Patent ID: 7853804

Claim:
A machine-implemented method comprising: initializing one or more expected Platform Configuration Registers (expected PCRs) in a nonvolatile data area, wherein the expected PCRs are secured by a hardware-based Trusted Platform Module (TPM), wherein the initializing is performed by: generating a random number; storing the generated random number in a nonvolatile memory; seeding one or more of the expected PCRs with the generated random number; inputting a plurality of startup code processes to a hash algorithm process resulting in a first plurality of hash values; updating the expected PCRs using the first plurality of hash values; and saving the expected PCRs in the nonvolatile data area that is secured by the TPM; storing a plurality of encrypted files, each of the encrypted files encrypted using a drive encryption key stored in an encrypted data object; and booting the machine one or more times after the initializing, during each of the boots: retrieving, by the TPM, the previously stored random number from the nonvolatile memory; seeding one or more Platform Configuration Registers (PCRs) with the retrieved random number; inputting the plurality of startup code processes to the hash algorithm process resulting in a second plurality of hash values; updating the PCRs using the second plurality of hash values; and decrypting the encrypted data object in response to the PCRs being the same as the corresponding expected PCRs.