Updating BIOS with Bitlocker. Do ALL drives need suspending or just the C drive?


The BIOS for "My Computer" shown below was updated again today from 1.11.0 to 1.12.0.

I used the Dell Command | Update app to do the update.

Note that Dell Command | Update automatically suspends BitLocker while the BIOS is being updated. I didn't have to do that as a separate operation.

Screenshot 2022-08-17 163631.png

Screenshot 2022-08-17 163754.png

Screenshot 2022-08-17 164029.png

After choosing Restart the operation was successfully completed and BitLocker was enabled again.
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Windows 11 Pro
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Dell XPS 15 9510 OLED
    CPU
    11th Gen i9 -11900H
    Memory
    32 GB 3200 MHz DDR4
    Graphics Card(s)
    NVIDIA® GeForce® RTX 3050Ti
    Monitor(s) Displays
    15.6" OLED Infinity Edge Touch
    Screen Resolution
    16:10 Aspect Ratio (3456 x 2160)
    Hard Drives
    1 Terabyte M.2 PCIe NVMe SSD
    2 Thunderbolt™ 4 (USB Type-C™)
    1 USB 3.2 Gen 2 (USB Type-C™)
    SD Card Reader (SD, SDHC, SDXC)
    Internet Speed
    900 Mbps Netgear Orbi + 2 Satellites
    Browser
    Microsoft Edge (Chromium) + Bing
    Antivirus
    Microsoft Windows Security (Defender)
    Other Info
    Microsoft 365 subscription
    Microsoft OneDrive 1TB Cloud
    Microsoft Outlook
    Microsoft OneNote
    Microsoft PowerToys
    Microsoft Visual Studio
    Microsoft Visual Studio Code
    Macrium Reflect
    Dell Support Assist
    Dell Command | Update
    LastPass Password Manager
    Amazon Kindle
    Interactive Brokers Trader Workstation
    Lightroom/Photoshop subscription
  • Operating System
    Windows 11 Pro
    Computer type
    Tablet
    Manufacturer/Model
    Microsoft Surface Pro 7
    CPU
    i5
    Memory
    8 GB
    Hard Drives
    256GB SSD
    Internet Speed
    900 Mbps Netgear Orbi + 2 Satellites
    Browser
    Microsoft Edge (Chromium) + Bing
    Antivirus
    Microsoft Windows Security (Defender)
    Other Info
    Microsoft 365 subscription (Office)
    Microsoft OneDrive 1TB Cloud
    Microsoft Outlook
    Microsoft OneNote
    Microsoft Visual Studio
    Amazon Kindle
    Interactive Brokers Trader Workstation
    Lightroom/Photoshop subscription
That pretty much proves that anyone who manually updates their bios needs to suspend bitlocker first, no matter what brand computer they have. Not everyone has a Dell and, even those that do, do not always use command update. It's suffice to say that many consider manufacturer apps as being bloatware and remove them.
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Windows 11 Pro 23H2 22631.3296
    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
    1tb Solidigm m.2 +256gb ssd+512 gb usb m.2 sata
    PSU
    500w
    Case
    MT
    Cooling
    Dell Premium
    Keyboard
    Logitech wired
    Mouse
    Logitech wireless
    Internet Speed
    so slow I'm too embarrassed to tell
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    Defender+MWB Premium
  • Operating System
    Windows 10 Pro 22H2 19045.3930
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Dell Optiplex 9020
    CPU
    i7-4770
    Memory
    24 gb
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Benq 27
    Screen Resolution
    2560x1440
    Hard Drives
    256 gb Toshiba BG4 M.2 NVE SSB and 1 tb hdd
    PSU
    500w
    Case
    MT
    Cooling
    Dell factory
    Mouse
    Logitech wireless
    Keyboard
    Logitech wired
    Internet Speed
    still not telling
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    Defender+MWB Premium
If you forget to suspend BitLocker on the OS drive, Windows will challenge you for the BitLocker recovery key at next boot of the system, so it's not the end of the world, simply an annoyance to deal with.
 

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
for the BitLocker recovery key at next boot of the system
According to that Dell article I mentioned, not only would BL recovery key be asked for at next boot, but at each and every boot going forward. If that be true, it would irritate the heck out of me.

I wonder how many users, who have no clue what BL is, enable it during setup.

I also found this Dell article that is quite interesting BitLocker is Prompting for a Recovery Key, and You Cannot Locate the Key | Dell US In part it says "A BIOS update can trigger a BitLocker Recovery event as the PCR banks between the time Windows runs, and the time the BIOS is flashed, changes. However, all Dell BIOS updates suspend BitLocker before the flash so a BitLocker Recovery event cannot occur as a result of updating the firmware. If the computer goes into recovery mode, it is likely due to an external drive being connected as it changes the boot drive enumeration. Users can configure this in the BIOS. Outside of this specific scenario, there is not an event that triggers BitLocker encryption unexpectedly. The BitLocker encryption process happens in the background and often goes unnoticed by users until a Recovery event occurs."
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Windows 11 Pro 23H2 22631.3296
    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
    1tb Solidigm m.2 +256gb ssd+512 gb usb m.2 sata
    PSU
    500w
    Case
    MT
    Cooling
    Dell Premium
    Keyboard
    Logitech wired
    Mouse
    Logitech wireless
    Internet Speed
    so slow I'm too embarrassed to tell
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    Defender+MWB Premium
  • Operating System
    Windows 10 Pro 22H2 19045.3930
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Dell Optiplex 9020
    CPU
    i7-4770
    Memory
    24 gb
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Benq 27
    Screen Resolution
    2560x1440
    Hard Drives
    256 gb Toshiba BG4 M.2 NVE SSB and 1 tb hdd
    PSU
    500w
    Case
    MT
    Cooling
    Dell factory
    Mouse
    Logitech wireless
    Keyboard
    Logitech wired
    Internet Speed
    still not telling
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    Defender+MWB Premium
The BIOS for "My Computer" shown below was updated again today from 1.11.0 to 1.12.0.

I used the Dell Command | Update app to do the update.

Note that Dell Command | Update automatically suspends BitLocker while the BIOS is being updated. I didn't have to do that as a separate operation.

After choosing Restart the operation was successfully completed and BitLocker was enabled again.

Yes, that is how I understood it all as well. What I didn't like (well maybe not the right word there) is Dell having the option to effectively do things without my input. It wasn't so much BIOS updates and so on that made me clean install, it was other stuff as well that was running and that I didn't know about, like the Dell version of system restore. I wanted a lean and mean Windows install :) but as I said earlier, the Dell set up is designed to be pretty much user independent in operation and run all these things without worry.

That pretty much proves that anyone who manually updates their bios needs to suspend bitlocker first, no matter what brand computer they have. Not everyone has a Dell and, even those that do, do not always use command update. It's suffice to say that many consider manufacturer apps as being bloatware and remove them.

On Bloatware. On mine which is classed I suppose as a business laptop there was nothing apart from Windows installed. Nothing as in none of usual junk apps that come with new PC's but it did seem to have lots of Dell utilities related to maintenance/system restores and goodness know what else. I could see the disk space falling in front of my eyes (that was the Dell sys restore app).

Some of you might remember this. Look at the Macrium image in post #10 and compare to the one in post #5. That was how much space all the Dell stuff was using vs a clean install. I also see I mention 'loads more stuff' installed by me on the second image:

 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    W11 Pro x64 22H2
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Dell 7760 Mobile Precision 17"
    CPU
    Intel i5
    Motherboard
    Unknown
    Memory
    8Gb
    Graphics Card(s)
    Intel HD Graphics
    Sound Card
    Realtek
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Internal
    Hard Drives
    2 x 256Gb SSD
    PSU
    Dell 240 watt
    Mouse
    Dell Premier Bluetooth
    Internet Speed
    50Mbps
    Browser
    Edge
    Antivirus
    Default Microsoft Security

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