Fixed: SFC Windows Resource Protection Could Not Perform

The issue: Windows Resource Protection could not perform

SFC (System File Checker) is a utility in Windows that allows users to scan for and restore corruptions in Windows system files. However, when running the sfc /scannow command, people encounter an error: Windows Resource Protection could not perform the requested operation. The error is reported when the verification phase of system scan reaches 19%, 27%, etc. Some users even find Windows Resource Protection could not perform in Windows 10/8/7 before the scan process starts.

How does this happen? Generally, there are four possible causes:

• A corrupt or damaged system file
• An incorrect file permission setting
• Windows Registry issue
• Malware on your device

Then, what can you do to fix the problem? Please read on.

How to fix “Windows Resource Protection could not perform the requested operation” easily

When you find SFC Windows Resource Protection could not perform the requested operation, you can refer to following methods to fix the error:

• Method 1: run SFC in Safe Mode
• Method 2: run CHKDSK to check disk errors
• Method 3: modify the security descriptors on the Winsxs folder
• Method 4: repair install Windows
• Backup Windows in case of various SFC errors

Method 1: run SFC in Safe Mode

1. Press Windows Key + R to open the Run dialogue. Type msconfig and press Enter or click “OK” to open System Configuration.

2. Under the Boot tab, tick Safe boot and click OK.

3. Click Restart when prompted. Run sfc /scannow again to see if it works.

Method 2: run CHKDSK to check disk errors

1. Type cmd in the search box from Start. Then right click on Command Prompt to choose Run as administrator.

2. Type chkdsk C: /r and press Enter to locate bad sectors on the drive and recover readable information. You may replace C: with the letter of the drive where Windows is installed.

3. For the target drive is a boot disk, the system will ask you if you’d like to run the command before the next boot. Type y and press Enter.

4. Type exit and press Enter to exit Command Prompt.

5. Restart the computer and the chkdsk command will run before the operating system loads. Run sfc /scannow again to see if the problem still exists.

Method 3: modify the security descriptors on the Winsxs folder

1. Run Command Prompt as administrator like you do in Method 2.

2. Type ICACLS C:\Windows\winsxs and press Enter to fix issues with the Winsxs folder’s security descriptors. .

3. Type exit and press Enter to exit Command Prompt.

4. Restart your computer and run sfc /scannow to see if the problem is solved.

Method 4: repair install Windows

Take Windows 10 as an example. For Windows 7 users, please turn to reinstalling Windows 7 without losing files.

1. Sign in to an administrator account in Windows 10.

2. Disable or uninstall any 3rd party antivirus or security program you have installed to prevent it from interfering with the upgrade to Windows 10. You can reinstall it after Windows 10 has finished installing.

3. Download the latest Windows 10 installation ISO file.

4. Double click to mount the ISO file. At the root directory, double click to run the setup.exe file.

5. When the Windows 10 Setup window shows up, select Download and install updates, and click Next.

6. On the License terms page, select Accept.

7. Windows 10 Setup will now check for any available updates.

8. When Windows 10 is ready to install, you’ll see a recap of what you’ve chosen, and what will be kept through the upgrade. Keep personal files and apps is selected by default, and you can change the option by clicking Change what to keep.

9. When you are ready, click Install to start the repair install of Windows 10. Run sfc /scannow then to check if it works.

Tips:

• It might take some time to install Windows 10, and your PC will restart a few times. Make sure you don’t turn off your PC.

• After the installation completes, you’ll need to go through the easy out-of-box-experience to finish setting up Windows 10, and then you’ll once again see your familiar desktop and every new feature included with Windows 10.

Backup Windows in case of various SFC errors

Although you can fix “Windows Resource Protection could not perform the requested operation” with the four methods offered above, you may encounter other SFC errors like sfc /scannow not working in Windows 10/8/7. Sometimes, you even need to do clean install to repair damaged system files when sfc /scannow fails, which would cause total data loss.

To avoid reinstalling Windows, you can backup Windows on a regular basis. AOMEI Backupper Standard comes to help.

★ It enables you to perform full system backups as well as backing up specific files, documents, disks and partitions.
★ It allows you to create bootable media which will help you restore system under Windows PE when your computer fails to boot due to missing or corrupted system files.
★ All Windows PC operating systems including Windows 11/10/8.1/8/7/Vista/XP are supported.

Just download this freeware and follow the intuitive wizard to perform system backup. You can also schedule backups to run automatically.

Conclusion

There are four effective methods provided in this article to help you resolve “Windows Resource Protection could not perform the requested operation”. Hope one of them works for you. To avoid reinstalling Windows in case of various SFC errors, you can backup system with AOMEI Backupper.

Apart from the backup features, AOMEI Backupper is a free SSD migration tool that can help you clone HDD to SSD or clone SSD to new SSD. More wonderful features are waiting for you to discover!