Digital Forensic Certification Practice Exam

What is the primary function of the chkdsk utility in Windows?

1. Optimize the disk performance

2. Check the disk for errors

3. Clean up temporary files

4. Repartition the disk

The correct answer is: Check the disk for errors

The primary function of the chkdsk utility in Windows is to check the disk for errors. This utility scans the file system and file system metadata of a volume for logical and physical errors. When you run chkdsk, it verifies the integrity of the file system and can fix various issues, such as corrupted files, lost clusters, cross-linked files, and directory errors. This is crucial for maintaining the health of the disk and ensuring that stored data remains accessible and uncorrupted. While improving disk performance, cleaning temporary files, and repartitioning the disk are important tasks in disk management, they are not the primary purpose of the chkdsk utility. By focusing primarily on error detection and resolution, chkdsk plays a vital role in data recovery and system stability.