Cannot create a VHDX virtual disk

Question

PS C:\WINDOWS\system32> DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth >> sfc /scannow Deployment Image Servicing and Management tool Version: 10.0.26100.5074 Image Version: 10.0.26200.8037 [==========================100.0%==========================] The restore operation completed successfully. The operation completed successfully.
Beginning system scan. This process will take some time. Beginning verification phase of system scan. Verification 100% complete. Windows Resource Protection did not find any integrity violations.

PS C:\WINDOWS\system32> wsl --install Downloading: Ubuntu Installing: Ubuntu A virtual disk support provider for the specified file was not found. Error code: Wsl/InstallDistro/Service/RegisterDistro/0xc03a0014

DISKPART> create vdisk file="%TEMP%\test.vhdx" maximum=64 type=expandable
DiskPart has encountered an error: A virtual disk support provider for the specified file was not found. See the System Event Log for more information.

I have Windows 11 Home 25H2

Answer 1

Hi Realxeng Pandelaki,

Thank you for the detailed information provided.

Based on the results of both DISM and SFC scans completing successfully with no integrity violations, this indicates that the Windows component store and protected system files are currently healthy. However, the following error encountered when attempting to install WSL or manually create a virtual disk suggests that the issue is related to the system’s Virtual Disk Service or virtualization support stack, which is required to create and mount .vhdx files used by WSL2 and similar virtualization technologies.

To help address this, please try the following steps:

1, Restart Virtual Disk Service

• Press Windows + R, type: services.msc
• Locate Virtual Disk > Right‑click > Select Restart

2, Verify Virtual Disk Provider Driver

• Open Device Manager
• Expand Storage controllers
• Confirm Microsoft Virtual Disk Provider is present
• If listed, right‑click > Uninstall device
• Restart your PC to allow Windows to reinstall the driver automatically

3, Ensure Required Features Are Enabled

• Run the following commands in Administrator PowerShell:

dism /online /enable-feature /featurename:VirtualMachinePlatform /all /norestart
dism /online /enable-feature /featurename:Microsoft-Windows-Subsystem-Linux /all /norestart

• Restart the device after completion.

4, Test Virtual Disk Creation on Local Drive

• After restart, please run:

diskpartcreate vdisk file=C:\test.vhdx maximum=64 type=expandable

Storing the virtual disk on a local drive with full permissions may improve reliability when creating VHD/VHDX files.

Let me know if you need further assistance, feel free to ask me by clicking "Add Comment" or "Add Answer" if you cannot add comment so your response will be visible. Thanks for your effort.

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Answer 2

The commands DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth and sfc /scannow already confirm that the Windows component store and protected system files are healthy:

• DISM completed successfully and repaired the image if needed.
• SFC reports: “Windows Resource Protection did not find any integrity violations.”

This means the error

A virtual disk support provider for the specified file was not found. Error code: 0xc03a0014

is not caused by corrupt system files.

On a healthy Windows image, creating and using VHD/VHDX relies on the same virtual disk stack that is used when:

• Creating a VHDX with DiskPart:

    diskpart
    create vdisk file=C:\windows.vhdx maximum=25600 type=fixed
    attach vdisk
  

• Applying or servicing images in VHD/VHDX containers with DISM.

Since DISM and SFC are clean, the next steps are:

1. Confirm that the virtual disk feature stack is available and functioning (for example, by trying to create a VHDX on a simple local path like C:\test.vhdx instead of %TEMP%).
2. If the same error persists for any VHD/VHDX path, treat it as a deeper virtual disk provider issue rather than a file‑corruption issue. At that point, the supported remediation is to repair or reinstall Windows so that the virtual disk provider and related services are restored to their default state.

If a repair install or reset does not restore VHD/VHDX support, the system should be considered for a clean reinstallation or further hardware/driver investigation, because the core virtual disk provider is required for scenarios such as:

• Boot to VHDX / native boot.
• Creating and attaching VHDX files with DiskPart.
• Using VHD/VHDX as containers for Windows images.

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References:

• Boot to a virtual hard disk: Add a VHDX or VHD to the boot menu
• Deploy Windows with a VHDX (Native Boot)
• Repair a Windows Image
• Deployment Image Servicing and Management (DISM) Best Practices
• Use the System File Checker tool to repair missing or corrupted system files
• Prepare a Windows VHD or VHDX to upload to Azure