My Windows 8.1 is stuck in an automatic repair loop, how can I fix this?

I also have a computer with Windows 8.1 (factory installed Windows 8) stuck in the Automatic repair loop.  With the USB recovery drive I created prior to this issue I am able to access the recovery options.  I have tried all your suggestions, but none have fixed the problem.  Here is a summary of what happened:

Sfc/scannow – returned: There is a system repair pending which requires reboot to complete.  Restart Windows and run sfc again.

Bootrec/rebuildbcd - returns: Total identified Windows installations: 0

DISM.exe /Online /Cleanup-image /Scanhealth

DISM.exe /Online /Cleanup-image /Restorehealth

–        both commands returned: error:87 the Online /Cleanup-image /Scanhealth (or Restorehealth) option is unknown.

I tried running System Restore - returned: No restore points have been created on your computer’s system drive.  To create a restore point open system protection. 

I did create a restore point before this problem, so I don’t know why restore points are not found.

Please help!

Hello Ken,

Thank you for your valuable input.

I hope that your suggestions may help other community members to resolve similar issues.

I appreciate your efforts.

Thank you

MY SOLUTION (which will NOT work for you if you cannot boot to SAFE MODE):

Summary:

I was surprised to find that the problem was caused by using the default Microsoft Windows 8.1 (compatible) driver for my wireless Logitech mouse.  By installing the latest Logitech drivers for Windows 8.1, the problem was solved. It turns out that the Microsoft default driver is only partially compatible with my Logitech M185 wireless mouse - or so it appears in my case.  Although the mouse looked like it was working OK, the driver was in fact going to crash or freeze my computer at any moment, followed by a "repair loop" when I restarted my PC.

HOW I GOT THE NEW DRIVER INSTALLED:

First, I'll tell you what I tried, so we can be on the same page.

I had this "repair loop" problem on my PC (not my laptop). My Windows 8.1 Pro was an online "store" upgrade from Windows 8.0 Pro. At some point after installing 8.1 Pro, I ran into the repair loop problem. I never had it with Windows 8.0 Pro.

I couldn't get the PC to read any of the restore\recovery media that I had (a Windows 8.0 Pro disc [from Office Works], and Windows 8.1 disc [from a downloaded ISO], and a recovery USB stick created on another Windows 8.1 PC that was still working). The problem PC would say "invalid media" when I tried to boot from any of these media.

I thought if I could start in SAFE MODE I could use a System Restore point to recover my PC. At some point (maybe it was after pressing F8 a few times just BEFORE booting, when the screen was still totally black), I found the option to start in SAFE MODE.

SAFE MODE started OK. However, all my System Restore points were gone - don't know why.

I left the PC in SAFE MODE and did considerable research (using my working PC). There were 2 areas to address: my mouse driver, and my system files. I downloaded the latest Logitech driver to a USB stick for later use.

Then, I needed to get my system fixed, if it was messed up. There is (sort of) an alternative to System Restore:

Still in SAFE MODE, I created a new desktop icon, as follows:

1. Right-click an empty area on the desktop and select NEW, then SHORTCUT.  
2. In the GENERAL tab name the shortcut CMD.
3. In the SHORTCUT tab in the TARGET field type "C:\Windows\System32\cmd.exe" without quotes.
4. In the START IN field type "C:\Windows\System32" without quotes.  
5. Then click OK.
6. Right-click on the CMD icon and select RUN AS ADMINISTRATOR
7. at prompt, type: "DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth" without quotes, and note the space before each forward slash. NOTE: This checks for component store corruption, records the corruption to C:\Windows\Logs\CBS\CBS.log and FIXES the corruption using Windows Update.  This operation takes ~10-15mins or more depending on the level of corruption.
8. Reboot the PC.  If lucky, it will boot into Windows 8.1 without any repair loop.
9. Immediately plug in the USB stick with the updated Logitech driver, and install the driver.
10. Reboot.  Hopefully the "repair loop" problem will never return.

THE END

Hi Eloise,

I will try to assist you with this issue. For that I would need the following information:

1. What is the make and model of the computer?
2. Did it came pre-install with Windows 8.1? Do you have a Windows 8.1 installation media?
3. Are you facing the same issue as the original poster in the thread?
4. Have you tried all the steps from this thread?

Additionally, you can try these steps as well.

Method 1:

Failure to boot to Windows can indicate corrupt system files. To check if this is the reason for the issue, I would suggest you to run a System File Scan and check. Refer to these steps:

1. When you enter the blue screen with advanced options (Windows recovery environment), click on ‘Troubleshoot’.
2. Now, click on ‘Advanced options’ and then click on ‘Command prompt’.
3. In the command prompt window, type the following command  and press enter.

        sfc /scannow

If the scan reported any corrupt files but if it couldn’t repair them, then I would suggest you to run the DISM tool and check. In the Command prompt window, type the following commands and press enter after each command:

DISM.exe /Online /Cleanup-image /Scanhealth

DISM.exe /Online /Cleanup-image /Restorehealth

Method 2:

If the above steps didn’t fix the issue, then I would suggest you to perform a system restore to an earlier date prior to this issue. Refer to these steps to perform a system restore from within the Windows recovery environment:

1. When you enter the blue screen with advanced options (Windows recovery environment), click on ‘Troubleshoot’.
2. Now, click on ‘Advanced options’ and then click on ‘System Restore’.
3. Follow the prompts and choose a restore point created before this issue started.

Please get back to us so that we can assist you further.