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August 17th, 2005 04:00
sfc /scannow questions
Hi:
Just a few questions about XP's "SFC /scannow". I'm not familiar with it: after years using the Win9x version,
which I found informative and useful, I can't decipher this at all.
which I found informative and useful, I can't decipher this at all.
After a 3 week delay getting a backup DVD for my new OS, I finally had the chance to run SFC. The scan took
about 25 minutes without interruption, completed, and prompted me to insert the system CD to restore some
dll's. When I did, I got the "Welcome To XP" Screen asking what I wanted to do. None of the choices applied, so I
did nothing, and the DVD powered down. And that was it- no further prompts. I clicked on the 'retry' button, and
everything disappeared.
about 25 minutes without interruption, completed, and prompted me to insert the system CD to restore some
dll's. When I did, I got the "Welcome To XP" Screen asking what I wanted to do. None of the choices applied, so I
did nothing, and the DVD powered down. And that was it- no further prompts. I clicked on the 'retry' button, and
everything disappeared.
So I went to the Event Viewer, and looked at the System entries for Windows File Protection, and found several
ehome *dll entries looking like this:
ehome *dll entries looking like this:
Event Type: Information
Event Source: Windows File Protection
Event Category: None
Event Source: Windows File Protection
Event Category: None
Description:
The system file c:\windows\ehome\ehcircl.dll could not be copied into the DLL cache. The specific error code is 0x00000000 [The operation completed successfully.]. This file is necessary to maintain system stability.
The system file c:\windows\ehome\ehcircl.dll could not be copied into the DLL cache. The specific error code is 0x00000000 [The operation completed successfully.]. This file is necessary to maintain system stability.
Hardly reassuring! I did a manual search for that file, and indeed it was not to be found anywhere on my hard drive, nor on the backup CD. (The ehome folder relates to my Media Center Edition of XP.)
Somewhat more worrisome was the entry:
Windows File Protection scan found that the system file c:\windows\microsoft.net\framework\v1.0.3705\gacutil.exe has a bad signature. This file was restored to the original version to maintain system stability. The file version of the system file is 1.0.3705.0
The protected system file c:\windows\microsoft.net\framework\v1.0.3705\gacutil.exe could not be restored to its original, valid version. The file version of the bad file is 1.0.3705.0 The specific error code is 0x00000000 [The operation completed successfully.]
The protected system file c:\windows\microsoft.net\framework\v1.0.3705\gacutil.exe could not be restored to its original, valid version. The file version of the bad file is 1.0.3705.0 The specific error code is 0x00000000 [The operation completed successfully.]
A manual search of my HD found 2 versions of
gacutil.exe in that folder, v1.0.3705, and v1.1.4318.0, but
none on my backup DVD.
Questions:
1) Am I describing typical SFC behaviour, or am I doing something wrong?
2) Why is this app finding bad files "necessary to maintain stability" for which good copies are not found on the backup DVD?
3) Could Dell software updates (for ehome files), or critical updates from Windows (for net\framework files) account for this?
1) Am I describing typical SFC behaviour, or am I doing something wrong?
2) Why is this app finding bad files "necessary to maintain stability" for which good copies are not found on the backup DVD?
3) Could Dell software updates (for ehome files), or critical updates from Windows (for net\framework files) account for this?
I have no current problems (system stability or otherwise) with this PC.
4) Should I even bother running this program? (I used to consider the Win9x version routine maintenance, but couldn't find a
4) Should I even bother running this program? (I used to consider the Win9x version routine maintenance, but couldn't find a
single reference to it for XP on this board since last year.)
Sorry for the long post.
-------------------------------------------
Dim. 9100
Pentium D 3 GHz Dual Core
XP MCE 2005
Dim. XPS T600
P3
Win98SE
No Events found!
helpdeskTECH
39 Posts
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August 17th, 2005 14:00
What to know about SFC /scannow...
Used for only repairs on IE and OE... replacing modified/damaged .dll files. (Dynamic Link Library)
If running a SFC make sure if you are replacing files from a CD from your current OS. For example, if you have a WIN XP SP 2 (start-run and type WINVER) installed on your system and you are trying to run an SFC and replace files from a disk that has WINXP SP1 your are replacing files from an older version.
Doing the above can cause many...undesirable issues.
If needing to repair your system I would advise running a repair installation.
Boot from the OS cd then if/when it offers a repair option choose "R"
As for question 4...My answer is: It all depends. If your running this utility for "routine" purposes then I would say no, dont run this unless you are getting errors or odd behavious from IE or OE. Like the old adage," If it ain't broke dont fix it."
Best Regards.
gudgeon
683 Posts
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August 17th, 2005 16:00
helpdeskTECH said:
If running a SFC make sure if you are replacing files from a CD from your current OS. For example, if you have a WIN XP SP 2 (start-run and type WINVER) installed on your system and you are trying to run an SFC and replace files from a disk that has WINXP SP1 your are replacing files from an older version.
------------------------
helpdeskTECH: Are you absolutely sure about that? I've run SFC on a number of XP computers that have had service packs installed and haven't had any difficulty when using the original CD. It seems counter-intuitive that SFC would not examine the service pack files on the PC first and use them if more recent than those on the shipping CD. On my own desktop, I have the original CD copied to the hard drive so never need to insert the CD when I occasionally run SFC, as I do as part of my regular system maintenance - it may be unnecessary, but I've not needed to reinstall or repair in 2 1/2 years.
joe53
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August 17th, 2005 17:00
useful to ensure that my dll cache had no corrupted/missing files 'out of the box'. Unlike the
old 9x sfc, which gave me info on each changed or corrupt file, sfc /scannow is opaque, and
gives me no info during the scan.
presuming the Windows Files Protection log files in the Event Viewer>System are giving me
a correct summary. When I did a scannow today, it's telling me the same info. It looked for
copies that do not exist on my Hard Drive nor on my reinstallation DVD.
"XP Media Center Edition 2005" which is what I have. And WINVER confirms my OS version
is 5.1 (Build 2600.xpsp_sp2_gdr.050301-1519: Service Pack 2). Furthermore, the Release Notes
on the DVD state "This release of Microsoft® Windows® XP includes Service Pack 2 (SP2)."
be sure I was using this utility correctly, looking at the appropriate logfiles, and wasn't missing
anything important.