How to Use BitLocker-Encrypted Drive on Mac?

BitLocker is a dynamic program that is available for Windows encryption. This program is useful for the protection of data and access authorization on storage devices. With this program, one or more factors of authentication serve as the authorization key for unlocking such a drive. This is the requirement for its use on Windows laptops or other laptops.

For Mac users, BitLocker-encrypted drives are not accessible or even recognized. This is because this program works natively on Windows laptops. However, there are ways through which Mac users can now enjoy the benefit of this program on their laptops.

This article introduces how to open BitLocker drive on Mac and steps on making the BitLocker-encrypted drive work natively on Mac. This article also considers the benefits of using the M3 BitLocker Loader for Mac in macOS.

How to access BitLocker drives on Mac

The BitLocker program by Microsoft primarily works on Microsoft and Windows laptops. However, Mac laptops can also enjoy the benefits of the BitLocker program through third-party tools. M3 BitLocker Loader for Mac is a simple-to-use application for Mac laptops. It makes BitLocker-encrypted drives usable on Mac laptops with a seamless experience for Mac users.

M3 BitLocker Loader for Mac makes it possible to unlock and apply encryption features to external storage devices in macOS. Mac users can also perform a read-write function to BitLocker-encrypted drives on their Mac using this software. To unlock BitLocker drives on Mac, here is the stepwise process:

1. First step is to download the free M3 BitLocker Loader software from the internet. Locate the file and install the software with the installation wizard prompt. After installing, launch the program on your Mac
2. Connect a BitLocker-encrypted drive to your Mac to gain access to it via the M3 BitLocker Loader for Mac.
3. On the M3 BitLocker Loader software, select BitLocker-encrypted drive and enter the password when the prompt requests for it.
4. In a situation where you do not remember the password for the drive, this program allows you to enter your 48-digit BitLocker recovery key. This will grant you access to your drive
5. After entering either the password or the 48-digit recovery key to the BitLocker-encrypted drive, click on the ‘Unlock’ button. This mounts the BitLocker-encrypted drive on your Mac. It also grants you access read-write mode on your Mac while accessing this drive.
6. After performing the operations you wish to perform on the drive, you can re-engage the lock for security reasons. Click on the ‘Lock’ button on the software to re-engage the BitLocker encryption on the drive
7. After locking, click on the ‘Eject’ button to safely eject the drive from your Mac. This will help to avoid any damage or data corruption on the drive.

The steps above are useful for the successful unlocking of your BitLocker-encrypted drive on your Mac. Using the M3 BitLocker Loader, you can seamlessly operate your drive while performing your read-write operations.

How to Enable Encryption on Your External Storage Drive Using M3 BitLocker Loader

Aside from unlocking, the M3 BitLocker Loader is also capable of applying encryption to your drive. This multi-functional software helps to provide security and authorization features to your drive to protect your data. With some simple steps, you can apply BitLocker lock encryption on your drive from your Mac. To commence the lock encryption process, follow the steps below:

1. Launch the M3 BitLocker Loader software on your Mac. Note, you require a Mac with macOS High Sierra or later versions.
2. Connect the external storage drive to your Mac. This can be a USB drive, flash drive, pen drive, external hard drive, thumb drive and other types of drive. The file system of the external storage device should be exFAT/FAT32 or NTFS file system format.
3. Click on the ‘Encrypt’ button in the toolbar and proceed to click the ‘Encrypt’ option in front of the drive you wish to apply the encryption.
4. Enter the password you wish to encrypt your drive with for locking and unlocking purposes.
5. Click the ‘Save to a file’ option or ‘Print the recovery key’ option to save the 48-digit recovery key and select ‘Next’
6. To complete the encryption process, select the ‘Start encrypting’ option to complete the encryption process using the M3 BitLocker Loader for Mac.

Overall, M3 BitLocker Loader software provides several other features for seamless operation on your Mac. Some of these features include a fast read-write function on your driver, BitLocker operation for better native compatibility on Mac, finders and disk utility integration among many others.