Windows 11 in VirtualBox stuck at Bitlocker screen


davidhelp

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Windows 11 in VirtualBox
Question: How to make sure Bitlocker is disabled and stays that way?
Also I thought the Home version did not have Bitlocker.
Rant to follow!

I installed Windows 11 Home 24H2 in VirtualBox yesterday with Guest additions installed. I installed Startallback and made some changes like changing the height of the taskbar and to show all apps in the Notification area. I restarted Windows 11 Home and went looking for the Startallback program. Listed in the Apps but it will not open. Not seen in the Notification area as that does not show all apps and I found all the "fixes" do not work. Program Files shows no .exe file and not in AppData folders.

It turns out Startallback is an icon in the Control Panel....
I restarted the pc after doing the 3 fixes at the link above and.... It is now stuck at the Bitlocker screen.

I never set up Bitlocker so did not have the Recovery key. I went here https://account.microsoft.com > Devices and found the key BUT I cannot type in the VirtualBox window! Now times that by the millions of people who did not know they had a microsoft account and knew of the website to get the bitlocker key!! Millions to lose all their files!

The cursor does not show up on the screen.
It has been shutdown and Reset but it comes back to the Bitlocker screen with the same issue. I am now using a wired mouse after the last shutdown then starting the Windows 11 Home. The fix for this was as follows:
VirtualBox> Settings> User Interface> Input button is highlighted and keyboard and mouse intergration is checked.
In the top menu Input> Keyboard> Keyboard settings the box is checked for Auto Capture Keyboard. Mouse intergration is greyed out.
I can bring up the soft keyboard but cannot type as there is no cursor blinking in the text box.

I shutdown VirtualBox again by clicking on the X in the upper right corner. Opened the soft keyboard and typed in the Bitlocker key and it booted to the login screen BUT.... it now says: PIN isn't available so I clicked on Set up my PIN and got a spinning circle then back to the cursor. Managed to log in after having to click on Set up my PIN again. Now at the desktop screen.

I have not restarted the pc again.
Question: How to make sure Bitlocker is disabled and stays that way?

This is why I installed in a Virtual window as Bitlocker can start at any time and you can and will lose all your files plus all the other issues that Windows 11 Home will throw up at you like you cannot copy and paste... Do a google search on: cannot copy and paste in windows 11

bitlocker.webp

PIN unavailable.webp

Nothing like a warning you will lose all your data when you reset the PIN....!

are you sure.webp

device encryption.webp

Now turned off....
decryption.webp
 
Last edited:

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 11 in VirtualBox
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Gigabyte
    CPU
    Intel Core i5 4690K @ 3.50GHz
    Motherboard
    Gigabyte Z97X-UD5H
    Memory
    32GB DDR3
    Graphics Card(s)
    4095MB NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650
    Sound Card
    Sound Blaster Z
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Dell G3223Q Monitor - 32-Inch 4K Ultra UHD (3840x2160), 144Hz 1Ms Display
    Screen Resolution
    3840x2160@144Hz
    Hard Drives
    Samsung SSD 4TB
    Keyboard
    4Tech
    Mouse
    Jelly Comb
    Internet Speed
    1GB
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    Windows Anti-virus
Uh - a pointless and incorrect rant!

Just reinstall Windows 11 Home from scratch in virtualbox, and then simply turn device encryption off.

Device Encryption is only applied during a clean install and so you cannot lose any files as it is a clean install.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 11 Pro + Win11 Canary VM.
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    ASUS Zenbook 14
    CPU
    I9 13th gen i9-13900H 2.60 GHZ
    Motherboard
    Yep, Laptop has one.
    Memory
    16 GB soldered
    Graphics Card(s)
    Integrated Intel Iris XE
    Sound Card
    Realtek built in
    Monitor(s) Displays
    laptop OLED screen
    Screen Resolution
    2880x1800 touchscreen
    Hard Drives
    1 TB NVME SSD (only weakness is only one slot)
    PSU
    Internal + 65W thunderbolt USB4 charger
    Case
    Yep, got one
    Cooling
    Stella Artois (UK pint cans - 568 ml) - extra cost.
    Keyboard
    Built in UK keybd
    Mouse
    Bluetooth , wireless dongled, wired
    Internet Speed
    900 mbs (ethernet), wifi 6 typical 350-450 mb/s both up and down
    Browser
    Edge
    Antivirus
    Defender
    Other Info
    TPM 2.0, 2xUSB4 thunderbolt, 1xUsb3 (usb a), 1xUsb-c, hdmi out, 3.5 mm audio out/in combo, ASUS backlit trackpad (inc. switchable number pad)

    Macrium Reflect Home V8
    Office 365 Family (6 users each 1TB onedrive space)
    Hyper-V (a vm runs almost as fast as my older laptop)
Update: the Notification area does show all the apps now but after a restart they are hidden again.
It should not be needed to reinstall a new copy of Windows because of the Bitlocker issue. The post has a question and describes what others may encounter. The Home version have bitlocker.
Google: does windows 11 home have bitlocker?

Result: Windows 11 Home does not include the full version of BitLocker Drive Encryption, which is reserved for Windows 11 Pro, Enterprise, and Education editions. However, Windows 11 Home does support Device Encryption, a simplified, automatic form of BitLocker that is enabled by default
 
Last edited:

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 11 in VirtualBox
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Gigabyte
    CPU
    Intel Core i5 4690K @ 3.50GHz
    Motherboard
    Gigabyte Z97X-UD5H
    Memory
    32GB DDR3
    Graphics Card(s)
    4095MB NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650
    Sound Card
    Sound Blaster Z
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Dell G3223Q Monitor - 32-Inch 4K Ultra UHD (3840x2160), 144Hz 1Ms Display
    Screen Resolution
    3840x2160@144Hz
    Hard Drives
    Samsung SSD 4TB
    Keyboard
    4Tech
    Mouse
    Jelly Comb
    Internet Speed
    1GB
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    Windows Anti-virus
Result: Windows 11 Home does not include the full version of BitLocker Drive Encryption, which is reserved for Windows 11 Pro, Enterprise, and Education editions. However, Windows 11 Home does support Device Encryption, a simplified, automatic form of BitLocker that is enabled by default
This is well known on this forum.

Read the various tutorials for more information.

e.g.

 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 11 Pro + Win11 Canary VM.
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    ASUS Zenbook 14
    CPU
    I9 13th gen i9-13900H 2.60 GHZ
    Motherboard
    Yep, Laptop has one.
    Memory
    16 GB soldered
    Graphics Card(s)
    Integrated Intel Iris XE
    Sound Card
    Realtek built in
    Monitor(s) Displays
    laptop OLED screen
    Screen Resolution
    2880x1800 touchscreen
    Hard Drives
    1 TB NVME SSD (only weakness is only one slot)
    PSU
    Internal + 65W thunderbolt USB4 charger
    Case
    Yep, got one
    Cooling
    Stella Artois (UK pint cans - 568 ml) - extra cost.
    Keyboard
    Built in UK keybd
    Mouse
    Bluetooth , wireless dongled, wired
    Internet Speed
    900 mbs (ethernet), wifi 6 typical 350-450 mb/s both up and down
    Browser
    Edge
    Antivirus
    Defender
    Other Info
    TPM 2.0, 2xUSB4 thunderbolt, 1xUsb3 (usb a), 1xUsb-c, hdmi out, 3.5 mm audio out/in combo, ASUS backlit trackpad (inc. switchable number pad)

    Macrium Reflect Home V8
    Office 365 Family (6 users each 1TB onedrive space)
    Hyper-V (a vm runs almost as fast as my older laptop)
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