BitLocker is a full disk encryption feature included with Windows operating systems, designed to protect data by providing encryption for entire volumes. Unlocking a BitLocker-encrypted drive is crucial for accessing its contents. This article will guide you through the process of unlocking a BitLocker-encrypted drive using both Command Prompt (CMD) and PowerShell, ensuring you can securely access your data when needed.

Examples:

Using Command Prompt (CMD):

1. Open Command Prompt as Administrator:

   • Press Win + X and select "Command Prompt (Admin)" or "Windows PowerShell (Admin)".

2. Unlock the BitLocker Drive:

   • Use the following command to unlock the drive. Replace X: with the actual drive letter of the BitLocker-encrypted drive and YourPassword with your actual BitLocker password.

   manage-bde -unlock X: -password

   • You will be prompted to enter the password. Type your BitLocker password and press Enter.

3. Example:

   manage-bde -unlock E: -password

   After executing the command, you will be prompted to enter the password for the E: drive.

Using PowerShell:

1. Open PowerShell as Administrator:

   • Press Win + X and select "Windows PowerShell (Admin)".

2. Unlock the BitLocker Drive:

   • Use the following command to unlock the drive. Replace X: with the actual drive letter of the BitLocker-encrypted drive and YourPassword with your actual BitLocker password.

   Unlock-BitLocker -MountPoint "X:" -Password (ConvertTo-SecureString "YourPassword" -AsPlainText -Force)

3. Example:

   Unlock-BitLocker -MountPoint "E:" -Password (ConvertTo-SecureString "MySecurePassword123" -AsPlainText -Force)

   This command will unlock the E: drive using the specified password.

Note: For security reasons, it is recommended to avoid hardcoding passwords in scripts. Instead, consider using more secure methods for password input, such as prompting the user to enter the password at runtime.