How to fix win.com errors
The win.com can become missing or corrupt in Windows. To resolve this issue, load the file manually by following the instructions below.
- Boot the computer to MS-DOS.
- At the MS-DOS prompt, run the following commands. At the end of each line, press Enter to run that command.
cd \windows dir win.com
Entering these commands should list the win.com file. If you receive an error message "File not found," skip to the next section. If, however, the file is listed, ensure that the file matches the below size according to your operating system.
Windows 98 = 24,791 bytes
Windows 95 OSR2 = 24,503 bytes
Windows 95 = 22,679 bytes
If the file size does not match, see the below paragraph for information on how to extract the file and recreate the win.com file.
To create a new win.com, follow the instructions below. These steps require you have either the Windows cabinets locally or can recover them from the Windows CD (compact disc).
- The file win.cnf must be extracted from a Windows cabinet file. Below is a listing of the file location on each of the Windows CDs and the Windows 95 diskette.
Windows 95 floppy disk #3
Win95_03.cab of the original Windows 95 CD-ROM
Win98_28.cab of the original Windows 98 CD-ROM
Win98_25.cab of the Windows 98SE CD-ROM
- Once the correct diskette or cabinet is located, use the extract command and extract the win.cnf to the C:\Windows directory.
- Once win.cnf is extracted, do the following steps at the MS-DOS prompt.
- In the Windows directory where win.cnf and win.com are located, type the following commands.
ren c:\windows\win.com c:\windows\win.ch ren c:\windows\win.cnf c:\windows\win.com
The computer has a computer virus
If the above solution does not resolve your issue, the computer may have a computer virus. To resolve this issue, we recommend you erase the computer and reinstall Windows.