What does NTSTATUS 0xC03A0004 (STATUS_VHD_FORMAT_UNKNOWN) mean?

 
Could be also:
ConstantTypeOS
ERROR_VHD_FORMAT_UNKNOWNHRESULTWindows
Previous Next
STATUS_VHD_DRIVE_FOOTER_CORRUPT STATUS_VHD_FORMAT_UNSUPPORTED_VERSION

STATUS_VHD_FORMAT_UNKNOWN

STATUS_VHD_FORMAT_UNKNOWN means the virtual-disk provider could not identify the input as a recognized virtual-disk format. The result occurs before a valid VHD or VHDX layout has been established, so it is not a diagnosis of a partition table or file system inside a mounted disk.

This differs from STATUS_VHD_FORMAT_UNSUPPORTED_VERSION. An unsupported-version result indicates that the format was recognized but its declared revision is outside the provider's supported range; an unknown-format result gives the provider no reliable layout to open.

Avoid format guesses

  • Confirm the file origin and expected extension, but do not treat an extension as a format validation result.
  • Check whether the object is a VHD, VHDX, ISO, raw copy, encrypted archive, or an incomplete transfer before invoking a VHD repair path.
  • Use read-only identification first; opening a file with the wrong virtual-disk tooling can obscure the original failure context.

References


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