

Important: Before continuing this process, note that it can cause problems with your installed programs, so don't do it just for fun, and make sure to back up your important data and create a restore point before continuing. You can use a program like ProduKey, available for free, to quickly recover your Windows product key from the registry. Hopefully you still have your key written down somewhere, but if you don't, you're not out of luck. All you'll need is a Windows install DVD and your Windows CD key. It's possible to do an in-place, nondestructive reinstall of Windows, which will restore all your system files to pristine condition without damaging any of your personal data or installed programs. Wait, didn't we say you wouldn't have to reformat? We did, and you don't. You can still use the command prompt to scan as in the previous method, but there's another way that may be more thorough: reinstall Windows.

If you are still able to get to your desktop, you've got additional options. Method 2: Reinstall Windows Without Losing Any Data When you're ready to try booting into Windows again, remove the install disc and restart one final time. To restart your computer, enter the exit command, then click the Restart button. If the scan finds errors, you may need to repeat the steps in this guide until it finds no more errors.

Windows will now attempt to find and repair any errors in your system files.
