How to Fix Windows Bug Check 0x00000136 – VHD_BOOT_HOST_VOLUME_NOT_ENOUGH_SPACE

Quick Answer

Windows Stop Code 0x00000136 – VHD_BOOT_HOST_VOLUME_NOT_ENOUGH_SPACE occurs when Windows cannot complete initialization while booting from a Virtual Hard Disk (VHD) because the physical volume hosting the VHD does not have enough free space to expand the virtual disk to its required size.

To resolve this error, free up sufficient space on the physical host volume. Check the VHD's maximum configured capacity, not just its current file size. If the dynamically expanding VHD is larger than the available capacity of the host volume, use a suitable storage volume or recreate the virtual disk with an appropriate capacity after backing up its contents.

What Is VHD_BOOT_HOST_VOLUME_NOT_ENOUGH_SPACE?

Bug Check 0x00000136 is a Windows stop error associated with an initialization failure when attempting to boot from a Virtual Hard Disk.

A Virtual Hard Disk (VHD) is a file that behaves like a physical hard drive. It can contain a Windows installation, applications, system files, and user data. Windows supports configurations in which the operating system boots directly from a virtual disk. This is known as native VHD boot.

During native boot, Windows must access the physical volume containing the virtual disk. If that volume cannot provide enough free space for the required VHD expansion, Windows cannot complete the initialization process and may display the 0x00000136 blue screen.

Bug Check Parameters

Microsoft documents the following parameters for this stop code:

Parameter	Description
Parameter 1	0 – Unable to expand the VHD file to its full size.
Parameter 2	NT Status Code associated with the failure.
Parameter 3	Reserved.
Parameter 4	Reserved.

Parameter 2 can provide additional diagnostic information. For example, the historical Microsoft Knowledge Base article KB 2020922 documents an occurrence with status code 0xC000007F (STATUS_DISK_FULL). This example should not be assumed to apply to every occurrence of bug check 0x00000136.

Common Causes of Error 0x00000136

1. Insufficient Free Space on the Host Volume

The physical partition containing the VHD does not have enough available storage to accommodate the required expansion. Other files, applications, backups, and temporary data may have consumed the available space.

2. Dynamically Expanding VHD Exceeds Available Capacity

A dynamically expanding VHD or VHDX initially occupies less physical storage than its configured maximum virtual capacity. During native boot, Windows may need the host volume to accommodate the virtual disk's full configured size.

For example, a dynamically expanding virtual disk configured with a maximum capacity of 200 GB may currently occupy only 60 GB on the physical drive. The host volume must still have sufficient capacity for the required expansion.

3. Insufficient Space for the Page File

Native VHDX boot also requires additional free space on the physical partition for the Windows page file. Unlike a conventional virtual machine configuration, the page file is created outside the VHDX file.

Consequently, having enough space for the virtual disk alone may not be sufficient.

4. Host Partition Is Smaller Than the Required Virtual Disk Capacity

The physical partition containing the virtual disk may have a total capacity smaller than the storage requirements of the VHD and its associated boot operations.

This can happen when a large virtual disk is stored on a relatively small physical partition.

Symptoms of VHD Boot Host Volume Not Enough Space

Common symptoms include:

• A blue screen displaying stop code 0x00000136.
• The message VHD_BOOT_HOST_VOLUME_NOT_ENOUGH_SPACE.
• Windows fails to start from the configured virtual hard disk.
• The computer restarts during the native VHD boot process.
• A dynamically expanding virtual disk cannot expand to its configured maximum capacity.
• The operating system may remain accessible through another working boot entry, if one is available.

How to Fix Windows Stop Code 0x00000136

Follow these procedures in order. The recommended solution is to check the physical host volume and make sufficient storage available before changing the virtual disk or boot configuration.

Method 1: Check the Free Space on the VHD Host Volume

First, identify the physical partition containing the VHD or VHDX file.

1. Start Windows using another available operating system or boot entry, if possible.
2. Open File Explorer.
3. Select This PC.
4. Locate the physical drive containing the VHD or VHDX file.
5. Check its available free space.
6. Navigate to the folder containing the virtual disk and confirm its location.

Remember that the drive containing the Windows installation inside the virtual disk may be different from the physical drive hosting the VHD file.

Method 2: Identify Available Storage Using DiskPart

If Windows cannot start normally, use Windows Recovery Environment (WinRE) or compatible Windows installation media to inspect the physical volumes.

1. Boot from Windows recovery or installation media.
2. Select Repair your computer.
3. Navigate to Troubleshoot > Advanced options.
4. Open Command Prompt.

Start DiskPart:

diskpart

Display the available volumes:

list volume

Review the volume list to identify the physical partition containing the VHD or VHDX file. The output includes available volume information, including free space where reported.

Exit DiskPart:

exit

Important: Drive letters in the recovery environment can differ from those in normal Windows. Identify the correct host volume by checking its contents and location instead of relying only on its drive letter.

These commands are diagnostic and do not change partition sizes or modify the VHD.

Method 3: Free Up Space on the Host Volume

If the host volume has insufficient free space, remove or relocate unnecessary files to another suitable storage device.

If another Windows installation is available:

1. Open File Explorer.
2. Navigate to the physical volume containing the virtual disk.
3. Identify unnecessary downloads, old backups, and temporary files.
4. Move important personal files to another storage device.
5. Remove files that are no longer required.
6. Empty the Recycle Bin if appropriate.
7. Recheck the available free space.

You can also use Windows Storage settings to review temporary files and cleanup recommendations.

Refer to Microsoft's instructions: Free up drive space in Windows.

Important: Never delete the VHD or VHDX file, its parent disk, boot configuration files, or recovery partitions merely to free up space. Doing so can make Windows unbootable or cause permanent data loss.

Method 4: Check the Maximum Capacity of the VHD or VHDX

Checking only the current physical file size is not sufficient when troubleshooting a dynamically expanding virtual disk.

Determine the following information:

• The maximum configured virtual capacity of the VHD or VHDX.
• The current physical size of the virtual disk file.
• The free space available on the physical host volume.
• The additional storage required for the native boot page file.

For example:

Storage information	Example value
Maximum virtual disk capacity	200 GB
Current physical VHDX file size	60 GB
Available host volume space	100 GB
Result	Insufficient space for the required full expansion.

The example illustrates why a virtual disk that currently occupies only 60 GB can still fail to boot when its maximum capacity is 200 GB.

Method 5: Increase the Host Volume Capacity

If the physical storage device has sufficient unallocated space, extending the host partition may resolve the storage limitation.

Before extending the partition:

1. Back up important data and the complete virtual disk.
2. Inspect the physical disk layout using Disk Management.
3. Check whether suitable unallocated space is available.
4. Confirm that the partition can be extended using a supported procedure.
5. Extend the correct host partition without affecting the system or recovery partitions.

Partition resizing can cause data loss if performed incorrectly. Do not delete or format an existing partition unless you have verified its purpose and contents.

Method 6: Recreate the Virtual Disk with an Appropriate Capacity

If the dynamically expanding VHD is larger than the total capacity available on the host volume, simply deleting a few files may not provide a sustainable solution.

Microsoft's historical Knowledge Base article KB 2020922 documents this situation and recommends recreating the virtual disk as a fixed-size VHD of an appropriate size when the dynamically expanding disk exceeds the host volume's capacity.

Before recreating a virtual disk:

• Make a verified backup of the original VHD or VHDX.
• Confirm the actual storage requirements of the operating system and applications.
• Choose a virtual disk capacity that the host volume can accommodate.
• Account for additional storage requirements, including the page file for native VHDX boot.
• Use a supported virtual disk creation and deployment procedure.
• Verify the boot configuration before removing or replacing the original virtual disk.

A fixed-size virtual disk allocates its configured capacity on the host when it is created. Therefore, it also requires sufficient physical storage at creation time.

Warning: Recreating a virtual disk can result in data loss if the original contents are not preserved. Do not delete the original virtual disk until the replacement has been verified and Windows successfully boots from it.

Additional Troubleshooting When Windows Still Cannot Boot

If the error continues after correcting the host storage limitation, investigate the virtual disk configuration and boot environment.

Check the Native VHDX Boot Requirements

Microsoft documents several requirements for native VHDX boot:

• The local disk must contain a system partition with Windows boot-environment files and the Boot Configuration Data (BCD) store.
• A separate suitable partition must contain the VHDX file.
• The host partition must have sufficient free space for the dynamic VHDX to expand to its maximum capacity and for the page file.
• The VHDX and its parent volume must meet the documented native boot storage requirements.
• Native VHDX boot does not support booting from an SMB network share.

Also check whether the VHDX has a Zone.Identifier alternate data stream. Microsoft documents that, with Windows updates released from November 2022 onward, native VHDX boot is not supported when the VHDX carries this mark-of-the-web stream.

Refer to the official documentation: Deploy Windows with a VHDX (Native Boot).

Review the Boot Configuration

If the VHD or VHDX has been moved to another physical volume, the boot configuration may still reference its previous location.

Use Windows recovery tools and the supported BCD management procedures to inspect the boot configuration. Do not delete or recreate BCD entries without first identifying the correct Windows boot entry and preserving recovery options.

Microsoft provides additional information about Windows boot configuration through its BCDBoot command-line reference.

How to Verify the Fix

After correcting the host volume capacity, verify the following:

1. The physical host volume has enough available free space.
2. The VHD or VHDX file is accessible and has not been damaged.
3. The virtual disk has an appropriate maximum capacity for the host storage.
4. The additional page file storage requirement has been considered for native VHDX boot.
5. The Windows boot configuration points to the correct virtual disk location.
6. Windows successfully starts from the intended virtual disk.
7. The 0x00000136 stop error does not recur during subsequent boot attempts.

If the same error continues, collect the complete bug check parameters and investigate the NTSTATUS value in parameter 2. Also review the host volume's actual free capacity and the virtual disk configuration.

Prevention and Best Practices

• Maintain adequate free space on the physical volume hosting the VHD or VHDX.
• Consider maximum virtual disk capacity when planning native boot storage.
• Include the additional page file requirement when calculating host volume capacity.
• Monitor physical storage consumption regularly.
• Avoid storing unnecessary backups and large temporary files on the VHD host volume.
• Back up virtual disks before changing their capacity or storage location.
• Verify native boot requirements before deploying or moving virtual disks.
• Use an appropriately sized host partition rather than relying on minimal free space.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. What is Windows bug check 0x00000136?

It is a Windows stop error indicating that initialization failed while booting from a VHD because the physical volume hosting the virtual disk did not have enough free space to expand it.

2. What does VHD_BOOT_HOST_VOLUME_NOT_ENOUGH_SPACE mean?

It means that the host storage volume cannot provide sufficient physical space for the required expansion of the virtual hard disk during boot initialization.

3. Can I fix error 0x00000136 by deleting files inside the VHD?

Not necessarily. The problem concerns the physical volume hosting the VHD. Deleting files inside the virtual disk does not necessarily resolve the requirement for the host volume to accommodate the VHD's configured maximum capacity.

4. Why is a dynamically expanding VHD larger than its current file size?

A dynamically expanding VHD allocates physical storage as data is written. Its current file size can therefore be smaller than its maximum configured virtual capacity.

5. Can I use a fixed-size VHD instead?

A fixed-size virtual disk may be appropriate when the host volume cannot accommodate a dynamically expanding disk's maximum capacity. However, the host must have sufficient physical storage to create the fixed-size disk, and its contents and boot configuration must be preserved.

6. Does native VHDX boot require additional space for the page file?

Yes. Microsoft specifies that the physical partition hosting the VHDX must have sufficient free space for the dynamic VHDX to expand to its maximum size and for the page file, which is created outside the VHDX.

7. Is error 0x00000136 caused by a faulty hard drive?

Not necessarily. This bug check identifies insufficient host volume space for VHD expansion. It does not independently establish that the physical HDD or SSD is defective.

8. Will reinstalling Windows resolve this error?

Reinstalling Windows is not the recommended first solution. Check the physical host volume's free space and the VHD's maximum capacity first. Reinstallation does not automatically correct an undersized host partition.

Sources

• Microsoft Learn – Bug Check 0x136: VHD_BOOT_HOST_VOLUME_NOT_ENOUGH_SPACE
• Microsoft Learn – Deploy Windows with a VHDX (Native Boot)
• Microsoft Learn – DiskPart Command Reference
• Microsoft Support – Free Up Drive Space in Windows
• Microsoft Learn – BCDBoot Command-Line Options
• Microsoft Knowledge Base Archive – Stop 0x00000136 Error During Native VHD Boot (KB 2020922)