Peter Jason wrote:
> On Sat, 23 Apr 2011 02:26:05 -0500, VanguardLH <> wrote:
>
>>Peter Jason wrote:
>>
>>> I am using WinXP SP3.
>>>
>>> I get the above error message after I mount a drive via TrueCrypt 7.0a
>>> and try to access certain folders and/or files.
>>>
>>> This only happens for some folders and files. Is there any way to
>>> fix this? I cannot see any difference on the mounted drive between
>>> the files that work and those that do not. The faulty files have
>>> appeared with strange-character glyphs for names, and the renaming of
>>> these is not possible.
>>
>>This is a Windows 7 problem how?
>
> I am still in the process of transferring everything from an old XP
> machine to the Windows 7 new one, so I need this fixed now.
So it isn't a Windows XP or Windows 7 problem but a TrueCrypt problem
and you should be asking about the error in the TrueCrypt forums.
>>Did you created a TrueCrypt container that uses the fake volume inside
>>(the security feature where one password, the one you're forced to
>>reveal, opens a volume inside the TC container that holds dummy files
>>and a different password opens the volume where are your protected
>>files)? If your bogus volume exceeds its size, it just starts writing
>>into the secret volume and screws it up. This is cautioned in the
>>manual for TrueCrypt.
>
> No, there is plenty of room on the HDD for the bogus & front-end
> compartments. And both have been working for over two years.
> The front-end compartment data is OK however, and seems completely
> undamaged.
>
> Anyway, after extensive Goggling, I did a chkdsk on the bogus
> compartment (chkdsk Z: /f) via Norton utilities, and it converted much
> of the data into a separate folder as files with a strange extension
> (the disk is off site and I can't remember) all of which seemed to
> contain nothing. But I applied my copy of EnCase Enterprise Edition
> to these files (allows fast tabbing thru them all) and I was relieved
> to find that most of them were intact - though slow to recover - but
> some were mangled and seem irredeemable. I am still working on the
> problem. From what you say above I will invest in a larger external
> HDD with more space - for insurance. I'll also keep a backup HDD for
> this drive too.
>
> Where on Windows 7 is a safe-disconnect for HDDs? There is one for
> thumb drives.
Getting a larger HDD in which to place the TrueCrypt container won't
eliminate the danger of using a hidden volume. If file(s) exceed the
capacity of the outer volume, writes continue into the hidden volume
which then corrupts the hidden volume. Because of this, you need to
place a static amount of dummy data in the outer volume that does not
exceed its size and then never modify it. This prevents accidentally
growing the data in the outer volume to then overwrite the hidden volume
where is the data that you are really trying to hide.
http://www.truecrypt.org/docs/hidden-volume-protection
Because of this hazard, I never bother using the dummy outer volume for
the "plausible deniability" feature of TrueCrypt. Yes, you could always
remember to click Mount Options to enable the overwrite protection but
this option doesn't stick and eventually you'll forget to do this one
day, put too much into the outer volume, and then corrupt your hidden
volume. It only takes writing of 1 file into the outer volume that
exceeds its capacity to start overwriting into the hidden volume.
Also, since you typically put dummy files into the outer volume but
leave it static so consumption never exceeds its capacity, it's likely
after a long time that you won't remember the password for the outer
volume, so the whole thing about denying access or knowledge of the
hidden volume is trashed since you can't give the password for the outer
volume to pretend its content is what you were secreting inside. Do you
actually ever mount the outer volume (other than initially to store the
dummy files in there)?
