[Windows 11/10] How to Turn Off BitLocker Without Admin Rights

User case: How to turn off BitLocker without Admin rights

Do you need to bypass Admin rights to turn off BitLocker? If so, it is better to first get a few things. Once you turn on BitLocker on a drive, all the data on that drive is encrypted, and your computer keeps in encrypted status. And you will not be able to get the reset key if you forget the password.

If you don't have the BitLocker password and recovery key, you will need to format the encrypted drive or use a third-party tool to find them. In this post, AOMEI Partition Assistant will show you how to do this. 

Turn off BitLocker without Admin rights via AOMEI Partition Assistant

To turn off BitLocker without Admin rights, password, or recovery key, you can format the encrypted drive. This method will erase the data on the it. However, there is a way to recover it.

To do so, all you need is to choose AOMEI Partition Assistant. This comprehensive software allows you to format the BitLocker drive and recover data from it. Besides, you can also use its BitLocker functions to effectively manage the utility, including turning on/off, lock/unlock, backing up recovery key, and so on.

AOMEI Partition Assistant

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Windows 11/10/8.1/8/7

Stage 1. Format BitLocker drive

Step 1. Install and run AOMEI Partition Assistant. Right-click drive that you need to turn off BitLocker without Admin rights and choose “Format Partition”.

Step 2. In the following pop-up window, determine the file system of your SD card partition based on a specific requirement. Here you can choose from NTFS, FAT32, exFAT, Ext2, Ext3, and Ext4.

Step 3. In the main interface, confirm operation and click “Apply”>“Proceed” to perform it.

Stage 2. Recover Lost Data

Step 1. Launch the AOMEI software. Click "Recover" > "Recover Data" on the taskbar as the picture shows.

Step 2. Then, the Recover Windows Data tool will pop up. Select the partition where you store the lost pictures and click "Start Scan".

Step 3. Once the scan is completed, all deleted files, recycle bins and other missing files will be displayed. Please select the files you would like to recover and then click "Recover".

Step 4. Then, select a folder path to store your recovered files.

Step 5. Wait patiently for this process of data recovery from the formatted hard drive.

Stage 3. Manage BitLocker

Part 1. How to turn on BitLocker

Step 1. Install and launch AOMEI Partition Assistant.

Step 2. Go to the "Tools" tab and select "BitLocker".

Step 3. All drives on the system will be displayed. Please Select the drive partition you want to encrypt and click "Turn on BitLocker".

Step 4. Set a password, confirm, and click "Next" to continue.

Step 5. Select a preferred way to back up your recovery key: "Save to a file" or "Print the recovery key".

Please keep the file carefully.

Part 2. How to back up recovery key

Step 1. Access the encrypted drive and select "Back up recovery key".

Step 2. Enter your password and click "Next" to continue. Select "Save to a file" or "Print the recovery key".

Step 3. Click "Next" to save the recovery key in the generated TXT file.

Make sure that the file containing the recovery key is kept secure and easily accessible to BitLocker administration.

Part 3. How to change password

Step 1. Locate the drive you want to change the password. Click the "Change password" option.

Step 2. Select your preferred method: "Use password to change drive password" or "Use recovery key to change drive password".

Step 3. The confirmation "Password changed successfully" window shows that the password was changed successfully.

Part 4. How to lock/unlock the USB drive

If a drive is not locked, click the option "Lock the drive" to lock the drive directly.

To unlock a USB, refer to these steps:

Step 1. Click"Unlock the drive".

Step 2. Select a preferred way: "Use a password to unlock the drive" or "Use a recovery key to unlock the drive". Then click "Unlock".

The drive will be unlocked if the entered password/recovery key is correct.

Part 5. How to turn off BitLocker

Step 1. Find the encrypted drive and click "Turn off BitLocker".

Step 2. Time to wait for decryption to complete. Please do not terminate the program, remove the drive, or turn off the power.

Step 3. Once the decryption process is finished, click "Completed".

The BitLocker on the drive is now decrypted.

Turn off BitLocker without Admin rights in other ways

Method 1. Find backed-up recovery key

You can back up your recovery key in a number of ways when you set up BitLocker. These include "Save to your Microsoft account," "Save to USB flash drive," "Save to file," and "Print recovery key." In the event that you have forgotten your password, you may visit these places to seek assistance.

You are shown a text file when you use BitLocker to encrypt a Windows drive. You put a code on your PC called a "recovery key" in this file. To encrypt your drive, you need to keep this code file. That way, if you ever forget your password, you can easily find it on your machine. A.BEK file called BitLocker Recovery Key holds your BitLocker recovery key. 

Method 2. Try usual passwords

BitLocker will require you to set a strong, unique password, but a lot of people still use common passwords or reuse passwords they already know to make them easier to remember. If this sounds like you, try to remember all the passwords you've used before to get back into BitLocker. You could also try one of these ways.

Conclusion

How to turn off BitLocker without Admin rights? You can use AOMEI Partition Assistant to format the encrypted hard drive, then recover lost data, and effectively manage BitLocker. Or you can try other methods. After downloading this software, you can also use it to clone encrypted drive, move installed programs to another drive, rebuild corrupted MBR, and so on. For Windows Server users, please choose the Server edition.