If you’re using a traditional hard drive, you should know that simply deleting data doesn’t guarantee its permanent removal. Specialized software can often recover deleted files, even after emptying the Recycle Bin. This is because, on older drives, deleted files are merely marked as such, leaving the data intact. While modern solid-state drives (SSDs) with TRIM functionality automatically handle data deletion securely, external drives and older HDDs require a more thorough approach to prevent data recovery. A standard format is often insufficient.
Wipe Your System Drive
The most thorough way to wipe your primary drive is using the built-in Reset this PC option. This process effectively reinstalls Windows while giving you the option to securely erase your data.
Step 1: Open Windows Settings and click on Update & Security.
Step 2: In the left sidebar, select Recovery.
Step 3: Under Reset this PC, click the Get started button.
Step 4: Choose Remove everything. This is crucial for a complete wipe.
Step 5: Follow the on-screen prompts. You’ll likely be given options regarding how thoroughly you want to clean the drive. Choose the option that performs a more secure, but potentially longer, wipe.
This will remove all data from your system drive. Back up any important files before proceeding, as this process is irreversible.
Wipe a Drive on Windows via Command Prompt
The Command Prompt provides a powerful way to manage disks, including securely wiping them.
Step 1: Type command prompt in the Windows search bar.
Step 2: Right-click on Command Prompt and select Run as administrator.
Step 3: In the Command Prompt window, type diskpart and press Enter.
Step 4: Next, type list disk and press Enter.
Step 5: Identify the disk number you want to wipe. Be extremely careful here; selecting the wrong disk will result in data loss.
Step 6: Type select disk X (replace X with the correct disk number) and press Enter.
Step 7: Type clean and press Enter. This will wipe the disk’s partition table, effectively erasing all data.
Step 8: Now, create a new partition, select it, make it active, format it with the NTFS file system and assign a drive letter. Execute these commands one by one:
create partition primary
Step 9:
select partition 1
Step 10:
active
Step 11:
format FS=NTFS quick
Step 12:
assign letter=X
Replace X with the drive letter you want to assign to your drive.
Step 13:
exit
Using the Format option
A full format provides a basic level of data wiping. It’s less secure than other methods but is quick and convenient for drives that don’t contain sensitive information.
Step 1: Open File Explorer and right-click on the drive you want to wipe.
Step 2: Select Format from the context menu.
Step 3: In the Format window, uncheck the Quick Format option.
Step 4: Click the Start button.
A full format takes considerably longer than a quick format because it writes zeros to every sector on the drive.
How to Wipe only Free Space
Sometimes, you may want to erase traces of previously deleted files without completely erasing the entire drive. This is particularly useful for maintaining performance and security.
Step 1: Open Windows search and type Powershell.
Step 2: Right-click on Powershell and select Run as administrator.
Step 3: In the Powershell window, type the following command, replacing X with the drive letter of the drive you want to wipe:
cipher /w:X:\
For example, if you want to wipe the free space on drive G, you would type cipher /w:G:\.
This process overwrites the free space with random data, making it more difficult to recover previously deleted files.
Wiping a drive ensures your sensitive data is unrecoverable before you repurpose or dispose of the storage device. Choose the method that best suits your needs and the level of security required.