I'm running Windows XP Professional SP2. I was doing some disk maintenance and stupidly issued the command "Chkdsk C:/ f" in the Command Prompt while in Windows. Now at startup, my system runs checkdisk but hangs up and doesn't finish. This occurs in every normal boot.

Any simple way to remove this command? Any ideas would be APPRECIATED!

Thanks,

tom easyIf CHKDSK hangs, then that is something to look into further. I would not just ignore that issue. How long have you waited to see if it is really hung?

Anyway, to answer the question in your post, try this link:
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/831426
It wasn't stupid to issue the command "chkdsk C: /f" while in Windows. I do it every time I want to fix or diagnose the system volume, because the only way Chkdsk can get access to it is at boot time. It is normal practice and should not be giving you any problems.

Did you SCHEDULE it because you thought there might be a PROBLEM on the disk, or were you just experimenting?

Maybe merely seeking to remove the check would be the same category of mistake as asking "How can I stop that pesky fire alarm from making such a noise?".

When you issued the chkdsk /f command it had the effect of "setting the dirty bit" on the volume and what you could try to do is unset that bit.

However, I would be very concerned indeed to know why it is hanging! It suggests a HDD fault and MAKES me think about backups, replacement, etc...

It might be handy to know at what stage (they have numbers) the disk check hangs...

Every time Windows XP starts, autochk.exe is called by the kernel to scan all volumes to check if the volume dirty bit is set. If the dirty bit is set, autochk performs an immediate chkdsk /f on that volume. Chkdsk /f verifies file system integrity and attempts to fix any problems with the volume. It is usually caused by a hard shut down or a power loss during a write operation on that particular drive.

(I take it you are getting a message at startup saying that a disk check will start in X seconds unless you press a key?) If so, a diagnostic step you can take is:-

when you get into Windows click Start> Run> bring up a command prompt by typing in "CMD" and type "CHKNTFS /X C:" The X tells Windows to NOT check that particular drive on the next reboot. At this time, manually reboot your computer, it should not do a Chkdsk and take you directly to Windows.

Then click Start> Run> bring up a command prompt by typing in "CMD" and type " fsutil dirty query c: ". This queries the drive, and more than likely it will tell you that it is dirty.

Thanks for your suggestions. On bootup, chkdsk goes thru the fist of 5 stages no problem, then hangs on the 2nd stage, and state "0 % completed." I've waited quite a while but it never proceeds.

Yes, I'm getting the message that disk check will start in 10 seconds unless I press a key. I'll try the "CHKNTFS /X C:" command and reboot.

Although my initial command was CHKDSK, not CHKNTFS, which may be part f the problem.I am assuming that the volume in question is an NTFS one?
Yes, it is NTFS, so my initial command was in error. I haven't yet had time to re-boot but will let you know what happens.Quote from: tom easy on May 18, 2007, 03:29:53 PM

Yes, it is NTFS, so my initial command was in error.