BOOTMGR is missing

On windows computers while Bootup/ Start computer you notice error message Bootmgr is missing, Press ALT+CTRL+DEL to Restart windows. This error means your BIOS cannot find the boot file in your boot volume which makes you cannot boot into the system normally. This error Bootmgr is missing usually occurred due to corrupt and misconfigured files, hard drive Errors, Bed Sectors on Hard disk and OS upgrade. Also Outdated BIOS, and damaged or loose hard drive interface cables are the possible reasons behind bootmgr is missing windows 10. Also, Many Windows 10 users experienced, bootmgr is missing windows 10 error, is due to boot from a hard drive or flash drive that is not properly configured. In other words, it’s trying to boot from a non-bootable source.

What is Bootmgr and how it work?

Bootmgr is the Windows boot sequence manager first introduced in Microsoft Vista. It replaces the NTLDR boot manager in previous versions of Windows. Bootmgr reads boot configuration data and displays the operating system selection menu. The main work of this Bootmgr is to control boot volume, help you when a computer starts to load pre-installed windows.

Fix Bootmgr is Missing in Windows 10

Windows Boot Manager or BOOTMGR is located in your computer’s operating system boot volume (Mainly C:\ drive). Bootmgr controls boot volume which helps to start winload.exe when a computer starts to load pre-installed windows on the processor. Generally, bootmgr is fully responsible for starting your computer’s Operating System. Here are some working solutions for Fix Bootmgr is Missing in Windows 10 Error.

Note: This fix works on all Windows versions including Windows  7, 8 and 8.1, Windows 10.

Remove all connected media

If you plug any external media like USB Drive, your BIOS may probably load from the external device instead of the correct boot volume. Thus please remove all the connected media to your PC.

Check boot order in BIOS

If After removing all the connected media, BOOTMGR is missing error may still exist, Then you need to check boot order in BIOS. To do this  Press Ctrl+Alt+Del to restart your computer. While bootup windows or the manufacturer’s logo pops up, keep pressing the specific key (commonly it is F12) to get into BIOS.

NOTE: The key to get into BIOS can be F2,F8, F10,F12, Esc or Del, etc. If you are not sure, consult the manufacturer of your computer.

Here move to boot Tab using the left and right Arrow key Now Under the Boot tab, use ↑ or ↓ key to highlight your correct boot hard drive. Then use + or – key to move your boot drive onto the top to be the first boot device.

Set Hard Disk As first boot device
After make changes Click F10 to save settings and exit BIOS. Then your PC will restart automatically. Check if it could boot into your operating system successfully. If not, try the next solution please.

Run Automatic Repair

Windows have an inbuild Automatic repair tool that checks and fix all startup Errors which prevent windows to start normally. Before performing any troubleshooting steps we recommend first to perform the startup repair. you can do this by following below.

First Insert the Windows 10 bootable CD or DVD and restart your PC. Note: If you dont have windows installation media you can create one by following this how to create Windows bootable USB / DVD.

Now When prompted to Press any key to boot from CD or DVD, click any key on the keyboard.

Next Select your language preferences and click Next. Click Repair your computer in the bottom-left.

windows 10 repair your computer

This will restart windows and on the next screen Choose an option screen, click Troubleshoot and then click the Advanced option. This will display all available Tools as shown below image.

Windows Advanced Options

Now click on Startup Repair. This will restart windows and start the repair process. During the repair process, this will check below points.

  • Missing/corrupt/incompatible drivers
  • Missing/corrupt system files
  • Missing/corrupt boot configuration settings
  • Corrupt registry settings
  • Corrupt disk metadata (master boot record, partition table, or boot sector)
  • Problematic update installation

Wait until the Windows Automatic/Startup Repair completes. After that Restart and you have successfully fix BOOTMGR is missing error. Still getting same error fallow next step.

Make Windows Partition Active

An active partition is a partition in your computer’s hard disk which is known as a bootable partition that actually contains your PC’s Operating System. Normally, only one partition can be active at the time like C: drive, mostly where our windows is installed. But sometimes that partition got inactive due to some reasons And Reactive the partition can mostly fix most Boot Errors include bootmgr missing. Let’s See How to reactive

First you need to Access Windows Advanced Boot options. Here you will get option to Open Advanced Command prompt. When command prompt opens type bellow commands

diskpart

This command will start disk part utility in your command prompt. When diskpart will start you’ll be able to see “DISKPART>” sign on the left side of your command prompt.

list disk

This will list all of your connected drives in your computer.

select disk 0

Note: Select the Hard Disk Drive where your windows is installed. In My cause, i am selecting Disk 0 because that’s the only disk drive shown in my CMD and that’s also the one where my OS is actually installed.

list partition

This command will show you all the partitions created in that disk what you’ve selected.

select partition 2

Normally we are selecting partition 2 because that’s our windows partition but that does not prove that you will always need to select the 2nd one because sometimes partition 1 can be our windows partition too. So, select only that partition where your windows is installed.

Note: Never Select 100 MB, 350 MB And 500 MB Partitions.

active

That will make your partition active.

Repair / Fix Boot Files

After Active the windows partition Repair the corrupt or missing boot file is a good experience to fix Bootmgr missing Error on Windows 10 or Windows 7 computers. Also, It’s possible that your boot files got corrupted by some recently installed Software, Viruses or Windows/Software updates and it’s better to get it repair as soon as possible. you can do this by following.

As due to this Bootmgr missing Error we are unable to boot into windows Again we need to open the command prompt through the Advanced Boot option. Here on the Advanced boot screen select Advanced Command prompt when the command prompt appears type below commands one by one and hit enter key to execute the command.

Diskpart
List volume
Exit
Above command, we perform to find out the drive letter of windows installed. Here note down the drive letter where Windows is installed. For me it’s D drive. Now perform the below commands to repair bootmgr file. (Note: Replace D with your windows installed drive letter.)

D: (Your Windows Drive Letter)
Bootrec /fixmbr 
Bootrec /fixboot
Bootrec /rebuildbcd

The above commands repair the bootmgr Errors. Now repair the hard disk for Errors by performing the below command.
Chkdsk /f /r  Type this command and hit enter key to repair hard disk errors and bad sectors.

After completing the “chkdsk” command 100% completed, just restart your computer hope this time your windows start normally. If still the same error performs next step.

Repair Windows Image

After performing the above methods still problem not solved then repair the windows image may fix windows startup problems include bootmgr missing. You can do this by following, first Open Command Prompt and enter the following command:

DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth

Press enter to run the above command and wait for the process to complete, usually, it takes 15-20 minutes.

NOTE: if the above command doesn’t work then try this: Dism /Image:C:\offline /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth /Source:c:\test\mount\windows

Dism /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth /Source:c:\test\mount\windows /LimitAccess

After the process is completed restart your PC Check the problem is solved.

These are some best working solutions to fix Bootmgr missing startup Error on Windows 10, Windows 7 computers permanently. Have any query suggestions feel free to comment below.

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Robeg
Robeg
I am Robeg founder of this blog. My qualification. completed Bachelor of Arts (BA) and Microsoft Certified Professional (MCP). With a strong background in computer applications love write articles on Microsoft Windows (11, 10, etc.) Cybersecurity, WordPress and more.

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