Windows 11 encrypted my drive automatically


NavyLCDR

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I am troubleshooting a failure to upgrade to 22449.1000 and when I installed MiniTool Partition Wizard Free to adjust partition sizes I found that my C: drive and D: drive were both bitlocker encrypted! I never turned on bitlocker nor encrypted drives before. I know the drives were not encrypted under Windows 10. Somewhere in the process of upgrading Windows 10 to 11, or upgrading Windows 11 through the various builds, Microsoft encrypted my drives without notifying me. If there was an issue and I needed to recover files from the drive, this could have presented a huge issue! I really don't like all the "enhanced security" that Microsoft is enabling without notifying the user first when they upgrade from Windows 10 to 11.

So, I wonder, now that I am decrypting the drives and turning bitlocker off, if I do get a successful upgrade to 22449.100 if it will enable bitlocker and encrypt again without giving me a choice?
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Windows 11
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Homebuilt
    CPU
    AMD Ryzen 7 3800XT
    Motherboard
    ASUS ROG Crosshair VII Hero (WiFi)
    Memory
    32GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    EVGA GeForce GTX 1080 Ti
  • Operating System
    Windows 11 Education
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Dell Inspiron 7773
    CPU
    Intel i7-8550U
    Memory
    32GB
    Graphics card(s)
    Nvidia Geforce MX150
    Sound Card
    Realtek
    Monitor(s) Displays
    17"
    Screen Resolution
    1920 x 1080
    Hard Drives
    Toshiba 512GB NVMe SSD
    SK Hynix 512GB SATA SSD
    Internet Speed
    Fast!
Might want to read this...

Mandatory Microsoft accounts for Windows 11 Home might be a good thing


One of the features where the MSA will matter is with BitLocker, which encrypts the contents of the storage drive. BitLocker has been available since Windows 8. On Windows 10, it’s been on by default on newer machines that support a feature called Modern Standby (basically making PCs wake up as fast as your phone). If you haven’t noticed BitLocker on your new computer it may be because, well, you skipped creating a Microsoft account and used a local account. If you did that, BitLocker is not turned on.


BitLocker will be enabled by default on all Windows 11 PCs. Once the drive is encrypted with BitLocker, Windows asks where you’d like to back up the encryption key. The key reduces the odds of the data being tampered with, should your laptop get stolen or lost. It’s stored inside of the firmware TPM in the CPU, or in a discrete TPM 2.0 module, where it will be called upon to unseal the drive during the login process.
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Win 11 Home ♦♦♦22631.3374 ♦♦♦♦♦♦♦23H2
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Built by Ghot® [May 2020]
    CPU
    AMD Ryzen 7 3700X
    Motherboard
    Asus Pro WS X570-ACE (BIOS 4702)
    Memory
    G.Skill (F4-3200C14D-16GTZKW)
    Graphics Card(s)
    EVGA RTX 2070 (08G-P4-2171-KR)
    Sound Card
    Realtek ALC1220P / ALC S1220A
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Dell U3011 30"
    Screen Resolution
    2560 x 1600
    Hard Drives
    2x Samsung 860 EVO 500GB,
    WD 4TB Black FZBX - SATA III,
    WD 8TB Black FZBX - SATA III,
    DRW-24B1ST CD/DVD Burner
    PSU
    PC Power & Cooling 750W Quad EPS12V
    Case
    Cooler Master ATCS 840 Tower
    Cooling
    CM Hyper 212 EVO (push/pull)
    Keyboard
    Ducky DK9008 Shine II Blue LED
    Mouse
    Logitech Optical M-100
    Internet Speed
    300/300
    Browser
    Firefox (latest)
    Antivirus
    Bitdefender Internet Security
    Other Info
    Speakers: Klipsch Pro Media 2.1
  • Operating System
    Windows XP Pro 32bit w/SP3
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Built by Ghot® (not in use)
    CPU
    AMD Athlon 64 X2 5000+ (OC'd @ 3.2Ghz)
    Motherboard
    ASUS M2N32-SLI Deluxe Wireless Edition
    Memory
    TWIN2X2048-6400C4DHX (2 x 1GB, DDR2 800)
    Graphics card(s)
    EVGA 256-P2-N758-TR GeForce 8600GT SSC
    Sound Card
    Onboard
    Monitor(s) Displays
    ViewSonic G90FB Black 19" Professional (CRT)
    Screen Resolution
    up to 2048 x 1536
    Hard Drives
    WD 36GB 10,000rpm Raptor SATA
    Seagate 80GB 7200rpm SATA
    Lite-On LTR-52246S CD/RW
    Lite-On LH-18A1P CD/DVD Burner
    PSU
    PC Power & Cooling Silencer 750 Quad EPS12V
    Case
    Generic Beige case, 80mm fans
    Cooling
    ZALMAN 9500A 92mm CPU Cooler
    Mouse
    Logitech Optical M-BT96a
    Keyboard
    Logitech Classic Keybooard 200
    Internet Speed
    300/300
    Browser
    Firefox 3.x ??
    Antivirus
    Symantec (Norton)
    Other Info
    Still assembled, still runs. Haven't turned it on for 13 years?
Here is Windows 11 Pro, currently 22000.176 Beta channel. I never switched on BitLocker and never used it before (all important files are stored on removable drives). But if it is on one way or another, it shouldn't be a problem to switch it back off in Control Panel, look for BitLocker Drive Encryption.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 11 Pro; Windows 8.1 Pro
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    CPU
    i7-12700K (Alder Lake)
    Motherboard
    Asus PRIME Z690-M Plus D4
    Memory
    16 GB (2x8 Corsair DDR4-2132)
    Graphics Card(s)
    Asus GeForce 1050 Ti, 4 GB
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Philips 235PQ
    Screen Resolution
    1920x1080
    Hard Drives
    Windows 11: Samsung SSD 870 EVO, 500 GB (SATA), MBR
    Windows 8.1: Samsung SSD 980 PRO, 500 GB (M.2), MBR
    PSU
    Platimax D.F. 1050 W (80 Plus Platinum)
    Internet Speed
    Local link 1 Gbps, provider's line 500 Mbps
    Browser
    Google Chrome
    Other Info
    Realtek PCIe GbE Family Controller (for Windows 8.1 compatibility)
    Microsoft Office H&S 2013 x64
Here is Windows 11 Pro, currently 22000.176 Beta channel. I never switched on BitLocker and never used it before (all important files are stored on removable drives). But if it is on one way or another, it shouldn't be a problem to switch it back off in Control Panel, look for BitLocker Drive Encryption.
Bit locker also turned itself on on my pc during upgrade to Win 11, it was no problem I just turned it off again but I did not enable it.
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Windows 11 Pro
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Alienware M18 R1
    CPU
    13th Gen Core i9 13900HX
    Memory
    32GB DDR5 @4800MHz 2x16GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    Geforce RTX 4090HX 16GB
    Sound Card
    Nvidia HD / Realtek ALC3254
    Monitor(s) Displays
    18" QHD+
    Screen Resolution
    25660 X 1600
    Hard Drives
    C: KIOXIA (Toshiba) 2TB KXG80ZNV2T04 NVMe PCIe M.2 SSD
    D: KIOXIA (Toshiba) 2TB KXG80ZNV2T04 NVMe PCIe M.2 SSD
    Case
    Dark Metallic Moon
    Keyboard
    Alienware M Series per-key AlienFX RGB
    Mouse
    Alienware AW610M
    Browser
    Chrome and Firefox
    Antivirus
    Norton
    Other Info
    Killer E3000 Ethernet Controller
    Killer Killer AX1690 Wi-Fi Network Adaptor Wi-Fi 6E
    Bluetooth 5.2
    Alienware Z01G Graphic Amplifier
  • Operating System
    Windows 11 Pro
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Alienware Area 51m R2
    CPU
    10th Gen i-9 10900 K
    Memory
    32Gb Dual Channel DDR4 @ 8843MHz
    Graphics card(s)
    Nvidia RTX 2080 Super
    Sound Card
    Nvidia
    Screen Resolution
    1920 x 1080
    Hard Drives
    Hard Drive C: Samsung 2TB SSD PM981a NVMe
    Hard Drive D:Samsung 2TB SSD 970 EVO Plus
    Mouse
    Alienware 610M
    Browser
    Chrome
    Antivirus
    Norton
I... In-Place upgraded from Win 10 Home (local account) to Win 11 Home (local account).
BitLocker never turned on for me.
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Win 11 Home ♦♦♦22631.3374 ♦♦♦♦♦♦♦23H2
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Built by Ghot® [May 2020]
    CPU
    AMD Ryzen 7 3700X
    Motherboard
    Asus Pro WS X570-ACE (BIOS 4702)
    Memory
    G.Skill (F4-3200C14D-16GTZKW)
    Graphics Card(s)
    EVGA RTX 2070 (08G-P4-2171-KR)
    Sound Card
    Realtek ALC1220P / ALC S1220A
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Dell U3011 30"
    Screen Resolution
    2560 x 1600
    Hard Drives
    2x Samsung 860 EVO 500GB,
    WD 4TB Black FZBX - SATA III,
    WD 8TB Black FZBX - SATA III,
    DRW-24B1ST CD/DVD Burner
    PSU
    PC Power & Cooling 750W Quad EPS12V
    Case
    Cooler Master ATCS 840 Tower
    Cooling
    CM Hyper 212 EVO (push/pull)
    Keyboard
    Ducky DK9008 Shine II Blue LED
    Mouse
    Logitech Optical M-100
    Internet Speed
    300/300
    Browser
    Firefox (latest)
    Antivirus
    Bitdefender Internet Security
    Other Info
    Speakers: Klipsch Pro Media 2.1
  • Operating System
    Windows XP Pro 32bit w/SP3
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Built by Ghot® (not in use)
    CPU
    AMD Athlon 64 X2 5000+ (OC'd @ 3.2Ghz)
    Motherboard
    ASUS M2N32-SLI Deluxe Wireless Edition
    Memory
    TWIN2X2048-6400C4DHX (2 x 1GB, DDR2 800)
    Graphics card(s)
    EVGA 256-P2-N758-TR GeForce 8600GT SSC
    Sound Card
    Onboard
    Monitor(s) Displays
    ViewSonic G90FB Black 19" Professional (CRT)
    Screen Resolution
    up to 2048 x 1536
    Hard Drives
    WD 36GB 10,000rpm Raptor SATA
    Seagate 80GB 7200rpm SATA
    Lite-On LTR-52246S CD/RW
    Lite-On LH-18A1P CD/DVD Burner
    PSU
    PC Power & Cooling Silencer 750 Quad EPS12V
    Case
    Generic Beige case, 80mm fans
    Cooling
    ZALMAN 9500A 92mm CPU Cooler
    Mouse
    Logitech Optical M-BT96a
    Keyboard
    Logitech Classic Keybooard 200
    Internet Speed
    300/300
    Browser
    Firefox 3.x ??
    Antivirus
    Symantec (Norton)
    Other Info
    Still assembled, still runs. Haven't turned it on for 13 years?
Quote from the article:

BitLocker will be enabled by default on all Windows 11 PCs. Once the drive is encrypted with BitLocker, Windows asks where you’d like to back up the encryption key.

That is not true. I was never asked where I'd like to back up the encryption key. I was not notified in any manner that Windows 11 had encrypted my drives - and that is a serious issue to me considering how hard it can be to get into an encrypted drive. One example, my daughter's laptop failed to boot after an upgrade to Windows 10. I was able to remove the hard, connect it to my desktop, and use dism to revert pending changes, the replace the drive back into her laptop and solved the problem. If the drive was bitlocker encrypted - plus now TPM required - it probably would have been next to impossible for me to do that.
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Windows 11
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Homebuilt
    CPU
    AMD Ryzen 7 3800XT
    Motherboard
    ASUS ROG Crosshair VII Hero (WiFi)
    Memory
    32GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    EVGA GeForce GTX 1080 Ti
  • Operating System
    Windows 11 Education
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Dell Inspiron 7773
    CPU
    Intel i7-8550U
    Memory
    32GB
    Graphics card(s)
    Nvidia Geforce MX150
    Sound Card
    Realtek
    Monitor(s) Displays
    17"
    Screen Resolution
    1920 x 1080
    Hard Drives
    Toshiba 512GB NVMe SSD
    SK Hynix 512GB SATA SSD
    Internet Speed
    Fast!
I... In-Place upgraded from Win 10 Home (local account) to Win 11 Home (local account).
BitLocker never turned on for me.
BitLocker is not available in Home editions.
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Windows 11
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Homebuilt
    CPU
    AMD Ryzen 7 3800XT
    Motherboard
    ASUS ROG Crosshair VII Hero (WiFi)
    Memory
    32GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    EVGA GeForce GTX 1080 Ti
  • Operating System
    Windows 11 Education
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Dell Inspiron 7773
    CPU
    Intel i7-8550U
    Memory
    32GB
    Graphics card(s)
    Nvidia Geforce MX150
    Sound Card
    Realtek
    Monitor(s) Displays
    17"
    Screen Resolution
    1920 x 1080
    Hard Drives
    Toshiba 512GB NVMe SSD
    SK Hynix 512GB SATA SSD
    Internet Speed
    Fast!
BitLocker is not available in Home editions.


I just noticed that. I went to Privacy and Security, and Device Encryption wasn't there. :)
I had been under the impression, that Home didn't have BitLocker on Win 10, but on Win 11 it did. Apparently, that's not the case.


But from that article, I wonder IF being tied to a Microsoft account, is what's turning on BitLocker?
 
Last edited:

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Win 11 Home ♦♦♦22631.3374 ♦♦♦♦♦♦♦23H2
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Built by Ghot® [May 2020]
    CPU
    AMD Ryzen 7 3700X
    Motherboard
    Asus Pro WS X570-ACE (BIOS 4702)
    Memory
    G.Skill (F4-3200C14D-16GTZKW)
    Graphics Card(s)
    EVGA RTX 2070 (08G-P4-2171-KR)
    Sound Card
    Realtek ALC1220P / ALC S1220A
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Dell U3011 30"
    Screen Resolution
    2560 x 1600
    Hard Drives
    2x Samsung 860 EVO 500GB,
    WD 4TB Black FZBX - SATA III,
    WD 8TB Black FZBX - SATA III,
    DRW-24B1ST CD/DVD Burner
    PSU
    PC Power & Cooling 750W Quad EPS12V
    Case
    Cooler Master ATCS 840 Tower
    Cooling
    CM Hyper 212 EVO (push/pull)
    Keyboard
    Ducky DK9008 Shine II Blue LED
    Mouse
    Logitech Optical M-100
    Internet Speed
    300/300
    Browser
    Firefox (latest)
    Antivirus
    Bitdefender Internet Security
    Other Info
    Speakers: Klipsch Pro Media 2.1
  • Operating System
    Windows XP Pro 32bit w/SP3
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Built by Ghot® (not in use)
    CPU
    AMD Athlon 64 X2 5000+ (OC'd @ 3.2Ghz)
    Motherboard
    ASUS M2N32-SLI Deluxe Wireless Edition
    Memory
    TWIN2X2048-6400C4DHX (2 x 1GB, DDR2 800)
    Graphics card(s)
    EVGA 256-P2-N758-TR GeForce 8600GT SSC
    Sound Card
    Onboard
    Monitor(s) Displays
    ViewSonic G90FB Black 19" Professional (CRT)
    Screen Resolution
    up to 2048 x 1536
    Hard Drives
    WD 36GB 10,000rpm Raptor SATA
    Seagate 80GB 7200rpm SATA
    Lite-On LTR-52246S CD/RW
    Lite-On LH-18A1P CD/DVD Burner
    PSU
    PC Power & Cooling Silencer 750 Quad EPS12V
    Case
    Generic Beige case, 80mm fans
    Cooling
    ZALMAN 9500A 92mm CPU Cooler
    Mouse
    Logitech Optical M-BT96a
    Keyboard
    Logitech Classic Keybooard 200
    Internet Speed
    300/300
    Browser
    Firefox 3.x ??
    Antivirus
    Symantec (Norton)
    Other Info
    Still assembled, still runs. Haven't turned it on for 13 years?
I used WinAeroTweaker's instructions to remove the Turn on BitLocker entry in Explorer to avoid accidents! Being under Pin to Quick Access on 10 it struck me as being a possible accidental click target. Can still turn it on from Control Panel if required.

Probably a long shot but If you were say on this PC and inadvertently clicked it, that could possibly cause all drives to be affected, given that some windows do not appear on top in Win11, could be bitlocker window or whatever happens after turning it on wasn't seen as it was behind something else?
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Windows 11 22H2 OS Build 22623.1095
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Self Build
    CPU
    AMD Ryzen 7 3800X
    Motherboard
    Asus PRIME B350-PLUS
    Memory
    16GB Corsair Vengeance LPX DDR4 @3000Mhz
    Graphics Card(s)
    ASUS - GeForce RTX 3070 Ti 8 GB TUF GAMING OC
    Sound Card
    On Board Realtec
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Acer KA241
    Screen Resolution
    1920 x 1080 @60Hz
    Hard Drives
    240GB PNY CS900 SSD - OS
    2 x 1TB Crucial MX500 SSD
    1 x 500GB Crucial MX300 SSD
    2TB Seagate ST2000DM001-1ER164
    2TB Seagate ST2000DM008-2FR102
    PSU
    750 Watt Corsair TX750 Plus
    Case
    Cooler Master 690 III
    Cooling
    Akasa AK98 5 Case Fans
    Keyboard
    Logitech K270 - wireless
    Mouse
    Logitech - M185 wireless
    Internet Speed
    BT Fibre 75 Mbps
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
    Other Info
    Use hardware KVM to switch monitors on three PCs and software (input director) to use mouse and keyboard on all 4 PCs.
  • Operating System
    Windows 11 Pro 22H2 build 22621.900
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Dell Inspiron 3881 - modified with SFX PSU fitted internally
    CPU
    Intel i5 - 10400
    Motherboard
    Dell 032w55 version A00
    Memory
    16GB of HyperX Fury @ 2133 Mhz
    Graphics card(s)
    EVGA 6GB GTX 1060.
    Sound Card
    Builtin
    Monitor(s) Displays
    ACER KA241
    Screen Resolution
    1920x 1080 @60Hz
    Hard Drives
    256GB SK hynix NVMe
    1TB Western Digital WD10EZEX-75WN4A1
    PSU
    Modular 450 Watt Corsair SF450 Platinum ( Mod to replace the Dell 265 Watt PSU)
    Case
    Inspiron Small Desktop
    Cooling
    Dell stock cooler
    Mouse
    Dell
    Keyboard
    Dell
    Internet Speed
    BT Fibre 75 Mbps
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
    Other Info
    Use hardware KVM to switch monitors on three PCs and software (input director) to use mouse and keyboard on all 4 PCs.
Quote from the article:

BitLocker will be enabled by default on all Windows 11 PCs. Once the drive is encrypted with BitLocker, Windows asks where you’d like to back up the encryption key.

That is not true. I was never asked where I'd like to back up the encryption key. I was not notified in any manner that Windows 11 had encrypted my drives - and that is a serious issue to me considering how hard it can be to get into an encrypted drive. One example, my daughter's laptop failed to boot after an upgrade to Windows 10. I was able to remove the hard, connect it to my desktop, and use dism to revert pending changes, the replace the drive back into her laptop and solved the problem. If the drive was bitlocker encrypted - plus now TPM required - it probably would have been next to impossible for me to do that.
Same here, It was only by chance when I was looking through settings etc. in Win 11 I noticed it. I was never ask either as far as I can remember.
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Windows 11 Pro
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Alienware M18 R1
    CPU
    13th Gen Core i9 13900HX
    Memory
    32GB DDR5 @4800MHz 2x16GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    Geforce RTX 4090HX 16GB
    Sound Card
    Nvidia HD / Realtek ALC3254
    Monitor(s) Displays
    18" QHD+
    Screen Resolution
    25660 X 1600
    Hard Drives
    C: KIOXIA (Toshiba) 2TB KXG80ZNV2T04 NVMe PCIe M.2 SSD
    D: KIOXIA (Toshiba) 2TB KXG80ZNV2T04 NVMe PCIe M.2 SSD
    Case
    Dark Metallic Moon
    Keyboard
    Alienware M Series per-key AlienFX RGB
    Mouse
    Alienware AW610M
    Browser
    Chrome and Firefox
    Antivirus
    Norton
    Other Info
    Killer E3000 Ethernet Controller
    Killer Killer AX1690 Wi-Fi Network Adaptor Wi-Fi 6E
    Bluetooth 5.2
    Alienware Z01G Graphic Amplifier
  • Operating System
    Windows 11 Pro
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Alienware Area 51m R2
    CPU
    10th Gen i-9 10900 K
    Memory
    32Gb Dual Channel DDR4 @ 8843MHz
    Graphics card(s)
    Nvidia RTX 2080 Super
    Sound Card
    Nvidia
    Screen Resolution
    1920 x 1080
    Hard Drives
    Hard Drive C: Samsung 2TB SSD PM981a NVMe
    Hard Drive D:Samsung 2TB SSD 970 EVO Plus
    Mouse
    Alienware 610M
    Browser
    Chrome
    Antivirus
    Norton
Fortunately upgrading to Pro from Home (Win 11) and further updates it hasn't happened to me...

Screenshot_6.png
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Win 11 Pro & 🐥.
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    ASUS VivoBook
    CPU
    AMD Ryzen 7 3700U with Radeon Vega Mobile Gfx
    Motherboard
    ASUSTeK COMPUTER INC. X509DA (FP5)
    Memory
    12GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    RX Vega 10 Graphics
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Generic PnP Monitor (1920x1080@60Hz)
    Screen Resolution
    1920x1080@60Hz
    Hard Drives
    Samsung SSD 970 EVO Plus 2TB NVMe 1.3
    Internet Speed
    25 Mbps
    Browser
    Edge
    Antivirus
    Defender
  • Operating System
    Windows 11
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    ACER NITRO
    CPU
    AMD Ryzen 7 5800H / 3.2 GHz
    Motherboard
    CZ Scala_CAS (FP6)
    Memory
    32 GB DDR4 SDRAM 3200 MHz
    Graphics card(s)
    NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 6 GB GDDR6 SDRAM
    Sound Card
    Realtek Audio. NVIDIA High Definition Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    15.6" LED backlight 1920 x 1080 (Full HD) 144 Hz
    Screen Resolution
    1920 x 1080 (Full HD)
    Hard Drives
    Samsung 970 Evo Plus 2TB NVMe M.2
    PSU
    180 Watt, 19.5 V
    Mouse
    Lenovo Bluetooth
    Internet Speed
    25 Mbps
    Browser
    Edge
    Antivirus
    Defender
Upgrading from 22000 to 22449 manually using the ISO did NOT re-encrypt the drives. So maybe it only happens on the initial upgrade from Windows 10 to Windows 11.
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Windows 11
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Homebuilt
    CPU
    AMD Ryzen 7 3800XT
    Motherboard
    ASUS ROG Crosshair VII Hero (WiFi)
    Memory
    32GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    EVGA GeForce GTX 1080 Ti
  • Operating System
    Windows 11 Education
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Dell Inspiron 7773
    CPU
    Intel i7-8550U
    Memory
    32GB
    Graphics card(s)
    Nvidia Geforce MX150
    Sound Card
    Realtek
    Monitor(s) Displays
    17"
    Screen Resolution
    1920 x 1080
    Hard Drives
    Toshiba 512GB NVMe SSD
    SK Hynix 512GB SATA SSD
    Internet Speed
    Fast!
Upgrading from 22000 to 22449 manually using the ISO did NOT re-encrypt the drives. So maybe it only happens on the initial upgrade from Windows 10 to Windows 11.
Interesting,.,, how did you verify what the status of the encryption was? I want to check it out.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 11 Home(Beta) - 23H2 - 22635.3350
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Banana Junior 5600- G Series
    CPU
    AMD Ryzen 5 5600G
    Motherboard
    Asus ROG Strix B550-F
    Memory
    G.SKILL Ripjaws V Series 64GB 4x16
    Graphics Card(s)
    NVIDIA GeForce GTX TITAN X
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Viotek 32", 28" ASUS VP28U
    Screen Resolution
    1080p
    Hard Drives
    Primary SAMSUNG 970 EVO Plus
    PSU
    EVGA BQ 700w 80+ Bronze
    Case
    Zalman i3 NEO
    Cooling
    ARCTIC Freezer 7 X
    Keyboard
    Corsair
    Mouse
    Amazon Generic with Cord
    Internet Speed
    Download: 295.11 mbps Upload: 65.35 mbps T-Mobile Internet
    Browser
    Firefox and Edge
    Antivirus
    MS - Defender
    Other Info
    Speakers: Klipsch ProMedia 2.1
Interesting,.,, how did you verify what the status of the encryption was? I want to check it out.
Code:
manage-bde -status
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Windows 11
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Homebuilt
    CPU
    AMD Ryzen 7 3800XT
    Motherboard
    ASUS ROG Crosshair VII Hero (WiFi)
    Memory
    32GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    EVGA GeForce GTX 1080 Ti
  • Operating System
    Windows 11 Education
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Dell Inspiron 7773
    CPU
    Intel i7-8550U
    Memory
    32GB
    Graphics card(s)
    Nvidia Geforce MX150
    Sound Card
    Realtek
    Monitor(s) Displays
    17"
    Screen Resolution
    1920 x 1080
    Hard Drives
    Toshiba 512GB NVMe SSD
    SK Hynix 512GB SATA SSD
    Internet Speed
    Fast!
I am not on any W11 version, but I have used BitLocker since W8, i.e. since BitLocker became available to general population. I like it very, very much, but I also fear how easy it is to lock yourself out (never happened to me, thank goodness)

My suggestions FWIW

Make 3 backups on 3 different external media. These external media can also be BitLocker encrypted with auto-unlock if you connect them to your BitLocker encrypted machine (so that you don't have to unlock them manually)

1 backup can always be connected to your machine, it's nice to have incremental backups every hour, for example. But only connect the 2 other backup media for backup purposes, and never ever connect the 2 other backups at the same time to your machine. If one backup is connected to your machine for backup purposes, make sure the other backup is disconnected from your machine. That way at least 1 backup is always safe from whatever happens on your live system, BitLocker-wise and otherwise.

There are 2 different types of BitLocker keys, unlock and recovery. Your machine and each backup have these 2 types of BitLocker keys. Without the right keys, the data on your machine and backups is safe even if you lose your machine and backups. But the very same thing also means that you yourself can lose all your data! That's the two sides of the same coin that's really fearsome > make 3 copies of all these BitLocker keys on 3 different media.

I don't pretend to have established a best practice, but it has kept me out of trouble since W8. Vice versa, if for some reason or another, you can't apply the above precautions, I strongly recommend to avoid BitLocker. And if you can't avoid BitLocker without being able to apply the above precautions, don't store any important data on that machine.

Disclaimer: Use the above at your own risk.

Edit: The above posts looks like an MS error that they reversed. Otherwise, with keys that are 20+ characters long, not even law enforcement can get at the data.
 
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My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 10 Pro
So, I wonder, now that I am decrypting the drives and turning bitlocker off, if I do get a successful upgrade to 22449.100 if it will enable bitlocker and encrypt again without giving me a choice?
It's possible it will enable it again, if it's the new default. By chance it might respect your choice after dealing with the decryption process. My experience noted below.

Be careful if you never used Bitlocker and encrypted disk and where you suddenly see it as active by its own.
I'm not saying the tech is wrong but you might get surprised by some nasty errors or warnings you've never seen or expected. At least for me it was something new to deal with.

I know how frustrating it is. I never used it myself either; I have encountered this on Windows 10 already. And it gets worse if you use imaging tools like Macrium Reflect since those will brake the encryption showing an open lock icon (possible with a warning when you start a backup).

So I never enabled anything. Seems that Bitlocker was running already on disk (while the options in Control Panel said it didn't, weird). This is on a NUC 8th gen which has TPM enabled. It happened after I switched to a WD M.2 SSD with OPAL encryption. Since then, poof, it was on. After backing up with Macrium Reflect, it was disabled during image creation but it reverted Bitlocker back on even after I replaced the drive with a non OPAL one, I was on a Samsung EVO 860.

To make matters worse, I could not decrypt the drive on same machine (NUC) and I always got a I/O error, on a new SSD.
What solved it: put the drive in a SATA bay in another PC, a desktop tower (also on Windows 10) where it decrypted fine, after some time though.
Then on the NUC I made sure Bitlocker was disabled in Control Panel, though after decryption the drive didn't get encrypted again on its own.
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Windows 11 Pro
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Intel NUC
    CPU
    i3 8109U
    Motherboard
    Intel
    Memory
    16GB DDR4 @2400
    Graphics Card(s)
    Intel Iris Plus Graphics 655
    Sound Card
    Intel / Realtek HD Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    LG-32ML600M
    Screen Resolution
    1920x1080
    Hard Drives
    Intel SSD 250GB + Samsung QVO SSD 1TB
    PSU
    Adapter
    Cooling
    The usual NUC airflow
    Keyboard
    Logitech Orion G610
    Mouse
    SteelSeries Rival 100 Red
    Internet Speed
    Good enough
    Browser
    Chromium, Edge, Firefox
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
  • Operating System
    CentOS 9 Stream / Alma / Rocky / Fedora
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    TOSHIBA
    CPU
    Intel i7 4800MQ
    Motherboard
    TOSHIBA
    Memory
    32GB DDR3 @1600
    Graphics card(s)
    NVIDIA Quadro K2100M
    Sound Card
    Realtek HD Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Built-in
    Screen Resolution
    1920x1080
Of my 5 computers, all with "PRO" versions of Windows 10, and with Windows 11 .184 or DEV builds, NONE are bitlocker encrypted. So I am confused as to why some are encrypted and some are not.
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    windows 10 & 11
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    iBuyPower (special build)
    CPU
    AMD Ryzen 7X
    Motherboard
    Asus Prime x370 Pro
    Memory
    64Gb
    Graphics Card(s)
    Radeon RX 480 8Gb
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Samsung UHD 27 inch
    Screen Resolution
    UHD
    Hard Drives
    3 Samsung 1 TB SSD each; 1 Samsung PCIe M.2 at 2 TB
  • Operating System
    Windows 11 pro
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    IBuyPower
    CPU
    AMD 9 5900X
    Motherboard
    Asus x570 ROG Crosshair VIII Dark Hero WI-FI 6E ARGB
    Memory
    32 Gb
    Graphics card(s)
    Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080 Ti 12 GB GDDR6X
    Sound Card
    3D PREMIUM surround sound onboard
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Samsung 32 inch UHD curved monitor
    Screen Resolution
    UHD
    Hard Drives
    Samsung 980 pro 2 tb gen 4 NVMe ssd
    PSU
    850 watt consair RM850X
    Case
    Lian Li LANCOOL ONE tempered glass RGB gaming case
    Cooling
    DEEPCOOL GAMERSTORM RGB 240 mm CASTLE 240EX liquid cooler
    Mouse
    Ares m.2 gaming optical mouse
    Keyboard
    Ares m.2 gaming keyboard
    Internet Speed
    450
    Browser
    Firefox / Edge
    Antivirus
    Windows defender
    Other Info
    With all this gaming rig I am not a gamer!
Of my 5 computers, all with "PRO" versions of Windows 10, and with Windows 11 .184 or DEV builds, NONE are bitlocker encrypted. So I am confused as to why some are encrypted and some are not.
It's the Dev version that's the issue... but something we need to look out for in updates... doesn't This PC have the padlock thingy when a drive is Bitted?
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows
That scares me as well. But my bitloccker was turned off in ctrl panel.
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    windows 11 21H2
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Dell Optiplex 3060
    CPU
    I5-8500
    Motherboard
    Dell
    Memory
    8GB
    Monitor(s) Displays
    2 x Dell 24 inch
    Screen Resolution
    2560 x 1440
    Hard Drives
    250GB NVMe SSD plus 500 GB spinner.
    Mouse
    Logitech M310t
    Internet Speed
    300/100
    Browser
    Edge
    Antivirus
    Win Defender
  • Operating System
    Win 11
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    HP Elitebook G3
    CPU
    I5-6300U
    Memory
    8GB
    Hard Drives
    256 SSD
I just checked mine and my C drive is unlocked,. I'm the dev channel home edition
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 11 Home(Beta) - 23H2 - 22635.3350
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Banana Junior 5600- G Series
    CPU
    AMD Ryzen 5 5600G
    Motherboard
    Asus ROG Strix B550-F
    Memory
    G.SKILL Ripjaws V Series 64GB 4x16
    Graphics Card(s)
    NVIDIA GeForce GTX TITAN X
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Viotek 32", 28" ASUS VP28U
    Screen Resolution
    1080p
    Hard Drives
    Primary SAMSUNG 970 EVO Plus
    PSU
    EVGA BQ 700w 80+ Bronze
    Case
    Zalman i3 NEO
    Cooling
    ARCTIC Freezer 7 X
    Keyboard
    Corsair
    Mouse
    Amazon Generic with Cord
    Internet Speed
    Download: 295.11 mbps Upload: 65.35 mbps T-Mobile Internet
    Browser
    Firefox and Edge
    Antivirus
    MS - Defender
    Other Info
    Speakers: Klipsch ProMedia 2.1

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