Windows 10: Windows 10 Asking Me To Back Up My File Encryption Key But...

Hey folks,

Today, all of a sudden, a notification prompt appeared and Windows 10 asked me to back up my file encryption key. (I'm on W10 pro with the latest stable update)

I was pretty sure I haven't used any kind of encryption in my life.

I googled for a while, but failed to find a possible reason for my case.

Then I used the command below to see if there's any encrypted files on my system.

cipher /u /n /h > %UserProfile%\Desktop\Encrypted-Files.txt


And well, it found dozens of encrypted files: Each one is somewhat related to Microsoft, Windows or Windows store apps.

Here are few examples:

E:\WindowsApps\Microsoft.SpartaUWP_9.9.0.2_x64__8wekyb3d8bbwe\AppxBlockMap.xml

C:\Program Files\WindowsApps\Microsoft.SpartaUWP_9.9.0.2_x64__8wekyb3d8bbwe\AppxBlockMap.xml

E:\WindowsApps\Microsoft.SpartaUWP_9.9.0.2_x64__8wekyb3d8bbwe\xboxservices.config

C:\Program Files\WindowsApps\Microsoft.SpartaUWP_9.9.0.2_x64__8wekyb3d8bbwe\xboxservices.config


It's pretty clear that the Microsoft Sparta UWP is Gears of War 4. And it's installed on E drive. But the weird thing is the exact same files exist on the drive C (OS drive) as well.

There are also some other files also related with Microsoft in AppData folder.

Few examples:

C:\Users\XXX\AppData\Local\Packages\Microsoft.SpartaUWP_8wekyb3d8bbwe\AC\INetCache\SWN3SS7J\image1HG ZMNUG.png

C:\Users\XXX\AppData\Local\Packages\Microsoft.Windows.SecHealthUI_cw5n1h2txyewy\AC\AMD\DxCache\cache file.bin

C:\Users\XXX\AppData\Local\Packages\Microsoft.XboxGameOverlay_8wekyb3d8bbwe\Settings\roaming.lock


Another weird thing is these exact files also exist on E drive under WpSystem folder, and in a folder with lots of numbers (starting with S-1-5-21-.....)

Some of the related folders on the C drive are actually look like shortcuts. But the ones on the E drive are not.

I don't know if it can be related to something or can mess up with stuff like this but I'd changed the default App download storage to E drive for Gears of War 4 a few weeks ago. It actually make no sense to have some files related to MSPaint or Cortana on my E drive.

I decrypted most of those files manually by the way. Don't know how to do that for the ones in WindowsApps folder though, since I can't see their content.

Any ideas? What did possibly go wrong? Any way to fix this and prevent to happen again in the future?

:)

 

Windows 10 Asking Me To Back Up My File Encryption Key But...

For further troubleshooting, we suggest that you run a check disk to find corrupted data and fix it. Simply follow these steps:

• Press Windows
  
  + X
• Click Command Prompt (Admin).
• On the command prompt, type chkdsk /r, then hit Enter.
• Restart your computer.
  
  

Should you need further help, let us know.

 

Windows 10 Asking Me To Back Up My File Encryption Key But...

This issue may occur due to file corruption. We suggest that you run System File Checker (SFC) scan to find corrupted files that may cause the issue and fix it. You can check out this
link for the steps on how to do the SFC scan.

Feel free to let us know if you need further help.

 

A small update:

If I switch to local account and switch back to my MS account, the files that I decrypted manually are getting encrypted again.

Same thing happen if I re-register Windows apps.

 

Is BitLocker active? Press the Windows Key and type Manage BitLocker. See if BitLocker was accidentally turned on.

 

I forgot to mention I guess, no, BitLocker wasn't active.

That guy also had the exact same issue a while ago.

Creators Update - back up encryption key message? Solved - Windows 10 Forums