Can't login to computer and can't reset bitlocker

My parents recently bought a new home which included all the furniture. This included the old computer and the previous owner claimed he wiped the computer and left it new for them however he appears to have installed it with bitlocker and we can't do anything with it. They have no way to get into contact with the old owner.

I tried having them format it and boot into safe mode however nothing seems to be working due to bitlocker. One of the screens mentions unlocking the drive via the bitlocker recovery key (picture C) which we do seem to have (picture B) however whenever we get to this screen the keyboard and mouse won't work so we can't select to manually input the screen.

Can anybody offer any advice on what to do from here? I'd hate to have to throw the computer away when it would work fine for their purposes. Thanks.

Boot the computer from a USB flash drive with a live Linux version on it, such as Mint. Use Gparted to completely erase the drive in the new computer. Then boot it from a USB flash drive with Windows 10 installation on it and clean install Windows 10 to the blank drive. Since it had bitlocker on it, the computer likely had Windows 10 Pro, so that is probably what you would want to install.

If absolutely all else fails, instead of tossing the whole entire computer, why not just put a new SSD in it?

Actually, I just noticed that computer is running Windows 7 Enterprise and is a corporate owned computer....You will need to purchase your own Windows 10 license for it.

would not going into your microsoft account help with your bitlocker key?

Seems to be a OEM computer (Screen is a Lenovo Thinkcentre). It probably came with Win 7.
Look for a COA sticker at the side panel. You can install Win 7 or Win 10 using the key on it.

Silencious said:

would not going into your microsoft account help with your bitlocker key?

It's not their bitlocker key, though. It is the previous owner's (and, more specifically, probably the corporation that the computer was used with previously.)

Yes it is a Lenovo Thinkcentre. It is challenging because I'm trying to help my parents remotely and they are not good with computers (their new home is in Florida and I'm in Chicago). I will try and see if there is a license sticker on it but still not really sure how best to format the hard drive to reinstall Windows. It can't boot up in safe mode and they can't login to the computer. I don't think the computer has a DVD drive and they certainly don't have a USB key with Windows on it. I was hoping that there was a partition with Windows on it to reinstall the OS.

Right now though the issue seems to be that we can't get the mouse or keyboard to work on the screen in the third picture. It says it needs the bitlocker recovery screen which starts with 5FA71B09 which is clearly the key in the second picture. I believe we got to the screen in the third pic by trying to boot up in safe mode or else from the bios screen.

I'm not sure but I think Bitlocker Recovery ID is a different thing of a recovery key.

The computer probably came with a Factory recover partition. Normally IT people delete everything on the drive and install Win 7 Enterprise. Don't worry. To install win 7 or 10 is very easy.

The computer must have a Win 7 COA sticker on the side panel. With it you can do a clean install of win 7 or 10. Ask your parents to look for it, and see what version is the key for (Home, HP, Pro or Ultimate) DON'T post the key here.
On a Clean install you will boot from a DVD or USB drive, delete all partitions and then proceed. Everything on the disk will be erased and a new copy of Windows installed.
Does your parents have another computer connected to the internet?

Find 2 flash drives that you can format (> or = 8 GB):

https://www.bestbuy.com/
Walgreens: Pharmacy, Health & Wellness, Photo & More for You
Amazon.com



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