Bitlocker for usb sticks


Hazel123

Hazel123

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Having just upgraded to pro again - I have bitlocker turned off (and want it turned off). But I notice there is an option to encrypt usb sticks. I'm only wanting to do this because I have a few slightly defunct ones I want to discard, so encrypting them would be easier than trying to destroy them! When I say defunct, they can be written to but just unreliable for using regularly. So I'm assuming encryption would work! As long as the drive is recognised.

So the question is - is it possible to encrypt the usb drives without turning on bitlocker for the entire computer. Thank you.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 11
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    HP Pavilion 14-ce3514sa
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    Core i5
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    16gb
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    Samsung 970 evo plus 2TB
    Cooling
    Could be better
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    Originally installed with a 500gb H10 Optane ssd
Yes. You can enable BitLocker To Go for a portable USB drive without encrypting your system’s C: drive. BitLocker To Go is specifically designed for removable data drives like USB flash drives, external hard drives, and SD cards. It works independently of the operating system drive encryption.
 

My Computer

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  • OS
    Windows 11 Pro
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    Dell XPS 16 9640
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    Intel Core Ultra 9 185H
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TraderGary said:
Yes. You can enable BitLocker To Go for a portable USB drive without encrypting your system’s C: drive. BitLocker To Go is specifically designed for removable data drives like USB flash drives, external hard drives, and SD cards. It works independently of the operating system drive encryption.
Click to expand...
Thank you. I'll try it. So enabling it won't mess anything else up will it? 😂
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 11
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    HP Pavilion 14-ce3514sa
    CPU
    Core i5
    Memory
    16gb
    Hard Drives
    Samsung 970 evo plus 2TB
    Cooling
    Could be better
    Internet Speed
    200mbps Starlink
    Browser
    Firefox
    Other Info
    Originally installed with a 500gb H10 Optane ssd
Hazel123 said:
Thank you. I'll try it. So enabling it won't mess anything else up will it? 😂
Click to expand...
If there is ever a need to decrypt, you must have the password you used to encrypt. Of course you could always bypass that by simply formatting the portable drive. Your main C: drive is not involved in any way.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 11 Pro
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Dell XPS 16 9640
    CPU
    Intel Core Ultra 9 185H
    Memory
    32GB LPDDR5x 7467 MT/s
    Graphics Card(s)
    NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 8GB GDDR6
    Monitor(s) Displays
    16.3 inch 4K+ OLED Infinity Edge Touch
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    3840 x 2400
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    1 Terabyte M.2 PCIe NVMe SSD
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    Vapor Chamber Cooling
    Mouse
    None
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    960 Mbps Netgear Mesh + 2 Satellites
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    Amazon Kindle for PC
    Lightroom/Photoshop subscription
    Interactive Brokers Trader Workstation
What if you do a full format (not quick) on the USB? This should overwrite all the USB blocks and making recovery difficult. Even if anyone could find files they would be corrupted and useless.
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Windows 11 Pro 23H2 (5472), 24H2 (4652)
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Acer Extensa 5630EZ
    CPU
    Mobile DualCore Intel Core 2 Duo T7250, 2000 MHz
    Motherboard
    Acer Extensa 5630
    Memory
    4GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    Mobile Intel(R) GMA 4500M (Mobile 4 series)
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    Realtek ALC268 @ Intel 82801IB ICH9 - High Definition Audio Controller
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    1
    Screen Resolution
    1280x800
    Hard Drives
    Samsung SSD 850 EVO 250GB SATA Device (250 GB, SATA-III)
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    VDSL 50 Mbps
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    MICROSOFT EDGE
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    WINDOWS DEFENDER
    Other Info
    Legacy MBR installation, no TPM, no Secure Boot, no WDDM 2.0 graphics drivers, no SSE4.2, cannot get more unsupported ;) This is only my test laptop. I had installed Windows 11 here before upgrading my main PC. For my main PC I use everyday see my 2nd system specs.
  • Operating System
    Windows 11 Pro v24H2 (build 26100.4652)
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Custom-built PC
    CPU
    Intel Core-i7 3770 3.40GHz s1155 (3rd generation)
    Motherboard
    Asus P8H61 s1155 ATX
    Memory
    2x Kingston Hyper-X Blu 8GB DDR3-1600
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    Realtek HD audio (ALC887)
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    Sony Bravia KDL-19L4000 19" LCD TV via VGA
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    1440x900 32-bit 60Hz
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    WD Blue SA510 2.5 1000GB SSD as system disk, Western Digital Caviar Purple 4TB SATA III (WD40PURZ) as second
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    SUPERCASE MIDI-TOWER
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    Deepcool Gamma Archer CPU cooler, 1x 8cm fan at the back
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    Mitsumi 101-key PS/2
    Mouse
    Sunnyline OptiEye PS/2
    Internet Speed
    100Mbps
    Browser
    Microsoft Edge, Mozilla Firefox
    Antivirus
    Microsoft Windows Defender
    Other Info
    Legacy BIOS (MBR) installation, no TPM, no Secure Boot, WDDM 3.0 graphics drivers, WEI score 7.4
Or both! Full format and encryption. It's hard destroying usb sticks, and chucking them in the bin - well they are more likely to be picked up and tried out by someone.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 11
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    HP Pavilion 14-ce3514sa
    CPU
    Core i5
    Memory
    16gb
    Hard Drives
    Samsung 970 evo plus 2TB
    Cooling
    Could be better
    Internet Speed
    200mbps Starlink
    Browser
    Firefox
    Other Info
    Originally installed with a 500gb H10 Optane ssd

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Windows 11 Pro 24H2 26100.4652
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Dell Optiplex 7080
    CPU
    i9-10900 10 core 20 threads
    Motherboard
    DELL 0J37VM
    Memory
    32 gb
    Graphics Card(s)
    none-Intel UHD Graphics 630
    Sound Card
    Integrated Realtek
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Benq 27
    Screen Resolution
    2560x1440
    Hard Drives
    2x1tb Solidigm m.2 nvme /External drives 512gb Samsung m.2 sata+2tb Kingston m2.nvme
    PSU
    500w
    Case
    MT
    Cooling
    Dell Premium
    Keyboard
    Logitech wired
    Mouse
    Logitech wireless
    Internet Speed
    so slow I'm too embarrassed to tell
    Browser
    #1 Edge #2 Firefox
    Antivirus
    Defender+MWB Premium
  • Operating System
    Windows 11 Pro 24H2 26100.4061
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Beelink Mini PC SER5
    CPU
    AMD Ryzen 7 6800U
    Memory
    32 gb
    Graphics card(s)
    integrated
    Sound Card
    integrated
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Benq 27
    Screen Resolution
    2560x1440
    Hard Drives
    1TB Crucial nvme
    Keyboard
    Logitech wired
    Mouse
    Logitech wireless
    Internet Speed
    still too embarrassed to tell
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    Defender
    Other Info
    System 3 is non compliant Dell 9020 i7-4770/24gb ram Win11 PRO 26100.4061
Hazel123 said:
Full format and encryption. It's hard destroying usb sticks, and chucking them in the bin
Click to expand...
Even full format just marks them as clean, overwrite them with random data.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 11 Home Insider Canary
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    CPU
    AMD Ryzen 5 8600G (07/24)
    Motherboard
    ASROCK B650M-HDV/M.2 3.25 (07/24)
    Memory
    2x32GB Kingston FURY DDR5 5600 MHz CL36 @5200 CL40 (07/24)
    Graphics Card(s)
    ASROCK Radeon RX 6600 Challenger D 8G @48FPS (08/24)
    Sound Card
    Creative Sound BlasterX AE-5 Plus (05/24)
    Monitor(s) Displays
    24" Philips 24M1N3200ZS/00 (05/24)
    Screen Resolution
    1920×1080@165Hz via DP1.4
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    Kingston KC3000 NVMe 2TB (05/24)
    ADATA XPG GAMMIX S11 Pro 512GB (07/19)
    PSU
    Seasonic Core GM 550 Gold (04/24)
    Case
    Fractal Design Define 7 Mini with 3x Noctua NF-P14s/12@555rpm (04/24)
    Cooling
    Noctua NH-U12S with Noctua NF-P12 (04/24)
    Keyboard
    HP Pavilion Wired Keyboard 300 (07/24) + Rabalux 76017 Parker (01/24)
    Mouse
    Logitech M330 Silent Plus (04/23)
    Internet Speed
    500/100 Mbps via RouterOS (05/21) & TCP Optimizer
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    Edge & Brave for YouTube & LibreWolf for FB
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    NextDNS blocking 95% TLDs
    Other Info
    Backup: Hasleo Backup Suite (PreOS)
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    Chair: Huzaro Force 4.4 Grey Mesh (05/24)
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    2nd Monitor: AOC G2460VQ6 @75Hz (02/19)
BitLocker To Go has another really cool trick up its sleeve. After you encrypt your USB drive, there is an option to have the drive always remembered by the computer used to encrypt it. Now whenever you put that drive in your computer, you never have to enter the password, the drive automagically decrypts and acts like any other drive, but only on this computer! Is that cool or what? 😎
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 11 Pro
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Dell XPS 16 9640
    CPU
    Intel Core Ultra 9 185H
    Memory
    32GB LPDDR5x 7467 MT/s
    Graphics Card(s)
    NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 8GB GDDR6
    Monitor(s) Displays
    16.3 inch 4K+ OLED Infinity Edge Touch
    Screen Resolution
    3840 x 2400
    Hard Drives
    1 Terabyte M.2 PCIe NVMe SSD
    Cooling
    Vapor Chamber Cooling
    Mouse
    None
    Internet Speed
    960 Mbps Netgear Mesh + 2 Satellites
    Browser
    Microsoft Edge (Chromium)
    Antivirus
    Microsoft Windows Security (Defender)
    Other Info
    Microsoft 365 subscription
    Microsoft OneDrive 1TB Cloud
    Microsoft Visual Studio
    Microsoft Visual Studio Code
    Microsoft Sysinternals Suite
    Microsoft BitLocker
    Microsoft Copilot
    Macrium Reflect X subscription
    Dell Support Assist
    Dell Command | Update
    1Password Password Manager
    Amazon Kindle for PC
    Lightroom/Photoshop subscription
    Interactive Brokers Trader Workstation
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