Special software programs can permanently erase your hard drive. If you use these programs, there's little chance you'll be able to recover your erased data. That's good news: No one else can use data recovery software to recover your erased files.
If you're planning to sell / gift your old PC or just the drive inside, you need to securely erase your SSD or best hard drive so that the next person can't gain access to your files.
Many people are unaware that their data has been erased; they format the drive once and sell it. It puts your data in danger because anyone can recover it.
You should always destroy hard drives or other electronic devices before recycling because there is no way to ensure that equipment sent for recycling will not be accessed by information thieves.
In the case of hard drives on laptops or desktop PCs, customers have the choice to remove their data themselves, or they can consult with a Geek Squad® Agent about services we offer to remove the hard drive before handing the PC over to be recycled.
Usually, the time varies from 30 minutes to 3 hours. To elaborate, if you have more data on your PC, it occupies more storage and will take longer to clean. Further, it also depends on the type of storage, Primary or Secondary. Besides, do you choose to retain the data and backup or erase and backup?
Best Answered by. No, resetting or reinstalling Windows will not wipe all drives. Resetting Windows will clean user files such as downloaded documents, music, images, videos, and previously installed software. Windows reset only resets the C drive; your other drives are secure.
NIST clearly states that one write pass is sufficient to erase data from drives beyond recovery. In recent years with innovations around the hard drive technology, such as the high data density on disk platters, makes data recovery impossible after a single overwriting pass followed by verification of the overwrite.
Manual Deletion
You can manually delete all files from a hard drive as the operating system will remain unaffected in any way. That said, this is probably the least secure and most risky to find out how to wipe a hard drive without deleting Windows and should be avoided.
Formatting a disk does not erase the data on the disk, only the address tables. It makes it much more difficult to recover the files. However a computer specialist would be able to recover most or all the data that was on the disk before the reformat.
It's true that your personal computer probably won't be able to read a drive that looks like Swiss cheese. The heat from the drill might even cause damage that permanently warps the drive. But as long as there are intact sections of hard drive platters, the data stored on those sections is still technically accessible.
Perhaps one of the fastest and most direct methods of destroying the platter in a hard drive is to bash it with a hammer.
Myth #1: You can destroy a hard drive by putting it in water. Truth: Hard drives are pretty well sealed, so dunking it into water quickly will most likely not affect it at all.
NOTE: Wiping your hard drive is an advanced procedure.
If you don't feel comfortable doing it yourself, you can schedule an appointment to bring your computer into a Best Buy store and have a Geek Squad Agent handle the process for you.
Products we recycle in store for a $29.99 fee per item:
Limit two TVs per household per day.
Staples takes steps to protect customer information and can erase customer computers prior to recycling as part of our technology services, but we do not provide asset tracking, certificates of destruction or certificates of erasure through our retail store program.
Shredding is the most secure and cost effective way to dispose of all types of end-of-life hard drives and media tapes. The hard drive shredding services is great for businesses with large data centers or a stockpile of old hard drives and media tapes because it is a fast and efficient process.
One would hope you back up any important data before you physically remove a hard drive from a system. If not, you can always use an external dock to back up your data from the drive. The best way to "destroy" a hard drive is to physically shred it. There are many services that do this for a fee.
For Windows 10, go to the Start Menu and click on Settings. Then navigate to Update & Security, and find the Recovery menu. Next, select Reset this PC and choose Get Started. Follow the instructions to revert your computer to when it was first unboxed.
According to the comparison table, you can tell that formatting is a quick process to empty a disk, resetting the file system. While wiping is a complete way to clean up the whole disk, erasing all files. When to use formatting or wiping?
The most common way of wiping deleted files from your hard drive is to permanently remove them with data wiping software. Pros: Wiping files with data wiping software is a simple and straightforward option that doesn't require you to take any additional steps. Just select the file and wipe it.
Can I recover files after formatting? Yes, you can perform format recovery with data recovery software: Download and install EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard. Select the formatted disk, and click Scan.