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System Encryption fails on Surface Pro 11 (Snapdragon X Elite) - Error 5108

Technical Topics
abc
6 days ago
6 days ago

  • abc

    abc - 6 days ago

    Hello VeraCrypt Team,

    I am writing to report a critical issue when attempting to encrypt the system partition on my new Surface Pro 11 (Snapdragon X Elite).

    The Problem: I am running the latest version of VeraCrypt on a clean install of Windows 11 Pro (ARM64), fully updated with the latest Surface firmware and drivers. BitLocker is fully disabled (verified via manage-bde -status).

    The VeraCrypt Pre-Test works perfectly. My keyboard (via Dongle+Adapter) is recognized, I can enter my password, and Windows boots successfully.

    However, when I click "Encrypt" (after the successful Pre-Test) to begin the actual encryption, the process fails immediately with the error: VeraCrypt::BootEncryption::CheckRequirements:5108

    Critical Context (Why this is a major issue): This 5108 error seems to be a fundamental incompatibility with the new Surface ARM/Snapdragon X platform.

    This is especially problematic because the only alternative, BitLocker (TPM+Passphrase), is ALSO broken on this hardware (and on the Surface Pro 8). Windows 11 Pro ignores the Group Policy ("Allow enhanced PINs") and enforces a 20-character limit (Error 0x803100B7 / 0x8031005b), making long, secure passphrases impossible.

    This means that for users who require secure Pre-Boot Authentication (like me), VeraCrypt is the only hope, but it is currently blocked by this 5108 error.

    Question: Are the developers aware of this incompatibility with the new Snapdragon X Elite/Plus platform? Is there a known workaround, or is a fix planned? I am willing to provide specific logs if it helps resolve this.

    Thank you.

     

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