Need Quickest Way to Wipe HDD

M. L. wrote:
Arlen G. Holder wrote:

Isn't there a 'quick format' in Windows, for example?

Can't wipe a drive that's running the OS.

Quick Format does not write every sector.
It only prepares a FAT or $MFT and that's it.

A Long Format does not write every sector either!
It *reads* every sector (that's why the LED stays
on for two hours), if it spots a CRC error
(dead sector) it adds the cluster to $BADCLUS so
the file system cannot use the cluster later on.

This function in Long Format, is just about useless
for any practical purpose. Once your disk drive
is "blowing chunks" like that, all the spares
are gone and it's in serious trouble. When it
reports actual CRC errors, it's then very
close to "cooked". Then is not the time to be
primping a close-to-dead drive. If you have
a "bad spot" in the drive, you can "re-shape"
the partitions to work around it, *then* do
a Long Format if you want, on the assumption
nothing in the remaining area is damaged.

So "format" or "deleting all partitions in Disk Management"
has its place, but it does leave a lot of sectors
with old information in them. And is not the
same as "diskpart" and "clean all", which *does*
do a good job.

As an example, you can have a disk with GPT partitioning,
delete the partitions, and certain software keeps
detecting GPT on it, even though you think it's gone.
That's one case, where zeroing at least 10GB at
the front of the drive, pays off dividends. Once
you nail the GPT partition table with zeros, then
the programs that do "too much sniffing", they
finally get the message. The disk, while in Disk
Management, will then request re-initialization
(to either legacy MBR or newer GPT).

When I absolutely want to make sure that a new
setup will not be influenced by the previous
activities on the disk... I do delete it, end-to-end,
every last stinking sector.

Other things that can be on disk drives include
Dynamic Disk metadata (hard to erase), as well
as RAID metadata (hard to erase). Complete disk
erasure still works in such cases... as long as
the "environment" you're working in, does not
honor the metadata. For example, Linux does
not recognize Dynamic Disk, and so if you asked
Linux to erase the whole drive, chances are it
would remove the Dynamic Disk chunk (maybe 5MB at
the end or so). similarly, for RAID, you connect
a disk that was previously on an Intel RAID, onto
an AMD Southbridge port or a Promise controller
port, and then your erase attempt will get the
RAID table (maybe 1MB of stuff right near the end).

Paul

On 11/06/2019 23.43, Kenny McCormack wrote:
In article ,
Carlos E.R. wrote:
On 11/06/2019 22.46, M. L. wrote:
I want to assist a newbie with wiping the hard drive of an older legacy
computer (model unknown for now), but I want to relay all the
instructions over the phone. Security is of no importance at all. The
computer will not be re-used by anyone interested in HDD forensics. I'm
only interested in speed and ease-of-use, not security.
...
Don't to a format (or initialize disk), that erases nothing, except a
few sectors.

It seems to me that OP went to pretty explicit lengths to tell us that
"security" is not a concern. I.e., he's not worried about making the disk
unreadable by other people (i.e., hackers).

I said «disregard the "security" word in the phrase» ;-)

A disk erased this way may still be readable to forensics.


Instead, it sounds like the only concern is to erase it so that a new OS (or
something or whatever) can be installed on it.

In that case, create new partition table does it.

--
Cheers, Carlos.

On 12/06/2019 00.37, wrote:
On Tue, 11 Jun 2019 21:43:30 -0000 (UTC),
(Kenny McCormack) wrote:

In article ,
Carlos E.R. wrote:
On 11/06/2019 22.46, M. L. wrote:
I want to assist a newbie with wiping the hard drive of an older legacy
computer (model unknown for now), but I want to relay all the
instructions over the phone. Security is of no importance at all. The
computer will not be re-used by anyone interested in HDD forensics. I'm
only interested in speed and ease-of-use, not security.
...
Don't to a format (or initialize disk), that erases nothing, except a
few sectors.

It seems to me that OP went to pretty explicit lengths to tell us that
"security" is not a concern. I.e., he's not worried about making the disk
unreadable by other people (i.e., hackers).

Instead, it sounds like the only concern is to erase it so that a new OS (or
something or whatever) can be installed on it.

P.S. If you *do* want to make the disk unreadable by anyone - i.e., if you
are throwing it away - then a shotgun will do it quite nicely.

You smash it a few times with a hammer, then put it inside a garbage
bag with the rest of the garbage. It ends up in a landfill or at
the bottom of some body of water somewhere.

The average slob ain't that important to worry 'bout someone
reclaiming a busted HD soaked in garbage. If the CIA, FBI, or NSA
is interested in you, you're dead meat anyway. They'll just frame
you for whatever they want you to be guilty of.

Simple enuf?


Very irresponsible to the environment, except perhaps on the USA where
you have land to spare and fill with refuse.

--
Cheers, Carlos.

M. L. wrote:

By quick are you referring to the time your newbie friend would have to
spend, or the time the computer would have to run after he did his part?

I'm interested in a short computer completion time

I swear I once wiped a Windows drive with a floppy disk program and a
command line, and it took only a matter of seconds. But I can't think of
the name now for anything.

Dban?
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On 12/06/2019 08.34, M. L. wrote:

By quick are you referring to the time your newbie friend would have to
spend, or the time the computer would have to run after he did his part?

I'm interested in a short computer completion time

I swear I once wiped a Windows drive with a floppy disk program and a
command line, and it took only a matter of seconds. But I can't think of
the name now for anything.

That's just a variation of format or initialize partition :-)

You said the disk is old. One advantage of erasing as in filling it with
zeroes is that the disk is tested as a byproduct. You find out if the
disk has bad sectors.


--
Cheers, Carlos.

On Wed, 12 Jun 2019 01:48:30 -0500, M. L. wrote:

Can't wipe a drive that's running the OS.

I know.

That's why what I said was boot to _any_ OS via any method (e.g., optical
drive or flash stick) and then do the fastest format possible.

Wouldn't wiping out the partition be pretty darn fast?

On Wed, 12 Jun 2019 04:45:55 -0400, Paul wrote:

Quick Format does not write every sector.
It only prepares a FAT or $MFT and that's it.

Wouldn't wiping out the partition be the quickest?

Arlen G. Holder wrote:
On Wed, 12 Jun 2019 01:48:30 -0500, M. L. wrote:

Can't wipe a drive that's running the OS.

I know.

That's why what I said was boot to _any_ OS via any method (e.g., optical
drive or flash stick) and then do the fastest format possible.

Wouldn't wiping out the partition be pretty darn fast?

Hell, you can wipe partitions from the installer DVD,
if you want fast. As then, you don't need to spend
any time at all on "a separate step".

Consult the "Custom" option, for the menu.

If you think that just deleting partitions
is all the prep you want to do, the installer
disc has the tools for that.

Paul

In alt.comp.os.windows-10, on Wed, 12 Jun 2019 04:21:27 -0500,
NT (Ant) wrote:

M. L. wrote:

By quick are you referring to the time your newbie friend would have to
spend, or the time the computer would have to run after he did his part?

I'm interested in a short computer completion time

I would like that took but otoh, I used to do downloads that took all
night to run. Even if you're giving instructions on the phone, how is
it hard for your newbie friend to just let something run a long time?

I swear I once wiped a Windows drive with a floppy disk program and a
command line, and it took only a matter of seconds. But I can't think of
the name now for anything.

Dban?

He said in his first post that he didn't find dban to be user-friendly.

On 12/06/2019 07:34, M. L. wrote:




I swear I once wiped a Windows drive with a floppy disk program and a
command line, and it took only a matter of seconds. But I can't think
of the name now for anything.

When you say "once" do you mean to say in the DOS days? If the answer
is yes then you'll be disappointed that in Windows "YOU CAN'T WIPE THE
DISK" if the disk is still active i.e. the operating system is installed
on it and you booted the machine with it. However, if you boot up the
machine using some other operating system then you can format the disk
and it takes less than 2 minutes to do the job but booting the machine
might take 15 minutes!!!

Therefore, if time is precious to you then please hire a Technician who
can do it for you.

Perhaps, you can tell us how old is the drive. if it is 10 years old
then IMO it is not worth doing anything with it. New drives cost less
and they are BIG then what you might currently have.


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Subject: Need Quickest Way to Wipe HDD
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On Tue, 11 Jun 2019 15:46:58 -0500, in alt.comp.os.windows-10, M. L.
wrote:

I want to assist a newbie with wiping the hard drive of an older legacy
computer (model unknown for now), but I want to relay all the
instructions over the phone. Security is of no importance at all. The
computer will not be re-used by anyone interested in HDD forensics. I'm
only interested in speed and ease-of-use, not security.

I'd like recommendations for the following:

* user-friendly bootable HDD wipe program ISO
* user-friendly portable Windows 10 ISO burner program

Is there a way she could connect the computer to her current Windows 10
computer for wiping?

I don't find DBAN to be user friendly and am hoping there are newer and
friendlier options with a GUI for wiping. Any other easy wipe methods
will be appreciated, but please do not digress into a discussion of
military wipe options that take a long time. A simple disk format will
suffice. Thanks.

If security is no concern, then all you need to do is remove the
partition data.

I find AOMEI Partition Assistant SE to be straightforward and easy to use
for that task.

https://www.disk-partition.com/free-...n-manager.html

--
Zag

No one ever said on their deathbed, 'Gee, I wish I had
spent more time alone with my computer.' ~Dan(i) Bunten

On Wed, 12 Jun 2019 12:24:03 -0500, in alt.comp.os.windows-10, Zaghadka
wrote:

On Tue, 11 Jun 2019 15:46:58 -0500, in alt.comp.os.windows-10, M. L.
wrote:

I want to assist a newbie with wiping the hard drive of an older legacy
computer (model unknown for now), but I want to relay all the
instructions over the phone. Security is of no importance at all. The
computer will not be re-used by anyone interested in HDD forensics. I'm
only interested in speed and ease-of-use, not security.

I'd like recommendations for the following:

* user-friendly bootable HDD wipe program ISO
* user-friendly portable Windows 10 ISO burner program

Is there a way she could connect the computer to her current Windows 10
computer for wiping?

I don't find DBAN to be user friendly and am hoping there are newer and
friendlier options with a GUI for wiping. Any other easy wipe methods
will be appreciated, but please do not digress into a discussion of
military wipe options that take a long time. A simple disk format will
suffice. Thanks.

If security is no concern, then all you need to do is remove the
partition data.

I find AOMEI Partition Assistant SE to be straightforward and easy to use
for that task.

https://www.disk-partition.com/free-...n-manager.html

I suspect security is more of a concern than that, however. I'm just
taking your post at face value.

CCleaner will allow you to do a one-pass zero wipe by writing a large
file that takes up the entire disk. It is ridiculously slow for
multi-pass wipes, though.

--
Zag

No one ever said on their deathbed, 'Gee, I wish I had
spent more time alone with my computer.' ~Dan(i) Bunten

On Wed, 12 Jun 2019 02:17:00 -0500, M. L. wrote:

I deliberately avoided giving more info than necessary to discourage
this type of discussion from going where it usually goes... which is
toward convoluted high-security wipe methods. Don't need them.

As an aside, but to your point, I have observed on Usenet, those who don't
have a solution to the stated problem ALWAYS can come up with a conspiracy
as to why you ask the question.

I'm not saying anyone on this group did it, where that type of childishless
is prevalent in the people who are merely the chitchatters (whom I can list
but I won't since they didn't do it here).

But I _agree_ with you that the instant you mention anything havnig to do
with privacy or security, people just LOVE to claim your purpose is
nefarious because they can't think of a solution themselves.

Just my two cents on agreeing with your tactic of keeping the purpose raw.

😉 Good Guy 😉 wrote:
On 12/06/2019 07:34, M. L. wrote:




I swear I once wiped a Windows drive with a floppy disk program and a
command line, and it took only a matter of seconds. But I can't think
of the name now for anything.

When you say "once" do you mean to say in the DOS days? If the answer
is yes then you'll be disappointed that in Windows "YOU CAN'T WIPE THE
DISK" if the disk is still active i.e. the operating system is installed
on it and you booted the machine with it. However, if you boot up the
machine using some other operating system then you can format the disk
and it takes less than 2 minutes to do the job but booting the machine
might take 15 minutes!!!

Therefore, if time is precious to you then please hire a Technician who
can do it for you.

Perhaps, you can tell us how old is the drive. if it is 10 years old
then IMO it is not worth doing anything with it. New drives cost less
and they are BIG then what you might currently have.

You can boot a machine in as little as ten seconds,
with an alternate OS. And Windows 10 can be booted in
five to ten seconds (five seconds if overclocked
sufficiently), via kernel hibernation and NVMe.

Booting a machine taking 15 minutes is unlikely.
A Gentoo demo DVD (3GB) takes 3 minutes to boot as
it tried 200 drivers for a best fit. That's about
the longest I know of.

I don't know what your 2 minutes refers to for the
operation itself. Either the operation takes no time
at all, or it takes hours, with nothing in between.

Thorough erasure of an FDE drive takes around
0.001 seconds (via key erasure).

Thorough erasure via overwrite of every sector,
can take hours.

Thorough erasure via Secure Erase takes hours on an HDD.
And can be impressively fast on an SSD.

Deleting the MBR takes 0.001 seconds, but is only
suited to preparing a hard drive for an OS installation.
And this can also be done from the Custom screen of
the installer. At least two different platforms have
a Custom screen. A third is totally lacking in disk
management principles.

Paul

On Wed, 12 Jun 2019 05:52:32 -0000 (UTC), "Arlen G. Holder"
wrote:


Sledge hammer.....