After you have typed the 'sfc.exe' (System file Checker) command for checking Windows system files, the tool stops unexpectedly and asks for a 'Windows XP Professional CO'-but you are running Windows XP Home and have only the CO that you bought originally and installed it from.

The cause of the problem is an incorrectly entered installation path in the registry. You can easily correct it yourself. Open the 'Run .. .' dialog using the [Win]+[R] key combination, typed 'regedit' and click 'OK'. Go to the key 'H KEY _LOCAL_MAtH I N E\SOFTWARE\ Microsoft\ Wi ndoVvs\Cu rrentVe rsi on\ Setup' in the registry editor and look for the 'Source Path' string value in the right pane of the window. This entry indicates the installation drive.

In most cases, it is followed by 'C:\', which is obViously incorrect. Now check in 'My Computer' which drive letter is allocated to the CD/DVD drive of your Pc. Use this drive letter as the 'Source Path' entry. To do this, double-click the above mentioned value in the registry and enter the current drive letter, for example 'F:\'. Confirm the change and close the registry editor. The setting becomes active immediately and the system file protection tool and 'sfc' command run without any problem.

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Note:

You need administrator rights and an open command prompt to run 'sfc.exe'. Usually, you should check system files with the command 'SFC / scannow'. If you want to continue working on the PC, you should use the command 'SFC /scanboot'. This command checks system files the next time the PC restarts. Windows takes quite some time to boot up when you use this tool, but it is acceptable since it occurs only once.

Background:

The system file protection tool SFC monitors important Windows components and restores them if they have been overwritten by viruses or older versions, or if they are corrupted or deleted. Defective system files are replaced by their known good versions from the 'Windows\system32\dllcache' folder. If this directory has also been damaged for some reason, SFC asks for the original Windows installation disc.

It then copies the original system files from here to the 'dllcache' folder and also to other locations where the file is generally stored. If you have changed the system configuration at any point, for example if you have added new hard drives, the current drive letter of the CDI DVD drive may no longer correspond with the installation path stored in the registry. This is why SFC oddly asks for the Windows XP Professional setup CD. This makes no difference when copying system files.