Stuck with Corrupt BCD Error on Windows? Here’s the Fix!

Did you just get stuck with the corrupt BCD error on Windows? Is your device stuck on the loading screen? We’ve got you covered.

Each time you hit the power button on your device, your system goes through a booting process to load the OS and all of its features. So, booting is basically the process where your machine gets ready and loads various other processes in the background. Hence, this is why booting is also referred to as “Startup” as the OS gets ready to come under a working condition.

But haven’t we all faced those troubled times when your device would boot slowly or get stuck on the Blue screen? Yes, it surely indicates a sign of system malfunction when your system is unable to load the OS and other features. Slow startup time is also an issue of concern! When your device is in good working condition, the quicker will be the boot time and you will instantly be navigated to the desktop within a few seconds after hitting the power button.

Before we discuss how we can deal with the corrupt BCD error, let’s get a basic understanding of what is BCD and why is it important.

Also read: How To Fix Error Code 0xc0000001 In Windows 10 On Startup (2021)

What is BCD? How Does it Get Corrupted?

BCD (Boot Configuration Data) is a crucial component of the Windows OS. Just how the name suggests, Boot Configuration data is used by the system each time the booting process is initiated on your machine. Hence, when the BCD goes corrupt or missing, you might not be able to access your device or data, and in fact, get stuck on the loading in a dead loop.

One of the most common reasons that may delete the BCD or makes it goes missing is the failure of the Hard Disk Drive. Wrongly installing a program or the OS can also corrupt the boot configuration data.

Well, the good thing is that you can easily get past this issue by rebuilding the BCD or by simply resetting Windows to its default settings.

Also read: PFN LIST CORRUPT Blue Screen Error In Windows 10

How to Fix Corrupt BCD Error on Windows?

1. Rebuild the BCD

Step 1: Create a Bootable Drive

Head on to Microsoft’s official webpage, download the Media Creation Tool.

Connect a USB drive to your device with at least 8 GB of free storage space.

Run the Media Creation tool, accept the terms and agreement to proceed.

Select the “Create installation media (USB flash drive, DVD, or ISO File” option. Hit on the Next button.

Choose your preferred language, architecture, and device edition from the drop-down menu. Tap on Next to proceed.

Select “USB Drive”. Tap on Next.

Follow the on-screen instructions to create a bootable USB drive that will use in Step 2.

Also read: How to Create a Bootable Windows 11 USB Drive

Step 2: Rebuild the BCD

Connect the bootable USB stick to your device to rebuild the BCD. Once the flash drive is connected to your Windows PC, follow these quick steps.

Hit the Windows icon placed on the Taskbar, select the “Power button”. Now, hold down the Shift key and then select the “Restart” option to perform troubleshooting via Advanced Startup options.

Once your device restarts, you will see a new window on the screen listing a variety of options. Select “Troubleshoot”.

Select “Advanced Options”.

Now pick “Command Prompt”.

In the Command Prompt window, type the following command and hit Enter to execute it.

bootrec /rebuildbcd

Once the operation to rebuild the BCD completes successfully, run the below-mentioned commands as well in the same order.

attrib c:\boot\bcd -h -r -s

ren c:\boot\bcd bcd.old

bootrec /rebuildbcd

Exit the Terminal and then reboot your device to check if you’re still encountering the corrupt BCD error on your device.

2. Reset Windows

If rebuilding that BCD did no help in fixing the corrupt BCD error, here’s what we will do.

Launch the Start menu search, type “Recovery options” and hit Enter.

Tap the “Get Started” button placed under the “Reset this PC” option.

Select the “Keep my files” if you don’t want to lose your personal files and data during the recovery process.

Follow the on-screen instructions and restore your PC to its default settings.

Also read: : “There Was A Problem Resetting Your Windows 10 PC. No Changes Were Made”

3. Use the System Restore Feature

System Restore utility will help you in restoring your device to an earlier checkpoint and undo all the recent changes that have been causing issues on your machine. To use the System Restore on Windows, follow these steps.

Launch the Start menu search box, type “Create a Restore Point” and hit Enter.

In the System Properties window, switch to the “System Protection” tab.

Tap on the “System Restore” button.

Select any restore point from the list and hit on the Next button.

Conclusion

Here were a few workarounds that you can use to fix the corrupt BCD error on Windows. There are plenty of ways of how you can get past this hindrance. You can either rebuild the BCD or reset your device to fix the corrupt Boot Configuration Data.

For any other queries or assistance, feel free to use the comments space!