Overview of Eureka Hard Disk Encryptor


The Main Screen

The Main Screen shown below performs all of the functions of Eureka Hard Disk Encryptor:



The screen is divided into five sections.  The directory tree is located in the left portion of the screen, the selected folders comprise the upper middle to right portion and also contains the Add to List, Delete, Select All and Reset buttons, the system area, which deals with the System Control Files are directly beneath the Selected Folders area and contain the Encrypt and Decrypt buttons.   A system named test has been created and loaded.  Underneath the system area (which is blank at the moment) holds a progress bar during processing.  At the very bottom of the screen is a status bar message area.

Please take note that once a folder has been encrypted, only the original encrypted file in junction with the System Control Files used and the exact combination of Key Components used are required to retrieve your data.  

Let's first give a brief description on each of the buttons on this screen:
Add to List
This adds a highlighted folder into the select folders area.  This is covered in the Selecting Folders section below.

Delete
This removes selected folders from the list.  This is also covered in the Selecting Folders section below.

Select All
This highlights and selects all members in the selected folders area.

Reset
This clears any highlighted members in the selected folders area.

Encrypt
This will encrypt any highlighted member in the selected folders area.   Refer to Encrypting Folders for more information.

Decrypt
This will decrypt any highlighted member in the selected folders area.   Refer to Decrypting Folders for more information.



Selecting Folders

Before you can encrypt any folders you must define which folders you want to secure.  It is advisable to organize your most sensitive data, otherwise you might find this process somewhat tedious.  The good news is you only have to do it once as the selected folders are saved and restored for the life of the application.

To add a folder, click on the folder from the directory tree area and click on the Add to List button.  You can also double-click on the folder in the driectory tree area to do the same but be aware that if this folder has subfolders, they will be removed from view.  If you want to secure an entire drive, first uncover all folders within that drive, then start at the bottom of the tree and double-click towards the drive.

Cetain folders are not permitted.  These are the C: root directory, the Eureka folders, and most of all your Windows folders.  You are permitted to process the Windows folders My Documents and My Pictures.

Once you have selected the folders, you can now encrypt and decrypt these folders.

As you use this program you will notice that in the selected folders you will also see the state of the folder, either encrypted or decrypted.  If you exit the program with any of the folders in decrypted mode, you will receive a message that data you have designated being secure is being left in a decryptive state.



Security Considerations

Copy your System Control Files to a safe location then delete them from your computer whenever the computer will be unattended or not in use.  It is always a good idea to password protect access to the computer.

Whenever you encrypt, the encrypted files are stored in a backup folder.   You can define this path by File/Backups/Change Backup Path.  You can restore any or all encrypted files by File/Backups/Restore Backup Encryptions.   This is useful in case of deletions, improper decryption attempts or other forms of hacking.

Whenever you encrypt all the folders, the Backup will be reset.  You can add a folder and encrypt it by itself, and decrypt a folder without any problems, but before you delete a folder from the list, you must decrypt all the folders first, then encrypt them all after deleting the folder or folders you want removed.

Always keep a backup of your important data outside of your computer and decrypt all the folders and rebackup often in case of accidental misuse of this application, or factors such as power failures etc., that might occur and render your data unrecoverable.  Also be aware that if you decrypt with the wrong settings of the key componets, or you use the wrong set of system control files, you will corrupt the encrypted file and it will not be possible to decrypt it.  You will need to use the Backup option to restore the original encrypted file in order to try again.



Other Help Topics
Decrypting Folders
Encrypting Folders
System Control Files