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Recover access to the computer

If you forget your PIN or password, you can recover access to the computer.

To see how, click the tab for your operating system.

If you can't log on to the computer because you have forgotten your PIN, password, or USB key, you need a recovery key. The key lets you reset your BitLocker PIN, password, or USB key.

If you're using Sophos Device Encryption, the recovery key is stored in Sophos Central. To get the key, do one of the following:

A recovery key can only be used once. If you need to recover the computer again later, you need to get a new recovery key.

Get the key from the administrator

If you can't get the key from the Self Service Portal, do as follows:

  1. Restart the computer and press the Esc key in the BitLocker logon screen.
  2. In the BitLocker recovery screen, find the Recovery key ID. The Recovery key ID is shown for a short time. To show it again, you must restart the computer.
  3. Contact the administrator and give them the Recovery key ID.

    The administrator needs to find the recovery key for the computer in Sophos Central and give it to you.

  4. In the BitLocker recovery screen, enter the recovery key. You can now start the computer.

  5. Follow the on-screen instructions to create a new BitLocker PIN or password.

    On computers running Windows 7, you don't see any instructions. You need to reset your PIN/password manually.

You can access the computer again.

If you can't sign in to the Mac because you've forgotten your login password, you need a recovery key.

If you're using Sophos Device Encryption, the recovery key is stored in Sophos Central. To get your recovery key, do one of the following:

Get the key from the administrator

If you can't get the key from the Self Service Portal, do as follows:

  1. Restart the Mac and wait until the Recovery key ID is displayed. The Recovery key ID is displayed for a short time. To display it again, you must restart the Mac.
  2. Contact your administrator and give them the Recovery key ID. Your administrator needs to find the recovery key for the Mac in Sophos Central and give you the key.
  3. Click the question mark in the Password field. A message is displayed.
  4. Click the arrow next to the message to switch to the recovery key field.
  5. Enter the recovery key.
  6. Follow the on-screen instructions to create a new password. If your user account was imported from Active Directory, click Cancel in the Reset Password dialog and ask your administrator to reset the password for you.
  7. If prompted, click Create New Keychain.

You can access your Mac again.