How to Fix DISM Error 0x800f081f: The Source Files Could Not Be Found in Windows 11 and 10

DISM Error 0x800f081f: The source files could not be found usually appears when Windows cannot locate clean repair files for the component store. The fastest fix is to run DISM with a matching Windows ISO as the repair source, then run System File Checker.

Quick fix: Mount a Windows 11 or Windows 10 ISO that matches your installed version, find the correct install.wim or install.esd index, then run DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth with the /Source option.

Quick Answer

1. Open Terminal, Command Prompt, or PowerShell as administrator.
2. Try the standard repair first:

   DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth

3. If it fails with DISM Error 0x800f081f: The source files could not be found, mount a matching Windows ISO.
4. Check whether the ISO contains install.wim or install.esd.
5. Find the correct image index for your edition.
6. Run DISM again using the ISO as the source.
7. Finish with:

   sfc /scannow

Problem: DISM Error 0x800f081f: The Source Files Could Not Be Found

The error often appears after running:

DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth

You may see a message similar to:

Error: 0x800f081f
The source files could not be found.
Use the Source option to specify the location of the files that are required to restore the feature.

This means DISM found corruption or missing files but could not download or locate replacement files from Windows Update, WSUS, or a local repair source.

Cause

DISM repairs the Windows component store using known-good files. By default, it may use Windows Update. Error 0x800f081f appears when that repair source is missing, blocked, mismatched, or unavailable.

Prerequisites

• An administrator account.
• Stable internet access if using Windows Update.
• A Windows ISO matching your installed Windows 11 or Windows 10 version, edition, architecture, and language.
• Enough free disk space to mount or extract the ISO.

To check your installed version, press Windows + R, type winver, and press Enter.

Step-by-step Solution

1. Run DISM scan commands first

Open Command Prompt as administrator and run:

DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /CheckHealth
DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /ScanHealth

If corruption is detected, try the normal repair:

DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth

If the same error returns, continue with a local ISO source.

2. Mount a matching Windows ISO

Download the Windows ISO from Microsoft, then double-click it to mount. Windows will assign it a drive letter such as D:, E:, or F:.

Open the mounted ISO and check the sources folder. You will usually find one of these files:

• install.wim
• install.esd

3. Find the correct Windows image index

If the ISO has install.wim, run:

DISM /Get-WimInfo /WimFile:D:\sources\install.wim

If the ISO has install.esd, run:

DISM /Get-WimInfo /WimFile:D:\sources\install.esd

Replace D: with your mounted ISO drive letter. Note the index number that matches your installed edition, such as Windows 11 Pro or Windows 10 Home.

4. Repair Windows using install.wim

If your ISO contains install.wim, run this command. Replace 6 with your correct index number:

DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth /Source:wim:D:\sources\install.wim:6 /LimitAccess

5. Repair Windows using install.esd

If your ISO contains install.esd, use this version instead:

DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth /Source:esd:D:\sources\install.esd:6 /LimitAccess

Note: /LimitAccess tells DISM not to contact Windows Update and to use only the source you specified.

6. Run System File Checker

After DISM completes successfully, run:

sfc /scannow

Restart your PC when the scan finishes.

Examples

Example 1: Windows 11 Pro with install.wim on drive E:

DISM /Get-WimInfo /WimFile:E:\sources\install.wim
DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth /Source:wim:E:\sources\install.wim:6 /LimitAccess
sfc /scannow

Example 2: Windows 10 Home with install.esd on drive D:

DISM /Get-WimInfo /WimFile:D:\sources\install.esd
DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth /Source:esd:D:\sources\install.esd:1 /LimitAccess
sfc /scannow

Common Causes

• Mismatched ISO: Using an older Windows ISO against a newer installed build can trigger 0x800f081f.
• Incorrect source path: The drive letter changes after mounting the ISO.
• Wrong source type: Using wim: for an install.esd file, or esd: for an install.wim file.
• Wrong image index: The selected index must match your installed Windows edition.
• Corporate update policy: WSUS or Group Policy may prevent DISM from contacting Microsoft repair sources.

Common Mistakes

• Running Command Prompt without administrator rights.
• Copying a command without changing the ISO drive letter.
• Assuming index 1 is always correct.
• Using a Windows 10 ISO to repair Windows 11, or the reverse.
• Skipping sfc /scannow after DISM repair completes.

Best Practices

• Use Microsoft’s official ISO, not a modified image.
• Match the ISO language and architecture with the installed system.
• Keep the ISO mounted until DISM reaches 100%.
• Restart before running DISM again if Windows has pending updates.
• Create a restore point before deeper repair work.

Verification

After restarting, confirm the repair with:

DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /CheckHealth
sfc /scannow

A healthy result should say:

No component store corruption detected.

For SFC, the ideal result is:

Windows Resource Protection did not find any integrity violations.

If DISM still reports DISM Error 0x800f081f: The source files could not be found, re-check the ISO version, drive letter, source file type, and image index. In many real cases, the wrong ISO build or wrong index is the reason the repair keeps failing.