Tech Tip: Bitlocker Recovery Screen

As students and faculty returned to campus over the past week, we saw a number of personal computers display Bitlocker recovery screens. This screen appears as the computer powers on, demanding a recovery key to be typed in before the user can access their computer. This may seem daunting at first, but fortunately there are now several articles that shine light on this issue.

This issue originated with the KB5012170 update for Windows 11, so users with Windows 10 will not have to worry about this. For those with Windows 11, there exist multiple solutions based on whether you have installed the update yet. More information can be found in the articles listed below. A key takeaway is that if you connect your computer to your Microsoft account, your Bitlocker key, which is needed to get past the recovery screen, can be found later by accessing your Microsoft account from another computer.

Articles:

• https://windowsreport.com/windows-11-bitlocker-bug/
• https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/microsoft/windows-kb5012170-update-causing-bitlocker-recovery-screens-boot-issues/

As always, if you have any further questions or would like assistance, feel free to contact the Help Desk.