Getting error code 0x800701E3 when copying files from laptop to external hard disk

I'm sorry, I am out of ideas.  But system images are such an important thing - armed with a recent system image & an installation disk [USB/DVD] to boot from, you can cope with most problems.

I would not expect this to be a malware-related problem.

There is one step that is about as overused as "turn it off then turn it back on again".  But it would be worth checking at this stage since the problem is a Windows one not an xHDD problem:-

Run SFC

1  Open an "elevated" ["Admin"] command prompt - right-click on the Start button & select it there.

2  Type this then press the Return/Enter key

SFC /scannow

3  Make a pot of tea while you let it run [20 minutes is typical].

4  When it finishes, it will report that "Windows resource protection" did not find any faults / found some & fixed them / found some but could not fix them.  If you let me know the result I can comment.  There is a guide in the forum "Wiki" article SFC and DISM - ZigZag WiKi.

Denis

I have emailed Western Digital for assistance after checking the site for this error. Nothing found, so will wait to hear back from them..I am guessing that it may be a firmware update that will tell me to do, but since worked on the desktop I would be reluctant to do that because on their site there are posts to issues people are having with the firmware updates.

Read the doco on SFC to your link going to back up files first then run, post back after runs..Doco says may need to run more than once ??! I assume run DISM as well ?? As doco states. If I don't get to this today..may be Thursday want to get files backed up first before run.

I need to take a step back here I have trying to do too many things,issues  at once and getting into too many issues for both pcs at a time...and screwing up was in the c drive and dragged a file into a folder should not have !! I Lost what the file was from c to where don't know ?? The file structure and layout had been wrong for awhile and I need to get back where was at appears that the SFC/scan now may do that ?? Ran a restore (for another issue) and it did not restore the original file structure as was before..so what can do to get it back..to where it should have been >>

The original file issue was there are files and folders that are laid out under the pcs name they are not there, the original ones are under a file in the userers folder but only can access if open c and go directly to them, now make it worse as I said dragged a file from c to know where ? It could be a system file for all I know..So just need to get all this back to the way it was appears that sfc/scannow may do that ?? or what ?? Going to wait to hear for you before I reboot, Don't want it to save settings.

I looking a little further after I wrote this I believe that I moved the folder App data which was the first folder under the c: directory which is now in a users folder, went to check the desktop but under c there is not a App Date folder listed there,,In the folder is a 3 file folders listed as file folders called roaming,local roaming and local....would not believe that this would be in a users folder so sure this is the ine that I moved ??????

I don't really have anything to add to ZigZag's article on SFC.  I do not now anything about DISM as I have never used it.  Several people say that SFC sometimes only finds problems on the third run but I have no experience of this [I have never known SFC find anything, so I suppose I am lucky].

I cannot see it being a driver issue but it is easy to check.  Open Device manager on both computers & look at the driver version for the external drive.  To do this, right-click on the entry under Disk drives for the xHDD & select Properties then the Driver tab.  If they are both the same then this is not the cause.

What antimalware applications have ever been run on the laptop?  If you have removed any in the past then they can leave behind residues that cause all kinds of weird symptoms.  I removed Norton at the start of 2010 & at the end of 2011 I had a problem copying large files on my internal network.  I then did what I had discovered I should have done in the first place and run a special removal utility for Norton and the problem was solved.  So if you have ever uninstalled any antimalware applications, including any trial versions that might have come with your computer, go to the maker's website & get their own removal tool [if you search for their guidance on removing their software, they'll either give you a link to their tool or tell you that it is not needed in their case].  MSSE does not count, it leaves behind no residues so needs no special removal tool.

One final shot in the dark.  Run defrag on your hard drives - use the Defragmenter interface for it.  You can get to it in one of these ways:-

1  Type defragmenter into that deranged search engine Cortana

2  Find it in Start menu, All apps, Windows administrative tools, Defrag & optimise

3  Go straight to it in File explorer at %windir%\system32\dfrgui.exe [and make a shortcut to it for future use] 

{%windir% is a variable that means C:\Windows for most cases but it can cope with your drive or Windows folder being called something else yet still find the right place}

Defrag can take a long time to run for the first time so perhaps you could run it when you are doing something else for a while.

I am only suggesting this because I have seen some very odd things solved this way and it is something that you will want to do at some stage anyway so it is not a waste of time.  You can run it on both your internal & your external hard drives. 

If nothing else fixes the problem then you are going to start wondering about doing a fresh installation of Windows 10.  Your installation USB/DVD can do that but you will also have to backup all your own files and reinstall all your applications.  It really is a lot of work.

Denis