How to Erase Your Hard Drive

Prevent identity theft by thoroughly erasing the information contained on your hard drive.

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Up next in Data Management & Storage (23 videos)

Organize your online information with the data management and storage tips in this Howcast video series.

 
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1
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How to Back Up Your Hard Drive
2
How to Back Up Your Hard Drive
How to Use a Flash Drive or Memory Stick
3
How to Use a Flash Drive or Memory Stick
How to Use a Jump Drive
4
How to Use a Jump Drive
How to Burn a DVD
5
How to Burn a DVD
How to Make a Pink-Eraser Casing for Your USB Drive
6
How to Make a Pink-Eraser Casing for Your USB Drive
How to Choose the Right Data Recovery Tools
7
How to Choose the Right Data Recovery Tools
How to Use NCBI Blast
8
How to Use NCBI Blast
How to Use PNY attache
9
How to Use PNY attache
How to Normalize Data
10
How to Normalize Data
How to Zip Files on a PC
11
How to Zip Files on a PC
How to Use an SD Card Reader
12
How to Use an SD Card Reader
How to Format an SD Card
13
How to Format an SD Card
How to Pick an SD Memory Card
14
How to Pick an SD Memory Card
How to Partition a Hard Drive on a Windows PC
15
How to Partition a Hard Drive on a Windows PC
How to Partition a Hard Drive on a Mac
16
How to Partition a Hard Drive on a Mac
How to Erase Your Hard Drive
17
How to Erase Your Hard Drive
How to Back Up Your iTunes Library
18
How to Back Up Your iTunes Library
How to Use NCBI Database
19
How to Use NCBI Database
How to Replace Your Hard Drive
20
How to Replace Your Hard Drive
How to Choose the Best Online Backup Provider
21
How to Choose the Best Online Backup Provider
How to Create a Table with Factual
22
How to Create a Table with Factual
How to Publish a Factual Table
23
How to Publish a Factual Table
 

You Will Need

  • A computer with internet access
  • A drive-erasing tool
  • A blank CD or USB drive
  • An external hard drive (optional)

Steps

  1. Step 1

    Back up everything

    Before you erase your hard drive, back up everything you want to save on CDs or an external hard drive.

  2. Step 2

    Download a drive-erasing tool

    For a PC, download a dedicated drive-erasing tool for free online.

  3. Look for a tool that is recommended on reputable tech web sites or by the manufacturer of your computer.

  4. Step 3

    Create a boot disk

    Create a boot disk using a CD or USB drive by following the instructions from the drive-erasing tool.

  5. Step 4

    Follow instructions

    Read and follow the instructions for the drive-erase tool to erase the hard drive by overwriting the data.

  6. Step 5

    Erase a Mac hard drive

    Erase the hard drive on a Mac by going to Applications, Utilities, and opening the Disk Utility. Select the drive in Disk Utility, click the Erase tab, then Erase Free Space.

  7. Step 6

    Using Disk Utility

    In the popup menu, choose Zero Out Deleted Files, 7-Pass Erase, or 35-Pass Erase. 7-pass takes seven times longer than the zero out option, and 35-Pass takes 35 times as long, since they write over the disk seven and 35 times, respectively, ensuring you have thoroughly cleaned the drive.

  8. Did you know? Gilbert Hyatt at Micro Computer Company patented the microprocessor in 1971.

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