HRESULT 0x803100CE (FVE_E_DEVICELOCKOUT_COUNTER

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Description:

Device Lockout state validation failed due to counter mismatch.

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FVE_E_DEVICE_LOCKOUT_COUNTER_UNAVAILABLE	FVE_E_BUFFER_TOO_LARGE

FVE_E_DEVICELOCKOUT_COUNTER_MISMATCH

Why this is not a generic disk error

The practical meaning of FVE_E_DEVICELOCKOUT_COUNTER_MISMATCH is that the stored Device Lockout state and the hardware-backed counter no longer agree. The HRESULT is 0x803100CE.

Three decisions before remediation

Is the FVE_E_DEVICELOCKOUT_COUNTER_MISMATCH target correct?: For FVE_E_DEVICELOCKOUT_COUNTER_MISMATCH, use the volume or protector GUID and confirm its role; do not rely only on a drive letter or friendly name.
Is the FVE_E_DEVICELOCKOUT_COUNTER_MISMATCH request allowed?: For FVE_E_DEVICELOCKOUT_COUNTER_MISMATCH, resolve effective policy, Windows edition, caller token and management source for the automatic Device Encryption operation.
Is the FVE_E_DEVICELOCKOUT_COUNTER_MISMATCH state stable?: For FVE_E_DEVICELOCKOUT_COUNTER_MISMATCH, record conversion, protection, lock and reboot status before modifying anything.

For FVE_E_DEVICELOCKOUT_COUNTER_MISMATCH, note: Automatic Device Encryption is a provisioning and compliance workflow layered on BitLocker. When diagnosing FVE_E_DEVICELOCKOUT_COUNTER_MISMATCH, remember: It evaluates platform eligibility, account-backed recovery escrow, all applicable fixed volumes and protection state; failure of Auto-DE does not automatically mean manual BitLocker is unavailable. For FVE_E_DEVICELOCKOUT_COUNTER_MISMATCH, note: Automatic Device Encryption has stricter end-to-end prerequisites than manual BitLocker. When diagnosing FVE_E_DEVICELOCKOUT_COUNTER_MISMATCH, remember: An Auto-DE HRESULT should be reported with the device-encryption support reason and account/escrow state.

Why a common workaround is wrong

This should not be diagnosed as ordinary user lockout from repeated failures; this is integrity validation of lockout state. For FVE_E_DEVICELOCKOUT_COUNTER_MISMATCH, that nearby condition needs a different corrective action and may produce a similar user-facing message.

Confirm the returning layer

For FVE_E_DEVICELOCKOUT_COUNTER_MISMATCH, record hardware counter value, protected state record, firmware/TPM changes, restore or cloning history and first event showing divergence. For FVE_E_DEVICELOCKOUT_COUNTER_MISMATCH, keep the full HRESULT and the first method that returned it because later cleanup calls can report a different state.
For FVE_E_DEVICELOCKOUT_COUNTER_MISMATCH, capture manage-bde -status and the protector inventory for the exact volume GUID, not only the drive letter, because letters can change in WinRE, clusters and deployment environments.
Export BitLocker operational events for the FVE_E_DEVICELOCKOUT_COUNTER_MISMATCH failure and note the boot session, caller identity and management source; that evidence separates this BitLocker condition from a generic access or storage error.

msinfo32.exe
powershell -NoProfile -Command "Get-BitLockerVolume | Format-Table MountPoint,VolumeType,VolumeStatus,ProtectionStatus"

Correct the configuration deliberately

For FVE_E_DEVICELOCKOUT_COUNTER_MISMATCH, preserve forensic state, use supported recovery, and investigate rollback or cloning before reinitializing device-lock data.
After correcting the FVE_E_DEVICELOCKOUT_COUNTER_MISMATCH prerequisite, refresh protection, conversion and lock state before one controlled retry; a cached UI message is not proof that the FVE_E_DEVICELOCKOUT_COUNTER_MISMATCH condition is still active.
Before a FVE_E_DEVICELOCKOUT_COUNTER_MISMATCH remediation deletes protectors, changes firmware mode, resizes partitions or decrypts a production drive, verify that an independent recovery method is available and escrowed in the intended directory or account.

Treat FVE_E_DEVICELOCKOUT_COUNTER_MISMATCH as a state label rather than a complete recovery plan. Confirm a successful retry with an updated BitLocker state query and a verified recovery path.

Counter integrity differs from an ordinary lockout

The hardware-backed counter is intended to make rollback of Device Lock state detectable. A mismatch can follow cloning, restoration of an older system image, firmware changes or corruption of the protected state record. The relevant comparison is between the current hardware counter and the sealed lockout metadata, not the number of failed passwords shown by a sign-in UI.

Preserve TPM and BitLocker event chronology before clearing state. Resetting counters without understanding the divergence can hide evidence of rollback and may not restore a consistent device-encryption posture.

State checks specific to FVE_E_DEVICELOCKOUT_COUNTER_MISMATCH

Checkpoint	How to interpret it for FVE_E_DEVICELOCKOUT_COUNTER_MISMATCH
Before the call	Record the target identity and the pre-call automatic Device Encryption state. For FVE_E_DEVICELOCKOUT_COUNTER_MISMATCH, the decisive boundary is that the stored Device Lockout state and the hardware-backed counter no longer agree.
At failure	Preserve hardware counter value, protected state record, firmware/TPM changes, restore or cloning history and first event showing divergence. This proves whether FVE_E_DEVICELOCKOUT_COUNTER_MISMATCH came from BitLocker itself or from a wrapper translating another result.
After correction	Preserve forensic state, use supported recovery, and investigate rollback or cloning before reinitializing device-lock data. The FVE_E_DEVICELOCKOUT_COUNTER_MISMATCH request should then advance without removing an unrelated recovery route.
After reboot or remount	Recheck protection, conversion and lock state for FVE_E_DEVICELOCKOUT_COUNTER_MISMATCH; a successful management call is incomplete if the next boot cannot unlock the volume.

Verification after the change

For FVE_E_DEVICELOCKOUT_COUNTER_MISMATCH, success means more than the absence of a dialog. Confirm that the condition represented by FVE_E_DEVICELOCKOUT_COUNTER_MISMATCH now matches the intended design, that the protector inventory has not lost an independent recovery route, and that the next reboot or remount can unlock the volume. If the FVE_E_DEVICELOCKOUT_COUNTER_MISMATCH request advances to another HRESULT, record both values in order because that transition reveals the next unmet prerequisite.

References

Reference set for FVE_E_DEVICELOCKOUT_COUNTER_MISMATCH:

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