I prepare the old systems before I give them away. This involves deleting all files and the operating system, and installing a new operating system once the hard drives have been formatted and I have made sure that the data on the drives is no longer recoverable.

Software like Hardwipe can be used to erase hard drives securely. Securely in this regard means that the data on the drive will be wiped so that it cannot be recovered anymore.

Hardwipe is only one of the programs for that specific task. Other suitable applications include Prevent Restore, Eraser or Blank and Secure to name a few. All have in common that they overwrite files, hard drives or unused disk space to render file recovery software useless.

When you first start Hardwipe, you are presented with the following interface.

Here you can select to wipe files or drives, clean free space or purge the Windows swapfile. The configuration options on the right side of the interface remain the same regardless of selection. You can change the method that is used to overwrite data. Available are quick wipes which overwrite the selected data once to the Gutmann algorithm which overwrites data 35 times. It is furthermore possible to change the speed control setting from automated to full speed or restricted.

A click on Wipe Files opens a file browser which can be used to select individual files or folders for secure deletion. It is possible to select multiple files or folders by holding down the Ctrl key during selection.

Wipe Drive on the other hand asks the user to select a drive or partition to erase all data on that hard drive permanently. Clean Space finally is used to delete all traces of previous files on a partition’s or hard drive’s free space. The Purge Swapfile option, even though listed, is not functional yet.

Hardwipe is a solid alternative for other tools that wipe hard disks and delete files securely under Windows. Tooltips would be handy to explain some options in the program interface that may not be clear immediately. The software integrates into the Windows Explorer context menu to securely delete files and folders directly from the default file manager.

Windows users can download the latest version of Hardwipe from the developer website. The program is compatible with 32-bit and 64-bit editions of the Microsoft Windows operating system.

Copy Wipe can be started from within Windows unlike Darik’s Nuke And Boot, one of the favorite disk wiping utilities, which has to be booted from. The advantage of Darik’s Nuke And Boot is that it acts independently from the operating system.

The disk wipe utility uses a Win32 console in Windows. The main benefit is that you do not have to reboot the computer to start the disk wiping process as it can be initiated directly in Windows.

You can select one of several methods of wiping the hard drive with Copy Wipe many surpassing governmental standards. Please note that it is only possible to wipe partitions or hard drives that are currently not in use which means that you cannot wipe the partition with Windows in Windows. You could still wipe it effectively in DOS though.

The second option provide the means to copy data from one partition or hard drive to another again with the exception of partitions that are currently in use. Copy Wipe provides options for sizing the partitions on the target hard drive.

Lite-On developed the Smart Erase technique to give users a reliable way of erasing the data on CDs and DVDs without damaging the disk. To make it clearer, the technique is compatible to all CD-R and DVD-R disks, not only their rewritable counterparts.

Smart Erase overwrites the data contained on the disk with random characters much like the tools that can erase files or the free space of a hard drive so that the data is not recoverable afterwards. Nero 7 Essentials which ships with the retail versions of each DVD writer will have that feature build in which can be used in combination with one of the announced Lite-On DVD writers.

The first DVD writers are expected to hit shelves in September and October:

• iHAP322 is a 22X DVD writer with PATA connection
• iHAP422 is a 22X DVD writer with PATA connection and LightScribe
• iHAS322 is a 22X DVD writer with SATA connection
• iHAS422 is a 22X DVD writer with SATA connection and LightScribe

The new technique supports two modes: Quick Erase will only erase data in the lead in track and the first track of the CD / DVD while Full Erase will erase the full disk.

A software that can wipe the contents of en entire hard drive is e-Maxx. The software comes as a installer for Windows or as an iso image. The installer will write the files of the software to a bootable floppy disk while the iso image is ready to be burned and booted.

The user is then – after booting from the device – presented with an easy to follow menu where he can pick the hard drive and a method to delete the data on it. A secure option would be to pick the triple flux mode which would ensure that the data could not be recovered by normal means.

Wipe Disk and Wipe Files (via Download Squad) are two applications that can delete disks and partitions or files securely so that they cannot be recovered by normal means. Normal means are those typical file recovery applications like Recuva.

Both applications are available in different languages which can be changed in the Extras > Language menu. The default language of both applications is German. Both are pretty straightforward. A disk, file or directory is added to the queue and one of the fourteen algorithms is selected that delete the data securely.

Some of the algorithms are being used by the Department of Defense, the US Navy or Nato. I would always suggest to use a software like Recuva after deleting data on a disk to make sure that those cannot be retrieved by normal means.

Those algorithms use different ways to overwrite the location on the hard drive that was occupied by the data. A German basic description of every algorithm is available in the program’s help file.

The website answers some frequently asked questions on their website. Breaking a CD would for instance have the same effect but would not make it recyclable anymore. Microwaving CDs would be bad for the microwave due to metal arcing and toxic fumes. Scratching CDs with sharp objects like knifes could have the same effect but is more time consuming and not that data secure.

I’m still not really convinced if the method is really destroying all data on the disks. It does not cost much and would be worth a try but how am I supposed to find out if the CDs and DVDs can’t be read by experts ? What do you normally use for this purpose ?

found: fosfor