220-1102 Security Practice Question
A technician is configuring a Windows 10 workstation for a remote worker who will handle sensitive data. The company requires device encryption. The technician enables BitLocker, but it fails, stating 'The system cannot find the file specified.' The technician verifies the TPM is enabled and initialized. What is the most likely cause?
⚠ Common exam trap
Test-takers frequently assume TPM issues (like version or initialization) are the root cause, but the error message points to a missing boot file, which is a partition configuration problem, not a TPM problem.
Answer choices
Why each option matters
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
The system partition is not active or is missing.
BitLocker requires a system partition (typically the System Reserved partition) that is active and contains the boot configuration data (BCD). If this partition is missing or not marked as active, BitLocker cannot write the necessary boot files and fails with 'The system cannot find the file specified.' Even with TPM enabled and initialized, the absence of a proper system partition prevents encryption from starting.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
The TPM is not the correct version.
Why it's wrong here
A TPM version mismatch (e.g., TPM 1.2 versus TPM 2.0) would cause BitLocker to report that the TPM is not compatible or is not present, typically with an error like 'A compatible Trusted Platform Module (TPM) Security Device must be present.' The TPM does not store or retrieve Windows boot files; it only protects encryption keys by validating boot integrity. Therefore, a TPM version issue would never produce 'The system cannot find the file specified'—that error points to missing or inaccessible data on disk, not to a cryptographic component.
- ✓
The system partition is not active or is missing.
Why this is correct
BitLocker requires a dedicated active system partition (usually 100–500 MB) that holds the boot configuration data (BCD) and boot manager files (e.g., BOOTMGR). If this partition is missing or marked inactive, Windows cannot locate the BCD store during startup, and BitLocker fails with error 0x80070002, 'The system cannot find the file specified.' Without an active system partition, the boot chain is broken before BitLocker can even begin its pre-boot validation, making this the correct cause for that specific error message.
- ✗
The BIOS is set to legacy boot.
Why it's wrong here
If the system is configured for legacy BIOS/MBR boot instead of UEFI, BitLocker with TPM protection cannot work at all because TPM-based measured boot requires UEFI with secure boot. The typical symptom is an error stating that the TPM is not available or that the firmware does not meet requirement, not a 'file not found' error. Legacy boot mode would prevent BitLocker from enabling or starting, but it does not cause the OS to look for a missing boot file—that behavior is independent of the firmware mode and more directly tied to partition layout.
- ✗
The C: drive is not formatted as NTFS.
Why it's wrong here
BitLocker does require the OS partition (usually C:) to be formatted with NTFS, but if it were FAT32 or exFAT, the BitLocker setup would immediately refuse with an error like 'The file system is not supported' and would not attempt to boot from the drive. The error 'system cannot find the file specified' occurs during the boot process after the OS partition is already accessible, meaning the file system is valid. A missing or inactive system partition affects the boot files, not the file system of C:, so an NTFS mismatch would yield a completely different, earlier failure.
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Key term
Windows 10
Windows 10 is a personal computer operating system developed by Microsoft that combines the familiarity of Windows 7 with the modern features of Windows 8, designed to run on a wide range of devices from desktops to tablets.
Key term
Windows
Windows is a family of operating systems developed by Microsoft that manages computer hardware and software, providing a graphical user interface for users to interact with their devices.
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JA
Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
This 220-1102 practice question is part of Courseiva's free CompTIA certification practice question bank. Courseiva provides original exam-style practice questions with explanations, topic-based practice, mock exams, readiness tracking, and study analytics to help learners prepare for the 220-1102 exam.