Enable BitLocker on fixed data drive on Windows 11.

Enable BitLocker encryption on Windows 11.

(See also this video tutorial on the Pureinfotech YouTube channel with the instructions to complete this task.) If you use Windows 11 Home, use the device encryption instructions instead. This guide will teach you the steps to manage BitLocker on a Windows 11 drive, fixed and data drives, and USB removable storage. If you have an older version, such as Windows 10, you can turn on BitLocker with TPM or software-based encryption, but it requires extra steps for additional authentication. Windows 11 offers two types of encryption: “BitLocker” to encrypt and protect the operating system and fixed data drives and “BitLocker To Go” to encrypt removable drives that you can access from different devices.īitLocker requires a Trusted Platform Module (TPM) chip for the best experience, and since you can’t install Windows 11 on a device without TPM, it’s no longer necessary to check and configure the security feature. When turning on encryption on the drive, any data becomes scrambled using the Advanced Encryption Standard (AES) encryption algorithm to encrypt the data in the entire drive, and no one can access it without the correct password, even if you share the file with other people. On Windows 11, BitLocker is a security feature that allows you to use encryption on a drive to protect your data from unauthorized access to your documents, pictures, and any kind of data you may have on the computer.īitLocker is available on Windows 11 Pro, Enterprise, and Education, and while it’s not available for the Home edition, Windows 11 still provide device encryption in specific devices, such as Surface Pro 9, Laptop 5, and others. If you have Windows 11 Home, you have to use the “device encryption” feature (if available).

BitLocker is only available on Windows 11 Pro.

Click on “Turn on BitLocker” for the system drive and continue with the directions, choosing the “Encrypt used disk space only” and “New encryption mode” options.

Open the “Properties” page for the drive to encrypt, and click on “Turn on BitLocker.”.

To enable BitLocker on Windows 11, open Settings > Storage > Advance storage settings > Disks & volumes.

Bitlocker togo