How do you wipe a hard drive? When you hear about erasing a storage device, you probably think of formatting it or deleting a partition. These operations don’t completely remove the data stored on the device, since they always leave traces behind. Completely wiping an external or internal hard drive means cleaning it so thoroughly that the files it contains can never be reconstructed. This may sound like a difficult procedure. However, with the right tools and the right tutorial, you’ll get the job done.
Wiping a hard drive or formatting it?
Most of the time, many users format their SSD to remove data. Others empty the recycle bin and assume that this is enough to completely erase their hard drive. However, these measures are insufficient because they leave traces on the device in question, and anyone with knowledge of data recovery can easily restore them.
So what should you do, and what exactly does wiping a storage device involve? As mentioned above, it’s a procedure that completely empties a device and makes deleted files permanently inaccessible.
Why wipe a hard drive?
How and why should you wipe a hard drive? One of the main reasons for erasing a storage device is to protect sensitive data. This applies when you don’t want your files to be accessible to just anyone.
Perhaps you want to sell your laptop or give it to someone close to you. Fully cleaning it lets you make it like new before any exchange or transaction.
Finally, wiping a drive may also be motivated by the wish to permanently get rid of your old data in order to store new data.
What is the procedure for wiping a hard drive?
To prevent copies of your files from remaining in your laptop’s operating system, be sure to wipe your hard drive. How do you do it? There’s one golden rule: use erasure software. However, certain prerequisites must be met:
Backing up your data
Have you decided to wipe your hard drive but aren’t sure how to go about it? We recommend that you first back up your sensitive data. You can clone your storage device or create a backup USB flash drive by copying and saving your important files.
Downloading erasure software
How do you wipe a hard drive? The safest way to succeed at this operation is to download erasure software.
Ccleaner
Originally, Ccleaner is an optimization tool for Windows. However, it comes with a handy feature that lets you securely wipe your hard drive. How does it work? After launching it, you need to:
- Choose the “Drive Wiper” module
- Set the type of erasure you want (free space only or entire drive)
- Choose the drive to empty and perform the permanent deletion.
What sets Ccleaner apart is that it’s also portable. You can easily copy it onto a USB flash drive and have it on hand at all times. It’s easy to use, its interface is simple to understand, and all of the software’s features are available within it.
SMART DISK CHECKER
The smartdiskchecker utility is also very handy for wiping a hard drive on Windows. How do you use it? Just like Ccleaner, you need to download it. It’s a tool that lets you completely empty your storage device of all sensitive information: documents, confidential files, passwords, other private and financial files, etc. It permanently overwrites them and prevents any recovery attempt.
You’ll appreciate it even more since it’s free. This software has comprehensive features that make it easy to delete data from the Windows operating system.
After downloading and installing the software on your laptop, you need to run it. Once it’s running:
- Select the drive you want to wipe
- Click “OK” to carry out the complete and permanent deletion.
What happens after wiping?
After your storage device has been wiped, it is empty. You can install a new operating system and save new data on your empty drive. Don’t hesitate to create partitions to keep your system files separate from your personal documents.
Now that you know how to wipe a hard drive, nothing is stopping you from completely and permanently erasing your device. When done successfully, the operation is safe, and there’s no risk that the lost data could be recovered. For more information, Chronodisk is at your disposal!