Questions tagged [secure-erase]

Secure erase is a command to tell an ATA mass storage device to completely wipe itself.

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7 votes
3 answers
9k views

Zeroing a file from command-line

Is there a built-in command in Windows 7 or higher to fill a file with zero / NULL bytes? The processing should happen in-place (i.e. it should modify the actual disk sectors / bytes of the file), ...
4 votes
1 answer
4k views

eMMC Standards and File System support

I am looking into Android secure erase functions and realized a few things: Android uses eMMC as its storage media, eMMC standards are set by the JEDEC organization (currently most of the manufactured ...
0 votes
0 answers
46 views

How to quickly delete files and folders in Windows 10 so that they can never be recovered or accessed again

I have an application and txt files where the records of this application are kept. When I give a command via CMD, I want these files to be quickly deleted, irrecoverable and inaccessible. Depending ...
3 votes
2 answers
5k views

Erase an encrypted Samsung SSD on a Dell laptop previously used in a business

I recently bought a laptop from a company which was about to close (I promise I'm not a thief). Its a Dell Latitude which contains an encrypted SSD (samsung 128gb). I can use the laptop with any other ...
0 votes
1 answer
221 views

Do I need to overwrite free-space of my SSD?

I'm selling my gaming computer to a neighbor. As much as I trust him, I don't trust any third party who might get access to the computer. So I've come to the conclusion to overwrite the free space of ...
38 votes
6 answers
36k views

Why is my /dev/random so slow when using dd?

I am trying to semi-securely erase a bunch of hard drives. The following is working at 20-50Mb/s dd if=/dev/zero of=/dev/sda But dd if=/dev/random of=/dev/sda seems not to work. Also when I ...
0 votes
0 answers
56 views

Giving out printer/scanner for repair replacement and personal data cached

I have a home printer/scanner (Epson XP235) that has malfunction and needs repair. Do the scanner/printers cache any data (from printed/scanned documents) that I should make sure are wiped out before ...
0 votes
2 answers
223 views

Secure erase verification methods for different storage media?

Do secure erase technologies available on different types of media set a status or verification flag? Is there a industry standard to verify when a drive has gone through the process?
1 vote
1 answer
526 views

Wipe unallocated disk space in Windows and clean or rename file in directory structures

I want a way to clean free space in Windows once I delete the data, so that: The files are no longer recoverable by any disk recovery tools The file names are no longer visible in any disk recovery ...
20 votes
2 answers
57k views

How to securely erase an NVMe SSD

It's generally accepted that SSDs cannot be securely wiped by writing patterns to the drive, due to features such as wear leveling and over-provisioning, and that the most secure way to wipe a modern ...
7 votes
4 answers
27k views

SSD - What is the difference between Sanitize & Secure Erase?

When I use Parted Magic to secure erase an SSD I get two options. Secure Erase ATA Device Sanitize While I have searched the net, I still do not understand the exact technical different between the ...
6 votes
4 answers
5k views

How is OS X Disk Utility's secure erase mode in comparison to other commerical secure delete methods/apps?

Within OS X, the utility Disk Utility has a secure erase for hard drive formatting. It has 1,7, and 33 pass options, which to my knowledge are very good writting random data to the drive. What does ...
6 votes
3 answers
5k views

SSD vs HDD (hard drive) secure erase

I know that when files are deleted they aren't really completely erased. The drive just says hey this space is free and you can overwrite it. With programs like Boot and Nuke and Eraser .etc. you can ...
1 vote
2 answers
308 views

Wiping an SSD without ruining pre-installed OS?

I bought a new ASUS laptop with an SSD and Windows 11 pre-installed. Unfortunately, the laptop has some issues and since consumer protection laws in my country allow you to return goods purchased from ...
2 votes
2 answers
2k views

What does Windows's "format X: /P:count" do?

What does format X: /P:count do in Windows? The documentation says: /P:count Zero every sector on the volume. After that, the volume will be overwritten "count" ...
3 votes
3 answers
921 views

How can I tell if my SSD is really secure erased, with a huge $BadClus file on it?

Backstory: almost a year ago, I bought a Silicon Power Ace A56 256GB SATA SP256GBSS3A56B25. After 4 months, it suddenly went into Satafirm S11 mode, which meant I couldn't boot a system from it, ...
0 votes
1 answer
571 views

Kingston SSD Secure Erase not working

I have a hard drive that I cannot Secure Erase because there is still partitioning in the drive, but there are not any partitions left shown in disk 2 in the disk management tool, yet its not letting ...
1 vote
1 answer
3k views

Why DBAN cannot erase data on SSD

As stated in DBAN website, DBAN, which using "DoD 5220.22-M", is not recommended for wiping SSD drives since DBAN was designed for HDD. As I understand, it is because SSD has over ...
-5 votes
1 answer
226 views

How is secure erase implemented on SSDs? [closed]

I've seen people talk about using it or that it works for erasing SSDs, but I can't find much on how it actually works.
0 votes
2 answers
1k views

Is it necessary to secure erase a hardware encrypted Samsung SSD before reinstalling Windows?

I have a Samsung SSD 870 EVO and I have enabled hardware encryption by following the instructions written in Samsung Magician, which is to first secure erase the drive and then doing a fresh Windows ...
3 votes
2 answers
34k views

Error wiping device: Failed to probe the device 'dev/-sdb' (udisks-error-quark, 0)

My Hard disk was totally fine since I tried to format it using the 'ATA Enhanced Secure Erase' option on gnome disk utility. Now I can not formate or use it. Every time I try to format it this error ...
0 votes
2 answers
3k views

How to securely erase an NVMe SSD that won't boot?

I purchased a Crucial NVMe PCIe m.2 SSD and cloned my old hard drive to it. All of the data is accessible in file explorer, but the SSD has issues (overheats and won't boot) and I need to return it. I'...
4 votes
0 answers
829 views

Formatting a failing & write-locked SSD

I have a failing 4 TB 870 Evo SSD. It has lasted less than a year (thanks Samsung). I believe the SSD has entered a read-only mode because it is failing. Any disk enumeration tasks take 30 seconds ...
4 votes
4 answers
4k views

sdelete alternative on osx

In the sysinternals suite for windows there is this nifty sdelete tool for securely deleting individual files as well as overwriting unallocated disk space with randomness or zeroes ( the -c or -z ...
0 votes
1 answer
232 views

Is my SSD broken?

I've tried to delete all partition in my ssd using several method like disk manager, diskpart and 3rd party MiniTool Partition Wizard in windows 10, gparted, zero fill data dd if=/dev/zero of=/dev/sdc ...
2 votes
0 answers
2k views

Securely Erase NVME SSD that is connected via USB Converter

Is there a way to securely erase a NVME SSD that is connected via a USB converter? Normally I use parted magic to format an SSD, the M.2 SATA SSDs can be easily connected via a converter into a 2.5&...
1 vote
1 answer
6k views

How to fix SSD Secure erase disabled for Kingston

I noticed that my SSD read/write speed dropped. I googled it most results said that a secure erase could help. I am using Kingston SSD Manager, and it says Secure Erase is disabled for this ...
64 votes
3 answers
48k views

Using `shred` from the command line

I need to securely erase some files. I have used shred on linux systems before, so I looked around and found that shred is part of the coreutils package in macports. I did port install coreutils to ...
0 votes
0 answers
23 views

HDD old deleted data still visible in recovery software [duplicate]

Hi How can i completely wipe old deleted data from hard disk i am trying with ccleaner and cleaning the /w Free Space (35 Pass) after cleaning the free space i scanned my laptop with easeus data ...
110 votes
11 answers
17k views

Securely erasing all data from a hard drive

I am about to sell my old desktop PC and I am cautious about some of my sensitive information being available to the purchaser, even after reformatting the hard-drive, using data recovery software. ...
0 votes
0 answers
990 views

OCZ agility 4 is not recognized by Toshiba SSD Tool

I have a working OCZ Agility 4 SSD as system drive. It is working. I want to secure erase it and update its firmware (if available). The problem is that Toshiba/OCZ SSD Utility wont detect/...
2 votes
5 answers
9k views

Partially Solved: SSD security password - stuck with an I/O Error

Model in question is a Kingston SV300S37A120G. I read here that when trying to unlock a security password, I should put “quotes” around it if it contains special characters. Does that apply for caps? ...
0 votes
2 answers
5k views

Rufus rejecting HDDErase.iso

I'm not sure if this is the place to be asking this, but maybe someone here knows what's going on? I'm trying to create a bootable USB key with HDDErase.iso, obtained from http://cmrr.ucsd.edu/people/...
0 votes
1 answer
139 views

Corrupted Files Delete in Windows [duplicate]

I am preparing a file using shell script and while doing some tests, I added the pause> nul line into my sh file. Then I ran the sh file, but there was a file named nul on the desktop and I can't ...
-1 votes
1 answer
4k views

How does Samsung’s secure erase tool actually work?

I’ve seen so much debate surrounding what specifically Samsung magician’s secure erase tool for their consumer ssds actually does. It seems like everyone agrees that using the bootable USB media wipes ...
5 votes
2 answers
5k views

So did Lenovo BIOS secure erase just brick my SSD?

I tried the "Erase the Solid State Drive in the HDD bay" BIOS feature following these instructions. The message "Now erasing... It may take about 6 minutes." came up. After waiting over three hours, I ...
19 votes
5 answers
11k views

How can I securely format a solid-state drive?

When selling / throwing away / giving away HDDs I always use DBAN to do a DoD wipe first. Is this still a valid thing to do on an SSD? Will it have an adverse effect on the SSD's lifespan?
2 votes
1 answer
3k views

Purpose of password in SSD Secure Erase - Partedmagic

I used PartedMagic to secure erase my Samsung EVO SATA SSD. I had created a bootable USB pen drive for the same. The process went well and SSD has been erased. It took hardly less than a minute to ...
18 votes
1 answer
28k views

hdparm doesn't read SSD? HDIO_DRIVE_CMD(identify) failed: Inappropriate ioctl for device

I'm trying to use hdparm to do secure erase of my 512GB SSD SK Hynix. SSD has Windows 10 installed in it. I boot Ubuntu from a usb flash drive. sudo fdisk -l I get a lot of different disks, turns out ...
0 votes
0 answers
96 views

What happens technically when a MicroSD (Secure Digital Storage Device) is not formattable, delectable, or reusable [duplicate]

My question detected as a similar question, and the similar answer is to throw your SD in the garbage! I want to update my question by asking, what happens technically when a microSD card happens to ...
25 votes
5 answers
19k views

How to erase a hard drive with unwritable sectors?

So I have a hard drive that is failing. I want to erase the data on it before sending it for replacement. I'm trying to use dd if=/dev/zero of=/dev/sdXX, but it stops at the first write error. How can ...
0 votes
0 answers
42 views

35-pass erase for files; will it recover or not? [duplicate]

OK, I admit it; downloaded raunchy pictures and now want to ensure they're deleted from a MacBook Pro bought in 2018 whenever I decide to gift it to someone. Admittedly, the pictures are nothing ...
0 votes
2 answers
438 views

OCZ SSD not working after secure erase failed

I tried to secure erase the 60GB OCZ-VERTEX2 SSD in my HP N40L MicroServer using the Disks GUI tool on the debian-live-10.7.0-amd64-lxde.iso. It failed the first time and unfortunately I don't ...
2 votes
4 answers
4k views

How does writing zeroes to a drive remove data from it?

I know a fair bit about the process of securely wiping drives, including that one wipe is usually sufficient and that no-one has yet (publicly) been able to recover a bit of data from one pass of ...
0 votes
1 answer
609 views

Can the HPA and DCA contain user data from the filesystem?

The HPA and DCO are hidden areas on some drives that can be used to install firmware-based malware or deliberately hide some files. Tools like hdparm can be used to wipe these areas, as can most ...
2 votes
0 answers
7k views

How to erase a locked SSD

I received 2 locked SSDs. I managed to unfreeze them by a power cycle. hdparm reports: supported enalbed locked not frozen not expired: security count supported: enchanced ...
174 votes
16 answers
357k views

How to wipe free disk space in Linux?

When a file is deleted, its contents may still be left in the filesystem, unless explicitly overwritten with something else. The wipe command can securely erase files, but does not seem to allow ...
0 votes
1 answer
969 views

Secure data wipe before laptop sell

I have two SSDs in my laptop (dell xps 15 9550): Toshiba 256gb (PCIe) THNSN5256GPU7 Samsung 1tb (sata 3) EVO860 Both are fully encrypted with VeraCrypt. Is it safe, to simply make a quick-format on ...
0 votes
0 answers
362 views

should I secure erase my Samsung SSDs?

I have two SSDs in my laptop, they're a samsung evo 500GB and a samsung evo 1TB. I've noticed that my laptop has become slower these days and I was thinking of helping my SSDs to 'rejuvenate'. I've ...
0 votes
0 answers
240 views

HDD failure and format error, shows 4.1 GB instead of 1.86 TB

I have a Seagate 2.0 TB HDD. I had Ubuntu installed on it and grub on my SSD. I removed the cable when trying to change it. After that when I plugged it in grub showed the black error screen with grub&...