Windows 10: I've encrypted my files, moved to a hard drive and restored the computer. Now I cant access...

I didn't think about the permissions when I started the process and now I'm afraid I lost my certificates, keys and all my files. I've tried to give access via the computer admin user with several suggestions I found found on the forums but nothing worked.

I tried to undo system restore and the latest available restoration point was already after the restore.

I'm getting error code 0x80071771 and I cant even move the files from hard drive back to the computer.

Please help.

:)

 

Help accessing encrypted files (Error: 0x80071771: The specified file could not be decrypted)

Hi DesignerJo0314,

EFS or Encrypting File System on Windows is designed to protect your confidential data from threats or attackers that have access to your computer. Once a file is encrypted, a recovery key or certificate is required to access
it on a different device. This means that the file can only be accessed on the same machine and same user account it was encrypted to.

Here are the ways on how to access the encrypted file on a different computer or user profile:

1. Decrypt the file before moving it to the new computer. You can encrypt the file to the new user profile once the transfer is complete.
   
2. Move the encrypted file to the new computer including the certificate or key.

Apparently, the only way to access the encrypted file on your new computer is to have the certificate or key. If you still have the old laptop, you can try to connect the hard drive to your new computer and decrypt the file.

Feel free to post back if you have other questions.

 

Accessing encrypted files

I have files on my backup hard drive which I cannot access - they have little padlock symbols on them.

After trying many different things, I get two messages:

1. There is a problem decrypting the files - access denied (or words to that effect)

2. "You need administrator permission to access this file" I am listed as the administrator on this computer.

I did not knowingly encrypt these files, just backed them up on the HD.

When I go through "properties" the permissions I see against my name have grey ticks, rather than black ones.

This suggests they are not actually effective/available.

Please help!!

 

Restore files after damaged hard drive

My hard drive died and was replaced by Dell. Fortunately (I think) my files were backed up to a Seagate external drive and I can find no clear instructions on how to restore/move my files correctly to my new hard drive.

I have the Seagate dashboard but it doesn't seem to find my files.

Are there specific steps? I suppose I could drag and drop the photos and music but I have other files, programs and information that I would like restored back like the original.

Any suggestions?