Media Center Component failing to load.

02darkRS · 22 Nov 2011

*****1/12/2012. Well I have finally performed the correct search query on google & found the issue to be my 60GB OCZ Vertex + SSD. Anyone with one of these drives incurring Check disks, corrupt files, & boot issues, head over to their forum & look up the firmware update. The issue is your SSD.*******

"A necessary component of Windows Media Center did not start. Restart Windows Media Center to load files. " I get this error any time I try to use media center. Is there a way I can uninstall or reinstall to start fresh or what should I do? My set up is: W7 Ultimate 64 on an SSD with all User & data Files on a separate HDD. I would assume MC would find the files itself... but I can't even find a place to tell it where to point if that is the problem. Strangely tonight it detected my music for the first time. I don't have any movies or pictures loaded other than desktop files. I haven't bothered to load anything since it won't work. /////edit: I found where to point the libraries. Any time I try this it also says a necessary component failed to load. Restart Media Center. Restart does not solve the issue.

carwiz · 22 Nov 2011

Try running this: SFC /SCANNOW Command - System File Checker

Use option two.

02darkRS · 24 Nov 2011

I've changed all kinds of settings as far as menu times, etc. This says I'll lose changes made in explorer.exe. does this include things like removing sleep options, menu display times, no log on/off sounds, etc?

02darkRS · 24 Nov 2011

I ran the verify only. When I attempt to open the log it says access denied. I am the admin......

Sardonicus · 24 Nov 2011

This may help you.
A necessary component of windows media center did not start properly, - Microsoft Answers

carwiz · 25 Nov 2011

That may be useful if the OP hasn't installed Windows updates in over a year.

SFC detects corrupt system files. If you have modified system files directly, they will be replaced. (Or at least an attempt to.) Program options will generally not be affected since these are Registry or data file oriented.

You can view the log by running Note Pad as Administrator then opening the CBS.log file.

02darkRS · 27 Nov 2011

thank you. I got the log opened but it's too large to post. What am I looking for?

carwiz · 27 Nov 2011

The return from your command window should look something like this:

Code:

 
Microsoft Windows [Version 6.1.7601]
Copyright (c) 2009 Microsoft Corporation.  All rights reserved.
C:\Windows\system32>sfc /verifyonly
Beginning system scan.  This process will take some time.
Beginning verification phase of system scan.
Verification 100% complete.
Windows Resource Protection did not find any integrity violations.
C:\Windows\system32>

If you didn't get that, then there's problems that will be listed in the CBS.Log file. If you ZIP the file, it should upload. But if it's that large, I already suspect you have corrupt files.

02darkRS · 28 Nov 2011

It did find serious integrity violations. BUT, I have Programs installed on a seperate HDD as well as the UAC assigned to a seperate HDD. Could these be the violations?
The file is very large & it has dates back to when I installed the OS. Not just the date I ran the SFC.
So, if I allow it to fix the errors. I want to understand first what the system file types are that you are referring to? Is it going to replace changes I made such as optimizing for SSD install, menu hover times, etc? What system files are you referring to? Another example, I had to make a registry entry in order to keep the system time displaying accurately due to some problem with UTC & linux, windows was always showing 4-5 hrs ahead. Also note, the next boot after I ran SFC, it had to perform a disk check. Booted up fine but it forced this action first.

carwiz · 28 Nov 2011

I understand your concern but the alternative is a clean install of Windows 7. It may turn out that you will have to do that anyway. This is an attempt to restore OS files that are corrupt on your system. It's not uncommon to see system software that dates before your install. Windows 7 was released October of 2009.

The steps I use to repair a system starts with SFC. It's the easiest and most comprehensive repair for system files. If that doesn't repair the OS then a Repair Install of Windows 7 might but that's not always the case either. Then there's individual file repair. The last alternative is a clean install of Windows 7. And it makes no difference about options or Registry changes you may have set if the OS isn't working. The number one best practice with Windows 7 is NEVER run a Registry cleaner or "Regfix" unless instructed to do so and with specific settings. The default settings in most cleaners can cause more harm than good.

This article explains what SFC does and how to interpret the contents of the log. It speaks of Vista but it applies to Windows 7 also.
How to analyze the log file entries that the Microsoft Windows Resource Checker (SFC.exe) program generates in Windows Vista

This article applies to Windows 7 but it's basically the same.
How to use the System File Checker tool to troubleshoot missing or corrupted system files on Windows Vista or on Windows 7

The SFC.exe program performs the following operations:

It verifies that non-configurable Windows Vista system files have not changed. Also, it verifies that these files match the operating system's definition of which files are expected to be installed on the computer.
It repairs non-configurable Windows Vista system files, when it is possible.