Full Guide | Safely Clone BitLocker Encrypted Drive to SSD
🌟 Video Guide: How to Clone BitLocker Encrypted Disk
BitLocker Encryption: What is It?
BitLocker Drive Encryption also referred to as BitLocker, is an integral feature in Windows operating systems. It is designed to protect your drive from unauthorized access and protect your data, even in the event someone physically removes your drive and attempts to access it from another computer.
Unfortunately, if you want to clone BitLocker encrypted disk, as your drive is encrypted, regular disk cloning software may be unable to copy the drive as it can’t access the data.
Can I Clone BitLocker Encrypted Drive with Clonezilla?
In order to clone your encrypted drive, you will require disk cloning software. Clonezilla, a well-known piece of open source cloning and imaging software, is widely used among Windows PC users. Many users have attempted to clone their BitLocker encrypted partitions using Clonezilla.
Unfortunately, this fails as Clonezilla is unable to recognize or unlock the BitLocker encrypted partitions and clone the drive. So, if you want to use Clonezilla to clone a disk with BitLocker, then you are out of luck!
Free Cloning Software to Clone Encrypted Hard Drive
Luckily, Qiling Disk Master Standard, a specialist tool from Qiling, can help you easily clone a BitLocker drive. It is free hard drive cloning software that allows you to clone any encrypted drive.
Normally, we would use Intelligent Sector Clone. However, to copy encrypted BitLocker partitions, we'll need the Sector by Sector Clone feature.
- Sector by Sector clone requires the destination drive to have at least the same capacity as the source disk. If your system drive is encrypted on the source disk, you will be able to successfully boot from the cloned drive without needing to decrypt it first.
- If you have a smaller destination drive, please decrypt the source hard drive before you start. If you have lost the decryption password for your drive, you will need to find your BitLocker Recovery Key. If your computer is connected to a Domain, you will be able to ask the administrator for the recovery key. Otherwise, you may be able to find your recovery key online.
How to Clone BitLocker Encrypted Drive Step by Step
The following content shows the step-by-step guide on cloning drive with bitlocker enabled to SSD or another HDD in Windows 11, 10, 8, 7, XP.
✍ Preparations:
- Connect the destination drive (the drive you want to clone to) to your PC either through the second drive bay or via a SATA-to-USB adapter.
- Please be aware that all of the data on the destination disk will be deleted when the cloning process starts. Therefore, backup files that matter to you first.
- Download and install Qiling Disk Master on your PC.
✍ To clone a BitLocker encrypted drive:
Step 1. Run this free hard drive cloning software. Click on Disk Clone under the Tools and utilities tab page.
Tips: This version only supports cloning non-system disks. If you want to clone system disk, please upgrade to Qiling Disk Master Professional.
Step 2. Select the BitLocker Encrypted drive as the Source disk by clicking on it, then click Next.
Step 3. Select a different disk as the Destination Disk, and then click Next.
Step 4. In the Operation Summary screen, tick Sector by sector clone, and then click Proceed to start cloning the encrypted hard drive.
Tips:
◑ The sector-by-sector method may take a little longer than a traditional hard drive clone as it will also clone any unused space. Qiling Disk Master lets you still use your drive during the cloning process, so nothing will interrupt your work or studies.
◑ If you want to clone encrypted hard drive to SSD, then use the SSD Alignment option to optimize your SSD performance.
◑ In addition to cloning encrypted hard drive, this software also applies to clone HDD to Samsung SSD, clone HDD to Seagate SSHD, clone hard drive to WD SSD, clone NVMe to larger NVMe, etc.
Further Reading: How to Disable BitLocker in Windows
If you want to disable BitLocker after cloning for more convenient use or to avoid recovery troubles, follow the steps below.
1. Go to Control Panel > BitLocker Drive Encryption.
2. Find the drive on which you want BitLocker Drive Encryption to be turned off, and click Turn off BitLocker.
3. A message is displayed, informing you that the drive will be decrypted and that decryption may take a long time. Click on Turn off BitLocker to begin the decryption process.
9 FAQs on BitLocker Encryption
BitLocker is a disk encryption feature in Windows operating systems that helps protect data by encrypting entire drives. It uses encryption algorithms to convert data into unreadable code. The user needs a password or encryption key to unlock and access the data.
BitLocker is available on Windows editions like Pro, Enterprise, and Education. It might not be available on Home editions.
Yes, BitLocker can encrypt external drives, USB sticks, and other storage devices, helping secure data even when moved between systems.
If you forget your password, you'll need your recovery key to regain access. It's important to keep this key in a safe place. It is also suggested to backup BitLocker hard drive when necessary.
BitLocker employs strong encryption methods, making direct hacking highly difficult. However, vulnerabilities can be found, so regular updates are crucial. If you want to recover data on BitLocker drive, please seek another professional way.
Disabling BitLocker typically requires the password or recovery key to ensure that only authorized users can turn off encryption.
Yes, BitLocker-protected drives can be accessed on other computers by providing the password or recovery key used to encrypt the drive.
While BitLocker encryption can introduce a slight performance overhead, modern hardware minimizes the impact for most users.
BitLocker provides robust encryption, but its appropriateness depends on your security needs. For highly sensitive data, additional security measures might be necessary.
Conclusion
As you can see, cloning a BitLocker encrypted drive with Qiling Disk Master is as easy as pie. Qiling Disk Master isn’t just limited to its clone function, it has an entire range of useful features and tools.
Most backup software available on the market can’t handle encrypted drives, yet Qiling Disk Master easily provides comprehensive disk backup features for encrypted hard drives!
Qiling Disk Master is also able to assist you with backing up your encrypted system, partitions, and files. Why not download it now and give it a shot?
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