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Get the fix to "<strong>0xc0000225: an unexpected error has occurred</strong>" boot error for<strong>Windows Vista, 7, 8, 8.1 </strong>or<strong>10</strong> operating systems.
<h2>About the "<strong>0xc0000225</strong>" error</h2>
[kbintro]
<h3>Description and Symptoms</h3>
The error messages, alerts, warnings, and symptoms below are tied to this error.
<h4>Symptom 1: 0xc0000225 error screen on startup</h4>
<strong>Alternative error messages:</strong>

Below the "Status" code line, you'll probably have "An unexpected error has occurred" as the "Info". However, it's possible that the Info line to be "Boot selection failed because a required device is inaccessible."

<a href="https://neosmart.net/wiki/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2013/08/0xc0000225-windows-error1.png"><img class="alignnone wp-image-415 size-full" src="/wiki/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2013/08/0xc0000225-windows-error1.png" alt="The 0xc0000225 boot error" width="980" height="536" /></a>
<pre> Windows failed to start. A recent hardware or software change might be the cause. To fix the problem: 
 
 1. Insert your Windows installation disc and restart your computer. 
 2. Choose your language settings, and then click "Next." 
 3. Click "Repair your computer." 
 
 If you do not have this disc, contact your system administrator or computer manufacturer for assistance.
 
 Status: 0xc0000225
 Info: An unexpected error has occurred.</pre>
<h3>Causes of this Error</h3>
This error has been known to occur as a result of one or more of the following:
<h4>Cause 1: BCD is missing or corrupt</h4>
One of the most common causes of this error is the BCD that became missing or corrupt. That could happen because of disk write errors, power outages, boot sector viruses, or errors made while configuring the BCD manually.
<h2>Fixing "0xc0000225" on Windows</h2>
[setupcd]
<h3>Fix #1: Rebuild BCD via Easy Recovery Essentials</h3>
[easyre error="0xc0000225" bootscreen="vista-7-8-10" guaranteed="true"]
<h3>Fix #2: <span id="Fix_4_Use_Startup_Repair_to_attempt_HAL_replacement">Use Startup Repair to repair BOOTMGR</span></h3>
On Windows Vista, Windows 7, Windows 8, Windows 8.1 and Windows 10, Startup Repair can be used to scan the system for damaged or missing system files to replace the BCD file if it is corrupt or missing.

[setupcd]

[partial name="partial_startup_repair"]

Here is an example of what the PC’s startup repair should look like once the BCD file is properly restored:

[caption id="attachment_4409" align="alignnone" width="800"]<a href="https://neosmart.net/blog/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2013/08/Win7-0xc000000f-startup-repair.png"><img class="wp-image-4409 size-full" src="https://neosmart.net/blog/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2013/08/Win7-0xc000000f-startup-repair.png" alt="Missing BCD file restored by Startup Repair" width="800" height="600" /></a> Missing BCD file restored by Startup Repair[/caption]
<h3>Fix #3: Rebuild the BCD manually</h3>
Since the boot error is often caused by a missing BCD, rebuilding it is often a good solution.

Here are the steps to rebuild the BCD:
<ol>
 	<li>Boot from your Windows installation media</li>
 	<li>Click on <strong>Repair your computer</strong> after selecting proper language, time and keyboard input.</li>
 	<li>Select the Windows installation drive, which is usually <code>C:\</code>, and click <strong>Next</strong></li>
 	<li>Choose Command Prompt when the System Recovery Options box appears</li>
 	<li>Write the following command and press <kbd>Enter</kbd> afterwards:
<pre>bootrec /rebuildbcd</pre>
</li>
 	<li>If the program finds a Windows installation and asks whether it should add it to the boot list, press <kbd>Y</kbd></li>
</ol>
Here is an example screenshot of what the PC's console output should look like once Bootrec is done rebuilding the BCD.

[caption id="attachment_3693" align="alignnone" width="800"]<a href="https://neosmart.net/blog/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2016/04/VirtualBox_Win7_clean_21_04_2016_03_58_48.png"><img class="wp-image-3693 size-full" src="https://neosmart.net/blog/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2016/04/bootrec.png" alt="Bootrec utility results screen" width="800" height="600" /></a> Bootrec utility results screen[/caption]
<h3>Fix #4: Mark partition as active using Diskpart</h3>
The built-in Diskpart Windows utility can also be used to mark a partition as active. Note that the marked partition must contain the Windows bootloader for Windows to load correctly.

Here are the steps to run Diskpart and change the disk's status:
<ol>
 	<li>Boot from the Windows install disc</li>
 	<li>Click on <strong>Repair your computer</strong> after after selecting proper language, time and keyboard input</li>
 	<li>Select the Windows installation drive, which is usually <code>C:\</code>, and click <strong>Next</strong></li>
 	<li>Choose Command Prompt when the System Recovery Options box appears</li>
 	<li>Write the following command and press <kbd>Enter</kbd> afterwards:
<pre>diskpart</pre>
</li>
 	<li>Then, write
<pre>list volume</pre>
to get the list of all available partitions, and press <kbd>Enter</kbd>.</li>
 	<li>Then, write
<pre>select volume X</pre>
to select the volume you want to mark as active, and press <kbd>Enter</kbd></li>
 	<li>Then, write
<pre>active</pre>
to mark the currently selected volume as active, and press <kbd>Enter</kbd></li>
</ol>
Here is an example screenshot of what the PC's console output should look like after the volume is properly marked as active with Diskpart:

[caption id="attachment_3737" align="alignnone" width="800"]<a href="https://neosmart.net/blog/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2016/04/VirtualBox_Win7_clean_27_04_2016_05_45_20.png"><img class="wp-image-3737 size-full" src="https://neosmart.net/blog/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2016/04/VirtualBox_Win7_clean_27_04_2016_05_45_20.png" alt="Diskpart utility results screen" width="800" height="600" /></a> Diskpart utility results screen[/caption]
<h3><span style="font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5;">Fix #</span><span style="font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5;">5</span><span style="font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5;">: Restore the MBR</span></h3>
This fix demands more commands you need to type than the Fix #1 above. You're going to use the bootsect.exe file from the CD and not bootrec.exe. Follow these steps:
<ol>
 	<li>Insert your Windows install CD</li>
 	<li>Select <strong>Repair your computer</strong> after you go through the initial screen</li>
 	<li>Select your Windows installation drive (usually <code>C:\</code>)</li>
 	<li>Click <strong>Next</strong></li>
 	<li>Choose <strong>Command Prompt</strong> at <em>System Recovery Options</em> window screen</li>
 	<li>Determine which drive letter your Windows installation disk is on. Run the following commands in the exact same order and hit <kbd>Enter</kbd> after each:
<pre>diskpart select disk 0 list volume</pre>
</li>
 	<li>After entering <code>list volume</code> your Command Prompt will show a list of available drives.Search for the item that has "CD-ROM" in the "Type" column and check what letter it has assigned in the "LTR" column. In our example (and from now on) our CD drive letter is <strong>E:</strong></li>
 	<li>Close the <code>diskpart</code> process by running <code>exit</code> and hit <kbd>Enter</kbd>:
<pre>exit</pre>
</li>
 	<li>Type the CD drive's letter, <code>F:</code> (simply <code>F:</code>), in the Command Prompt line, like this:
<pre>F:</pre>
</li>
 	<li>Type <code>cd boot</code> and then type <code>dir</code> to show the list of files and directories in the <code>boot</code> directory of the <code>F:</code> drive. You will now see a <code>bootsect.exe</code> file listed. Here are the commands in order:
<pre>cd boot dir</pre>
</li>
 	<li>Now type the following command and hit <kbd>Enter</kbd>:
<pre>bootsect /nt60 SYS /mbr</pre>
</li>
 	<li>After seeing the success message, <strong>Bootcode was successfully updated on all targeted volumes.</strong>, type <code>exit</code> to quit the Command Prompt:
<pre>exit</pre>
</li>
 	<li>Press <kbd>Enter</kbd></li>
 	<li>Restart your computer</li>
</ol>
[caption id="attachment_4600" align="alignnone" width="800"]<a href="https://neosmart.net/blog/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2013/08/bootsect.png"><img class="wp-image-4600 size-full" src="https://neosmart.net/blog/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2013/08/bootsect.png" alt="bootsect utility results screen" width="800" height="600" /></a> bootsect utility results screen[/caption]
<h2>More Information</h2>
<h3>Linked Entries</h3>
<ul>
 	<li><a href="https://neosmart.net/wiki/bootrec/">bootrec</a></li>
 	<li><a href="https://neosmart.net/wiki/fix-mbr/">Fix MBR</a></li>
</ul>
[partial name="partial_moreinfo" versions="vista,7,8,10"]