Windows 8 : Managing disks and storage (part 4) - Using Microsoft Drive Optimizer to organize data - Check Disk (chkdsk)

Check Disk (chkdsk)

The disk optimizer and Disk Cleanup utilities provide methods to handle poorly performing disks within a computer; chkdsk (pronounced “check disk”) performs disk repair to help correct problems with the drives themselves.

Chkdsk is a command-line utility designed to correct errors found in hard disks; Windows IT professionals have used it since MS-DOS. The utility previously required many of the operations it performed to be executed when the computer started. This ensured that the files chkdsk scanned would not be in use by other programs and that they could be modified or acted on by the utility.

This made a very lengthy startup process because chkdsk would run and work to repair the disk, depending on the selected options, and then Windows would start. In many cases, running chkdsk was helpful, but when weighed against the cost of startup time, it became a last resort.

Windows 8 has improved the performance of the chkdsk utility greatly. It can now perform most of its repair actions while the computer is online, avoiding the additional startup time. Table 1 outlines the optional command-line switches used with chkdsk.

Open a command prompt as an administrator. Run the command with no options by typing chkdsk on the command line; it will scan the drives in your computer and display the results. Using the utility without the /F switch executes it in read-only mode so no changes will be made to your system.

Chkdsk runs in several phases when it executes a scan. The phases happen in the following order:

First, the general file system is checked to ensure the absence of critical issues there. When that completes, the indexes for the files are checked and corrected (depending on the options). Last, the chkdsk utility examines security descriptors, to ensure that permissions and access objects for files are not out of order, and USN journals, where any changes to the volume are stored.

The scan findings are displayed in the command prompt window and provide a lot of information about what chkdsk found when it ran. Figure 7 shows results from a chkdsk scan.

Figure 7. Chkdsk scan data

When all the checks have been completed, the results of the process are displayed for review. Information reported includes:

Windows 8 automates many of the chkdsk operations to provide a proactive maintenance environment for your computer. The utility can be used from the command line to ensure optimal file performance, but in many cases Windows alerts you if a problem needs your attention.