How to Fix Failure When Initializing the Library System Volume?

A year ago I purchased a new hard drive and migrated my Windows 10 installation to it. However, recently my computer showed a storage exception BSOD. And when I checked the primary disk I didn't find any problem. My friend thought it might be caused by not configuring the UEFI boot configuration properly. And he suggested I run the bcdboot c:\windows /s H: /f UEFI command. But I got an error message: failure when initializing library system volume when running the command. How should I solve this problem?tomshardware.com

Many users have encountered the issue, which is said to be bcdboot failure when initializing the library system volume. If you receive this error, you don’t need to worry too much. This post tells you how to fix the issue.

Fix 1: Delete the Same Hidden Partition

You may receive the “failure when initializing the library system volume” due to the multiple hidden boot partitions. You can’t see it in Windows Explorer or Disk Management. Here is how to delete it.

1. Type cmd in the Search box and select Run as administrator.

2. Type the following commands one by one and press Enter after each one.

• diskpart
• list disk​
• select disk 0​ (disk 0 is the current system disk)
• list partition​
• select partition 1 ​(partition 1 is the hidden partition on the current system disk)​
• active​
• assign letter=H​
• exit​
• bcdboot c:\windows /s H: (you will receive bcdboot failure in this step)

3. Restart your computerand see if it boots from the current system disk. Then, checkthe status of the hidden boot partition if it says “System, Active, Primary Partition“.

4. Open Command Prompt again and type the following commands to deactivate the boot partition in the previous system. 

• list disk​
• select disk 1 (disk 1 is previous system disk with a hidden boot partition)​
• list partition​
• select partition 1​
• inactive

Fix 2: Perform the Automatic Repair

Windows 11/10 comes with a variety of tools that aid in maintaining and fixing your system. One such tool is Windows Recovery Environment. Using this solution, you can fix the “failure when initializing the library system volume” issue.

1. Press the Windows + I keys together to open the Settings application.

2. Navigate to Update & Security > Recovery.

3. Click the Restart now option under the Advanced startup section. Now Windows will reboot to the Choose an option blue interface.

4. You need to click Troubleshoot in the popup window to continue.

5. Click Advanced options to go to the next page.

6. Choose Startup Repair and wait for the process to be completed.

Fix 3: Reinstall the System

If the above solutions are not working, you can try to reinstall the operating system. Here is how to do that:

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1. Create a bootable drive on any working computer.

2. Insert the bootable drive into the PC that meets the “failure when initializing the library system volume” issue.

3. Boot the PC and enter its BIOS menu to set the PC to boot from the USB.

4. When the Windows Setup screen appears, choose your language and keyboard. Then, click Next.

5. On the next page, click Install Now.

6. Follow the on-screen instructions to finish the steps.

Final Words

To fix the “failure when initializing the library system volume” issue, you can refer to the above 3 methods for troubleshooting. Hope this post can be useful for you.