Password protect folder?

[deaconblues]

I'm backing up my PC to my laptop and have a folder of
approximately 3 GB containing that data. I want to
protect the "PC Backup" folder in case the laptop
is "compromised". The laptop has NTFS. Encrypting the
folder isn't the best option since I want other users (my
family) to access the folder if needed. However, when I
did try to encrypt the folder it was taking an extreme
amount of time before I stopped the process. I tried to
compress the folder and password protect the zipped
folder but the password protection process was still
occurring after 12(!) hours with no end in sight, so I
stopped it.

All I really need is a way to password protect opening
the folder. Is there a method available to do this?
Thanks much.

 

[Miha Pihler]

Hi,

3GB is a lot of data and protecting a files and folders in it will take a
lot of time on a slow(er) computer. You could try and leave it applying
security settings over night.

Is this 3GB of data in one file or more smaller files?

Mike

 

[Juan]

Greetings:

WinZip is a compressor utility that's very usefull for protecting files
with a password.... I have used it to compress files of 500MB in about
one minute with a pentium II .
How quick or slow it compresses in your computer would depend on
the system... I suggest you add the files gradually to keep the computer
from crashing which is what happened when you tried to compress the
folder.

http://www.winzip.com/prodpagewz.htm
http://www.winzip.com/wzdic.htm

Another option is to make the folder private assuming your
computer has Windows XP.. and is running NTFS file system.

How to: Set the My Documents folder private in Windows XP.
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;298399&Product=winxp

You cannot select the "make this folder private" option
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;307286&Product=winxp

How To: Select Simple File Sharing in Windows XP
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;307874&Product=winxp


If you wish to keep the folder outside of
the profile folder, you can make it private Windows XP or any other OS..

HOW TO: Set, view, change, or remove special permissions for files and
folders in Windows XP
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;308419&Product=winxp

HOW TO: Configure File Sharing in Windows XP
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;304040&Product=winxp


---------------------Original Message-----------------------

 

[Doug Knox MS-MVP]

You cannot password protect individual folders in XP. You restrict access by assigning permissions to drives, folders and files.

To do this, you must be running NTFS as your file system on the drive in question. If your hard disk/partition is not NTFS you will need to convert it. To do this, open a Command Prompt window and enter the following command:

CONVERT X: /FS:NTFS

Where X: is the drive letter you wish to convert. You may also want to see http://www.aumha.org/a/ntfscvt.htm to ensure that you're getting the optimal conversion.

After this step is completed and you've rebooted the computer, if necessary:

XP PRO: In Windows Explorer, go to Tools, Folder Options, View and uncheck Use Simple File Sharing. Now, when you right click on a drive, folder or file (on an NTFS partition) and select Properties, you'll see a Security tab. Here you can assign or deny permissions based on user name or user group membership.

XP Home: By default, you can only make files and folders under My Documents "private". This is done by right clicking a folder or file and selecting Properties, Sharing. To change the permissions on other folders, you need to boot the computer to Safe Mode and log in on the built in Administrator account. In this mode, you'll see the Security tab in Properties, and you can assign permissions based on user name or group membership.

How Do I Get the Security Tab in Properties - XP Home (makes the Security tab appear outside of Safe Mode)
http://www.dougknox.com, Win XP Tips section

HOW TO: Set, View, Change, or Remove File and Folder Permissions in Windows XP
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;308418

HOW TO: Set, View, Change, or Remove Special Permissions for Files and Folders
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;EN-US;308419

HOW TO: Disable Simplified Sharing and Password-Protect a Shared Folder in Windows XP
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;EN-US;307874