Re: decrypt help...

honestly, ron, i don't know at this point. i have an old backup of the
files, copied to cd before i encrypted them (what a brilliant idea the
latter has turned out to be -- argh!). i think those older versions are what
i'll have to default to. i'm running into brick wall after brick wall re
decryption, even though i'm almost certain the cert/key combo i've recovered
is the correct version for the files. in fact, it has to be; they are the
only files i've ever encrypted on this machine.

i've tried re-establishing a user account with the same name as when i
encrypted the files, then importing the cert/key combo into that account
(with full admin privileges). that doesn't work any better than importing
the cert/key combo into my current user account (with a different name) or
even a direct admin account approach. that said, is there a private or
public key (or some other security block) set up unique to each account,
such that even though i've recovered the cert/key combo from my previous
account i still can't use it for anything?

man, these bricks are hard.


"Ron Bogart" <rip.unoTHE@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:%23rGA1pgSFHA.2908@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
> In news:OiERBFfSFHA.3156@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx,
> kevin <kohoran@xxxxxxxxx> did some thinking and came up with these words:
>> richard:
>>
>> i've been told (and read) that i did this backwards, and if i could
>> go back and do it over, i would. but i've also been told (and read)
>> that as long as i have access to the certificate/key, then i still
>> have the ability to decrypt the files. i thought i had deleted the
>> certificate/key combo completely, but, as noted, was able to recover
>> it from the recycler folder and import it to my current user account.
>> what i'm trying to find now is how -- if at all -- to use that
>> certificate/key combo to open the files. that is, knowing the
>> user-account name under which that cert/key was used to encrypt the
>> files, can i recreate that account, import the cert/key and then open
>> the files? or, can i somehow add my current user-account to the list
>> of people with access to that cert/key?
>> in other words, i'm trying to figure out the steps to decrypting
>> files when the cert/key combo has been saved but the user account
>> scrapped. it would seem, from what i've read, that i should be able
>> to decrypt the files as long as i still have access to the cert/key
>> combo, which i do.
>> thanks,
>> kevin
>>
>> aka "cranky" (hey, i've got a teething toddler at home who just
>> learned to say "no". what can i say?)
>>
>>
>> "Richard Urban" <richardurbanREMOVETHIS@xxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
>> news:ek37Z3dSFHA.2424@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
>>> No, you have it backwards. You create the recovery agent "before"
>>> you have problems working with encrypted files - not after you
>>> experience trouble. And loading/reloading an operating system will
>>> likely cause problems. I am afraid that those files are no longer
>>> viable or usable. There is NO backdoor to the files.
>>>
>>> --
>>> Regards,
>>>
>>> Richard Urban
>>>
>>> aka Crusty (-: Old B@stard :-)
>>>
>>> If you knew as much as you think you know,
>>> You would realize that you don't know what you thought you knew!
>>>
>>>
>>> "kevin" <kohoran@xxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
>>> news:OMePlidSFHA.252@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
>>>> sorry if this has been asked (repeatedly?), but running into a
>>>> problem decrypting some files and i'm seeking help.
>>>>
>>>> the details: i'm running xp pro 32-bit edition on a compaq
>>>> athlon64. i installed the customer preview version of xp pro 64bit,
>>>> but in doing so, i changed my user name and deleted the old
>>>> user-name account. the problem, of course, is that i had encrypted
>>>> some files with that old user account. i've created a recovery
>>>> agent since, and have located (i think) the old certificate and key
>>>> in the recycler folder. i've tried importing the certificate (with
>>>> the system telling me it has imported it, and showing it as
>>>> available to the user-named account i had deleted). but i still
>>>> can't access the files. the question: how do i use the "old"
>>>> certificate and key combo to
>>>> unlock/decrypt the files, since i've already deleted the old user
>>>> account? i had thought i could just import the cert/key into my
>>>> current admin-privilege account and, voila, open the files. no such
>>>> luck. i still get the "access denied" error message.
>>>>
>>>> thanks for any help, and, again, sorry if this has been posted to
>>>> death. kevin
>
> The 'cert' ties in with user and system as well as the files. It is such
> a slippery slope that most stay as far away from encryption as possible.
> From the sounds of it - you have been given the opportunity to learn this
> the hard way. Do you perhaps have a good system backup/image where you
> can restore the previous version and regain control of your files?
>
> --
> Ron Bogart {} ô¿ô¬
> Associate Expert
> Expert Zone - www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/expertzone
> Lovin life on Mercer Island 8^)
> "Life is what happens while we are making other plans."
> In memory of a true friend, MVP Alex Nichol (1935-2005)
>


.

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