Laptop BitLocker failing on drive with offline uncorrectable sector count limit

4.5

The drive has sectors that cannot be read even with error correction, causing encryption failure.

Symptoms
  • Hard I/O error
  • System hang
  • Data loss
Possible Causes
  • Physical damage
  • Head crash

Step-by-Step Fix

1

Check SMART Attribute 198

Monitor "Offline Uncorrectable Sector Count".

2

Attempt Data Recovery

Use professional tools to save files.

3

Discard Drive

Uncorrectable sectors are a fatal hardware flaw.

When to See a Technician

Uncorrectable sectors are the "point of no return" for a hard drive.

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