Quick answer: While your drives are still unlocked, run Advanced Password Recovery Suite (version 4.0.0 or later) and open the BitLocker Keys section. It reads the recovery keys stored on the PC and lets you export them to a file you can keep on a USB drive or in a password manager. Total time: about 2 minutes.
In This Guide
Why Backup BitLocker Keys Before Reinstalling
BitLocker encrypts a drive so that its data is unreadable without the right credentials. Each encrypted drive has a 48-digit recovery key, which is the fallback that unlocks it when the normal unlock method (TPM, PIN or password) does not work.
A reinstall or hardware change is exactly when that fallback gets used. Windows may ask for the recovery key after you change the motherboard, update the BIOS or move an encrypted drive to another PC, and an encrypted data drive stays locked after a clean install until you supply its key or password. If you do not have the key, the data on that drive is effectively gone.
Where Windows Keeps Your Recovery Key
When BitLocker was turned on, Windows asked where to save the recovery key. Check these places first:
- Your Microsoft account: sign in at aka.ms/myrecoverykey to see keys saved to your account.
- A work or school account: keys may be stored with your organization. Ask your IT administrator.
- A file or printout: a .txt file saved to a USB drive or another drive, or a printed copy.
- The PC itself: while a drive is unlocked, its protectors, including the recovery key, can be read locally. This is what the method below uses.
Many people never saved the key anywhere they can remember, and that last option is the one that rescues them, as long as they act before the reinstall.
Export BitLocker Keys with Advanced Password Recovery Suite
Run this on the PC you are about to reinstall or replace:
- Sign in to Windows with an administrator account and make sure your BitLocker drives are unlocked
- Download, install and run Advanced Password Recovery Suite (v4.0.0 or later), right-click it and choose Run as administrator
- Click BitLocker Keys in the left-hand menu
- Click Scan. The program lists each encrypted drive with its recovery key
- Click Save to export the list as a TXT, CSV or HTML file
- Copy the file to a USB drive or your password manager, not to the drive it protects
While you are there, run the full scan as well. The same export can cover your browser passwords, WiFi keys, email accounts and FTP logins, which is everything you would otherwise lose in the reinstall. See our complete Windows reinstall preparation guide for the full checklist.
What This Can and Cannot Do
Be clear about the limits so you know what to expect:
- It works on unlocked drives. The drive must be unlocked in Windows when you scan.
- The key must be stored locally. The program reads the key that Windows keeps on the computer. It cannot create a key that does not exist.
- It cannot unlock a drive you are already locked out of. If Windows is asking for a recovery key right now and you do not have one, check your Microsoft account at aka.ms/myrecoverykey or contact your IT administrator.
The point is to back up the keys before you need them, while the drives are still accessible.
How to Store the Backup Safely
- Keep it off the encrypted drive. A key saved on the drive it protects is useless when you are locked out.
- Keep two copies. For example, a USB drive in a safe place plus an entry in your password manager.
- Label each key with its drive. The export shows the drive and key identifier. Keep that information with the key so you know which one unlocks what.
- Treat it like a password. Anyone with the recovery key can unlock the drive, so do not email it or upload it to a public folder.
After the Reinstall or Move to a New PC
Once Windows is reinstalled, unlock any encrypted data drives with your saved recovery key when prompted. If you turn BitLocker on again for the new installation, save the new recovery key straight away and repeat the backup above. Our password migration guide covers restoring the rest of your credentials.
Advanced Password Recovery Suite
Back up your BitLocker keys and every other credential before you reinstall Windows.
- ✓ BitLocker recovery keys from unlocked drives
- ✓ Browser passwords (Chrome, Edge, Firefox, 70+ browsers)
- ✓ All saved WiFi network passwords
- ✓ Email client credentials (Outlook, Thunderbird)
- ✓ FTP passwords (FileZilla, WinSCP)
- ✓ Windows Credential Manager entries
Frequently Asked Questions
BitLocker Backup Summary
Before you reinstall Windows or replace your PC, unlock your drives, export the BitLocker recovery keys with Advanced Password Recovery Suite and store the file away from the encrypted drive. It takes two minutes and can save the data on every encrypted drive.
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