Editing Encrypting File System (section)

{{Short description|Feature in Microsoft Windows}}
The '''Encrypting File System''' ('''EFS''') on [[Microsoft Windows]] is a feature introduced in version 3.0 of [[NTFS]]<ref>{{cite web
|url=https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/aa364223(VS.85).aspx
|title=File Encryption (Windows)
|publisher = Microsoft
|access-date=2010-01-11
}}</ref> that provides [[filesystem-level encryption]]. The technology enables files to be [[Transparency (human–computer interaction)|transparently]] [[Encryption|encrypted]] to protect confidential data from attackers with physical access to the computer.

EFS is available in all versions of Windows except the home versions (see [[Encrypting File System#Supported operating systems|Supported operating systems]] below) from [[Windows 2000]] onwards.<ref>EFS is available on Windows 2000 Server and Workstation, on Windows XP Professional, on Windows Server 2003 and 2008, and on Windows Vista and Windows 7 Business, Enterprise and Ultimate.<br />EFS is ''not'' available on [[Windows XP]] Home Edition, nor on the Starter, Basic, and Home Premium editions of [[Windows Vista]] and [[Windows 7]]. It could not be implemented in the Windows 9x series of operating systems, since they did not natively support NTFS, which is the foundation for EFS.</ref> By default, no files are encrypted, but encryption can be enabled by users on a per-file, per-directory, or per-drive basis. Some EFS settings can also be mandated via [[Group Policy]] in [[Windows domain]] environments.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc749610(WS.10).aspx |title=Encrypting File System |date=1 May 2008 |publisher=Microsoft |access-date=24 August 2011}}</ref>

Cryptographic file system implementations for other operating systems are available, but the Microsoft EFS is not compatible with any of them.<ref>{{cite web
|url=http://www.securityfocus.com/infocus/1673
|title=Cryptographic Filesystems, Part One: Design and Implementation
|publisher = Security Focus
|access-date=2010-01-11
}}</ref> See also the [[list of cryptographic file systems]].