Secure portable storage devices using BitLocker To Go in Windows 11/10

In this post, nosotros will encounter how to enable & use BitLocker To Go in Windows 11/10 to secure portable storage devices . Portable storage devices can be Flash drives, SD cards, external hard disk drives.

BitLocker To Go extends BitLocker data protection to USB storage devices, enabling them to exist restricted with a passphrase. In improver to having control over passphrase length and complexity, It administrators tin set a policy that requires users to apply BitLocker protection to removable drives before beingness able to write to them. BitLocker To Become also allows users to more than securely share data with users who take non yet deployed Windows

Secure portable storage devices

As you know, BitLocker encrypts the difficult drives on your computer to provide enhanced protection against data theft or exposure on computers and removable drives that are lost or stolen and more than secure data deletion when BitLocker-protected computers are decommissioned as it is much more difficult to recover deleted data from an encrypted drive than from a non-encrypted bulldoze.

BitLocker To Go in Windows 10

BitLocker Drive Encryption on removable information drives is called BitLocker To Become. BitLocker is bachelor in Windows 10/8 Pro, Windows x/8 Enterprise and all editions of Windows Server 2022/2012.

Nosotros all employ USB Wink drives or pollex drives. We carry them around since they are very small-scale in size and user-friendly – and even so accept a big storage capacity. Just the chances are that you may misplace it, or someone may even steal it. Then whatever is on that thumb drive tin exist viewed by anyone.

We volition see how to secure our portable storage encrypting it using BitLocker To Get, and then that no ane can read them, unless one has a key to unlock information technology. We will see information technology how to do it footstep by step.

The post-obit is a listing of unlock options and the benefits and restrictions of each option.

1. Password
2. Smart Cart
3. Automatically unlock.

Encrypt Flash Bulldoze using BitLocker To Get

Connect your USB wink drive to be protected to your Windows arrangement. Launch Control Panel past typing Control Panel in the Start Screen and expect for BitLocker Drive Encryption icon and open it. If you tin't locate in Control Panel, simply search for it in Command Panel search box.

You'll get a screen similar this, click on 'Turn on BitLocker' for your Removable data Drive.

If you cannot see 'Plough on BitLocker' link, click the pointer which is on the right of the Removable Drive name.

You'll get to see this screen momentarily, initializing the Drive

You will adjacent be asked how you desire to unlock the bulldoze. Similar many people who don't have a smart card based security, nosotros will tick the checkbox for 'Use a password to unlock the drive'. Type and retype a strong password and click Next.

Yous'll side by side be asked – How do y'all want to back up your Recovery Fundamental. This stride is very important. If you forget your password or lose your Smart card, then you can employ this backed-up recovery key to unlock your bulldoze. So you can print it out and continue it safe or save it to a file or your Microsoft Account, in Windows ten/8.

One time information technology'southward done, a message that the Recovery Key has been saved will be shown.Click on Next.

Yous will now be offered the option to encrypt the entire drive or simply the used space on which information has been written to exist encrypted. Actually, this is new in Windows 8/10. Before in Windows 7, BitLocker requires that all data and complimentary infinite on the drive to exist encrypted. And this entire process of encryption could have very long fourth dimension on larger volumes.

Gear up a password for your external hard drive using BitLocker

When you choose Encrypt used disk space only option, only the portion of the drive that has data will be encrypted. The gratuitous deejay space will not be encrypted. Thus, encryption completes much faster on empty or partly empty drives than previous implementations of BitLocker.

BitLocker encrypts new data automatically as you add together it. Also if yous are enabling BitLocker on a drive (or PC) that's already in utilize, consider encrypting the entire drive. This ensures all information is protected, even those data that you lot had deleted earlier merely that might still incorporate retrievable info. So choose accordingly.

Once you click Next, it'll ask yous to ostend – Are you ready to encrypt this drive. Click on Outset Encrypting.

The Encrypting process will start. Depending on the size of the bulldoze or how much data on it and your Estimator speed, it'll complete the encryption process.

Also, note diverse options at present bachelor in the background for the drive. Once encryption is complete, you'll become the message.

Unlock Encrypted Drive using BitLocker To Go

Whenever you plug this encrypted Wink bulldoze into the PC, you'll become a message 'This drive is BitLocker-protected'. It pops upwards at the top right corner for some time and then fades away

Before fading, if you click on that message, you lot'll become the window to enter the password to Unlock the drive. Enter the password and click on Unlock.

If y'all are using the drive on the same PC, you accept an pick to 'Automatically unlock on this PC' too, when you click on More Options. However you lot'll take to type the password when used on other PCs.

Anyway if you don't click on the message, before it fades abroad, you lot can unlock it using File Explorer, where it gets listed as a Removable disk. Simply right-click on the icon to get the 'Unlock Drive…' option.

Also note the icon before unlocking and once yous unlock information technology, its icon changes.

This is how you lot encrypt and secure your portable devices and drives using BitLocker To Go in Windows 10. If yous are a Windows 10/8 user and often proceed important data, documents on a portable drive, don't forget to secure it this mode.

Turn off BitLocker To Get

If we desire to use these drives every bit normal drives again, can we plough off BitLocker encryption? This is how you can practice information technology.

Attach your Flash bulldoze or any other portable storage device to your PC, unlock the drive by inbound the countersign as suggested in the article. In one case unlocked, from the File Explorer, correct click on the Unlocked drive icon and click on Manage BitLocker.

The BitLocker Bulldoze Encryption in Control Panel will open upwards.

Click on Turn off BitLocker choice for your drive.

It'll open a window, click on Plough off BitLocker. Equally your drive gets decrypted, it may take considerable time, but ane can go along using your PC during the procedure.

In one case done, your flash drives or other portable drives can at present again exist used as normal drives.

Source: https://www.thewindowsclub.com/secure-portable-storage-devices-bitlocker-to-go

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