Patent ID: 8837734

Claim:
A method comprising: encrypting a first portion of a drive in a computing device in a data center, using a first encryption key; encrypting the first encryption key using a second encryption key to obtain an encrypted encryption key; responsive to obtaining the encrypted encryption key, deleting the first encryption key; responsive to deleting the first encryption key, storing the second encryption key in a first location within the data center; storing the encrypted encryption key in a second location within the data center, wherein access to the second location from outside the data center is selectively prevented by an access server and wherein the second location is separate from the first location; and providing, by a processing device, an access component located on a second portion of the drive, the access component providing access to the encrypted encryption key, wherein the second portion of the drive is unencrypted, and wherein the access component, via the access server, selectively prevents access to the encrypted encryption key from outside the data center when the drive is outside the data center and communicatively coupled to the data center; wherein the access component further provides access to the second encryption key when the second encryption key is not stored on the computing device.