7 Ways to Get out of “Diagnosing Your PC” Loop on Windows 11
Windows 11, like its predecessors, aims to be a stable and user-friendly operating system. However, some users may encounter the vexing “Diagnosing your PC” loop, where the system gets stuck attempting to repair itself upon startup. Here are seven ways to resolve this issue and get your PC back up and running:
1. Perform a Hard Reboot
Sometimes the simplest solution is a hard reboot. Hold down the power button for about 10 seconds until the PC turns off, then turn it back on. This can occasionally jolt your system out of the loop.
2. Utilize Windows Recovery Environment (WinRE)
If a hard reboot doesn’t work, boot into WinRE by restarting your PC and holding down the ‘Shift’ key while selecting ‘Restart’. In WinRE, you can choose ‘Troubleshoot’ and then ‘Advanced options’, where you have several tools to fix common problems.
3. Run the Startup Repair Tool
Within WinRE’s Advanced options, select ‘Startup Repair’. This tool will attempt to diagnose and fix any issues that are preventing Windows 11 from starting correctly.
4. Use System Restore
If Startup Repair doesn’t solve the problem, try ‘System Restore’ from the Advanced options. Restore your PC to an earlier point where everything worked fine.
5. Check Disk Utility
Back in the Advanced options menu in WinRE, you can select ‘Command Prompt’. Type in ‘chkdsk /f /r’ to find and repair bad sectors or corrupted files that might be causing the loop.
6. Disable Automatic Repair
Sometimes disabling automatic repair can stop the loop. Access Command Prompt from WinRE and type ‘bcdedit /set {current} recoveryenabled No’ and press Enter.
7. Reset Your PC or Reinstall Windows
As a last resort, you can reset your Windows 11 installation from WinRE by selecting ‘Reset This PC’, which allows you to keep personal files or remove everything and then reinstall Windows. If this fails, you might need to create installation media on another PC and use it to perform a clean install of Windows 11.
By trying these methods sequentially, most users should be able to resolve the “Diagnosing your PC” loop on Windows 11 and return their system to a normal boot process.