Re: Decrypting Files

From: Karl Levinson [x y] mvp (jamescagney90210@excite.com)
Date: 11/02/02 

From: "Karl Levinson [x y] mvp" <jamescagney90210@excite.com>
Date: Sat, 2 Nov 2002 08:00:11 -0500

"Desperate" <nospam@nodomain.org> wrote in message
news:8b3701c281b1$0829d930$35ef2ecf@TKMSFTNGXA11...
> Ok -- User left the company and encrypted a folder full of
> files. Are they pretty much useless now?

On a standalone computer in a workgroup, the local Administrator is the
default Encryption Recovery Agent. On a computer in a domain, the domain's
Administrator account is the default Recovery Agent. Search
www.microsoft.com/support for EFS Recovery Agent for instructions on how to
recover encrypted files.

If you don't know the local Administrator password, there are boot disks you
can use to reset the password, search this newsgroup for "password" to get a
list of them.

If anyone is using EFS, it is essential that you back up the encryption
keys, because if Windows stops being able to boot or is reinstalled, the
files are garbage forever, even the backups you've made of those files.
Again, search www.microsoft.com/support for info.

Relevant Pages

  • Re: Can no longer encrypt files
    ... It is saying the certificate for the "Recovery Agent" is invalid, ... > the actual account doing the Encryption. ... > Win2k, the designated recovery agent was the default "Domain Admin", WinXP ... This was working fine until the account password expired and was ...
    (microsoft.public.windowsxp.security_admin)
  • Re: Can no longer encrypt files
    ... the actual account doing the Encryption. ... Win2k, the designated recovery agent was the default "Domain Admin", WinXP ... This was working fine until the account password expired and was ...
    (microsoft.public.windowsxp.security_admin)
  • Re: Folder Encryption
    ... Unless you are on a domain, do not use encryption. ... it is described how to create a data recovery agent, ... page 5 "Data Recovery on Standalone Machines" ... Back Up Your Encrypting File System Private Key in Windows 2000 ...
    (microsoft.public.windowsxp.security_admin)
  • Re: EFS, certificates etc
    ... created a certificate ... >for the Admin account, which I have designated as the ... >data recovery agent cannot. ... >>> encryption. ...
    (microsoft.public.windowsxp.security_admin)
  • Re: cannot decrypt files
    ... If you did not back-up the encryption key or the Recovery Agent and ... Contact Microsoft if you can restore the profile. ... "Garry Garner" wrote in message ... and when I tried to add a recovery agent ...
    (microsoft.public.windowsxp.security_admin)