How To Enable BitLocker Encryption On Windows 11 (Secure Disk Drive)

Last updated on June 9th, 2024 at 03:13 pm

Enable BitLocker encryption on windows 11 to encrypt data on your disk drive and protect it from unwanted data theft or malware.

BitLocker is the built-in security feature in Microsoft Windows operating systems. With the help of this tool, you can protect data on your system by encrypting entire disk volumes (Drives). When you enable the BitLocker function, it encrypts all the system’s drives including system files and user data. After that, no one can assess encrypted disk volumes without a correct encryption key.

How BitLocker Work (Brief Intro)

In some devices, BitLocker encryption will be enabled by default when you buy a laptop or prebuilt desktop. If not, you have to enable it on your PC. When you turn on BitLocker on your system, it encrypts the selected or entire disk volumes including system files and private data and ensures that it can only be accessed with a private encryption key.

The best thing is that you can also encrypt removal drives such as USB flash drives and external hard disks.

Compatibility and Requirements To Use BitLocker Encryption On Windows 11

• The device must have TPM 1.2 or later versions (If your device doesn’t have a TPM, don’t forget to save the startup key when you are going to enable BitLocker Encryption)
• A device with a TPM must also have a (TCG)-compliant BIOS or UEFI firmware.
• Your system hard disk must be partitioned with at least two drives.
• Windows OS versions (Edition) that support the BitLocker enablement.

Windows Pro	Windows Enterprise	Windows Pro Education/SE	Windows Education
Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes

Limitations: It’s important to know that BitLocker is only available for Windows 11 users running Windows 11 Pro, Education and Enterprise versions. If you are using any other version, upgrade it on Pro edition.

Method To Enable BitLocker Encryption On Windows 11 Pro | Enterprise | Education OS

Here are the steps to use and enable BitLocker security encryption on Windows 11 based computers and PCs.

By enabling this free security feature on your system, no one can access your drive’s data without an encryption key. That means you can easily protect your sensitive files and folders from unauthorized users.

To Use Bitlocker On Windows 11 To Lock Disk Drives:

1. Click the “Start” button to open “Start Menu” >>> select the “Settings” app or use the “Windows Logo Key + I” shortcut key.
2. Once you are in the “Settings” section, select “System” >>> click the “Storage” to expand its options.

3. Under the “Storage” section, click the “Advanced storage settings” and then select the “Disk & Volumes” option.

4. Now you will see a list of your local drives. Select the local drive that you want to encrypt with the BitLocker tool and then click the “Properties” button.

5. Scroll down a little bit, and click the “Turn On BitLocker” link.

6. Again, click the “Turn On BitLocker” next to the drive you selected to encrypt with BitLocker.

7. After completing a system check, it will ask you to save your backup recovery key. Here you can choose three different ways.

• save to your Microsoft account
• save to a file
• print the recovery key

IMPORTANT About Recovery Key: 1.       The encryption is very important to recover your files or data without a password. If you lose your password and don’t have a recovery key, you won’t be able to access your files on your encrypted system. 2.       We always recommend you save your 48-digit recovery key in your Microsoft account. Otherwise, choose any one method and keep it safe.

 

8. Once you are done, click the “next”.
9. Now select the “Encrypt used space only (faster and best for new PCs and drives)” option and then click “Next”.

10. Now it’s time to choose your encryption mode. It’s recommended to select “New encryption mode (best for fixed drives on this device)” encryption mode and then hit the “Next” button.

11. In the next window, select the “Run BitLocker system check the option” and click “Continue”.

12. After completing the encryption process, restart your PC for once.

13. Once your PC reboots, wait for a few minutes to encrypt your selective drive. If you follow all the steps correctly, you will see a lock icon next to your drive.

Sometimes, you don’t want to continue with BitLocker encryption or want to disable BitLocker temporarily to perform certain tasks. In that case, you can Turn off BitLocker temporarily or permanently.

How To Use Device Encryption On Windows 11 Home Edition

As we said earlier, Bitlocker only comes in Pro editions. It’s a professional utility powered by Microsoft OS and doesn’t work in “Home Editions”. So, the question is how to use BitLocker in Windows 11 Home Edition.

The fact is that W11 Home Edition users can’t use the official BitLocker tool to encrypt their system drives. However, another similar process (device encryption) can be used to encrypt system volumes on the Home edition.

Steps To Use Device Encryption W11 Home Edition:

1. Open the Settings app on your PC.
2. Go to the “Privacy & Security” tab in the right-left side menu.
3. Now you will see a “Device Encryption” option to encrypt data on this device to help protect it from offline and unauthorized access.
4. Select the “Device Encryption” and toggle on to enable protection.

5. The automatic encryption process will start on your system.

In this way, you can encrypt disk volumes on Windows 11 Home Edition without BitLocker tool. Do you know, device encryption is the same for both Windows 10 and Windows 11 Home Edition?

How To Backup Recovery Key In Windows 11 Home Edition

After enabling encryption on W11 Home, your private decryption key is automatically backed up to your Microsoft account. That means you do not need to save it separately. Simply, access your Microsoft account to find your decryption key. However, if you want to save or print this key, follow the steps below.

1. Open “Control Panel” >>> select the “System & Security” from the available options.

2. Scroll down and click the “Device Encryption (backup your recovery key)” option.

3. In the next window, click the “Back Up Your Recovery Key” link.

4. Now select the location to save your private key or save it to take a print.

NOTE: If you are selecting the “Save to a file”, you have to choose a location that is not on the encrypted disk volume.

5. Done!!!

GUIDE: Enable Device Encryption On Windows 10 Home Edition 

These are the straightforward instructions to enable BitLocker encryption on Windows 11 OS. Simply follow the instructions properly, turn ON BitLocker and keep your data safe on encrypted disk volumes. Same as hard disks, users can use BitLocker to lock folders on Windows 11.

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