With the recent buzz of data encryption in the market, people have become quite fond of BitLocker encryption tools. BitLocker encryption tool is a full disk encryption software by Microsoft. It helps the users encrypt the drive volume and protect it from any unauthorized access.
Despite being one of the most used encryption software tools, it doesn’t offer any Windows Home Operating system services. However, you can decrypt BitLocker encrypted drives on Windows 10 operating system.
So, does that mean a user having a Home operating system cannot use the BitLocker encryption feature? Well, that is what we will discuss in this article and find the methods to solve this problem.
Can Windows 10 Home Users Enable BitLocker?
We have been asked this question several times by our readers. After seeing the number of readers having the same problem, we decided to come with a piece of information to educate our readers on whether or not they can enable the BitLocker encryption feature on their Windows 10 Home Operating system.
As we have already said, you can encrypt the drive using BitLocker on your Home operating system. However, you have the freedom to decrypt it. This gives us the hope to pursue different methods to use BitLocker on the Home operating system.
After doing extensive research on whether or not it is possible, we came across three different methods. Read on to know what these methods are.
Enable BitLocker On Windows 10 Home Operating System
Most of the users have a Home operating system on their PC/laptop. Hence, they cannot use the BitLocker encryption features solely reserved for the Windows 10 Pro.
Despite being an exclusive feature for the Windows Pro operating system, we have found ways to use it in the Home operating system.
Method 1: Using M3 BitLocker Loader
If you are looking for a method that will help enable your enable BitLocker encryption tool in your system without additional issues, then you are looking for M3 BitLocker Loader for Windows. It is a software tool that helps users use BitLocker features in the Windows 10 Home operating system.
Follow the steps to use this software effectively.
- Download and install the M3 BitLocker loader.
- Open the software.
- Select the drive you want to select.
- Click for encryption.
- Now enter the password.
- Generate the recovery key.
- Back up the recovery key.
- Once the recovery key is backed up, initiate the encryption process.
Method 2: Upgrade The Operating System
Perhaps this might be the most viable solution for many people out there. With a simple update of your operating system from Windows 10 Home to Windows 10 Pro, you can get all the premium features of the professional operating system. This includes the BitLocker encryption tool.
However, to upgrade your Windows 10 Operating system, you need, pay the upgrade price. If you are happy with paying the upgrade charges, this might be the better option out of all.
Method 3: Encrypt The Drive Using Other Windows Pro Operating System
As we have already discussed, you might not be able to encrypt the drive on your Windows 10 operating system; you can certainly decrypt the Bitlocker encrypted drive. You can use this to your advantage and enjoy the BitLocker Encryption on your Home system.
To do that, you need a different computer with Windows 10 Pro operating system. Use this system to encrypt the drive and connect the same drive to your Home operating system. Now try accessing the data from the drive; you would be asked to give the password to decrypt the drive.
Frequently Asked Questions
BitLocker drive encryption is a data protection feature that allows the user to encrypt their drives. However, this feature is only available in Windows 10 Pro operating system. If you have Windows 10 Home, you may not find this feature in your system.
Does that mean you won’t be able to use BitLocker on Windows 10 Home operating system? NO! There are a few methods that can be used to enable BitLocker on Windows 10 Home operating system. We have already talked about the methods in the above section of this article.
In this section, we have taken up some of the questions asked by our readers and answered them. It will help our readers to understand BitLocker further.
Q1. Does BitLocker Support Multi-Factor Authentications?
Yes, BitLocker supports multiple-factor authentication for the operating system drive. So, for example, if your system has TPM and you enable BitLocker on the system, you can use the additional form of authentication that comes along with the TPM protection.
Q2. Why Do Systems Require Two Partitions To Support BitLocker?
One of the key system requirements for the users to have Bitlocker in their system is to have at least two partitions. The two partitions are needed for the pre-startup authentication and system integrity verifications. In addition, this configuration helps the users protect the operating system and the information encrypted in the drive.
Q3. How Long The Initial Encryption Will Take?
The BitLocker encryption happens in the background while you continue to work on your system. Therefore, the encryption time varies on the type of drive you are encrypting and its volume. Furthermore, while initializing the encryption option, ensure that you are not using the same drive for your system operations.
Final Thoughts
Although BitLocker is not included in the Windows 10 Home operating system, you can use it in your Home operating system with different methods. We have already discussed the methods that you can use. So go through the methods and let us know which method worked for you.
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