In an era where data breaches are common, losing a USB stick can mean losing your private documents, client data, or sensitive photos. BitLocker To Go is a built-in Windows feature that allows you to encrypt removable data drives with ease.
In this guide, I’ll show you exactly how to set up, use, and manage BitLocker To Go to keep your mobile data secure.
What is BitLocker To Go?
BitLocker To Go is a security feature available in professional versions of Windows that extends BitLocker drive encryption to removable drives. This includes:
- USB Flash Drives
- SD Cards
- External Hard Drives/SSDs
Unlike the standard BitLocker (which encrypts your system drive), BitLocker To Go allows you to lock a drive so that it can only be accessed by entering a password or using a recovery key.
Requirements: Can You Use It?
To encrypt a drive, you need one of the following operating systems:
- Windows 10 Pro, Enterprise, or Education
- Windows 11 Pro, Enterprise, or Education
Note: Windows Home edition users can unlock and read BitLocker-encrypted drives, but they cannot usually create them without third-party workarounds.
How to Encrypt a USB Drive with BitLocker To Go
Follow these steps to password protect a USB drive.
1. Plug in and Prepare
Insert the USB flash drive you wish to encrypt (or external hard disk). Make sure that you back up any files that are already on the drive. Copy them to your PC (you can always delete them afterwards). Although BitLocker To Go is generally safe to use, you can’t be too careful about your files. If anything goes wrong during the encryption phase (such as a PC crash or power outage) you may lose all the data on the drive.
2. Open BitLocker Settings
- Open File Explorer and then right click on the USB flash drive that you want to encrypt. You might need to click This PC in the left hand panel first.
- On the menu that opens, left click Turn On Bitlocker
3. Choose Your Unlock Method
Once the external drive is locked you’ll need some way to unlock it. BitLocker To Go gives you 2 methods, a password or a smart card. For this guide I’ll be using the password method which is the most commonly used.
- Check the box: “Use a password to unlock the drive”.
- Enter a strong password. Tip: Use a mix of uppercase, lowercase, numbers, and symbols.
Although you should obviously be using strong passwords, keep in mind that you need to be able to remember it. For password protected flash drives that’re used daily, that’s not usually an issue, but for archiving drives that may only be used a few times per year, it could well be a problem.
4. Back Up Your Recovery Key (Crucial!)
If you forget your password, the Recovery Key is the only way to access the data on your USB drive. Windows will ask where you want to save it:
- Save to your Microsoft Account (Recommended). This is great if you’re signed in. But please make sure that you know your MS account password, not just the PIN that you use to sign in to your PC.
- Save to a file (Do not save it on the same USB drive!). You save a simple text file to your computer.
- Print the recovery key. If you have a printer, print it. Save the print out somewhere safe.
BitLocker is a powerful encryption tool. The whole point of this exercise is to secure your files on removable drives, not to loose access to them. With that in mind I always recommend using at least 2 of the methods above.
5. Choose How Much to Encrypt
The encryption of a USB drive will be slow, especially with larger drives. So you have 2 choices about how much of the drive will get encrypted.
- Encrypted Used Disk Space Only: This option only encrypts the files already on the USB drive. New files will be encrypted as they’re added. Faster, best for new drives.
- Encrypt Entire Drive: Slower, but more secure for older drives that may have “deleted” files that are still recoverable.
6. Select Encryption Mode
- Compatible Mode: Choose this if you plan to use the USB drive on older versions of Windows (like Windows 7 or 8).
- New Encryption Mode: Best for drives used only on Windows 10 or 11. The new encryption mode provides much stronger protection for your files.
Click Start Encrypting: Keep the drive plugged in until the process is complete. If you’re doing this on a laptop it’d be a good idea to have it plugged in to a wall socket to stop the battery dying.
How to Access Your Encrypted Drive
When the process is complete, the contents of your USB drive will be encrypted and password protected. To access the drive on your Windows computer:
- Open File Explorer and double-click the drive.
- Enter your password when prompted and click Unlock.
- Once unlocked, the gold lock icon will turn into an unlocked silver icon.
Pros and Cons of BitLocker To Go
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Built-in: No need to install third-party software. | Compatibility: Not natively compatible with macOS or Linux. |
| High Security: Uses AES encryption (industry standard). | Pro Version Required: Not available to create on Windows Home. |
| Free: Included with your Windows Pro/Enterprise license. | Risk of Data Loss: If you lose both password and recovery key, data is gone. |
FAQs
What happens if I lose my BitLocker password?
You must use the 48-digit Recovery Key you saved during the setup process. Without the password or the key, the data is mathematically impossible to recover.
Can I use BitLocker To Go on a Mac?
By default, macOS cannot read BitLocker drives. You would need third-party software like M3 BitLocker Loader or Parallels Desktop to access the files on a Mac.
Does BitLocker slow down my USB drive?
There is a very slight performance overhead due to the encryption/decryption process, but on modern computers, this is rarely noticeable.
How do I remove BitLocker encryption?
If you no longer want the drive encrypted:
- Plug in the drive and unlock it with your password. Note that you can’t turn off BitLocker on a locked drive. So you will need either the password or recovery key.
- Right click on the drive in File Explorer. On the menu eft click Manage BitLocker.
- Find your drive and click Turn off BitLocker.
Summary
BitLocker To Go is one of the most effective ways to ensure your portable data stays private and secure. It’s free (provided you have a Pro version of Windows) and completely compatible with Windows.
Related Posts
How to Use BitLocker Drive Encryption: The Beginner’s Guide
Setup BitLocker on your system disk
How to Enable BitLocker Without TPM (Windows 10 & 11)
A not uncommon issue on older PCs. You can use gpedit to bypass the requirement for a compatible TPM.
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