How to Lock a BitLocker Drive in Windows 11

This article explains how to lock a BitLocker Drive in Windows 11.

BitLocker helps protect computer data so only authorized users can access it. New files created on a BitLocker-enabled drive will also be protected.

Users can protect external, fixed, and operating system drives using BitLocker. When you enable BitLocker to protect the OS drive, it automatically unlocks the drive at startup using a TPM chip.

When you use BitLocker, the OS drive automatically locks when the computer shuts down. A fixed drive encrypted with BitLocker will automatically lock unless you set it up to auto-unlock when you sign in.

Likewise, a removable drive will automatically lock when disconnected or when the computer restarts unless you set it up to auto-unlock when you sign in.

Lock a BitLocker drive in Windows 11

As mentioned above, users can use a BitLocker lock feature to lock a drive so that data on it can be protected.

Here’s how to do it.

First, open Windows Terminal as administrator and select the PowerShell tab.

Then, use the command format below to lock a fixed or removable drive.

Lock-BitLocker -MountPoint "<drive letter>:" -ForceDismount

Replacing “<drive letter>” with the appropriate drive letter.

Example:

Lock-BitLocker -MountPoint "D:" -ForceDismount

Alternatively, use the command format below using the Command prompt or PowerShell in the Terminal app.

manage-bde -lock "<drive letter>:" -ForceDismount

Replacing “<drive letter>” with the appropriate drive letter.

Example.

manage-bde -lock "D:" -ForceDismount

That should do it!

Conclusion:

• BitLocker in Windows 11 provides a robust way to protect computer data
• Users can easily lock external, fixed, and operating system drives using BitLocker
• It’s essential to ensure data security by automatically locking drives using BitLocker
• Following the provided steps, users can effectively lock a fixed or removable drive using BitLocker in Windows 11