The corrupted file error occurs when you double-click a file to open it or try to open it from an application. If you encounter one of these messages, here are some ways to resolve the issue.
These fixes apply to all versions of Windows 10, Windows 8, and Windows 7, including 32-bit and 64-bit versions.
Corrupted files can occur in any file type, including Word, Excel, PDF, image files, and Windows system files. When this happens, you'll see an error that says something like "The file is corrupted and cannot be opened" or "The file or directory is corrupted and cannot be read." Another message you will see is "Word found unreadable content in [file name]. Do you want to restore the contents of this document?"
File corruption can occur for a variety of reasons. One common cause is physical damage to the sectors on the hard drive where files are stored. Sectors with physical damage are called bad sectors.
In other cases, multiple files are allocated to the same space in memory, triggering file corruption errors. Files are stored in the cluster's memory, and sometimes a bug in the operating system or a computer crash can cause two files to be assigned to the same cluster.
Viruses that mistakenly mark hard drive sectors as bad can also cause file corruption.
Corrupt file errors can be unpredictable and can occur when least expected. Corrupted files can only be repaired about half the time. Try these fixes and see if you can get to the root of the corrupted file error.
Perform a disk check on the hard drive. Running this tool will scan the hard drive and attempt to recover bad sectors. After repairing the sectors, reopen the file again to see if it is no longer corrupted.
Use the CHKDSK command. This is the command version of the tool we saw above. It's worth trying if Check Disk Utility fails.
Use the SFC /scannow command. This command is designed to find and repair corrupted Windows system files.
Change file format. Use a free file converter app, or open the file with any app that automatically converts from other file formats. For example, open a corrupted Word document using the PDF application to launch the file conversion utility. Often, file conversion alone can repair corrupted files.
Use file repair software. If you are desperate to repair your files and recover your information, try using a file repair utility. There are free and paid tools such as Hetman, Repair Toolbox or FileRepair. Try Digital Video Repair to repair corrupt video files, Zip Repair to repair corrupt ZIP files, or OfficeFIX to repair Microsoft Office files.
Since any file can suffer file corruption for many reasons, it is important to back up your files regularly. Use backup software to back up your important files at any time. This way, if the file becomes corrupted, you can restore it from the backup.
A corrupted file may be a symptom of a virus, but it is not a virus itself. To determine if the problem is caused by a virus, run one of the best antivirus software programs.
Power outages can damage files, so adding a battery-powered uninterruptible power supply (UPS) to your home or office setup can protect your hardware from damage and prevent file corruption. Combine this strategy with a top-notch backup service and you can retrieve any corrupted files and often avoid corrupted files.
