How to password protect and lock external hard drive with windows 7

USB drives, that can be found within of a broad variety of funky shapes and sizes, are possibly between probably the most handy methods to hold near for the data. Mom wishes home films from the kids? Fill ‘em over a flash drive. Should deliver a PowerPoint display to class? There’s a flash generate for that.

But as opposed to cloud safe-keeping services, that are ordinarily secured with a password and one of a kind URL, thumbdrives can swiftly get lost or stolen, exposing your data to prying eyes. keep track of the film to locate out the way in which to safe your generate (external drives included) in just many different clicks:

Password Protect and Encrypt your USB drive

Step 1: Insert your thumbdrive. Right-click it, and find “Turn on BitLocker…”

Step 2: look at “use password to unlock the drive.” key in your password. You’ll then be requested to spend less or print a recovery key, which permits one to recover the generate in circumstance you neglect the password. Print it out and tuck it away, or store it someplace risk-free online.

Step 3: strike “Next,” then “Start encrypting.” This movement may hold a while, based on how appreciably data you have saved for the drive. But after complete, your generate is secured–the up coming time you plug it in to a house windows machine, you’ll be prompted to key in a password.

Note: BitLocker can only be enabled on house windows 7 company and Ultimate. However, after BitLocker is additional in the direction of the drive, the equipment may possibly be utilized with any edition of house windows 7, and may possibly be utilized in read-only mode with house windows XP and Vista.