No one is surprised at all by the fact that personal information or corporate data of increased value can be stored on a personal computer. It is undesirable if such information falls into the hands of third parties who can use it, causing serious problems for the former owner of the PC.
Depending on the circumstances, Bitlocker can be activated and deactivated.
It is for this reason that many users express a desire to take some action aimed at limited access to all files stored on the computer. Such a procedure really exists. Having done certain manipulations, none of the outsiders, not knowing the password or the key to its recovery, will not be able to access the documents.
It is possible to protect important information from familiarization by third parties if you carry out Bitlocker disk encryption. Such actions help to ensure complete confidentiality of documents not only on a specific PC, but also when someone has removed the hard drive and inserted it into another personal computer.
Algorithm on and off function
Bitlocker disk encryption is performed on Windows 7, 8 and 10, but not all versions. It is assumed that the motherboard, which is equipped with a specific computer on which the user wants to encrypt, should have a TPM module.
TIP. Do not be discouraged if you know for sure that there is no such special module on your motherboard. There are some tricks to "ignore" such a requirement, respectively, to install without such a module.Before you begin the process of encrypting all files, it is important to note that this procedure is quite long. The exact amount of time called pre-difficult. It all depends on how much information is available on the hard disk. In the process of encryption, Windows 10 will continue to work, but it is unlikely to be able to please you with its performance, since the performance indicator will be significantly reduced.
Enable feature
If you have Windows 10 installed on your computer, while you are experiencing an active desire to enable data encryption, use our tips so that you not only succeed, but the way to implement such a desire is not difficult. Initially, find the “Win” key on your keyboard, sometimes it is accompanied by the Windows icon, hold it down and at the same time hold the “R” key. Pressing these two keys simultaneously causes the Run window to open.
In the window that opens, you will find an empty line in which you will need to enter "gpedit.msc". After clicking on the “Ok” button, a new “Local Group Policy Editor” window will open. In this window we have to go a little way.
On the left side of the window, find and immediately click on the line “Computer Configuration”, in the opened submenu, find “Administrative templates”, and then in the next opened submenu, go to the parameter located in the first place in the list and called “Windows Components”.
Now translate your view on the right side of the window, find “Bitlocker Disk Encryption” in it, double-click it to activate it. Now a new list will open, in which the next line should be the “Operating system disks” line. Click also on this line, you need to make another transition to get closer to the window where Bitlocker will be directly configured, allowing it to be turned on, what exactly you want.
Locate the line “This policy setting allows you to configure the requirement for additional authentication at startup, ” double-click this option to expand this setting. In the open window you will find the desired word "Enable", next to which you will find the checkbox next to it, in it you need to put a specific mark in the form of a tick of your consent.
Below in this window is the subsection "Platforms", in it you need to check the checkbox next to the proposal to use BitLocker without a special module. This is very important, especially if your Windows 10 does not have a TPM module.
Setting the desired function in this window is completed, so you can close it. Now hover the mouse over the “Windows” icon, just right-click on it, which will allow an additional submenu to appear. In it you will find the string "Control Panel", go to it, and then to the next line "Bitlocker Disk Encryption."
Do not forget to indicate where you want to encrypt. This can be done on both hard and removable disks. After selecting the desired object, click on the "Enable Bitlocker" button.
Now, Windows 10 will launch an automatic process, occasionally attracting your attention, inviting you to concretize your desires. Of course, it is best to make a backup before performing such a process. Otherwise, if you lose the password and the key to it, even the owner of the PC will not be able to recover information.
Next, the process of preparing the disk for subsequent encryption will begin. During this process, you are not allowed to turn off the computer, since this action can cause serious harm to the operating system. After such a failure, you simply can not start your Windows 10, respectively, instead of encryption you have to install a new operating system, spending extra time.
As soon as the disk preparation is completed successfully, the disk itself itself begins to be configured for encryption. You will be prompted to enter a password, which subsequently provides access to encrypted files. You will also be prompted to invent and enter the recovery key. Both of these important components are best kept in a safe place, best printed. It’s very silly to keep the password and recovery key on the PC itself.
During the encryption process, the system may ask you which part specifically you want to encrypt. It is best to expose the entire disk space to such a procedure, although there is an option to encrypt only the occupied space.
It remains to choose such a course of action as the “New Encryption Mode”, and then start the automatic check of the BitLocker operating system. Then the system will safely continue the process, after which you will be asked to restart your PC. Of course, fulfill this requirement, reboot.
After the next launch of Windows 10, you will make sure that access to documents without entering a password will not be possible. The encryption process will continue, you can control it by clicking on the BitLocker icon located in the notification panel.
Disable feature
If for some reason the files on your computer are no longer of increased importance, and you don’t like to enter the password every time to access them, then we suggest that you simply disable the encryption function.
To perform such actions, go to the notification panel, find the BitLocker icon there, click on it. At the bottom of the open window you will find the line “Manage BitLocker”, click on it.
Now the system prompts you to choose which action is preferable for you:
- archive backup key;
- change the password to access encrypted files;
- remove previously set password;
- disable bitlocker.
Of course, if you decide to disable BitLocker, you should select the last option offered. A new window will immediately appear on the screen, in which the system will want to make sure that you really want to disable the encryption function.
Of course, if you need to use a computer at this moment, you can afford it, there is no categorical ban on it. However, you should adjust yourself to the fact that PC performance at this point can be extremely low. Understanding the reason for such slowness is not difficult, because the operating system has to unlock a huge amount of information.
So, having a desire to encrypt or decrypt files on a computer, it is enough to familiarize ourselves with our recommendations, then without haste to carry out each step of the designated algorithm, and at the end rejoice at the achieved result.