If you use BitLocker to encrypt data partitions (such as D:, E:, or external drives), you may encounter a frustrating problem: most backup tools restore the BitLocker-encrypted partition in an unencrypted state, forcing you to manually re-encrypt sensitive data after restoration, which is usually a time-consuming process.
Hasleo Backup Suite V5.8 perfectly solves this problem. Starting from version V5.8, it introduces native support for restoring BitLocker volumes while maintaining their encrypted state. This process is particularly simple for regular data partitions (non-Windows system partitions).
In this guide, you'll learn:
To understand why Hasleo Backup Suite is different from most backup software, you first need to understand how most backup software works with BitLocker-encrypted partitions.
Almost all Windows backup software on the market use Microsoft's Volume Shadow Copy Service (VSS) to create backups. When you use these software to back up a BitLocker-encrypted partition within Windows:
This is not a flaw, but rather the way VSS is designed to work. BitLocker decryption happens at a lower level than VSS operates.
When you restore using traditional backup software, the decrypted data is written directly to the target partition. Since the backup image never contained any BitLocker metadata (encryption keys, protectors, etc.), the restored partition is simply unencrypted.
This forces you to manually re-encrypt the entire partition after restoration, and for large-capacity hard drives (especially mechanical ones), this process may take several hours.
Hasleo's solution works during the restore phase:
Unlike system backup (which requires a restart into Pre-OS mode), partition backup and restore operations run directly within Windows. No reboot is needed, no boot media is required, and you can continue working while the operation runs in the background.
Step 1. Download, install, and run Hasleo Backup Suite. Click the "Backup" button in the navigation bar, then click "Disk/Partition Backup" in the operation area.
Step 2. In the source selection window, select the BitLocker-encrypted partition that you want to back up, and modify the task name, description, destination and backup options according to your needs, and then click the "Proceed" button.
Step 3. After clicking the "Proceed" button, if you have not enabled image encryption for this backup task, Hasleo Backup Suite will prompt you to enable it.
Step 4. Hasleo Backup Suite starts backing up the partition to the storage path you specify. The backup time depends on the size of the data being backed up, so please be patient.
Step 1. Click the "Home" button in the navigation bar. Find the backup task you want to restore, click "Actions", and select "Restore" from its menu.
Step 2. Click "Change version" to select the backup version you want to restore (if you have multiple versions), and select the partition you want to restore, then click "Next".
Step 3. Select the destination location for the restore, and make sure check the "Retain BitLocker encryption" checkbox, then click "Proceed".
Step 4. After clicking "Proceed", the restore operation will run directly in the background. You can continue working on other tasks while the restore completes.
Step 5. Once the restore is complete, open File Explorer. The restored partition should still show as "BitLocker Encrypted". You can verify by opening Command Prompt as Administrator and running (replace D: with your actual drive letter):
What to look for in the output:
Conversion Status: Fully Encrypted — indicates the partition is encryptedPercentage Encrypted: 100% — confirms full encryptionProtection Status: On — This is related to whether protection was enabled at the time of backup
A: By default, yes. Most backup software restores partitions in an unencrypted state because they only capture the decrypted data. However, with Hasleo Backup Suite V5.8+, you can keep BitLocker encryption intact after any partition restore operation.
A: Yes. Since Hasleo Backup Suite uses VSS, the partition must be unlocked (accessible in File Explorer). If the partition is not unlocked, the program will back up in a sector-by-sector manner, which will take up more storage space.
A: Yes. As long as the target partition is at least as large as the source data, Hasleo will restore the data and re-encrypt it automatically. The target drive does not need to be pre-encrypted.
A: This depends on the used space of the source partition. As long as the target partition is large enough to hold all the source data, you can restore a larger partition to a smaller one while retaining BitLocker encryption.
A: Yes, the Delta Restore feature can be used on BitLocker-encrypted partitions.
A: The backup file itself is not encrypted because VSS reads decrypted data. To protect your backup file, enable the "Image Encryption" feature when creating the backup task.
A: Yes. In the source selection window, simply check all the partitions you want to include in the backup. They will be restored together as a single backup task.
A: This depends on how much data is on the partition. On a modern SSD, restoring a 100GB partition typically takes just a few minutes. The re-encryption happens automatically during the restore process with no additional time required.
Even if the partition retains its BitLocker encryption status after restoration, you still need your BitLocker recovery key to access the partition if TPM issues occur or if you move the drive to another computer. Store it in multiple safe locations (Microsoft account, printed copy, USB drive).
Make sure your BitLocker-encrypted partition is unlocked before starting a backup task. If the partition is not unlocked, Hasleo Backup Suite will back up the BitLocker partition in sector-by-sector mode, which will generate a larger backup image and occupy more storage space.
Since backup files contain decrypted data, always enable the "Image Encryption" feature in the backup options. This protects your backup from unauthorized access.
Set up a backup schedule (daily, weekly, or monthly) for your important encrypted data partitions. Hasleo Backup Suite's schedule feature works perfectly with BitLocker-encrypted partitions as long as they are unlocked during the scheduled backup time.
Periodically test restoring a backup to a spare partition to ensure your backup is valid and the encryption preservation feature works correctly.
Hasleo Backup Suite V5.8+ offers a reliable solution for backing up and restoring BitLocker-encrypted data partitions while keeping encryption status intact after restore. Unlike traditional backup software, which removes BitLocker protection during the restoration process, Hasleo can seamlessly preserve BitLocker encryption, eliminating the need to manually re-encrypt the partition after restoration.
