There are different ways in protecting your files. Some may vary on how extent the protections are and what limitations they offer while some vary according to kinds of file and what drives they protect. Two of the protections that may be done for your files are though Bitlocker Drive Encryption and Encrypting File System.
Bitlocker Drive Encryption and Encrypting File System are usually misunderstood to mean the same thing. They are sometimes even considered two protections with equally the same functions and methods. What people do not know and understand is that these two may have the same goal but they protect your files and documents in different extents.
Bitlocker is made to protect all the files in the drives or in the system. There acre actually tw kinds of Bitlocker. The first one is the Bitlocker Encryption System. This provides protection to the files that are stores in the installed devices. Moreover, the second kind of Bitlocker, the Bitlocker To Go encrypts files that are stored in the removable drives of the computer. Both kinds offer the same protection and extent but differ in the location of the files.
On the other hand, Encrypting File System offers a different role. Encrypting File System or EFS provides protection to files individually. If you do not want to encrypt all files and you would only want to choose a specific file to encrypt, then use EFS. This is the primary comparison what Bitlocker has with EFS. Bitlocker encrypts the whole drive and all the files in it while EFS encrypts files individually.
The individual users account is not relevant for Bitlocker. The protection that it offers does not depend on the account. You may choose to turn it on or off be it used for individual users or to a group. But, the EFS need to depend on the account that the system and EFS is associated. A computer with multiple users and accounts need to be encrypted individually for the protection to work.
Trusted Platform Module or TPM is almost always required by the Bitlocker. This is a microchip offering advanced security measures and supports the features that Bitlocker has encrypted in the drives of the operating system for security. However, EFS wouldn’t require anything. It is independent and could go on working on its own.
Last but most importantly not the least, if you want to turn on of off the Bitlocker, you would need to be an administrator. Turning the protection on or off from the drives that are installed in the windows would need the permission of an administrator. But in the case of the EFS, anyone could use it. You can instantly on and off the system without requiring anything for it to work or be turned off.
The best option for these two is to use both. You can use the Bitlocker if you want to encrypt all the files in a drive automatically. Moreover, you could also use EFS if there are just chosen files that are needed to be encrypted. Be flexible and use both tools.
