How to lock a folder in your computer

Your computer contains lots of important stuff, such as personal photos or iDs. That is why you should learn how to lock a folder on your computer.

Fortunately, Windows and Mac computers offer password lock as a built-in feature. Also, you may try third-party programs like 7-Zip.

READ: How to lock iPhone apps

This article will discuss how to use these methods so that you can protect your important files. Note that these methods may change as new operating system versions emerge.

How to lock a folder on Windows

Windows tips website WindowsCentral recommends creating a virtual drive that will serve as a password-protected folder. Here’s how it works: 

1. Open Settings.
2. Then, click on System.
3. Select the Storage page. 
4. Next, click the Advanced Storage settings under the Storage Management section. 
5. Select the Disks & Volumes setting.
6. Afterward, click the Create VHD button. 
7. Name your new virtual drive.
8. Then, click the Browse button. 
9. Choose a location for the virtual drive. 
10. Confirm the drive size. For example, you may select 10GB.
11. Choose the VHDX option.
12. Pick the Dynamically expanding option. 
13. Then, click Create.
14. Choose the GPT (GUID Partition Table) option.
15. Select the Initialize button. 
16. Pick a name for your virtual drive that will appear on the File Explorer. 
17. Choose the drive letter for that VD.
18. Choose the NTFS option under the File System setting.
19. Click the Format button.

READ: Will your next smartphone fold in three?

How to lock a folder on a Mac

Want to lock a folder on your Mac computer? It follows a procedure similar to the Windows section. Here are the steps from the digital trend website TechRadar:

1. Open your Mac’s Application folder.
2. Then, select the Utilities folder and choose Disk Utility. 
3. Click File, New Image, and then Image From Folder.
4. Next, pick the folder you want to lock with a password.
5. Then, click Choose.
6. Type the name of the protected folder in the corresponding box. 
7. Select 128-bit or 256-bit AES encryption from the Encryption dropdown menu. TechRadar says the former is acceptable.
8. Afterward, enter your desired password and click Choose. Alternatively, click on the key icon to generate a strong password and then click Choose. 
9. Select read/write under the Image Format dropdown menu and then click Save.
10. Click done in the main Disk Utility screen to confirm your settings.
11. Double-click your new .dmg file to open the locked folder and enter the password. This step will lock a folder on your computer on your Mac.

Lock a folder using 7-Zip

You may lock a folder on your computer with third-party software for a simpler method. 7-Zip is one of the most popular ones, so you may start with that using these steps:

1. Download and install 7-Zip on your PC or Mac.
2. Open the 7-Zip File Manager app.
3. Then, choose the folder you want to protect and click the Add option. 
4. Toggle the Delete file after compression checkbox.
5. Enter your new password in the Encryption section and click OK.

READ: How to create ZIP files

These steps will replace your folder with a ZIP file. Open it by right-clicking the file and selecting 7-Zip and Extract Here. Next, enter your password.

There are more convenient options but choose the most trustworthy ones. Some may contain malware or viruses that could break your device.