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A disk read error occurred: Fix for

Windows XP, Vista, 7, 8
/ Knowledgebase / A disk read error occurred: Fix for Windows XP,
Vista, 7, 8

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1 About “A disk read error occurred“

1.1 Description and Symptoms
1.2 Symptom 1: “A disk read error occurred” error screen on startup
2 Causes of this Error
2.1 Cause 1: Incorrect or invalid MBR configuration
2.2 Cause 2: Misconfigured partition table
3 Fixing “A disk read error occurred” on Windows
3.1 Fix #1: Use Easy Recovery Essentials
3.2 Fix #2: Check RAM memory
3.3 Fix #3: Check Hard Disk Cables
3.4 Fix #4: Reset or Upgrade BIOS
3.5 Fix #5: Run chkdsk
3.6 Fix #6: Run bootrec
4 More Information
4.1 Linked Entries
4.2 Support Links
4.3 Applicable Systems

About “A
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Technologies, based on the information gathered and reported by our global network
of engineers, developers, and technicians or partner organizations.

Description and Symptoms

The error messages, alerts, warnings, and symptoms below are tied to this error.

Symptom 1: “A A d i s k re a d e r ro r o c c u r re d ”
error screen on startup
The “A disk read error occurred error” appears on a black screen without an
identifiable error code.

Pressing the Ctrl , Alt and Del keys will only restart the computer and boot
into the same error screen:

A disk read error occurred

Press Ctrl+Alt+Del to restart

In most cases the error can appear for any of the following reasons:

Incorrect or invalid MBR configuration

Improperly configured partition table

Faulty hard drive

IDE cables failing

Bad RAM memory

Issues with your computer’s BIOS version

The most common cases of this error are attributable to an incorrectly-flashed MBR
to the system startup disk or the absence of an active partition on the startup disk. In
the problem is with hardware, additional diagnosis and the possible replacement of
system components may be needed.

Causes of this Error

This error has been known to occur as a result of one of the following causes:

Cause 1: Incorrect or invalid MBR

configuration
The most common cause for this error is an incorrect MBR configuration. This is
usually caused by disk write errors, virus attacks or power outages.

Cause 2: Misconfigured partition table

For the same reasons, the partition table may become misconfigured. If that’s the
case, it is possible to rebuild the partition table from scratch to make sure system
loads correctly.

Fixing “A
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Some of the solutions below require the use of the Microsoft Windows
setup CD or DVD. If your PC did not come with a Windows installation disc or
if you no longer have your Windows setup media, you can use Easy Recovery
Essentials for Windows instead. EasyRE will automatically find and fix many
problems, and can also be used to solve this problem with the directions
below.

Fix #1: Use Easy Recovery Essentials

Easy Recovery Essentials can fix many errors such as this automatically using its
built-in Automated Repair option. EasyRE is currently available for Windows XP, Vista,
7 and 8 and can be downloaded and created on any PC.
 version (XP, Vista, 7 or 8) before you download EasyRE. This guide can help
you identify what version of Windows you have installed.

2. Burn the image. Follow these instructions on how to burn the bootable ISO
image very carefully, as making a bootable CD can be tricky! Alternatively,
these instructions explain how to create a bootable EasyRE recovery USB
stick/drive.

3. Boot up your PC from the Easy Recovery Essentials CD or USB you created.

4. Once EasyRE is running, choose the “Automated Repair” option and click
Continue .

Choose “Automated Repair” in Easy Recovery Essentials

5. After EasyRE scans your computer’s drives, identify and select the drive
letter for your Windows installation from the list, and then click on the
Automated Repair button to begin.
 Choose the drive associated with the Windows installation you’re trying

to repair.

6. Easy Recovery Essentials will start analyzing the selected drive for
problems. EasyRE will test for and attempt to automatically correct errors
with the disk, partition, bootsector, filesystem, bootloader, and registry. No
intervention is required, as EasyRE’s repair is fully automated:

Easy Recovery Essentials searches for errors and makes corrections to

the selected Windows installation.

7. Once the process is complete, EasyRE will report its findings. Click on the
Restart button to reboot your PC and test the changes.

8. The “A disk read error occurred” error should now be fixed as your PC
begins to load:

Windows, booting up successfully.

You can download Easy Recovery Essentials from here.

Fix #2: Check RAM memory

If you recently added new RAM memory to your computer, you can try to:
 2. Leave only 1 single RAM module

3. Restart the computer

You can also try to move the single RAM module on a different slot to troubleshoot if
any of your RAM slots are damaged. To do that, simply follow these steps:

1. Leave 1 RAM module on Slot #1

2. Restart the computer

If “A disk read error occurred” still appears, move the RAM module on Slot #2 and
start the computer again.

Fix #3: Check Hard Disk Cables

If the error is caused by damaged hard disk cables, try any of the following tips to fix
the error:

Try a different port for the SATA/IDE cables

If you have more than 1 HDD, leave only the HDD with Windows installed
and test multiple SATA/IDE ports and cables

The “A disk read error occurred” error can appear if:

The SATA/IDE cables are damaged

The SATA/IDE ports of your hard disks are damaged

If the HDD cables and ports are not damaged, the issue can also be from the hard
disk itself.

To test if your hard disk is failing or it’s already failed, use Easy Recovery Essentials’
Automated Repair. Automated Repair process will report any issues found with your
hard disk or RAM memory:

1. Download Easy Recovery Essentials

2. Burn the ISO Image. Follow our instructions on how to burn a bootable ISO
image. If you’d like to have a recovery USB instead, follow our instructions
on how to make a recovery USB.

3. Boot into Easy Recovery Essentials

4. Select A
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 Automated Repair process will report any issues found with your hard disk
or RAM memory:

To download Easy Recovery Essentials, click here.

Fix #4: Reset or Upgrade BIOS

In some cases, “A disk read error occurred” can be fixed by either reverting your BIOS
to its default settings or upgrading BIOS to the latest version available for your
computer.

To revert your computer’s BIOS to its default settings or default configuration, follow
these steps:

1. Restart the computer

2. Press the key to boot into BIOS. This is usually any of the following keys:
F2 , F8 , F12 , Esc or Del . The key you need to press will be
listed at the first screen when you boot your computer:
 3. Once booted into BIOS, find a “Load Defaults” options. The option name to
revert to default settings can be different, depending on your computer
manufacturer and BIOS version:

Load Fail-Safe Defaults

Load BIOS Defaults

Load Default Settings

Load Setup Default

Get Default Values

4. Select to revert the settings and hit Enter to select the option

5. Exit BIOS by saving the changes

If reverting to BIOS defaults doesn’t make “A disk read error occurred” disappear, you
can also try to update the BIOS version to the latest available.

Fix #5: Run chkdsk

The chkdsk utility checks for hard drives integrity and can attempt to fix various file
system errors.

To run chkdsk on a Windows XP system, follow these steps:

1. Insert the Windows XP CD and boot from it

 3. At Command Prompt, type the chkdsk command:

chkdsk C: /r

Make sure you replace C: with the drive where Windows XP is installed

4. Press Enter

5. Restart the computer

To run chkdsk on a Windows Vista or Windows 7 system, follow these steps:

1. Insert the Windows Vista or Windows 7 DVD and boot from it

2. At the Install Windows screen, select R

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 4. Type the same chkdsk command as that of Windows XP:

chkdsk C: /r

where C: is the letter of the drive where Windows Vista or Windows 7 is

installed on

5. Hit Enter

On Windows 8 or 8.1, chkdsk can accessed through the same steps:

1. Insert the installation media (DVD or USB drive) and boot from it

2. Select a language, keyboard method and time

3. Click N
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4. At the Install now screen, select R

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 5. Navigate to Troubleshoot > Advanced Options

6. Click C
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7. Type the chsksk command and press Enter :

chkdsk C: /f /x /r

Replace C: with the drive where Windows 8 is installed

chkdsk utility results screen

Fix #6: Run bootrec

If chkdsk doesn’t fix the “A disk read error occurred” error, you can also try to run the
bootrec utility in order to fix damaged or corrupt BCD files.

If you have a Windows XP system, run the bootcfg utility. Bootrec is only available for
Windows Vista, 7, 8.

1. Insert the Windows XP CD in the disc tray and boot from it

2. Press R to access R
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3. At Command Prompt, type the bootcfg command:

 bootcfg /rebuild

4. Press Enter

5. When bootcfg finishes the procedure, type exit and hit Enter to exit
Command Prompt

6. Restart the computer

If you have a Windows Vista or Windows 7 computer, run the bootrec command by
following these steps:

1. Insert the original install media and boot from it

2. Click R
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3. Once at System Recovery Options, select C

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4. Type the bootrec commands and press Enter :

bootrec /rebuildbcd

5. Type:

bootrec /fixmbr
 7. Type:

bootrec /fixboot

8. Press Enter

9. Restart the computer

If “A disk read error occurred” appears on a Windows 8, run the same bootrec utility:

1. Boot from the installation media

2. Click R
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6. Type the commands and press Enter after each:

bootrec /rebuildbcd
bootrec /fixmbr
bootrec /fixboot

7. Type exit and press Enter to quit Command Prompt

8. Restart the computer

 bootrec utility results screen

More Information

Linked Entries
bootrec

bootcfg

chkdsk

Support Links
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It’s an easy-to-use and automated diagnostics disk. It’s available for

Windows 8, Windows 7 and Windows Vista. It’s also available for Windows
XP and Windows Server.

Read more at Windows Recovery Disks.

The NeoSmart Support Forums, member-to-member technical support and

 Get a discounted price on replacement setup and installation discs:
Windows XP, Windows Vista, Windows 7, Windows 8.

Applicable Systems
This Windows-related knowledgebase article applies to the following operating
systems:

Windows XP (all editions)

Windows Vista (all editions)

Windows 7 (all editions)

Windows 8 (all editions)

Windows 8.1 (all editions)

Propose an edit

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