NTSTATUS 0xC021000B (STATUS_FVE_VOLUME_NOT

Status / error code:

Category:

Constant name:

Source:

Facility:

Operating System:

Description:

the target lacks the system binding required by this operation

Previous	Next
STATUS_FVE_BAD_DATA	STATUS_FVE_NOT_DATA_VOLUME

STATUS_FVE_VOLUME_NOT_BOUND

Meaning and context of STATUS_FVE_VOLUME_NOT_BOUND

This status concerns a required binding relationship between the volume and the system context expected by the operation. It is not a statement that the volume is unencrypted, and it is not the same as a recovery authentication failure.

Verify the intended role of the target and the management workflow that created or expects the binding. A data-volume task, an operating-system-volume task, and a startup-protector task do not have interchangeable prerequisites.

Inspect the actual BitLocker volume type and protector configuration before changing firmware or TPM settings. If the operation is being applied to a detached or migrated disk, establish whether the task is supported in that context instead of trying to bind it by changing recovery credentials.

Microsoft NTSTATUS reference | BitLocker planning guide | BitLocker operations guide

Native status interpretation

STATUS_FVE_VOLUME_NOT_BOUND is 0xC021000B, an NTSTATUS error value. AllStat describes it as “The volume is not bound to the system.”. The first useful question is which native API, IRP, protocol operation, or subsystem in the kernel, native API, or subsystem that returned the status produced that status.

Debugging sequence

Preserve this result before RtlNtStatusToDosError, HRESULT conversion, exception translation, or provider-specific remapping removes information.
Log the operation associated with fve / volume / bound, the object or handle type, process and thread identity, and the state transition immediately before the return.
When user mode receives this result, capture both the native status and the final Win32/COM error so the translation boundary remains visible.

Recovery considerations

A retry is appropriate only after the owner of this result has changed the state described by “The volume is not bound to the system.”, or when its contract explicitly marks the status as transient. If the value reports corruption, invalid format, access policy, or a lifecycle mismatch, preserve evidence and correct that cause before repeating the request.

Looking for a different code? Search another status or error code.