How to turn off Bitlocker in Windows to allow dual boot installation of Ubuntu

NOTE COMMAND LINE INSTRUCTION BELOW REQUIRED IF WINDOWS SAYS BITLOCKER NOT BEING USED AND UBUNTU INSTALLATION SAYS AT SAME TIME THAT SSD ENCRYTED WITH BITLOCKER

Here’s how to turn off BitLocker in Windows (for any drive):

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🪟 Option 1: Using Control Panel (most common)

1. Press Windows + S and type “BitLocker”.
2. Open Manage BitLocker.
3. Find the drive that has BitLocker turned on (it will say “BitLocker On”).
4. Click Turn off BitLocker.
5. Confirm and wait — Windows will decrypt the drive.
   • This can take some time depending on drive size.
   • You can continue using the computer while it decrypts.

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💻 Option 2: Using Settings (Windows 11/10)

1. Go to Settings → Privacy & Security → Device encryption.
2. If Device encryption is on, toggle it off.
   • If your device supports only “Device encryption” (not full BitLocker), this is the correct place.

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⚙️ Option 3: Using Command Prompt or PowerShell

If you prefer a command line:

1. Run Command Prompt as Administrator.
2. Type:

3.  manage-bde -off C:

Replace C: with the letter of the encrypted drive.

4. To check progress:

5.  manage-bde -status

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🧠 Notes:

• You’ll need administrator rights to turn off BitLocker.
• Make sure the recovery key is saved somewhere safe before turning it off, in case decryption fails.
• Decryption does not delete data, it just removes encryption.

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