When a Macrium full backup runs, it fails with the following error:
Incremental and Differential backups run with no problem.
I reran the Full backup manually several times. One time it failed with a different error.
However the problem is always with the same removable USB SSD (Samsung_T5).
A user in this Dell forum thread was able to resolve the problem by "activating Bitlocker but leaving it turned off."
So I went to Control Panel -> System and Security -> BitLocker Drive Encryption:
Is Bitlocker "activated?" If I turn on BitLocker for the removable drive, won't BitLocker encrypt the drive? I really don't want to deal with passwords. What should I be doing here?
Windows Build/Version
Windows 11 Pro. Version 22H2 (OS Build 22621.2134)
I should have mentioned that one full backup did succeed. It was right after I migrated from Windows 10 PC to my current Windows 11 PC in early July. After three failed attempts, the last one succeeded:
But since then, no full backup succeeded. My notes do not show that I did anything special that one time- I just kept rerunning the Full backup until it succeeded. That's not a good long-term solution.
Samsung 990 Pro 1TB NVMe (Win 11 25H2)
SK hynix P41 500GB NVMe 25H2 DEV/Games
SK hynix P41 2TB NVMe (x3)
Crucial P3 Plus 4TB
PSU
Corsair RM850x Shift
Case
Antec Dark Phantom DP502 FLUX
Cooling
Corsair Nautilus 360 RS AIO
Keyboard
Logitech MK 320
Mouse
Razer Basilisk V3
Internet Speed
350Mbs
Browser
Firefox
Antivirus
Winows Security
Other Info
MR 8.1 Home
System 3 Specs
Win 11 Pro 25H2 26200.8524
ASUS PRIME Z370-P II BIOS 3004 7/12/21
Intel Core i7-8700 CPU @ 3.20GHz
32GB DDR4 RAM (4x8)
iGPU Intel UHD Graphics 630
Operating System
Win 11 Pro 25H2 26200.8524
Computer type
PC/Desktop
Manufacturer/Model
Self Built
CPU
Intel Core i7-11700F
Motherboard
Asus TUF Gaming Z590 Plus WiFi (BIOS 2803)
Memory
64 GB DDR4
Graphics card(s)
MSI GeForce RTX 3060 Ventus 2X 12GB
Sound Card
SoundBlaster Audigy Fx V2
Monitor(s) Displays
Samsung F27T350
Screen Resolution
1920x1080
Hard Drives
Samsung 980 Pro 1TB
Samsung 970 EVO Plus 2TB
Samsung 870 EVO 500GB SSD
I may have discovered a (partial?) solution. At least it produces a different result. The Samsung_T5 USB SSD may go to sleep when it's not being used, and if so, maybe Macrium doesn't give it enough time to wake up. I unchecked "Allow the computer to turn off this device to save power."
Then I manually ran another Full backup. This time I did not get the "Volume Bitmap is Null" error, which usually occurres about 20 minutes into the backup. The backup ran for more than four hours. But since I could see no sign of progress, I killed the Macrium tasks.
After rebooting I ran another Full backup. This one ended after the usual 20 minutes, but with a different error message
Is this shadow copy a file that is supposed to be on the Samsung_T5?
Another Full backup ran to completion today. I ran it manually immediately after a Differential backup ran. I'm not saying that had anyting to do with it, but it is interesting.
I submitted a ticket to Macrium support and will let you know what I find out.
