BitLocker recovery key saved my PC after an update locked me out. Here’s how I used the recovery key from my Microsoft account to unlock encrypted drives.

If you're running Windows, you've probably run into the BitLocker Recovery screen at some point. Here's everything you need to know about the Microsoft program.

Opening those text files tells me key identifications, full recovery key identification (same as above but even longer) as well as a Bitlocker recovery key (which is 48 numbers).

For example, you can store the PIN or recovery key in your Microsoft account, USB flash drive, local storage, or print the key. You can find all these options when you set BitLocker up on your ...

4. Save to a Microsoft Account If you are logged in to your Windows 11 PC using your Microsoft account, BitLocker can save recovery keys to your Microsoft account in the cloud. By choosing the “Save ...

If you set up Windows 11 normally with a Microsoft account, your BitLocker recovery keys will automatically be backed up to your Microsoft account, which is frankly, the best way to do it.

You can now recover a PC affected by the CrowdStrike outage without BitLocker recovery keys, at least in certain situations.

A patch is coming, but for now you'll need to enter your BitLocker recovery key to successfully boot into Windows.