Windows 11 PIN and Bitlocker

TELLIT01

I'm the only person who uses my laptop.  It hadn't been used for a while and required the BitLocker key twice, and then demanded that I set a new PIN as well.  Is there any comparatively simple way to stop having to put a PIN in everytime, and ideally to stop having to enter the BitLocker key?

To change my PIN I had to have a new One Time code sent to my e-mail address.  Fortunately the laptop isn't the only device with my e-mail on it, but I would have been well and truly up the creek without a paddle if it was.

Peter999_2

If you follows the steps in the below website you can get the laptop to autologin without a password/PIN

How to Log In Automatically to Windows 11 (howtogeek.com)

Neil_Jones

Sounds like an MS account.

You can convert to a local account and not have a password if that's what you want.

TELLIT01

Thanks for the replies.  I'll give it a go.

flaneurs_lobster

I may be missing something but is there any point in encrypting/decrypting with Bitlocker if access to the laptop is not secured?

TELLIT01

flaneurs_lobster said:

I may be missing something but is there any point in encrypting/decrypting with Bitlocker if access to the laptop is not secured?

I have no idea :-)  I just know that when I powered the laptop up I had to enter the BitLocker key - twice.  If I could avoid having to do that it would be great.

Frozen_up_north

TELLIT01 said:

I'm the only person who uses my laptop.  It hadn't been used for a while and required the BitLocker key twice, and then demanded that I set a new PIN as well.

Is the CMOS (clock) battery the problem? We have 3 laptops and 1 desktop here, all use a PIN with Bitlocker enabled and none have ever needed the Bitlocker key except once when one had detected a hardware change (such a long time ago that I cannot remember what was changed).

Bitlocker is a robust means of securing your data... even if you only use a 4 digit PIN it offers a good degree of security in case your laptop is lost/stolen. I cannot see why anyone wouldn't use it.

TELLIT01

I wouldn't expect the CMOS battery to be a problem the laptop is under 2 years old.

Vitor

You can turn off device encryption, then Bitlocker will stop prompting for a PIN before Windows starts. This is separate from a Windows login PIN you could have set as part of Windows Hello to use instead of a password.

Turn On or Off Device Encryption in Windows 11 Tutorial | Windows 11 Forum (elevenforum.com)

mart44

I had to sort out Bitlocker after a recent hardware change. I had to enter the 48 digit key at every boot up until I used the 'Press ESC for more recovery options' option. This took me to another screen where I could enter the number again. Having done this, the system remembered it and I wasn't asked to enter it again.  

TELLIT01

Frozen_up_north said:

TELLIT01 said:

I'm the only person who uses my laptop.  It hadn't been used for a while and required the BitLocker key twice, and then demanded that I set a new PIN as well.

Bitlocker is a robust means of securing your data... even if you only use a 4 digit PIN it offers a good degree of security in case your laptop is lost/stolen. I cannot see why anyone wouldn't use it.

I've used PCs at home for at least the last 30 years and never felt the need to have the machines password protected, let alone have something like BitLocker.