How to Recover Data from Encrypted Hard Drive

Now, data security is paramount. Many individuals and organizations use encryption to protect their sensitive information from prying eyes. While this is an excellent practice for safeguarding your data, it can sometimes lead to unexpected consequences. For instance, what do you do if you forget the password to your encrypted hard drive, or if a colleague leaves, taking the access credentials with them?

How to decrypt locked hard drive

The first step to recover data from an encrypted hard drive is to unlock it. Windows offers robust full disk encryption utilizing Cipher Block Chaining and AES encryption. If you possess the 128/256-bit encryption key, accessing your encrypted hard drive is straightforward. However, even if you've misplaced the key, it's still possible to decrypt your drive.

Before we delve into the data recovery methods from encrypted hard drives, it's essential to ensure that you are logged into your system as an administrator. Please note that these techniques are exclusively effective when accessed with administrator privileges. You need to enter admin account to perform both ways.

Method 1. Using Control Panel to unlock encrypted hard drive

The Control Panel is a useful tool for managing various aspects of your computer, including hard drive encryption. To recover data from an encrypted hard drive, follow these steps:

Step 1. Access Control Panel

Begin by clicking the "Start" button and typing "Control Panel" in the search bar. Hit "Enter" to open the Control Panel.

Step 2. Navigate to BitLocker drive encryption.

In the Control Panel, click on "System and Security," and then select "BitLocker Drive Encryption."

Step 3. Select the encrypted drive

Under the "BitLocker Drive Encryption" section, you'll see a list of drives on your computer. Locate the encrypted drive you want to decrypt.

Step 4. Turn off BitLocker

Click on the drive, and you'll see an option to "Turn off BitLocker." Click this option and follow the on-screen instructions to decrypt the drive.

Method 2. Using Certificate Manager to decrypted locked hard drive

This is yet another straightforward way to recover data from an encrypted hard disk. Windows has a program for importing EFS File Encryption Keys to the place of your choice. 

Step 1. Access Certificate Manager.

Press the Windows key and 'R' simultaneously to open the Run dialog. Type "certmgr.msc" and press "Enter" to open the Certificate Manager.

Step 2. Locate the Certificate.

From the left panel, you can view different categories of certificates, navigate to "Personal" and then "Certificates." Here, you'll find the certificate associated with the encrypted drive.

Step 3. Launch a new window of Certificate Import Wizard.

Right-click it and go to the All Tasks > Import button. You can also go to the "Action" tab on the menu and select All Task > Import.

Simply provide the on-screen instructions and bypass the authorization process to import the encryption keys to the location of your choice.

Recover data from encrypted hard drive

If the previously mentioned techniques prove unsuccessful in recovering data from an encrypted hard drive, there's no need to fret – an alternative solution is at your disposal. With the aid of the data recovery function of AOMEI FastRecovery, you can effortlessly reclaim your lost, deleted, locked, or inaccessible content. Featuring an intuitive and user-friendly interface, this tool ensures a seamless recovery process. Moreover, it boasts a 100% reliability rate and guarantees no harm to your system during operation.

Step 1. Install and launch AOMEI FastRecovery. Choose the exact partition or disk where your data lost and click Scan.

Step 2. Then, the recovery tool start to scan and search. lt will execute the “Quickly Scan" first for finding your deleted data fast, and then execute the “Deep Scan" for searching other lost data.

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

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

Step 5. Wait patiently for this process of recovering ends.

Conclusion

In this article, we've shown you how to recover data from encrypted hard drive. We explored two methods for decrypting your encrypted hard drive – the Control Panel and Certificate Manager. Additionally, we've introduced you to AOMEI FastRecovery, a powerful data recovery tool that can help you retrieve your lost files with ease. With the information provided here, you can confidently recover your data and maintain the security of your encrypted hard drive.