Forum Discussion
The Volume Shadow Copy Service Fails, Preventing System Restore
I'm running Windows 10 and the Volume Shadow Copy service keeps failing whenever I try to create a system restore point or run a backup, throwing error codes like 0x80042306 and preventing any re...
Hi, VSS errors can come from the VSS writers, old shadow copies, disk issues, or a third-party backup tool holding things open.
I would try:
1. Run `vssadmin list writers` and check for failed writers.
2. Check Event Viewer under Application and System around the failure time.
3. Make sure the System Reserved/Recovery partitions are not full.
4. Temporarily disable third-party backup or antivirus tools and test again.
5. Run `sfc /scannow` and `DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth`.
If the writers show errors, restart the related service or reboot and test again. If the same writer fails repeatedly, that is the part to focus on rather than reinstalling Windows right away.