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Best tool for securely wiping hard drives?
CloudHopper
Member
in Help
I have a few old Windows PCs that I need to wipe properly, so can anyone suggest a good tool for this?
The PCs still boot, so I'm thinking maybe something I can put on a USB stick to boot and nuke them, but it's been years since I last wiped a drive so I'm completely out of touch with the best approach now
Comments
https://github.com/PartialVolume/shredos.x86_64
Are these old PC's HDD or SSD?
I think different method for each, but for HDD I used to use something like DBAN.
I've never wiped an SSD, never had a need too.. I guess if I sell them or throw them away. But the refresh option in windows says it cleans whole SSD drive. How often can you trust Microsoft though?
DBAN
shreados or drill with lots of torque
Good old hammer
For SSDs there are manufacturer utilities or secure erase in bios - or if drive doesn't support secure erase, just bitlocker it, format, wait for trim or issue trim manually, remove bitlocker, format again.
hdparm - check if your drives support 'secure erase'.
Drill press.
With SSDs you'd have to trust the manufacturer's wiping software. Data from securely wiped disks is routinely salvaged by forensics.
burn it to be safe
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Good question and I should have mentioned that. They're old HDDs,, but I'm doing it for a family member so I'm not sure how worn out they are
sounds like possible ewaste tbh, use a drill
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Nice poker. Watcha wanna do about it?
I'd suggest to approach it differently then.
You can wipe the drives and extensively test their surface at the same time.
Get
The first one is simpler, the second is more advanced.
Both are free and require no installation (portable - just unzip). So both can be added to any bootable windows USB flash drive.
First run a full write test (will destroy the data irreversibly), then run a full read test (read, not verify) and see the results/graphs.
That's the best HDD health test you can do at home. It will also help you understand whether those hard drives can be trusted or it's a hammer / RMA time
This is the way to go!
DBAN still works fine for HDDs but if you need to wipe an SSD and aren't looking to pay in order to do it, ShredOS!
If you need to be absolutely certain - drill press is the easiest/most efficient.
Case of green tips will also do the trick (and you can fully enjoy the process.)
https://redkeyusb.com/
Elder maul
dban or shredos
You want to reuse the HDD or is it possible to destroy it physically? How confidental are the files stored on the HDD? How much time and effort should it take?
Software as already mentioned: DBAN or shredos
Check smart status and if smart looks good so they or you could use it as a backup HDD
I have a 3d printed case, i seal with hot petg and partially fill with silicone, for long term backups
Cost about 50-100 cents per drive
For HDDs I usually use DBAN or ShredOS running at least 7 passes (more or less depending on the data that was stored on it, after that physically destroy them with a drill and/or hammer.
For SSDs either Secure Erase (if supported) or full disk encryption with something like vera crypt and wipe.
Doesn't PETG melt at 200C? Or that's used only as the box sealant.
Yes i use a 1€ aliexpress iron, i print the 2 parts, put my drive in there, secure it with silicone and seal the 2 parts with an iron and some extra petg
Same with cheap m.2 sata etc
Any storage that has no value and i can get for free
I see. For hard disks I tape the lid along the length of the gasket and put them in a cardboard box. I haven't felt the need for going hardcore yet.
How does the silicon peel off from your PCBs?
dd if=/dev/urandom of=/dev/sdX status=progress
Silicone stics but it can be easily removed, if not does not matter
Silicone to petg more but also easy to rip off
For me its ment for long long time backup
@CloudHopper Linux?
man shredIncinerating is the only real secure way. If you wanna reuse then run shred with multi pass