[Macworld]

Post your comments for Use Lion's FileVault 2 to encrypt your Mac's internal drive here

[kevinv]

Is the BootCamp partition encrypted as well, or just the mac partition?

[awesomebase]

I used Filevault about 3 years ago when all the kinks from the original version were apparently "worked out". Well, low and behold I had an unrecoverable disk crash created by Filevault itself -- it disassociated itself with the disk volume and would not "mount" the volume even with the correct password (encryption key). After exhausting several options (including trips to the Apple store), it was deemed unrecoverable and the recommendation provided was to "erase and redo"...
Well, although most of that info was lost, thanks to backups I recovered at least much of the critical data I had before. However, I doubt I will ever use Filevault again. That was the WORST Apple experience I've EVER had!! I've been using PGP (now Symantec) WDE (Whole Disk Encryption) for OS X since then with no major issues. Occasionally you'll have to wait before updating OS X, but at least it can be recovered and it works as stated.
No offense against Apple on this, but I wouldn't trust their solution for encryption given what I've gone through in the past. There are other reliable options out there...

[Mobster1983]

This is one of the first things I did after installing Lion. I used Filevault on Snow Leopard for a short time and it caused so much performance degradation I turned it off. The old version also required you to have over half your HD empty to complete the encryption. File vault 2 turned on and I left it overnight as it encrypted my almost full drive. No issues and I haven't been able to notice any performance issues with it on.

[KPOM]

I encrypted the drive on my new 11" MacBook Air overnight. I'm glad that Apple has finally included this with the OS.

[KPOM]

kevinv, on 22 July 2011 - 08:22 AM, said:

Is the BootCamp partition encrypted as well, or just the mac partition?

Just the Mac partition, since otherwise Windows wouldn't be able to boot. If you want to encrypt Windows, if you get Windows 7 Ultimate, it comes with BitLocker (broadly similar to FileVault). Otherwise, there are plenty of third party solutions.

[len5]

Will things like Find My Mac and Mac Lojack still work when FileVault is enabled? If so, how would they run if they aren't even loaded at startup unless the correct password is given?

[kboot]

How will FileVault2 work with sharing files between two Mac's?

[wreathall]

NEVER EVER encrypt you whole drive. Encrypt just the serious stuff in separate folders. AT least you can have those folders backed up (to Time Machine or Carbonite or whatever). I have heard of too many people losing access to the whole drive when all they need to protect is limited to a few things. Either that or use 1Password or equivalent to encrypt the few things that really matter.

[rfmansfield]

I started to use Filevault back in the original Leopard days, but the deal breaker for me was related to Time Machine. From what I understood, Time Machine would only work when the machine was logged out as opposed to running while I used my Mac.

Is that still the case, or does Time Machine now work with Filevault while the user is logged in?

[laucala]

rfmansfield, on 22 July 2011 - 09:37 AM, said:

I started to use Filevault back in the original Leopard days, but the deal breaker for me was related to Time Machine. From what I understood, Time Machine would only work when the machine was logged out as opposed to running while I used my Mac.

Is that still the case, or does Time Machine now work with Filevault while the user is logged in?

Using "new FileVault", Time Machine now works as it should while you're logged in.

[DocNo]

Ugh - good info, had slideshows

[TommyHeyserz64e]

With Filevault on, software that would normally help you when your laptop is lost/stolen, e.g. Prey, LogMeIn, or even SSH, won't be able to run, since no one can log into your computer. You can't even access the Recovery HD partition using the Option key during boot.

If the data is so important, you can try using Truecrypt to create a container in which you can store your files. This will at least allow whoever found/stole your laptop to access the internet, which will allow all the anti-theft measure to run, but won't let them access your files.

If you have a desktop, there's still a chance that it can be stolen.

[len5]

So if you use FileVault your data is secure but you'll probably never get your laptop back. Not good.

TommyHeyserz64e, on 22 July 2011 - 03:24 PM, said:

With Filevault on, software that would normally help you when your laptop is lost/stolen, e.g. Prey, LogMeIn, or even SSH, won't be able to run, since no one can log into your computer. You can't even access the Recovery HD partition using the Option key during boot.

If the data is so important, you can try using Truecrypt to create a container in which you can store your files. This will at least allow whoever found/stole your laptop to access the internet, which will allow all the anti-theft measure to run, but won't let them access your files.

If you have a desktop, there's still a chance that it can be stolen.