Disk Management Not Opening — How to Fix in Windows 10 & 11
Windows Disk Management (diskmgmt.msc) failing to open — or opening but hanging on "Connecting to Virtual Disk Service" — is caused by a handful of specific issues that each have a clear fix. This guide works through them in order from quickest to most thorough.
Quick Answer
Why won't Disk Management open?
The most common cause is the Virtual Disk Service (VDS) being stopped or failing to start. Disk Management relies entirely on this service. Go to Services.msc, find Virtual Disk, and start it. If it fails, corrupted system files are the next likely cause — run sfc /scannow from an elevated Command Prompt to repair them.
Symptoms and What They Mean
Disk Management window opens but hangs on "Connecting to Virtual Disk Service"
The Virtual Disk Service (VDS) is not running or is stuck. This is the most common cause.
Disk Management does not open at all — nothing happens when clicked
The MMC (Microsoft Management Console) may be corrupted, or you lack administrator privileges.
Error: "Disk Management could not start Virtual Disk Service"
VDS service startup failure, often from corrupted system files or a conflicting third-party service.
Error: "The RPC server is unavailable"
The RPC (Remote Procedure Call) service is not running. Disk Management uses RPC to communicate with VDS.
Open the Services manager
Press Win + R, type services.msc, and press Enter. The Services window lists all Windows services.
Locate Virtual Disk
Scroll down to find "Virtual Disk" in the list. Look at the Status column — if it is blank or shows "Stopped," this is your issue.
Start the service
Right-click Virtual Disk and select Start. If it fails to start with an error, note the error code and proceed to Fix 3 (system file repair).
Set startup type to Automatic (Manual)
Right-click Virtual Disk > Properties. Set Startup type to "Manual" (this is the correct default — Disk Management starts it on demand). Click OK.
Reopen Disk Management
Now open Disk Management again via Win + X or by running diskmgmt.msc. It should open and load within a few seconds.
Check Remote Procedure Call (RPC)
In Services.msc, find "Remote Procedure Call (RPC)". This must be Running. If it is not, start it. This service cannot be easily disabled on modern Windows — if it shows stopped, system file corruption is the cause.
Check RPC Endpoint Mapper
Also find "RPC Endpoint Mapper" in the services list. Ensure it is Running. Both services are required for Disk Management to communicate with the Virtual Disk Service.
Open Command Prompt as Administrator
Press Win + X and select Windows Terminal (Admin) or Command Prompt (Admin). You must run as administrator for these tools to work.
Run System File Checker
Type: sfc /scannow and press Enter. This scans all protected system files and replaces corrupted ones with cached copies. The scan takes 5–15 minutes. Do not close the window.
Check the SFC result
After completion, SFC reports one of three outcomes: "No integrity violations found" (system files are clean), "Found and repaired integrity violations" (fixed), or "Found integrity violations but was unable to fix some" (proceed to DISM).
Run DISM if SFC could not repair all files
Type the following command and press Enter: DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth — DISM downloads fresh copies of corrupted files from Windows Update. This requires an internet connection and takes 10–20 minutes.
Restart and retry
After DISM completes, restart Windows. Run sfc /scannow one more time to confirm all files are repaired. Then try opening Disk Management.
Open Command Prompt as Administrator
Press Win + X and select Command Prompt (Admin) or Windows Terminal (Admin).
Re-register the disk management component
Run these three commands one at a time, pressing Enter after each: regsvr32 dmocx.dll This re-registers the Disk Management ActiveX component that the MMC snap-in uses.
Re-register MMC snap-in files
Type and run: regsvr32 /i dmband.dll — then: regsvr32 /i dmconfig.dll — A dialog confirming successful registration should appear for each.
Restart and test
Restart Windows and try opening Disk Management. If it still fails, proceed to Fix 5.
Open Settings
Press Win + I to open Settings. Go to Accounts > Family & other users (Windows 10) or Accounts > Other users (Windows 11).
Add a new local administrator account
Click "Add account" and choose "I don't have this person's sign-in information" > "Add a user without a Microsoft account." Create a username and password, then go back to the account listing and change its type to Administrator.
Sign in as the new account
Sign out of your current account and sign in to the new administrator account.
Test Disk Management from the new account
Try opening Disk Management. If it works from the new account, the issue is with your original user profile (corrupted registry entries). You can migrate your files to the new account.
Alternative while troubleshooting: If you need to manage partitions while Disk Management is broken, AOMEI Partition Assistant and MiniTool Partition Wizard are both standalone executables that do not depend on the Windows Disk Management service stack. They can perform all the same operations independently.
If nothing works: A Windows Repair Install (In-Place Upgrade) reinstalls Windows while preserving your files and programs. Download the Windows 11 ISO from microsoft.com, mount it, and run setup.exe. Choose "Keep personal files and apps." This repairs system files at a deeper level than DISM.