How to Troubleshoot SCRs
An SCR file contains the visual and audio elements used to display a screen saver on your computer. While there are many possible reasons why your SCR files will fail to play, it is typically a problem within the main screen saver executable or registry. Troubleshoot an SCR file by identifying the problem you are experiencing and correcting it through the System File Checker or Windows Registry Editor.
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Instructions
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Cannot Enable Screen Saver
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Click “Start.” Type “Regedit.exe” and press “Enter.”
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Click “Yes” on the User Account Control box. This opens the Windows Registry Editor.
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Navigate to “HKEY_CURRENT_USERS\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\Control Panel\Desktop” on the left pane.
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Right-click the “ScreenSaveActive” entry on the right and click “Delete.” Click “Yes” to confirm.
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Right-click the “NoDispScrSavPage” entry on the right and click “Delete.” Click “Yes” to confirm.
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Restart your computer. You should now be able to enable the screen saver.
Test and Repair Damaged Screen Saver Engine
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Press the “Windows” and “R” keys simultaneously to open a Run dialog.
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Type “C:\Windows\System32\Scrnsave.scr” in Run and press “Enter.” If the Windows screensaver is working properly, a black screen should appear on your monitor. Press any key on your keyboard to exit the black screen. Continue reading if you receive an error to repair the screensaver file.
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Click the Start button. Type “Command” in Windows Search. Right-click “Command Prompt” and click the “Run as Administrator” option. Click “Yes” to confirm the User Account Control permission.
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Type “SFC /Scanfile=C:\Windows\System32\Scrnsave.scr” and press “Enter.” This runs a quick file scan to check and repair the damaged file.
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Close the command prompt.
Password Requested
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Click “Start.” Type “Regedit.exe” and press “Enter.”
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Click “Yes” on the User Account Control box. This opens the Registry Editor.
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Navigate to “HKEY_CURRENT_USERS\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\Control Panel\Desktop” on the left pane.
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Right-click the “ScreenSaverIsSecure” entry on the right and click “Delete.”
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Click “Yes” to confirm and restart your computer.
Third-Party Installation Problems
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Right-click the screen saver installation file and click “Properties.”
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Look for an “Unblock” button. If this is present, Windows is currently preventing the file from unloading its resources for installation.
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Click the “Unblock” button at the bottom. Make sure you have obtained a safe, legitimate screen saver file before doing this.
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Click the “OK” button at the bottom to close. Right-click the installation file again and click “Run as Administrator.” Click the “Yes” button to confirm the UAC permissions. This should run the installation and extract the SCR file appropriately.
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