Fix the “Preparing Automatic Repair” Loop on Windows 10/11

The fast answer. The “Preparing Automatic Repair” loop means Windows detected repeated boot failures and keeps restarting into its own repair tool — usually because a bad update, corrupted system files, or disk errors broke the boot path. When you reach the blue “Automatic Repair couldn’t repair your PC” screen, click Advanced options and run Startup Repair first. If that fails, open Command Prompt and rebuild the boot configuration:

bootrec /scanos
bootrec /rebuildbcd
bootrec /fixmbr

Type Y when prompted to add the Windows installation. Reboot. If the loop started right after a Windows Update, choose Uninstall Updates from Advanced options instead.

Why this happens

Failed or interrupted Windows Update — the most common cause. An update left boot-critical files in a half-applied state, so Windows flags every boot as a failure.
Corrupted system files — registry damage, missing DLLs, or a damaged Boot Configuration Data (BCD) store after an unclean shutdown or power loss.
Bad or incompatible driver — a driver update or new hardware changed something the boot path depends on, triggering a crash on every startup.
Disk errors — bad sectors in the Windows partition or a physically failing drive corrupted files the boot process needs.

Step-by-step fix

Step 1 — Reach Advanced options in WinRE

If the screen says “Automatic Repair couldn’t repair your PC,” click Advanced options — you are already in the Windows Recovery Environment. If the screen is stuck on the black “Preparing Automatic Repair” or “Diagnosing your PC” text and never reaches the blue screen, hold the power button to force off, power on again, and repeat up to three times; Windows should eventually show the blue recovery screen. If it never does, boot from a Windows 10/11 install USB and choose Repair your computer, then Troubleshoot → Advanced options.

Step 2 — Run Startup Repair

In Advanced options, choose Startup Repair. Windows will attempt to detect and fix boot problems automatically. If it succeeds, the machine reboots to the desktop. If it reports “Startup Repair couldn’t repair your PC,” continue to the next step.

Step 3 — Uninstall the latest update (if recent)

If the loop started after a Windows Update, go back to Advanced options and choose Uninstall Updates → Uninstall latest quality update. This reverses the most recent cumulative update without touching your files. Reboot and test before doing anything else.

Step 4 — Rebuild the boot configuration

In Advanced options → Command Prompt, run these in order:

bootrec /scanos
bootrec /rebuildbcd
bootrec /fixmbr

When bootrec /rebuildbcd finds a Windows installation, type Y to add it. Reboot and test.

UEFI/GPT note: some guides suggest bootrec /fixboot here, but on modern UEFI systems it returns “Access is denied” — that is normal. If the BCD rebuild alone doesn’t fix it on a UEFI machine, see the bcdboot procedure instead.

Step 5 — Repair system files and check the disk

Still looping? Repair Windows system files offline and scan for disk errors. Confirm the Windows drive letter first — in WinRE it is often C: but can differ (run diskpart then list vol to verify):

sfc /scannow /offbootdir=C:\ /offwindir=C:\Windows
chkdsk C: /f /r

Replace C: with the actual Windows drive letter if different. Reboot and test.

Step 6 — Boot into Safe Mode

If a bad driver or recently installed software caused the loop, Safe Mode can break the cycle. From Advanced options, choose Startup Settings → Restart, then press 4 or F4 for Safe Mode. Once at the desktop, open Device Manager and roll back or uninstall any recently updated driver. You can also uninstall recently added software from Settings → Apps. Restart normally and test.

Data safety: If the files on this machine matter and you don’t have a backup, image the drive before you run repairs. The commands above are normally safe, but chkdsk /r stresses every sector — on a drive that is already failing, that stress can push weak sectors from readable to gone. Take a full sector image to a known-good external disk first, and never run repairs on the only copy of irreplaceable data.

GRAM tip: These steps run in Windows Recovery, which is already on the broken PC. Once the machine boots again, plug in GRAM — a free portable repair toolkit that runs from a USB inside Windows — to check the disk’s SMART health, read the crash history and event logs, and let its AI agent confirm the root cause so the loop doesn’t come back.

Download GRAM free See AI pricing →

FAQ

Can I fix this without a second working computer?

Yes. The repair runs entirely inside Windows Recovery (WinRE), which lives on the broken PC itself — the “Automatic Repair” screen is WinRE. Click Advanced options to reach Command Prompt, Startup Repair, and the other tools. If the screen never gets past “Preparing Automatic Repair,” a Windows install USB lets you reach the same tools, but you don’t need a second computer to run the repair. (GRAM runs inside Windows rather than from boot media — use it once the machine boots to verify disk health and confirm the root cause.)

What if the screen stays stuck on “Preparing Automatic Repair” and never shows Advanced options?

Force the machine off by holding the power button, then power on again. Repeat two or three times — Windows should eventually reach the blue recovery screen. If it never does, the disk may be too damaged to load WinRE. Boot from a Windows 10/11 install USB and choose Repair your computer to get the same Advanced options menu.

Will these commands erase my files?

No. bootrec rewrites only the boot configuration, not your data. sfc replaces corrupted Windows system files from its own cache. chkdsk /f /r repairs the file system and can occasionally move damaged file fragments to FOUND.000 folders, but it does not wipe the drive. Uninstalling the latest update removes only the update itself. If the data is irreplaceable, image the drive first anyway.

Startup Repair says it couldn’t repair my PC — now what?

That is common — Startup Repair fixes only a narrow set of problems. Move on to the manual steps: uninstall the latest update if one triggered the loop, then rebuild the BCD with bootrec, then repair system files with sfc and check the disk with chkdsk. If nothing works, try System Restore from Advanced options (if a restore point exists) or Safe Mode to isolate a bad driver.