Ask a new question

efs unavailable in windows 7 professional

Just used Windows Anytime Upgrade to move up to Windows 7 Professional.  It took three tries before upgrade took.  Or did it?

When I try to encrypt a folder, "Encrypt contents to secure data" is grayed out.  This happens whether or not I run Windows Explorer "as an administrator".

Any ideas?

Probably Been There
Answer
Answer
Hi,
 
 
If you want to encrypt a file or folder using Encrypting File System (EFS), but the Advanced button isn't displayed on the Properties dialog box or the Encrypt contents to secure data check box is grayed out, it could be because of the following reason:

The drive that you want to encrypt files on isn't formatted using the NTFS file system. EFS only works on computers that use the NTFS file system. If the file you want to encrypt is on a drive that uses the FAT or FAT32 file system, you need to convert the drive to NTFS to make the Advanced button appear. For more information, see Convert a hard disk or partition to NTFS format.

Based on my research, I would like to suggest the following:
Method 1.
Important This section, method, or task contains steps that tell you how to modify the registry. However, serious problems might occur if you modify the registry incorrectly. Therefore, make sure that you follow these steps carefully. For added protection, back up the registry before you modify it. Then, you can restore the registry if a problem occurs. For more information about how to back up and restore the registry, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:
How to back up and restore the registry in Windows: http://support.microsoft.com/kb/322756
Perform the below steps:
a. Click on start and type regedit in  the search bar and press enter.
b. Browse to the following location:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows
 
If the following key exists in Windows 7, please just remove it:
Note: Please perform a full-system back up first.
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\EFS\
Name: EfsConfiguration
Type: REG_DWORD
Value: 0x01   
 
c. Then, reboot the computer and see how it works.
 
Method 2.
If the issue persists, please also run the following command in an elevated command prompt:
 
fsutil behavior set disableencryption 0
 
After this, please reboot the computer again. Then, check if the item “Encrypt contents to secure” can be selected and you can encrypt the file.
 
For more information about encrypting files and folders refer to the article below.
 
Hope this helps.


Thanks and Regards:
Shekhar S - Microsoft Support.

Visit our Microsoft Answers Feedback Forum and let us know what you think.
If this post helps to resolve your issue, please click the "Mark as Answer" or "Helpful" button at the top of this message. By marking a post as Answered, or Helpful you help others find the answer faster.
Thanks and Regards,
Shekhar Sharma

Was this reply helpful?

Sorry this didn't help.

Great! Thanks for your feedback.

How satisfied are you with this reply?

Thanks for your feedback, it helps us improve the site.

How satisfied are you with this reply?

Thanks for your feedback.

 
 

Question Info

Last updated April 12, 2023 Views 2,763 Applies to: