Your Chromebook may sometimes throw a strange alert that says your system is repairing itself. ChromeOS then prompts your to wait until the process is complete. Unfortunately, the process doesn’t seem to end, and your laptop remains stuck in a repair loop. Let’s discuss how you can fix this problem.
What Do I Do When My Chromebook Says the System Is Repairing Itself?
Wait It Out
Sometimes, ChromeOS needs about 20 minutes to repair your device. Wait for 10 to 20 minutes, and then check if the screen changes colors after a while. If the OS manages to fix the issue on its own, you should see a welcome screen after about 20 minutes.
Reset Your Chromebook Hardware
Your Chromebook might be affected by intermittent hardware issues. Oftentimes, the repair loop indicates there’s probably an SSD failure there. If this is only a temporary glitch, you should be able to fix it by resetting your Chromebook hardware.
- First, shut down your Chromebook.
- Then press and hold the Refresh and Power buttons.
- Release the Refresh button when your laptop starts up.
Note: Some Chromebook models feature a special reset button. Press it, unplug the power cable and then remove the battery. Wait for one minute, power up your device, and check if the issue persists.
Recover Your Chromebook
If the issue persists, recover your Chromebook and reinstall the OS. You’ll need a USB flash drive and a second computer to recover your Chromebook. For more information, go to Google’s support page.
If the problem is still there, go to where you bought your Chromebook and get more details about the warranty or repair options.
Contact Your IT Admin
If your Chromebook is managed by an organization, contact your IT admin for further help. If you’re a student, you may not always be able to contact your IT admin directly. Try contacting one of your teachers instead, and let them know your Chromebook is unusable.
Conclusion
If your Chromebook gets stuck on the “Your system is repairing itself” screen, wait for 20 minutes and check if the problem goes away. Reset your Chromebook hardware and check if you notice any improvements. If the issue persists, recover your Chromebook or contact your IT admin. Did you manage to fix the issue? Let us know in the comments below.
Cathy says
Brand new Chromebook, after 1 week of using is now saying Your system is preparing itself. Please wait.
Problem is that its been doing this for several days. First day, let it run all day and night. Plugged it in overnight as we can’t see if it is losing battery charge. Occasionally, it will self reboot going back to same message immediately. Next time, left it running until battery shut down. Recharged it and when turned back on it is doing the same thing.
Have tried rebooting and goes to same screen. Nothing works but the power button.
Angela says
My power button no longer responds to any presses. I can’t switch it off via the power button, I had a to do it via the mouse and keyboard way. Now that the Chromebook being in a boot loop, I can not reset or restart anything.