{"id":4438,"date":"2014-12-02T14:12:48","date_gmt":"2014-12-02T14:12:48","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.backupassist.com\/blog\/?p=4438"},"modified":"2019-11-07T07:04:41","modified_gmt":"2019-11-07T07:04:41","slug":"bitlocker-encryption-times-security-worth-wait","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.backupassist.com\/blog\/bitlocker-encryption-times-security-worth-wait","title":{"rendered":"Bitlocker encryption times – security is worth the wait."},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Bitlocker<\/a><\/p>\n

As you’ve probably heard by now, the latest version of BackupAssist includes BitLocker encryption for System Protection backups on external drives.  This is an addition we’re really excited about – it’s a great tool that helps provide the high level of data security our customers have come to expect from us.<\/p>\n

As the BitLocker engine may be an unfamiliar tool to some of our customers, we also want to make sure that you’re aware of the normal process when encrypting data for the first time – particularly in regards to duration.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

To sum this article up \u2013 preparing your backup device for its first Bitlocker encryption may take some time.  Don’t panic.  This is a normal part of the process, and the good news is it only needs to be prepared once.<\/p>\n

What is Bitlocker and how does BA use it?<\/span><\/h2>\n

\"what<\/p>\n

BitLocker is a Microsoft encryption feature included in Server 2008 and later operating systems that allows data to be securely encrypted in 256-bit AES.  It works by encrypting a drive at the sector level.<\/p>\n

In BackupAssist, this means that you can securely encrypt an external drive destination for your System Protection backups, so your data can\u2019t be accessed by anyone who isn’t authorized to do so.<\/p>\n

So how long will encryption take?<\/span><\/h2>\n

\"bitlocker<\/p>\n

Because BitLocker operates at the sector level, you’ll only need to encrypt your backup destination once.  However, because the entire encryption process takes place up front, the time it takes can very depending on a lot of factors. If you have a particularly large device already containing a lot of data, it may take some time.<\/p>\n

Microsoft estimates that BitLocker encryption can take roughly 1 minute per every 500mb encrypted – this is a good rule of thumb to use when planning for the time you’ll need to encrypt a destination.  Using this rule of thumb, you can arrive at the following of reasonable estimates of how long variously sized drives will take to encrypt:<\/p>\n

Windows Server 2008<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n
500 GB drive<\/td>\n17 hours<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
1 TB drive<\/td>\n33 hours<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
2 Tb drive<\/td>\n67 hours<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

Windows Server 2012<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n
New disk<\/td>\n1-5 minutes<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
1 TB \/ 300 GB used<\/td>\n10 hours<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
2 TB \/ 1.5 TB used<\/td>\n50 hours<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

To learn more, see the Microsoft BitLocker FAQ<\/a>.<\/p>\n

However, other factors that will affect the duration of Bitlocker encryption include:<\/p>\n