TrueCrypt

From BNL Physics Computing

TrueCrypt is free, open-source, on-the-fly disk encryption software for Windows Vista/XP/2000, Linux and now the Mac with version 5.0a or higher. The software provides Container Based Encryption for both local hard disks and removable media.


Contents

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TrueCrypt on Windows

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Pros and Cons of TrueCrypt on Windows

Pros:

  • Free software.
  • The software can create a virtual encrypted disk within a file (container) and mount it under a Windows drive letter.
  • The software can encrypt an entire hard disk partition or a removable storage device such as a USB flash drive.
  • An encrypted USB flash drive or encrypted container on a USB flash drive can be moved between a Windows system, a Mac or a Linux system.
  • Files are transparently encrypted when written and transparently decrypted when read.
  • An encrypted container can be backed up as a normal file.

Cons:

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Installing TrueCrypt on Windows

  • Download the truecrypt setup file from the TrueCrypt web site(version 6.0a).
  • Install the program by running the "TrueCrypt Setup 6.0a.exe" file, reading and accepting the license, choosing the default "Install" option and following the remaining instructions. If you expect to rarely use TrueCrypt, then you should uncheck the "Disable Windows paging files" checkbox (see the figure below), even though it will complain when you do so. If you will rarely use the software, then it is not a good idea to disable the paging files.

Image:TrueCrypt_Setup.png

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Running TrueCrypt on Windows

TrueCrypt comes with a user guide (TrueCrypt User Guide.pdf), which has detailed instructions on creating and mounting encrypted volumes. Running the program will bring up a wizard that will guide you through either creating a new encrypted volume, or mounting an existing encrypted volume on a drive letter.


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TrueCrypt on Linux

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Pros and Cons of TrueCrypt on Linux

Pros:

  • Free software.
  • The software can create a virtual encrypted disk within a file (container) and mount it as a real disk.
  • The software can encrypt an entire hard disk partition or a removable storage device such as a USB flash drive.
  • An encrypted USB flash drive or encrypted container on a USB flash drive can be moved between a Windows system and a Linux system.
  • Once installed by root, containers can be created and mounted by a non-root user.
  • Files are transparently encrypted when written and transparently decrypted when read.
  • An encrypted container can be backed up as a normal UNIX file.

Cons:

  • Packages are only available for OpenSuSE and Ubuntu, all other distributions must build the software from source code.
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Installing TrueCrypt on Linux

  • If you are running OpenSuSE or Ubuntu, then download the appropriate package (version 6.0a or better) and install in the usual manner.
  • For other installations, download the tar file (version 6.0a or better) and untar into an appropriate directory.
  • You need to have FUSE (Filesystem in Userspace) on your system. If you are running Red Hat 5 or equivalent, then you have FUSE, otherwise you need to download it from Sourceforge and install it on your system. When you upgrade your kernel, you will need to rebuild the FUSE kernel module.
  • Truecrypt under Linux now has an optional Graphical User Interface similar to what is available under Windows. For the GUI, you need the GTK version of the wxWidgets 2.8 library source code (available at www.wxwidgets.org), you will have to indicate the path to the source directory when you build Truecrypt (see the Truecrypt Readme.txt file). You can turn off the GUI during the make of Truecrypt and then you will not need wxWidgets.
  • Run "make" in the top directory. Note: gcc version 4 is required for this version of Truecrypt. If you are running Red Hat 5 or an equivalent, then you have the correct version. If you are running Red Hat 4 or an equivalent, then you need to edit the Makefile and change gcc to gcc4 and g++ to g++4.
  • If all went well, the "truecrypt" binary will be in th "Main" directory. Copy it to /usr/bin/truecrypt or /usr/local/bin/truecrypt and you are ready to use it.
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Running TrueCrypt on Linux

Since Truecrypt now has a GUI under Linux, you just need to run "truecrypt" and the GUI will come up allowing you to create and mount volumes. You need to add yourself to the /etc/sudoers file using the visudo command if you want to mount the TrueCrypt volume as a normal user (recommended).


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TrueCrypt on a Mac

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Pros and Cons of TrueCrypt on a Mac

Pros:

  • Free software.
  • The software can create a virtual encrypted disk within a file (container) and mount it as a real disk.
  • The software can encrypt an entire hard disk partition or a removable storage device such as a USB flash drive.
  • An encrypted USB flash drive or encrypted container on a USB flash drive can be moved between a Mac and a Windows system or a Linux system.
  • Files are transparently encrypted when written and transparently decrypted when read.
  • An encrypted container can be backed up as a normal file.

Cons:

  • If you do not need to move files between operating systems, the native FileVault is probably a better choice.
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Installing TrueCrypt on a Mac

  • Download the appropriate .dmg file for your OS and architecture (Tiger and Leopard versions are available for both Intel and PowerPC architectures). Double click on the downloaded .dmg, read and agree to the license, double click on the TrueCrypt 6.0a.mpkg icon and then follow the instructions.
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Running TrueCrypt on a Mac

Running the TrueCrypt.app from the Applications Folder will start a GUI almost identical to the Windows Wizard GUI. From the GUI you can create encrypted volumes or partitions, and you can mount and dismount the created volumes or partitions.

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Links to further information

TrueCrypt web site.

TrueCrypt Red Hat Quick Start Guide

Retrieved from "http://www.phy.bnl.gov/computing/index.php/TrueCrypt"