The request failed due to a fatal device hardware error

When you are trying to copy files from or to another device, a pop-up window appears and says that “The request failed due to a fatal device hardware error”. The device just turns inaccessible. Actually, it’s a quite common error that can happen on any device. And for Western Digital (WD) and Seagate external hard drive users, you might see the fatal error is followed by “0x800701E3” error code.

Possible reasons for the request failed due to a fatal device hardware error

Various reasons can lead to the device hardware error and the following three are the commonly seen:

  • The USB cable loose connection.
  • Bad sectors on the disk. Even one bad sector can make the drive inaccessible.
  • Hardware fault in the hard drive.

In fact, such hard drive failure can happen at any given moment. And you should know that it means that your drive is dying. You might need to get a new one to replace it. But don’t be too worry, there are solutions can help fix the error.

How to fix the request failed due to a fatal device hardware error

There are some basic solutions you can first have a try:

  • Reconnect your device or try different USB cables.
  • Change the letter of the drive.
  • Update the drives.

If the above methods cannot help you fix the request failed to a fatal device hardware error, please check the following solutions.

Solution 1. Check the SMART status

SMART stands for Self-Monitoring, Analysis, and Reporting Technology. It’s one Windows built-in feature that can help check the status of your hard drive health.

Step 1. Type “command prompt” in the search box > right-click Command Prompt and choose Run as administrator.

Step 2. In the elevated command prompt, type wmic diskdrive get status and hit Enter.

If everything is fine, the OK status will be displayed. You can move on to get other solutions. But if it shows Caution, Unknown or Bad, it means the drive is in the falling process and you’d better make a backup for the drive immediately to ensure data safety.

To help you backup your drive easily, one free computer backup software named AOMEI Backupper Standard can help you finish the job. It can help you make a backup image for the drive or clone the drive to another one.

Step 1. Download, install and launch AOMEI Backupper Standard. Click Backup and choose Disk backup.

Step 2. Click Add Disk to choose the disk you need to backup.

Step 3. Then select the destination path to save the image. Confirm the operation and click Start Backup.

Solution 2. Run Diskpart Utility

Diskpart Utility can help check and repair hard drive problems related to bad sectors. So you can run it to fix “The request failed due to a fatal device hardware error”. If CHKDSK finds any bad sector, it will try to repair the error. The data stored in the bad sector will be lost. You can backup the disk in advance to avoid data loss.

Step 1. Type “command prompt” in the search box > right-click Command Prompt and choose Run as administrator.

Step 2. Input chkdsk F: /f /r (F is the drive letter of the inaccessible drive).

Solution 3. Run an error check

The Disk Error Checking can also help check and repair the bad sectors and file system errors. Besides, it can help improve the performance of the computer.

Step 1. Right-click the faulty hard drive and choose Properties.

Step 2. Click the Tools tab and click Check under Error checking.

If there is an error, it will prompt a message to scan the drive. When the scan is complete, you will be asked to restart your computer at once or schedule the error fixing on next restart.

Solution 4. Format the disk and initialize

If all the above methods cannot help you fix the request failed due to a fatal device hardware error, then formatting the drive is the last solution. Please note that it will erase all the data. So do not forget to backup your drive before formatting.

Format the disk

Step 1. Connect your drive to the computer.

Step 2. Right-click “This PC” > choose Manage > Disk Management.

Step 3. Right-click the drive > select format > click OK.

Step 4. Set the volume level, file system format > choose to Perform a quick format option > click OK to confirm.

Initialize the disk

Step 1. Go to Disk Management > right-click the drive and choose Initialize Disk.

Step 2. Select the correct partition type (MBR or GPT) > click OK to confirm.

Conclusion

That’s all for how to fix the request failed due to a fatal device hardware error. Just remember to backup your drive in advance with AOMEI Backupper Standard to ensure the safety of data before trying the solutions.

By the way, such device hardware error could occur anytime in the future. Hence, you’d better create a schedule backup to avoid data loss.