Fix System Restore not Working in Windows 10

System restore is the answer to many of our problems with Windows systems. Rather, almost any problem that has been caused by installing new software or programs could be resolved with a System Restore. Here’s the procedure to perform a system restore on a Windows 10 system.

However, imagine a situation in which System restore stops working. It needs to be resolved as soon as possible just in case anything goes wrong with the system.

Causes

This issue could be caused by a Windows update which messed up the settings of the system. Another reason could be virus or malware. Whenever any cyber attack is scripted, their first target would be application which could reverse the effect of the attack. Here, System Restore is the application.

Try these preliminary steps:

1] Update Windows: Here is the procedure to  update Windows.

2] Run the Hardware and devices troubleshooter. Just Go to Settings > Update & Security > Troubleshoot > Network Adapter.

 



Network Adapter Troubleshooter

 

3] Check the system for virus and malware

4] Uninstall any recently installed suspicious program

5] Turn OFF the anti virus software temporarily

Thereafter, we could proceed to the following solutions:

1} Check if System Restore is enabled

2} Check the the Volume Shadow Copy service is ON

3} Make sure Disk Space usage is at least 300MB

4} Run System Restore in Safe Mode

5} SFC scan

Solution 1] Check if System Restore is enabled

1] Press Win + R to open the Run window and type the command gpedit.msc. Press Enter to open the Group Policy editor.

 

Group Policy Editor

 

 

2] Go to the following path Computer Configuration >> Administrative Templates >> System >> System Restore.

3] At this location, you would find 2 different keys: Turn OFF Configuration and Turn OFF System Restore.

 

System Restore Group Policy Editor

 

 

4] Open them one by one and shift the radio button to Not Configured for both of them. Save the settings individually.

 

Not Configured

 

 

5] Restart your system and check if it helps.

 

Solution 2] Check the the Volume Shadow Copy service is ON

1] Press Win + R to open the Run window and then type services.msc. Press Enter to open the Service Manager window.

2] Locate the Volume Shadow Copy service in the list which is arranged alphabetically.

3] Check if the Service status of the service is Running. If not, right-click on the service and select Properties.

4] Change the Startup type to Automatic and click on Start to start the service.

 

Start Volume Shadow Copy Service

 

 

 

5] Click on Apply and then on OK to save the settings.

Solution 3] Make sure Disk Space usage is at least 300MB

1] Search for System Restore in the Windows search bar.

2] Click on Create a Restore Point.

 

Create A Restore Point

 



3] Go to the System Protection window and click on Configure.

 

System Protection

 

 

4] Shift the slider for Disk Space Usage such that Max usage is more than 300MB.

 

Max Usage

 

5] Click on Apply and then OK to save the settings.

Solution 4] Run System Restore in Safe Mode

Safe Mode allows users to boot the system with minimal set of drivers thus reducing the chances of many processes interfering with System Restore. Here’s the procedure to boot the system in Safe Mode.

Solution 5] SFC scan

An SFC scan helps check bad sectors in the hard drive and repair then. The procedure for an SFC scan is as shown here.

Hope it helps!