When BitLocker is enabled, the provisioning process can take several hours.īitLocker pre-provisioning, encrypting hard drives, and Used Space Only encryption allow administrators to enable BitLocker quickly on new computers. Network Unlock allows PCs to start automatically when connected to the internal network. Modern Windows devices are increasingly protected with BitLocker Device Encryption out of the box and support SSO to seamlessly protect the BitLocker encryption keys from cold boot attacks. When BitLocker is used with a PIN to protect startup, PCs such as kiosks can't be restarted remotely. The below table lists specific data-protection concerns and how they're addressed in Windows 11, Windows 10, and Windows 7. Data Protection in Windows 11, Windows 10, and Windows 7 Windows consistently improves data protection by improving existing options and providing new strategies. More recently, BitLocker has provided encryption for full drives and portable drives. Windows has a long history of providing at-rest data-protection solutions that guard against nefarious attackers, beginning with the Encrypting File System in the Windows 2000 operating system. Wherever confidential data is stored, it must be protected against unauthorized access. When users travel, their organization's confidential data goes with them.

See BitLocker for a general overview and list of articles. This article explains how BitLocker Device Encryption can help protect data on devices running Windows.

External storage encryption