If when you turn on the computer, it does not start, one of the possible problems is that the computer is damaged. MBR (Master Boot Record). This may have occurred due to an unexpected shutdown of the equipment due to an error or a failure in the electrical network. However, sometimes no need to reinstall the system completely.
There are utilities and commands that allow you to repair these operating system resources and get them back to normal. One of these commands is the Fixboot command. If you want to know what this command is used for and how to use it, I invite you to continue reading. We already started.
What is the system MBR?
The Master Boot Record MBR is a record that they contain the information of all the partitions of the hard disk. This is a critical piece in the operating system boot process. Once the system starts in the boot state, a registry access is performed MBR to extract necessary information about the characteristics of these partitions. In addition, an executable program is run here that contains the specific command sequences for the system to boot.
It is possible that due to incorrectly executed system updates, or viruses, or improper shutdown due to power failure, the MBR may be damaged. You can use any Windows installation media to repair the MBR. This is in case the operating system itself does not offer you the possibility to repair it.
Recovery Console and the Fixboot command
As we explained earlier the fixboot command can repair the MBR and allow the operating system to boot normally. To execute this command you need to access the Windows recovery console. Windows 10 gives you the ability to access this option without using an installation media.
Once we access the system recovery options we select Symbol of the system. In the window we write the command Bootrec.exe and we already have access to the recovery console. In case we cannot access this option from the operating system, we will then use the Windows installation medium.
Insert a DVD or a USB stick with a Windows 10 installation and restart the computer. Press the system boot menu access key and select the drive assigned to the installation media. Once it has been initialized, we will use the Repair the system option, instead of the install option. Once we have clicked on Repair the computer we select the operating system. In the System Recovery Options window we select Command Prompt. We write the Bootrec.exe and we already have access to the recovery console.
Run the Fixboot command
Among the tool’s command options Bootrec.exe, we have the fixboot command. The function of this command is to write a new boot sector to the system partition. To do this, a boot sector is used that is compatible with the installed operating system.
In order to run the fixboot command, you need to check if the system meets specific conditions. First of all, you need to check if the original boot sector was replaced by another non-standard boot sector of the operating system in use. On the other hand, check if the boot sector is damaged. You also need to consider I know after the installation of the system will installed an older version of the operating system. As a result, Windows may be using NT-Loader (NTLDR) to load the operating system instead of Boot Manager.
Fixboot command syntax
Actually running the fixboot command is pretty straightforward. Just write / fixboot (drive). The unit refers to the uDisk drive where the boot sector is to be written. This partition will replace the current partition you are connected to. If the drive is not specified, Windows writes the boot sector to the current partition to which it is connected.
Conclusions.
It is very useful to have access to these types of tools, since they avoid us the hassle of having to reinstall our system again. Reinstalling entails re-adapting our system to the environment that we are used to, with lost keys, configurations and shortcuts and that must be rebuilt again.