How can I mount an encrypted LVM under Windows?

Question

I have a virtual machine with Ubuntu server with an encrypted LVM.

I set up a virtual drive using imdisk to access its virtual hard drive without running the virtual machine, but I can't find any way to access this encrypted lvm in Windows.

Is there any Windows program that allows mounting encrypted LVMs?

Solution

From wikipedia dm-crypt :

dm-crypt and LUKS encrypted disks can be accessed and used under MS Windows using FreeOTFE, provided that the filesystem used is supported by Windows (e.g. FAT/FAT32/NTFS).

Encrypted Ext2, Ext3 and Ext4 filesystems are supported by use of Ext2Fsd (all ext* versions) or Ext2 Installable File System for Windows (ext2 and ext3 only) and with FreeOTFE.

See this article for how to use these products :
Mounting LUKS / dm-crypt Partitions in Microsoft Windows.

The described method works on a partition, so I wonder if it wouldn't also work on an lmdisk partition.

Comments

[LawrenceC]

Only if the underlying filesystem is NTFS.

[Zoredache]

Have you considered just rebuilding the virtual machine and setting up the system to not use LVM?

[NotGaeL]

I've considered it and I've done it. I disabled LVM encryption on the volume inside the .vdi container to avoid redundant encryption and moved the .vdi to a TrueCrypt container. Seems the best alternative so far, but I still would like to know if there is a solution to allow me mount LVM LUKS encrypted volumes inside a variable size .vdi containers.

[NotGaeL]

Sure about Explore2fs LVM2 support using this Virtual Volumes beta. Unfortunately it does not support dm-crypt/LUKS encryption, neither vdi virtual HDD container access or access to the virtual drive where imdisk mounts this vdi container, so it's nowhere close to a solution. Thanks anyway.

[NotGaeL]

all of that I've already figured it out, but how can I get to see the virtual hardrive (VDI container) partitions on the list the same way I see the physical hard drive ones? I tried Imdisk with no luck (it's a variable size container and it only works with fixed sized VDI containers). I guess I need a virtual device driver for vdi containers or something like that...

[harrymc]

Do you mean to say that the problem is that FreeOTFE refuses to use the imdisk drive ?

[harrymc]

Another question : Might using TrueCrypt instead of dm-crypt make the job easier? Hmmm, you may run into the same problem with variable vdi. You might need to give up on the variable part.

[NotGaeL]

I've already tried truecrypt and freeOTFE to mount both the .vdi and the dm-crypt virtual drive mount of the .vdi (which was not properly mounted because it lacks support for non-fixed sized .vdi containers). No luck so far.

[harrymc]

You are running everywhere into the limitations of variable size vdi.

[NotGaeL]

I certainly am, but consider a fixed sized vdi didn't solve my problem either, since the imdisk hack to mount it doesn't seem to work with LVMs, encripted or not (In the article I read on how to the guy was mounting a FAT32 formatted virtual drive, that's why it doesn't work for me, I guess).