Solved Is there anyway to safely password protect an external usb drive?


rezpower

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I didn't know where exactly to post this one! The title says it all! I want to make sure no other person can access my eexternal usb drive.
I am just looking for some reliable software which will not eventually lock myself out!
 

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You could use a zip style app that offers password protection on the zip container.
 

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Thanks a lot for your reply. Actually I have a 5TB external usb drive and it's full! What I am afraid with bitlocker is that it may take a very long time!
To be honest I am not trying to hide and protect sensitive data from hackers! I just want to block access from kids and family members to the drive. So if a faster easy method is available it would be as good (Better)!
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 11 PRO
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Razer Blade 17
    CPU
    Intel i7-12800H
    Memory
    32 GB DDR5 4800 MHz dual-channel
    Graphics Card(s)
    NVIDIA® GeForce RTX™ 3080 Ti
    Sound Card
    Steinberg UR44
    Hard Drives
    1 TB SSD (M.2 NVMe PCIe 4.0 x4
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender + Malwarebytes
Thanks a lot for your reply. Actually I have a 5TB external usb drive and it's full! What I am afraid with bitlocker is that it may take a very long time!
To be honest I am not trying to hide and protect sensitive data from hackers! I just want to block access from kids and family members to the drive. So if a faster easy method is available it would be as good (Better)!
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 10 Pro + others in VHDs
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    ASUS Vivobook 14
    CPU
    I7
    Motherboard
    Yep, Laptop has one.
    Memory
    16 GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    Integrated Intel Iris XE
    Sound Card
    Realtek built in
    Monitor(s) Displays
    N/A
    Screen Resolution
    1920x1080
    Hard Drives
    1 TB Optane NVME SSD, 1 TB NVME SSD
    PSU
    Yep, got one
    Case
    Yep, got one
    Cooling
    Stella Artois
    Keyboard
    Built in
    Mouse
    Bluetooth , wired
    Internet Speed
    72 Mb/s :-(
    Browser
    Edge mostly
    Antivirus
    Defender
    Other Info
    TPM 2.0
Actually I have a 5TB external usb drive and it's full! What I am afraid with bitlocker is that it may take a very long time!
I like the idea that was presented regarding the use of a group policy, but I just thought that I would address this concern.

If your concern about the amount of time that it will take to encrypt the drive is that you are thinking that the system must remain on until the encryption is completed, please be aware that this is not the case. You can perfectly safely perform a normal shutdown or reboot and the drive encryption will resume at the next startup. The only thing that you want to avoid is simply unplugging the device while encryption is in progress.

For example, with the default policies, an external drive can be unplugged without needing to use the option to safely remove a device. If BitLocker drive encryption is in progress, you would want to pause the encryption first. But a normal shutdown or restart will do that for you.
 

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    Win11 Pro 23H2
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    PC/Desktop
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    Home Built
    CPU
    Intel i7-11700K
    Motherboard
    ASUS Prime Z590-A
    Memory
    128GB Crucial Ballistix 3200MHz DRAM
    Graphics Card(s)
    No GPU - CPU graphics only (for now)
    Sound Card
    Realtek (on motherboard)
    Monitor(s) Displays
    HP Envy 32
    Screen Resolution
    2560 x 1440
    Hard Drives
    1 x 1TB NVMe Gen 4 x 4 SSD
    1 x 2TB NVMe Gen 3 x 4 SSD
    2 x 512GB 2.5" SSDs
    2 x 8TB HD
    PSU
    Corsair HX850i
    Case
    Corsair iCue 5000X RGB
    Cooling
    Noctua NH-D15 chromax.black cooler + 10 case fans
    Keyboard
    CODE backlit mechanical keyboard
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    Logitech MX Master 3
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    1Gb Up / 1 Gb Down
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    Additional options installed:
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    ASUS ThunderboltEX 4 PCIe adapter
  • Operating System
    Win11 Pro 23H2
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Lenovo ThinkBook 13x Gen 2
    CPU
    Intel i7-1255U
    Memory
    16 GB
    Graphics card(s)
    Intel Iris Xe Graphics
    Sound Card
    Realtek® ALC3306-CG codec
    Monitor(s) Displays
    13.3-inch IPS Display
    Screen Resolution
    WQXGA (2560 x 1600)
    Hard Drives
    2 TB 4 x 4 NVMe SSD
    PSU
    USB-C / Thunderbolt 4 Power / Charging
    Mouse
    Buttonless Glass Precision Touchpad
    Keyboard
    Backlit, spill resistant keyboard
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    WiFi 6e / Bluetooth 5.1 / Facial Recognition / Fingerprint Sensor / ToF (Time of Flight) Human Presence Sensor
I like the idea that was presented regarding the use of a group policy, but I just thought that I would address this concern.

If your concern about the amount of time that it will take to encrypt the drive is that you are thinking that the system must remain on until the encryption is completed, please be aware that this is not the case. You can perfectly safely perform a normal shutdown or reboot and the drive encryption will resume at the next startup. The only thing that you want to avoid is simply unplugging the device while encryption is in progress.

For example, with the default policies, an external drive can be unplugged without needing to use the option to safely remove a device. If BitLocker drive encryption is in progress, you would want to pause the encryption first. But a normal shutdown or restart will do that for you.
This is very interesting and a good news for me! So just to make sure I correctly understand what you say and don;t do anything stupid:
I can start the encryption of my drive now and then pause it before going to bed tonight, then remove the usb drive from PC, shutdown PC and reconnect the drive 2 days later and without any action on my side the encryption will resume!?

Also another question I have: is it possible while the drive is connected and encrypting to copy some files to and from that drive?
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 11 PRO
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Razer Blade 17
    CPU
    Intel i7-12800H
    Memory
    32 GB DDR5 4800 MHz dual-channel
    Graphics Card(s)
    NVIDIA® GeForce RTX™ 3080 Ti
    Sound Card
    Steinberg UR44
    Hard Drives
    1 TB SSD (M.2 NVMe PCIe 4.0 x4
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender + Malwarebytes
The answer to both of your questions is "yes".

1) You can safely shutdown or restart the computer and encryption will resume at next power on.

2) While encryption is in progress you will still have full read / write access to the drive.
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Win11 Pro 23H2
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Home Built
    CPU
    Intel i7-11700K
    Motherboard
    ASUS Prime Z590-A
    Memory
    128GB Crucial Ballistix 3200MHz DRAM
    Graphics Card(s)
    No GPU - CPU graphics only (for now)
    Sound Card
    Realtek (on motherboard)
    Monitor(s) Displays
    HP Envy 32
    Screen Resolution
    2560 x 1440
    Hard Drives
    1 x 1TB NVMe Gen 4 x 4 SSD
    1 x 2TB NVMe Gen 3 x 4 SSD
    2 x 512GB 2.5" SSDs
    2 x 8TB HD
    PSU
    Corsair HX850i
    Case
    Corsair iCue 5000X RGB
    Cooling
    Noctua NH-D15 chromax.black cooler + 10 case fans
    Keyboard
    CODE backlit mechanical keyboard
    Mouse
    Logitech MX Master 3
    Internet Speed
    1Gb Up / 1 Gb Down
    Browser
    Edge
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
    Other Info
    Additional options installed:
    WiFi 6E PCIe adapter
    ASUS ThunderboltEX 4 PCIe adapter
  • Operating System
    Win11 Pro 23H2
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Lenovo ThinkBook 13x Gen 2
    CPU
    Intel i7-1255U
    Memory
    16 GB
    Graphics card(s)
    Intel Iris Xe Graphics
    Sound Card
    Realtek® ALC3306-CG codec
    Monitor(s) Displays
    13.3-inch IPS Display
    Screen Resolution
    WQXGA (2560 x 1600)
    Hard Drives
    2 TB 4 x 4 NVMe SSD
    PSU
    USB-C / Thunderbolt 4 Power / Charging
    Mouse
    Buttonless Glass Precision Touchpad
    Keyboard
    Backlit, spill resistant keyboard
    Internet Speed
    1Gb Up / 1Gb Down
    Browser
    Edge
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
    Other Info
    WiFi 6e / Bluetooth 5.1 / Facial Recognition / Fingerprint Sensor / ToF (Time of Flight) Human Presence Sensor
Just tried this and I do need to make one correction:

After you restart the machine, the encryption will not resume automatically. When you plug that drive back in, you will need to unlock it. After unlocking, the status of the encryption will show as paused. You will then need to select "Resume" to continue the encryption.
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Win11 Pro 23H2
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Home Built
    CPU
    Intel i7-11700K
    Motherboard
    ASUS Prime Z590-A
    Memory
    128GB Crucial Ballistix 3200MHz DRAM
    Graphics Card(s)
    No GPU - CPU graphics only (for now)
    Sound Card
    Realtek (on motherboard)
    Monitor(s) Displays
    HP Envy 32
    Screen Resolution
    2560 x 1440
    Hard Drives
    1 x 1TB NVMe Gen 4 x 4 SSD
    1 x 2TB NVMe Gen 3 x 4 SSD
    2 x 512GB 2.5" SSDs
    2 x 8TB HD
    PSU
    Corsair HX850i
    Case
    Corsair iCue 5000X RGB
    Cooling
    Noctua NH-D15 chromax.black cooler + 10 case fans
    Keyboard
    CODE backlit mechanical keyboard
    Mouse
    Logitech MX Master 3
    Internet Speed
    1Gb Up / 1 Gb Down
    Browser
    Edge
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
    Other Info
    Additional options installed:
    WiFi 6E PCIe adapter
    ASUS ThunderboltEX 4 PCIe adapter
  • Operating System
    Win11 Pro 23H2
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Lenovo ThinkBook 13x Gen 2
    CPU
    Intel i7-1255U
    Memory
    16 GB
    Graphics card(s)
    Intel Iris Xe Graphics
    Sound Card
    Realtek® ALC3306-CG codec
    Monitor(s) Displays
    13.3-inch IPS Display
    Screen Resolution
    WQXGA (2560 x 1600)
    Hard Drives
    2 TB 4 x 4 NVMe SSD
    PSU
    USB-C / Thunderbolt 4 Power / Charging
    Mouse
    Buttonless Glass Precision Touchpad
    Keyboard
    Backlit, spill resistant keyboard
    Internet Speed
    1Gb Up / 1Gb Down
    Browser
    Edge
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
    Other Info
    WiFi 6e / Bluetooth 5.1 / Facial Recognition / Fingerprint Sensor / ToF (Time of Flight) Human Presence Sensor
@hsehestedt
Thank you very much for the great support and help. :clap:
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 11 PRO
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Razer Blade 17
    CPU
    Intel i7-12800H
    Memory
    32 GB DDR5 4800 MHz dual-channel
    Graphics Card(s)
    NVIDIA® GeForce RTX™ 3080 Ti
    Sound Card
    Steinberg UR44
    Hard Drives
    1 TB SSD (M.2 NVMe PCIe 4.0 x4
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender + Malwarebytes

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Win11 Pro 23H2
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Home Built
    CPU
    Intel i7-11700K
    Motherboard
    ASUS Prime Z590-A
    Memory
    128GB Crucial Ballistix 3200MHz DRAM
    Graphics Card(s)
    No GPU - CPU graphics only (for now)
    Sound Card
    Realtek (on motherboard)
    Monitor(s) Displays
    HP Envy 32
    Screen Resolution
    2560 x 1440
    Hard Drives
    1 x 1TB NVMe Gen 4 x 4 SSD
    1 x 2TB NVMe Gen 3 x 4 SSD
    2 x 512GB 2.5" SSDs
    2 x 8TB HD
    PSU
    Corsair HX850i
    Case
    Corsair iCue 5000X RGB
    Cooling
    Noctua NH-D15 chromax.black cooler + 10 case fans
    Keyboard
    CODE backlit mechanical keyboard
    Mouse
    Logitech MX Master 3
    Internet Speed
    1Gb Up / 1 Gb Down
    Browser
    Edge
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
    Other Info
    Additional options installed:
    WiFi 6E PCIe adapter
    ASUS ThunderboltEX 4 PCIe adapter
  • Operating System
    Win11 Pro 23H2
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Lenovo ThinkBook 13x Gen 2
    CPU
    Intel i7-1255U
    Memory
    16 GB
    Graphics card(s)
    Intel Iris Xe Graphics
    Sound Card
    Realtek® ALC3306-CG codec
    Monitor(s) Displays
    13.3-inch IPS Display
    Screen Resolution
    WQXGA (2560 x 1600)
    Hard Drives
    2 TB 4 x 4 NVMe SSD
    PSU
    USB-C / Thunderbolt 4 Power / Charging
    Mouse
    Buttonless Glass Precision Touchpad
    Keyboard
    Backlit, spill resistant keyboard
    Internet Speed
    1Gb Up / 1Gb Down
    Browser
    Edge
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
    Other Info
    WiFi 6e / Bluetooth 5.1 / Facial Recognition / Fingerprint Sensor / ToF (Time of Flight) Human Presence Sensor

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