![]() ![]() If your drive indicates a password requirement, leave the password as "NULL." If you are told the drive is "frozen," you will need to click the Sleep button and repeat this process until you can proceed further. ![]() Choose the Internal:Secure Erase command writes zeroes to entire data area option, then confirm the drive you want to erase on the next screen.Once booted, head to Start (bottom-left) > System Tools > Erase Disk.Boot the drive and choose option 1, Default Settings.Download Parted Magic and create a mountable USB drive using Unetbootin.Here's a quick list of exactly what you need to do: Parted Magic is a bootable Linux environment, meaning you install it to a USB drive and boot from there. The tool does cost $11, but you have access to the suite forever, whenever you need it, and it's one of the best ways to securely erase an SSD. Parted Magic is a whole Linux distribution featuring all manner of disk-erasing and partition-managing tools. Indeed, Parted Magic features as an essential tool to keep in your PC repair USB toolkit. Secure Erase Your SSD Using Parted MagicĪlthough the SSD manufacturer tool may come with a secure erase tool, many experts advise using Parted Magic instead. Once you hit erase, your SSD will be securely wiped. Make sure you've backed up your data before proceeding. Select the SSD you want to erase securely.It will be named "Secure Erase" or something similar. Search for a secure erase option in the settings.The key for this varies, so check with your motherboard manufacturer if you're unsure. The process will vary between motherboard manufacturers but will roughly follow these steps: Some modern motherboards come with extra tools to help you manage your machine, and wiping storage is one of those functions. In addition to manufacturer tools, you may be able to securely erase your SSD using an inbuilt motherboard tool. Secure Erase Your SSD Using Your Motherboard Utilities If that is the case with your SSD, move to the next section. Furthermore, in some cases, your SSD model may not support the command. However, some manufacturers do not include the ATA Secure Erase command as an option. The SSD manufacturer's management app is the first place to check for a secure erase tool. While it's impossible for MakeUseOf to check the software of every manufacturer, you can find a list of tools for the major SSD manufacturers below. The software usually includes a firmware update tool, and secure erase tool, and perhaps a drive cloning option. Most manufacturers supply software to use with their SSD. ![]() Secure Erase Your SSD Using a Manufacturer Tool So yes, it does cause a small amount of wear, but it is negligible compared to a traditional secure wipe tool. Using the ATA Secure Erase command does use a whole program-erase cycle for your SSD. The process resets every available block of space in a single operation, and the SSD is "clean." Instead, the command causes the SSD to apply a voltage spike to all available flash memory blocks in unison. Importantly, the ATA Secure Erase command does not write anything to the SSD, unlike a traditional secure wipe tool. The command resets all available blocks to the "erase" state (which is also the state the TRIM command uses for file deletion and block recycling purposes). The "ATA Secure Erase" command instructs the drive to flush all stored electrons, a process that forces the drive to "forget" all stored data. In basic terms, when you delete a file in your operating system, the TRIM command wipes the space and makes it available for use. The TRIM command marks the blocks of data the SSD is no longer using, ready for wiping internally. Solid-state drives use a specific command to keep on top of file deletion, known as TRIM. At least, not how they work on a magnetic hard drive. What that does mean, however, is that some common secure file deletion methods don't work as you would expect. Your SSD constantly moves data around to comply with wear leveling, ensuring all blocks wear at an even rate. Basically, your computer has no way of telling "where" that information was just copied to. In other words, SSDs do not use any physically indexable locations, and software cannot specifically target sectors on the disk. Changes made for wear leveling record to a separate file map. While the SSD uses a file system to communicate data storage locations to the host system, it also re-shuffles the data to ensure even wear across all memory blocks. ![]() Each write process causes the memory to degrade or "wear." Instead of writing to a location on a physical disc, an SSD writes the data to a block. ![]()
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