore reverts software installations. Always backup important data when possible before repairs.

Q: PC enters automatic repair loop—repairs, restarts, repairs again. How to break loop?

A: Repair loop indicates automatic repair detects problem but can't fix it, triggering endless attempts. Break loop: Boot to Advanced Startup → Command Prompt → Disable automatic repair with bcdedit /set {default} recoveryenabled No → Restart. PC now boots (or shows actual error). Then manually fix underlying issue with bootrec commands, System Restore, or Safe Mode driver rollback. Re-enable after fixing: bcdedit /set {default} recoveryenabled Yes.

Q: What's difference between Startup Repair and System Restore?

A: Startup Repair fixes boot configuration (BCD, MBR, boot sector) and scans system file integrity—targets boot mechanism itself. System Restore rolls back entire system state (drivers, software, registry, updates) to earlier point—targets recent changes that broke boot. Use Startup Repair first for boot file corruption; use System Restore if recent update/driver/software installation caused problem.