Turn off "BitLocker waiting for activation"

This can be a pain when attempting to "sysprep" a PC's storage drive (usually the C: drive) or take an image of it using something like Acronis SnapDeploy. In such cases, the software will complain about this BitLocker status.

I keep forgetting about this every time I go to take an image!

It isn't immediately obvious how to get around the issue... do you go for "Turn on BitLocker" and then turn if off when it has finished encrypting the drive? Well you probably could if you had the time, but there's an easier way.

Using the "manage-bde" tool via an administrative command line gives lots more options, and allows this to be turned off.

Tip: handy way to open an admin command line is to hit W + R, then type "cmd" and then hit CRTL + Shift + Enter.

Typing "manage-bde -status" will show you some more detail, but the command you need is:

manage-bde -off c:

This may take some time, depending on how much of the drive has already been encrypted.

Note:

This seems to be an automatic behaviour on Windows 11 from 23H2 onwards. In fact, it appears that with 24H2 BitLocker not only turns on after installation, it will stay on throughout reinstallation! So be sure to always have a backup of your recovery keys!!

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