We are primarily using the solution for all endpoints first. We are going to protect all endpoints in the organization. The endpoint is any computer with Windows 10 or Windows 11. We use the feature device encryption and file encryption, basically.
Cyber Security Administrator at BAC Credomatic
User-friendly, easy to set up, and offers real-time machine status updates
Pros and Cons
- "The initial setup is very simple."
- "Technical support has not been very good."
What is our primary use case?
What is most valuable?
It's the same BitLocker that we use in Sophos. Maybe the feature we like the best is file encryption.
The connectivity is in the cloud, therefore this is a good solution as we have, the real-time status of all machines.
The interface is user-friendly.
The initial setup is very simple.
What needs improvement?
Technical support has not been very good.
We'd like automatic self-service in future releases.
For how long have I used the solution?
I've been using the solution for around three months.
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What do I think about the stability of the solution?
I can't speak to stability. We're still testing the product right now.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
The scalability is good. A company can expand it as needed.
We have about 100 people using the product currently. Only technical users are on it.
How are customer service and support?
Technical support could be better. It is slow. Maybe there are people who only have a certain certification, however, they don't analyze the problems. They only go to the documentation which doesn't help as I've done all the tests they do before I call. I don't like that support.
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
I'm also familiar with McAfee and Sophos. We changed due to the fact that we already had a license for Microsoft Intune and the BitLocker comes included in it. You don't need to pay anything for the license.
How was the initial setup?
We found the initial setup to be very simple and straightforward. It's not overly complex or difficult.
We've used it for about three months and are still doing tests.
We have 25 to 50 people that are handling the deployment and maintenance. They are our engineers.
What about the implementation team?
We work with a partner that has assisted us with the implementation.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
The cost of the solution is bundled in with Microsoft Intune. I'm not sure of the exact licensing. It's managed by another person.
What other advice do I have?
We are a customer and end-user.
We are using Intune to enable BitLocker. We are testing BitLocker on Windows 10 and Windows 11.
BitLocker is very established. It's very easy to encrypt the machine, versus Sophos in Windows 7. The keys are centrally located.
I'd rate the solution nine out of ten.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
Public Cloud
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.

Head of IT department at Monetars
Secures external disks according to security policy
What is our primary use case?
We use BitLocker to secure external disks according to security policy. Every external disk, regardless of size, is encrypted with BitLocker for everyday use. The password is securely stored in a designated location. Additionally, client PCs are also equipped with BitLocker for basic security measures.
BitLocker serves as a layer of security for any external drives users use, ensuring that any data stored on them, whether for local backups or important files, remains protected.
What is most valuable?
We opt for a data loss prevention solution. I evaluate different vendors, including Microsoft BitLocker, as part of this process. Each step of the implementation is carefully planned, as every aspect of data protection is crucial.
What needs improvement?
BitLocker could have a more user-friendly interface at a lower price. There are no regular updates for it. If they introduce new features, the new version might offer improvements or enhancements in the future.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using Microsoft BitLocker for two years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
The product is stable, with no significant impact. Its primary function is to enhance security, and its reliability depends on the company's implementation. It protects at a basic level.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
The solution's scalability is limited as it is designed for individual devices on-premises. Each local device requires its password, with no centralized management or options for scalability across multiple devices.
How are customer service and support?
If you lose the passwords, then you need Microsoft support. You have multiple recovery options like printed, saved password, and rolled hash key.
How was the initial setup?
The initial setup is very easy. If you want to use BitLocker on the system, different steps are involved. If you only want to encrypt external drives, it's easier, especially if the external disk is blank.
What was our ROI?
BitLocker provides benefits such as security and protection for data at a basic level. BitLocker can be a satisfactory solution with sufficient security. BitLocker meets our needs adequately.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
No separate license is required for BitLocker. It is included in Windows operating system editions.
What other advice do I have?
Bitlocker is easy to use. You can find a lot of information on how to use it on many informational sites, but the process is straightforward: follow the "next, next, finish" steps. It takes time, depending on whether you're encrypting an external disk or a disk with existing data. If the disk is empty, the process is speedy.
Overall, I rate the solution a ten out of ten.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
Buyer's Guide
Microsoft BitLocker
June 2025

Learn what your peers think about Microsoft BitLocker. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: June 2025.
860,592 professionals have used our research since 2012.
Information Security Management Individual Contributor at First Bank of Nigeria Ltd.
A stable solution for endpoint security but crashes often
What is our primary use case?
We use the solution for our endpoint. There were recovery issues because of concrete tools, operations, and recovery tokens. There was a recovery case during the system crash. You can recover the system and find out the lost data.
What is most valuable?
Microsoft BitLocker is very easy to manage and is stable. We experience very few crashes with different endpoints. We operate in a large institution and require a solution that seamlessly works across diverse systems.
What needs improvement?
Some non-enterprise security solutions offer more comprehensive tracking capabilities for stolen devices beyond device protection. They enable location tracking of the device once it connects to the internet. Additionally, they provide enhanced stability, addressing instances where encryption fails to complete and rollback attempts become problematic.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using Microsoft BitLocker for a year.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
The product is stable.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
The solution is scalable. There are some devices where the system crashes during encryption.
I rate the solution's scalability an eight out of ten.
How was the initial setup?
The initial setup is straightforward.
What about the implementation team?
We have local partners and OEMs providing support for BitLocker deployment. The technical expert handles the deployments internally.
What other advice do I have?
Overall, I rate the solution a six out of ten.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
Head of IT at a financial services firm with 11-50 employees
Easy to manage and provides good endpoint encryption
Pros and Cons
- "Microsoft BitLocker's most valuable feature is endpoint encryption, and it's quite easy to manage."
- "The management of the product could be made a little easier."
What is our primary use case?
We use the solution to secure endpoints.
What is most valuable?
Microsoft BitLocker's most valuable feature is endpoint encryption, and it's quite easy to manage. Microsoft BitLocker's data protection is the most useful for mobile endpoints like laptops.
What needs improvement?
The management of the product could be made a little easier.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using Microsoft BitLocker for 5-6 years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
I rate the solution ten out of ten for stability.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
Around 50 users are using the solution in our organization.
I rate the solution’s scalability ten out of ten.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
We didn't pay for additional licenses since the solution is built into Windows.
Which other solutions did I evaluate?
Before choosing Microsoft BitLocker, we evaluated Trend Micro.
What other advice do I have?
I use the latest version of Microsoft BitLocker. We didn't have any specific incidents where we needed to use the solution's recovery process. However, if there's a problem unlocking devices, it's pretty simple to manage.
The solution is not complicated to manage. Microsoft BitLocker is transparent to end users, and they are unaware of its existence. It doesn't impact their performance in a measurable way, and we don't have any problems with it.
Microsoft BitLocker is a very useful tool for managing endpoints, especially mobile ones, and ensuring that data is not leaked. The solution's drives are integrated into the mobile workstation. We require one person as a backup to maintain the solution, which is not time-consuming. It just takes a few hours every month. I would recommend the solution to other users.
Overall, I rate Microsoft BitLocker ten out of ten.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
System and network security engineer at Central Bank of Nigeria
Has good stability and an efficient feature to encrypt devices
Pros and Cons
- "Microsoft BitLocker's most valuable features are stability and simplicity in terms of usage."
- "They could improve cloud integration regarding attribute and encryption key management."
What is our primary use case?
We use Microsoft BitLocker for hard drive encryption.
How has it helped my organization?
The product helps us to encrypt local devices. It allows us to protect devices against theft and unauthorized access.
What is most valuable?
Microsoft BitLocker's most valuable features are stability and simplicity in terms of usage.
What needs improvement?
They could improve cloud integration regarding attribute and encryption key management.
For how long have I used the solution?
We have been using Microsoft BitLocker for five years. At present, we use its latest on-premises version.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
I rate the product’s stability a ten out of ten.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
We have Microsoft BitLocker installed on 5000 devices in our organization.
How are customer service and support?
We have an in-house technical support team.
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
We attempted to use some other products before. But only Microsoft BitLocker proved suitable for our business requirements.
How was the initial setup?
We deploy the product in the client’s environment using group policy configuration. It takes a week to complete the process.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
We already use Microsoft products, and Microsoft BitLocker is an add-on product that is free of cost for us.
What other advice do I have?
I rate Microsoft BitLocker a nine out of ten.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
Team Manager at JJ soluciones
A stable and easy-to-deploy solution that is used to protect data if laptops are lost or stolen
Pros and Cons
- "The solution is included in Windows 11."
- "The product must improve the centralization of keys."
What is our primary use case?
We use the solution for laptops assigned to sales in case it’s lost or stolen.
What is most valuable?
The solution is included in Windows 11.
What needs improvement?
The product must improve the centralization of keys. BitLocker is not perfect. Sometimes, we have problems when Windows tries to start. It shows that the key is not available.
For how long have I used the solution?
I am using the solution currently.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
It is a stable solution.
How are customer service and support?
We check the Microsoft forum to resolve issues.
How was the initial setup?
The initial setup is not complex.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
We can activate the product at no cost. We're just taking advantage of what is included in Windows.
What other advice do I have?
We have individual files when IT support prepares the computers. We have the information to replace an SSD or increase the size. We need to remove BitLocker, change the drive, put it back, and encrypt it again with BitLocker. We can check the way the encryption is used because it is centralized. It is good to test the features and centralize the encryption. Overall, I rate the tool an eight or nine out of ten.
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
Senior Technology Specialist at ITE Corp
A scalable solution useful for encryption and integration with other solutions
Pros and Cons
- "The ease of administering and integrating the solution is great."
- "The integration between Active Directory and BitLocker could be better."
What is our primary use case?
Our primary use case for this solution is encryption. The solution is deployed on-premises.
What is most valuable?
The ease of administering and integrating the solution is great.
What needs improvement?
The product could be improved by simplifying the implementation process and the integration between Active Directory and BitLocker could be better.
For how long have I used the solution?
We have been using this solution for two years and are currently using the latest version.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
The solution is stable.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
The solution is scalable. Currently, we have approximately 800 users using this solution, and six people are required for maintenance.
How are customer service and support?
We don't have experience with customer service and support.
How was the initial setup?
The initial setup is easy and takes approximately one to two days. A day for implementation and a second day for compliance.
What about the implementation team?
The solution was implemented in-house.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
We use the System Center Configuration Manager, which is free. So we don't need a license for BitLocker.
What other advice do I have?
I rate this solution an eight out of ten. The solution is good but can be improved by simplifying the implementation process. I recommend it to people who may not be able to afford high license costs.
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
Information Security Manager at a renewables & environment company with 501-1,000 employees
Brings us in compliance, works with our Microsoft tools, and is pretty simple to deploy
Pros and Cons
- "I liked the way it works with our Microsoft tools. As we roll out Intune, we can validate if the device has been encrypted, and if not, we can push it down. It is pretty simple to deploy."
- "The biggest one for us is revoking access. So, even though someone downloads something to a device, we want the ability to cloak that device or data and bring it back or make that data unusable for that person. Currently, BitLocker doesn't give us that ability. It basically encrypts it. We're seeing if identity management or IAM allows us to do that. We're kind of looking at third-party software that does that for us."
What is our primary use case?
We use it for encrypting data and storage for the most part. We keep it up to date in terms of the version.
How has it helped my organization?
It basically brings us in compliance. We are required to encrypt the handling of data, the transmission of the data, and storage of the data. So, when people are working with the data, and they download it to the laptops, we can safely say it is encrypted at that point to meet our requirements. It is pretty transparent to the end-user since the encryption is done without them really doing it.
Our need was to protect our portable devices. So, our thumb drives get automatically encrypted. Any attached storage gets automatically encrypted for our laptops in case they get lost or stolen when people travel.
What is most valuable?
I liked the way it works with our Microsoft tools. As we roll out Intune, we can validate if the device has been encrypted, and if not, we can push it down. It is pretty simple to deploy.
What needs improvement?
Their interoperability with our tools, which are the Microsoft tool, can be improved. It needs to be geared towards more of the wraparound of the zero trust. There are solutions we're looking at that do encryption plus X, Y, and Z. So, we're looking at the ability to wrap around the product with other features.
The biggest one for us is revoking access. So, even though someone downloads something to a device, we want the ability to cloak that device or data and bring it back or make that data unusable for that person. Currently, BitLocker doesn't give us that ability. It basically encrypts it. We're seeing if identity management or IAM allows us to do that. We're kind of looking at third-party software that does that for us.
Usually, Microsoft sees what other third-party companies do and then either adopts it or buys the third-party company, and that's kind of what we're looking into. That's our need. It'd be a lot better if it was all under one mirror or one window, instead of having a couple of different vendors working on it. So, if Microsoft could solve that, it would be awesome. They should look at the third-party enhancements that people are doing, and then take the encryption a step further by adding those features to BitLocker. Microsoft has different components. They have identity management, but is it tied to encryption? BitLocker is mostly tied to devices, but it would be best for me if I get a piece of data and I am able to encrypt it all the way through using BitLocker. Currently, BitLocker is basically tied at the device level instead of the data level.
I would just like them to look at what other people are doing in terms of encryption as a whole and offer the encryption not only tied to the device, but also to the file level. They should add features on that in terms of access control and reporting. We should be able to see who has access to it and who has touched a file. So, we're going towards the zero trust model and the zero trust reporting. It is a "We don't trust anybody" type of deal. So, it is not just the device, it is the data. They should try to wrap it around the data at the file level and not at the device level.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using this solution for about three years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
So far, so good. We haven't had too many problems with managing the keys or anything else. Probably the only concern is that we manage it. Individuals are not doing it themselves. The other thing is as we take over companies or merge companies, or the other way around, we have to make sure that we get those keys to the kingdom per se. So, we always got to look out for that as well.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
So far, so good. Mostly, anything we deal with Microsoft is pretty scalable. Again, it is kind of tied to devices, but you can essentially manage it, which makes it simple.
In terms of its usage, we force it on everybody, so it is non-binding. No matter who you are in a company, if you have a managed device, it is going to be encrypted. It is a requirement, so it is being used extensively. Its usage will increase as the number of employees increase.
How are customer service and technical support?
I don't think we've had many issues with them. We push it through our SolarWinds product, so for most of the issues we've had, we probably had to deal with SolarWind's side to make sure that everything was pushed correctly. We didn't go to the Microsoft side. Our software vendor might have dealt with Microsoft directly but not us.
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
The only solutions that we've had in place were standalone encrypted thumb drives. We had not rolled out BitLocker until then, so we had a need to encrypt thumb drives. We had bought Aegis thumb drives that came encrypted. After we got the encryption rolled out, when someone connected a thumb drive, it was automatically encrypted, or they couldn't store data on it. Once we went to that method, we didn't purchase any more Aegis encrypted thumb drives.
How was the initial setup?
We have it on-prem, and we have a couple of devices in the cloud, but we are a hybrid environment. Our main thing was to get it on our traveling laptops and protect them. We push it through another vendor, not Microsoft. We push it through another SolarWinds vendor, and then we push it down. The only thing that we've had problems with was that the encryption level wasn't as high as we needed it by default. So, we had to do some tweaking to get the correct encryption level that we wanted. It is all default. So, you have to be aware of how you deploy it. If you deploy it one way, it doesn't really fully encrypt the machine.
It took days only because it was a slow rollout. It was intentionally a slow rollout. It didn't take long to do it, but we just wanted to make sure it was done right and correctly.
What about the implementation team?
We just implemented it in-house. In terms of maintenance, it is a small staff. We rely on our software to help us with the patching and everything. We have reports that kickback to us. If for some reason, encryption was turned off or encryption wasn't deployed correctly, we'd get reports sent to us. So, a lot of stuff is automated in terms of monitoring the compliance to encryptions, and our response to that is pretty fast. We just manage it with our current staff. We don't have anybody directly tied to just doing that.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
I don't know the costs. In terms of Microsoft licensing, we are at E3 on the business, and we're in the process of pricing out and moving to E5. So, a lot of this is included within our licensing agreements.
What other advice do I have?
If you don't implement this, you have to implement something else. You have to have some type of encryption. In the past, people wanted a layered approach to security. They wanted to have different vendors, and they wanted it to be able to have that overlap of vendor support on security, but the reality is that everybody looks to Microsoft. If you look at the SolarWind attack, who do they go to help resolve it? They went straight to Microsoft. Therefore, we're getting away from that thought process of divide and conquer. We're just trying to align everything up with a single pane of glass so that we can build on our Microsoft tools. In the past, we would have resisted being tied to one security.
I can't rate it any lower than eight out of 10. The only reason why I don't rate it a 10 is that they can do more with it. It is good at what it does, but it needs to do more. It is never going to get a 10 from me because it is never going to be perfect, but there is more to do.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.

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