Windows 7: BitLocker Drive Encryption - Windows 7 Drive - Turn On or Off with no TPM

Brink · 02 Mar 2009

How to Turn BitLocker On or Off without a TPM for Windows 7 Drive

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Click here to read the entire tutorial

Last edited by Brink; 31 Jul 2012 at 03:02 PM..

Brink · 13 Apr 2010

You're welcome Martin.

WindowsStar, I will test this later today to see if it can be done now without having to the preparation section as well. Hopefully it will no longer be needed.

Brink · 14 Apr 2010

WindowsStar,

I tried it again in a new Windows 7 installation, and it appears that you will still need to do the Preparation section to enable BitLocker on the C drive without a TPM. This is the message I got when I tried.

BitLocker Drive Encryption - Windows 7 Drive - Turn On or Off with no TPM-c-drive.jpg

WindowsStar · 16 Apr 2010

Quote: Originally Posted by Brink

WindowsStar,

I tried it again in a new Windows 7 installation, and it appears that you will still need to do the Preparation section to enable BitLocker on the C drive without a TPM. This is the message I got when I tried.

Attachment 67203

Hummm that is weird. I remember tying to install BitLocker and getting the same message but then later reading somewhere that MS changed it. So I tried installing and then it works....Another tech has been working on the machine too, maybe I need to talk to him.....Plus....I need to go check the BIOS and see if maybe it was disabled and I enabled it???? or he did??? ... UGH so many machines they all tend to blend together after awhile.

Brink · 16 Apr 2010

Strange. Have you checked to see if it may have been enabled via registry or GPEDIT already?

WindowsStar · 16 Apr 2010

Quote: Originally Posted by Brink

Strange. Have you checked to see if it may have been enabled via registry or GPEDIT already?

GPO...good catch....I will check that Monday.

severedsolo · 16 Apr 2010

should probably ask this before i go ahead and do it... will the encryption have any sort of performance degredation on the system?

Brink · 16 Apr 2010

Hello Martin,

It may take a tad bit longer to load and save some items from the drive since it now has to encrypt and decrypt the file, but it's almost unnoticeable.

severedsolo · 16 Apr 2010

fantastic

shouldn't be a problem, i fitted a faster hard drive today, so hopefully any loss will go completely unoticed, thanks again shawn

Brink · 16 Apr 2010

You're most welcome Martin.

severedsolo · 16 Apr 2010

fantastic it works! now noone will be able to access my pron collection... umm i mean private documents lol

on a serious note, can i trouble you one last time Shawn? lets say that someone tries to access my computer without the key, when it reaches the "please insert key and press escape to reboot" screen, will it do any harm to the computer to do a hard power down?

Windows 7: BitLocker Drive Encryption - Windows 7 Drive - Turn On or Off with no TPM

BitLocker Drive Encryption - Windows 7 Drive - Turn On or Off with no TPM problems?