BitLocker locked my drive after a BIOS update

Anonymous
2020-06-28T14:24:52+00:00

HP updated BIOS which turned on BitLocker and locked and encrypted my drive.  I never set up BitLocker so I don't have the key or a password.  It is not saved in my Microsoft account since I never set it up.  BestBuy set up my laptop and transferred files from my old computer last November but they don't have the key.  They claim the manufacturers are turning it on when they're shipped.  HP states they don't have the key.  HP has also stated it's a known problem with HP Envy laptops but they don't have a fix or workaround.  Microsoft wasn't any help either.  They claimed HP should have the code and of course they state they don't.  So far the only advice I've gotten is I'll have to reload a fresh Windows 10 and will lose all my data files, which I'm trying to avoid. I've looked in the registry editor and there are things there for BitLocker.  I didn't want to make any changes w/o knowing what they might do but on the other hand it's a doorstop now so I'm not sure how I could make it worse. Anyone have any ideas how to get around this?

Windows for home | Windows 10 | Security and privacy

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Anonymous
2021-06-10T04:22:21+00:00

This suggestion is only applicable if you actually created a Bitlocker recovery key. Many people did not do this. Hard drives from HP and Dell have Bitlocker activated by default if you choose to use the Microsoft account as the log in instead of creating a local account.

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Anonymous
2021-06-07T15:22:31+00:00

Good day!

When I shut down my HP Envy laptop today, it automatically did a BIOS update. After that, I also encountered the Bitlocker issue. It was asking for recovery keys that I thought I do not have.

I followed the specified instructions. I went to aka.ms/myrecoverykey. After logging in to Microsoft account, there's no Bitlocker recovery keys in there. I've read most of the comments here and I was in the brink of resetting my laptop even if I'd lose my data. Then, I tried to log in again to Microsoft account but this time I used my another email. Fortunately, I have Bitlocker recovery keys in there. There are actually 2 recovery keys but I used the one corresponding to the recovery ID indicated in the instructions. And yay, I was able to log in to my PC again! I was only successful on my third try because I did not enter 0 using F10 key (the instructions are in Japanese).

Suggestion:

Try logging in to your Microsoft account using all the email addresses you are using or you have used. It might turn out that the recovery keys are in one of those addresses.

Thank you for all the help from this discussion! Arigatou gozaimasu! :)

I hope you can fix your PCs too.

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Anonymous
2021-05-05T08:26:36+00:00

If you ever used the locked laptop for your work or school, try the link with your work or school email even you never created a Microsoft account with the email. https://myaccount.microsoft.com/

It worked for my HP. Hope it helps!

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  1. Anonymous
    2020-06-30T10:14:27+00:00

    Exact same issue on HP Envy. I suspect many more will follow. 

    After update it asks for a bitlocker key. But there is no such key because the drive was never locked in the first place.

    @robertjames_55, I tried the different TPM settings in BIOS, didn't help.

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  2. Anonymous
    2020-06-28T14:44:09+00:00

    Hello Robert,

    My Name is Chander, a Microsoft Community member and a fellow Windows 10 user like you. I hope I can help you on your concern.

    I faced the same issue with My Dell laptop and I was able to fix it using these steps -

    1. Restart the system.
    2. At the Dell Logo keep tapping F2.
    3. You will enter the BIOS screen
    4. Under General
    5. Select Boot Sequence.
    6. Select UEFI
    7. Select Apply.
    8. Under “Security” select TPM 2.0 Security
    9. Select Enable and click on Apply.
    10. Under “Secure Boot”
    11. Select Secure Boot Enable
    12. Select Enable.
    13. Click on Apply. Once these steps are done, restart the system and let us know if you are able to boot into Windows.

    Try to do the same, The bios key should be F10 or F2 for HP laptop.

    Let me know if you have any questions.

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