Public mode

No tenant, Graph, or device access. Every item links to its source. What this means

Some sources or documents need attention: 253/255 feeds/APIs · 100/444 docs · checked 23:20 UTC Customize Public modeDiscuss ChangeIntel on Discord

Windows 11 Group Policy settings

3,621 settings · 25H2 · 1.0 · 29 Sep 2025

Back to the list

Windows Components › BitLocker Drive Encryption › Operating System Drives

Configure use of passwords for operating system drives

ComputerIntune-readyOSPassphrase_Name

Supported on At least Windows Server 2012 or Windows 8

What it does

This policy setting specifies the constraints for passwords used to unlock BitLocker-protected operating system drives. If non-TPM protectors are allowed on operating system drives, you can provision a password, enforce complexity requirements on the password, and configure a minimum length for the password. For the complexity requirement setting to be effective the Group Policy setting "Password must meet complexity requirements" located in Computer Configuration\Windows Settings\Security Settings\Account Policies\Password Policy\ must be also enabled. Note: These settings are enforced when turning on BitLocker, not when unlocking a volume. BitLocker will allow unlocking a drive with any of the protectors available on the drive. If you enable this policy setting, users can configure a password that meets the requirements you define. To enforce complexity requirements on the password, select "Require complexity". When set to "Require complexity" a connection to a domain controller is necessary when BitLocker is enabled to validate the complexity the password. When set to "Allow complexity" a connection to a domain controller will be attempted to validate the complexity adheres to the rules set by the policy, but if no domain controllers are found the password will still be accepted regardless of actual password complexity and the drive will be encrypted using that password as a protector. When set to "Do not allow complexity", no password complexity validation will be done. Passwords must be at least 8 characters. To configure a greater minimum length for the password, enter the desired number of characters in the "Minimum password length" box. If you disable or do not configure this policy setting, the default length constraint of 8 characters will apply to operating system drive passwords and no complexity checks will occur. Note: Passwords cannot be used if FIPS-compliance is enabled. The "System cryptography: Use FIPS-compliant algorithms for encryption, hashing, and signing" policy setting in Computer Configuration\Windows Settings\Security Settings\Local Policies\Security Options specifies whether FIPS-compliance is enabled.

What it writes

Hive
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE
Registry key
Software\Policies\Microsoft\FVE
Value name
OSPassphrase
When enabled
DWORD 1
When disabled
DWORD 0

In Intune

No native CSP; import the ADMX (Intune-ready).

From Microsoft's Policy CSP DDF files (DDF v2 Files, February 2026), read 18 Oct 2026.

Options

OptionTypeRegistry valueAllowed values
Configure password complexity for operating system drivesDefault: Allow password complexity Drop-down list OSPassphraseComplexity
  • Allow password complexity2
  • Do not allow password complexity0
  • Require password complexity1
Minimum password length for operating system driveRequiredDefault: 8 Number OSPassphraseLength 8 to 255
Require ASCII-only passwords for removable OS drives Checkbox OSPassphraseASCIIOnly On (1) or off (0)

Configure and deploy

Choose a state and the option values; the output below is generated from the template for exactly that.

State
Options used when Enabled

Enabled · Computer · template defaults

Registry file (.reg)

Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Policies\Microsoft\FVE]
"OSPassphrase"=dword:00000001
"OSPassphraseASCIIOnly"=dword:00000001
"OSPassphraseComplexity"=dword:00000002
"OSPassphraseLength"=dword:00000008


PowerShell

$ErrorActionPreference = 'Stop'

function Set-RegistryValue {
    param(
        [Parameter(Mandatory = $true)][string] $Path,
        [Parameter(Mandatory = $true)][string] $Name,
        [Parameter(Mandatory = $true)][string] $PropertyType,
        [Parameter(Mandatory = $true)][object] $Value
    )

    if (-not (Test-Path -LiteralPath $Path)) {
        New-Item -Path $Path -Force | Out-Null
    }

    New-ItemProperty -LiteralPath $Path -Name $Name -PropertyType $PropertyType -Value $Value -Force | Out-Null
}

function Remove-RegistryValue {
    param(
        [Parameter(Mandatory = $true)][string] $Path,
        [Parameter(Mandatory = $true)][string] $Name
    )

    if (Test-Path -LiteralPath $Path) {
        Remove-ItemProperty -LiteralPath $Path -Name $Name -Force -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue
    }
}

function Clear-RegistryKeyValues {
    param(
        [Parameter(Mandatory = $true)][string] $Path
    )

    if (-not (Test-Path -LiteralPath $Path)) {
        return
    }

    foreach ($propertyName in (Get-Item -LiteralPath $Path).Property) {
        Remove-ItemProperty -LiteralPath $Path -Name $propertyName -Force -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue
    }
}

# Policy: Configure use of passwords for operating system drives
# Name: OSPassphrase_Name
# Scope: Machine
# State: Enabled
# Source: VolumeEncryption.admx

Set-RegistryValue -Path 'Registry::HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Policies\Microsoft\FVE' -Name 'OSPassphrase' -PropertyType 'DWord' -Value 1

Set-RegistryValue -Path 'Registry::HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Policies\Microsoft\FVE' -Name 'OSPassphraseComplexity' -PropertyType 'DWord' -Value 2

Set-RegistryValue -Path 'Registry::HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Policies\Microsoft\FVE' -Name 'OSPassphraseLength' -PropertyType 'DWord' -Value 8

Set-RegistryValue -Path 'Registry::HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Policies\Microsoft\FVE' -Name 'OSPassphraseASCIIOnly' -PropertyType 'DWord' -Value 1
  • The OMA-URI is an inferred ADMX-backed Policy CSP candidate derived from the source ADMX file name and policy name.
  • Some Microsoft policies use built-in Policy CSP pages whose area names don't match the ADMX file name, so verify the candidate against Microsoft Learn before deployment.
  • The generated payload is incomplete because one or more ADMX element values were not supplied: OSPassphraseASCIIOnly_Name

ADMX profile candidate (OMA-URI)

./Device/Vendor/MSFT/Policy/Config/ADMX_VolumeEncryption/OSPassphrase_Name
Intune remediation scripts

Detection

$ErrorActionPreference = 'Stop'
$reasons = [System.Collections.Generic.List[string]]::new()

function Test-RegistryValueExists {
    param(
        [Parameter(Mandatory = $true)][string] $Path,
        [Parameter(Mandatory = $true)][string] $Name
    )

    if (-not (Test-Path -LiteralPath $Path)) {
        return $false
    }

    return $null -ne (Get-ItemProperty -LiteralPath $Path -Name $Name -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue)
}

function Test-RegistryValueEquals {
    param(
        [Parameter(Mandatory = $true)][string] $Path,
        [Parameter(Mandatory = $true)][string] $Name,
        [Parameter(Mandatory = $true)][string] $Kind,
        [Parameter(Mandatory = $true)][object] $Expected
    )

    if (-not (Test-Path -LiteralPath $Path)) {
        return $false
    }

    $valueObject = Get-ItemProperty -LiteralPath $Path -Name $Name -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue
    if ($null -eq $valueObject) {
        return $false
    }

    $actual = $valueObject.$Name
    switch ($Kind) {
        'String' { return [string]$actual -ceq [string]$Expected }
        'ExpandString' { return [string]$actual -ceq [string]$Expected }
        'DWord' { return [uint32]$actual -eq [uint32]$Expected }
        'QWord' { return [uint64]$actual -eq [uint64]$Expected }
        'MultiString' {
            $actualArray = @($actual)
            $expectedArray = @($Expected)
            if ($actualArray.Count -ne $expectedArray.Count) { return $false }
            for ($index = 0; $index -lt $actualArray.Count; $index++) {
                if ([string]$actualArray[$index] -cne [string]$expectedArray[$index]) { return $false }
            }
            return $true
        }
        'Binary' {
            $actualArray = [byte[]]$actual
            $expectedArray = [byte[]]$Expected
            if ($actualArray.Length -ne $expectedArray.Length) { return $false }
            for ($index = 0; $index -lt $actualArray.Length; $index++) {
                if ($actualArray[$index] -ne $expectedArray[$index]) { return $false }
            }
            return $true
        }
        default { return [string]$actual -ceq [string]$Expected }
    }
}

# Policy: Configure use of passwords for operating system drives
# Name: OSPassphrase_Name
# Scope: Machine
# State: Enabled
# Source: VolumeEncryption.admx

$isMatch = Test-RegistryValueEquals -Path 'Registry::HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Policies\Microsoft\FVE' -Name 'OSPassphrase' -Kind 'DWord' -Expected 1
if (-not $isMatch) {
    $reasons.Add('Value mismatch: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Policies\Microsoft\FVE\OSPassphrase') | Out-Null
}

$isMatch = Test-RegistryValueEquals -Path 'Registry::HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Policies\Microsoft\FVE' -Name 'OSPassphraseComplexity' -Kind 'DWord' -Expected 2
if (-not $isMatch) {
    $reasons.Add('Value mismatch: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Policies\Microsoft\FVE\OSPassphraseComplexity') | Out-Null
}

$isMatch = Test-RegistryValueEquals -Path 'Registry::HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Policies\Microsoft\FVE' -Name 'OSPassphraseLength' -Kind 'DWord' -Expected 8
if (-not $isMatch) {
    $reasons.Add('Value mismatch: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Policies\Microsoft\FVE\OSPassphraseLength') | Out-Null
}

$isMatch = Test-RegistryValueEquals -Path 'Registry::HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Policies\Microsoft\FVE' -Name 'OSPassphraseASCIIOnly' -Kind 'DWord' -Expected 1
if (-not $isMatch) {
    $reasons.Add('Value mismatch: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Policies\Microsoft\FVE\OSPassphraseASCIIOnly') | Out-Null
}

if ($reasons.Count -eq 0) {
    Write-Output 'Compliant'
    exit 0
}

$reasons | ForEach-Object { Write-Output $_ }
exit 1

Remediation

$ErrorActionPreference = 'Stop'

function Set-RegistryValue {
    param(
        [Parameter(Mandatory = $true)][string] $Path,
        [Parameter(Mandatory = $true)][string] $Name,
        [Parameter(Mandatory = $true)][string] $PropertyType,
        [Parameter(Mandatory = $true)][object] $Value
    )

    if (-not (Test-Path -LiteralPath $Path)) {
        New-Item -Path $Path -Force | Out-Null
    }

    New-ItemProperty -LiteralPath $Path -Name $Name -PropertyType $PropertyType -Value $Value -Force | Out-Null
}

function Remove-RegistryValue {
    param(
        [Parameter(Mandatory = $true)][string] $Path,
        [Parameter(Mandatory = $true)][string] $Name
    )

    if (Test-Path -LiteralPath $Path) {
        Remove-ItemProperty -LiteralPath $Path -Name $Name -Force -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue
    }
}

function Clear-RegistryKeyValues {
    param(
        [Parameter(Mandatory = $true)][string] $Path
    )

    if (-not (Test-Path -LiteralPath $Path)) {
        return
    }

    foreach ($propertyName in (Get-Item -LiteralPath $Path).Property) {
        Remove-ItemProperty -LiteralPath $Path -Name $propertyName -Force -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue
    }
}

# Policy: Configure use of passwords for operating system drives
# Name: OSPassphrase_Name
# Scope: Machine
# State: Enabled
# Source: VolumeEncryption.admx

Set-RegistryValue -Path 'Registry::HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Policies\Microsoft\FVE' -Name 'OSPassphrase' -PropertyType 'DWord' -Value 1

Set-RegistryValue -Path 'Registry::HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Policies\Microsoft\FVE' -Name 'OSPassphraseComplexity' -PropertyType 'DWord' -Value 2

Set-RegistryValue -Path 'Registry::HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Policies\Microsoft\FVE' -Name 'OSPassphraseLength' -PropertyType 'DWord' -Value 8

Set-RegistryValue -Path 'Registry::HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Policies\Microsoft\FVE' -Name 'OSPassphraseASCIIOnly' -PropertyType 'DWord' -Value 1

History 5 retained releases

  1. 22H2 · 1.015 Jul 2024
    • Already present in the first release ChangeIntel keeps.

4 later releases left it unchanged.

Template

Internal name
OSPassphrase_Name
Namespace
Microsoft.Policies.VolumeEncryption
Template file
VolumeEncryption.admx
Release
Windows 11 25H2 · 1.0 · file set de4e49983ebd651f…
Definition, editor controls and support

Definition

<policy class="Machine" displayName="$(string.OSPassphrase_Name)" explainText="$(string.OSPassphrase_Help)" key="Software\Policies\Microsoft\FVE" name="OSPassphrase_Name" presentation="$(presentation.OSPassphrase_Name)" valueName="OSPassphrase" xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/GroupPolicy/2006/07/PolicyDefinitions">
      <parentCategory ref="Microsoft.Policies.VolumeEncryption:FVEOSCategory" />
      <supportedOn ref="Microsoft.Policies.VolumeEncryption:SUPPORTED_Windows8NoARM" />
      <enabledValue>
        <decimal value="1" />
      </enabledValue>
      <disabledValue>
        <decimal value="0" />
      </disabledValue>
      <elements>
        <enum id="OSPassphraseComplexity_Name" valueName="OSPassphraseComplexity">
          <item displayName="$(string.PassphraseComplexityDropDown_2)">
            <value>
              <decimal value="2" />
            </value>
          </item>
          <item displayName="$(string.PassphraseComplexityDropDown_0)">
            <value>
              <decimal value="0" />
            </value>
          </item>
          <item displayName="$(string.PassphraseComplexityDropDown_1)">
            <value>
              <decimal value="1" />
            </value>
          </item>
       </enum>
       <decimal id="OSPassphraseLength_Name" maxValue="255" minValue="8" required="true" valueName="OSPassphraseLength" />
       <boolean id="OSPassphraseASCIIOnly_Name" required="true" valueName="OSPassphraseASCIIOnly">
          <trueValue>
            <decimal value="1" />
          </trueValue>
          <falseValue>
            <decimal value="0" />
          </falseValue>
        </boolean>
      </elements>
    </policy>

Editor controls

<presentation id="OSPassphrase_Name" xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/GroupPolicy/2006/07/PolicyDefinitions">
       <dropdownList defaultItem="0" noSort="true" refId="OSPassphraseComplexity_Name">Configure password complexity for operating system  drives:</dropdownList>
       <decimalTextBox defaultValue="8" refId="OSPassphraseLength_Name">Minimum password length for operating system drive:</decimalTextBox>
       <text>Note: You must enable the "Password must meet complexity requirements" policy setting for the password complexity setting to take effect.</text>
       <checkBox refId="OSPassphraseASCIIOnly_Name">Require ASCII-only passwords for removable OS drives</checkBox>
     </presentation>

Supported platforms and category

Microsoft.Policies.VolumeEncryption:category:FVECategory
<category displayName="$(string.FVECategory)" name="FVECategory" xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/GroupPolicy/2006/07/PolicyDefinitions">
      <parentCategory ref="Microsoft.Policies.Windows:WindowsComponents" />
    </category>
Microsoft.Policies.VolumeEncryption:category:FVEOSCategory
<category displayName="$(string.FVEOSCategory)" name="FVEOSCategory" xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/GroupPolicy/2006/07/PolicyDefinitions">
      <parentCategory ref="Microsoft.Policies.VolumeEncryption:FVECategory" />
    </category>
Microsoft.Policies.VolumeEncryption:definition:SUPPORTED_Windows8NoARM
<definition displayName="$(string.SUPPORTED_Windows8NoARM)" name="SUPPORTED_Windows8NoARM" xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/GroupPolicy/2006/07/PolicyDefinitions" />
Microsoft.Policies.Windows:category:WindowsComponents
<category displayName="$(string.WindowsComponents)" explainText="$(string.WindowsComponents_Help)" name="WindowsComponents" xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/GroupPolicy/2006/07/PolicyDefinitions" />
Microsoft.Policies.VolumeEncryption:category:FVECategory
<category displayName="$(string.FVECategory)" name="FVECategory" xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/GroupPolicy/2006/07/PolicyDefinitions">
      <parentCategory ref="Microsoft.Policies.Windows:WindowsComponents" />
    </category>
<strings><string id="Microsoft.Policies.VolumeEncryption:FVECategory">BitLocker Drive Encryption</string></strings>
Microsoft.Policies.VolumeEncryption:category:FVEOSCategory
<category displayName="$(string.FVEOSCategory)" name="FVEOSCategory" xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/GroupPolicy/2006/07/PolicyDefinitions">
      <parentCategory ref="Microsoft.Policies.VolumeEncryption:FVECategory" />
    </category>
<strings><string id="Microsoft.Policies.VolumeEncryption:FVEOSCategory">Operating System Drives</string></strings>
Microsoft.Policies.VolumeEncryption:definition:SUPPORTED_Windows8NoARM
<definition displayName="$(string.SUPPORTED_Windows8NoARM)" name="SUPPORTED_Windows8NoARM" xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/GroupPolicy/2006/07/PolicyDefinitions" />
<strings><string id="Microsoft.Policies.VolumeEncryption:SUPPORTED_Windows8NoARM">At least Windows Server 2012 or Windows 8</string></strings>
Microsoft.Policies.Windows:category:WindowsComponents
<category displayName="$(string.WindowsComponents)" explainText="$(string.WindowsComponents_Help)" name="WindowsComponents" xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/GroupPolicy/2006/07/PolicyDefinitions" />
<strings><string id="Microsoft.Policies.Windows:WindowsComponents">Windows Components</string><string id="Microsoft.Policies.Windows:WindowsComponents_Help">Contains settings for operating system components.</string></strings>
ChangeIntel

An IT change radar: releases, security, known issues, retirements, documentation changes, and service status from public sources. Every item links to supporting evidence; dates and statuses can change after they are read.

Sources read 18 Oct 23:20 UTC · 253 of 255 readable · 252 fully read · documentation 100/444 current