thank you all very much for your suggestions .
I had looked into Truecrypt and bit locker .
I do not have windows ultimate except on one computer but am trying to see if I can buy it separately.
I was a little uneasy in using truecrypt as I do not know how this will affect the rest of my system and AC tech support states that it will interfere with backup , so I may try it on my laptop only.
Bitlocker has the advantage that it can be turned off but dont see that with Truecrypt.
apparently CMS and HIPAA are wanting encrypted drives on all mobile devices
thanks again
Bala
