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Windows XP - CheckDisk starts with every system start?

February 27, 2013
Updated: December 6, 2021
Quick overview:

Wondering why CheckDisk appears every time you boot up and checks the hard disk for errors? Even after a successful analysis and no errors found, chkdsk.exe (the Windows 2000/XP counterpart to ScanDisk) plagues you every time you restart. The following solutions are available for this problem:

1st option: Change the Windows registry

I discovered that there is a value in the Windows Registry that speeds up the shutdown considerably. This value causes Windows to kick out its currently running programs much earlier: Instead of after 20 seconds at the latest, a program is even sent to the Windows hunting grounds after just one millisecond (depending on the user's settings). The problem here is that in some cases data is no longer written correctly to the hard disk, which causes Windows to start the check even if nothing else has happened. It then recognizes the shutdown as a sudden restart of the computer.

Now reset all values to "20000. It is quite possible that a system tuning tool (or you yourself) has lowered the value - only a few pages or tools mention the disadvantage that this causes (see that page at the bottom).

2nd option: Check recovery mode

In the "prompt ("Start menu > "(All) Programs > "Accessories) enter the command "chkdsk D: /r. D stands for the drive! R stands for "Recover. This means that chkdsk repairs readable information from faulty clusters, which in some cases could stop the tool from starting permanently!

3rd option: Delete swap file

The swap file may contain the autostart entry of "CHKDSK. In this case, it is advisable to have the swap file deleted the next time the system is started. Visit this page and follow the instructions to have the swap file deleted - but you can then enter a "0 for the relevant value if you do not want to have the "PageFile deleted during shutdown, as this takes a few seconds. This option is used so that this swap file does not fragment (this would mean a loss of speed!) or so that hackers cannot read the contents. It is therefore at your own discretion! If you have a good defragmentation program (e.g. O&O Defrag) or your computer is unlikely to be the target of a hacker attack, you can leave the option deactivated.

4th option: Deactivate diagnostic start

The diagnostic start for Windows XP could be activated. Click on "Start/Run and select "msconfig. Select "Normal system start here if something else is selected!

5th option: Hard disk check

Now open the Run dialog again and enter cmd. The classic DOS prompt appears, in which you now type chkntfs /d. With the help of this input, the standard settings of the hard disk check are loaded, which definitely led to success. I would like to thank Mr. Pockrandt very much for this tip!

NOTE FOR NEW PUBLICATION: This article was produced by Sandro Villinger and comes from the Windows Tweaks archive, which has been built up since the late 1990s.

Founded Windows Tweaks as a teenager in the 90s. His helpful PC tricks made it Germany's most visited Windows site (at the time Sandro looked like this). He then went on to write elsewhere, for example for PC-Praxis, Computer Bild and PCWorld in the USA. Microsoft also poached him from us. Now Sandro is back, finally sharing his tweaks here again. For a stress-free digital everyday life. You can reach Sandro via e-mail.

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