Regardless of whether you erase the SSD drive for resale or delete old data for a new user, its erasure is a prerequisite. You must ensure that your sensitive information cannot be retrieved and the secure erase SSD windows 10.
Unfortunately, traditional disk cleanup methods reserved for hard drives do not work for solid-state drives due to differences in storage methods. This is due to the NAND flash used in these types of hard drives.
In fact, using the Disk Management utility in Windows to format SSDs will leave traces of data. They can be restored and potentially used for malicious purposes.
How to do you securely erase SSD in windows 10?
As always, when it comes to tinkering with hard drives, please back up any data, which you need before continuing. Data deleted using the methods described below cannot be restored under any circumstances.
Secure erase of utility from SSD manufacturer
Most, if not all, SSD manufacturers provide a so-called toolkit. Or a utility with various SSD specific tools. Including safe erase function. Secure erasure is considered the most effective way to erase an SSD.
Secure erase SSD windows 10 completely erases any data from the SSD and returns it to the factory settings or as out of the box. Data recovery programs will not be able to retrieve data later.
Each toolkit works in its own way. And therefore, we recommend that you search on the manufacturer’s website of your hard drive for not only the utility itself but also how to perform the removal. In many cases, the toolkit is loaded onto the SSD itself.
Examples of secure erase utilities include Samsung Magician, Intel Solid-State Drive Toolbox, and Kingston SSD Toolbox
For reference, let’s take Samsung Magician:
- Download the utility here from the Samsung website.
- Double-click the executable file and follow the instructions of the installation wizard.
- Open Samsung Magician and click Safe Wipe on the menu. It is located at the bottom of the program window.
- Follow the instructions to start the safe removal utility. In most cases, you will need to create a bootable USB drive for the utility to work. As always, remember that the process completely erases the drive, including Windows 10.
Erase HDD
The second most widely used method is to use a low-key program called Hard Disk Cleanup. She once received the blessing of the NSA as the number one method for safely erasing disks. The main advantages of HDD Erase are:
- it is 100% free
- works on all SSD hard drives, regardless of manufacturer.
On the other hand, HDD Erase only works in DOS and is not as user-friendly as the other methods in our guide.
- Download HDD Erase here.
- Create a USB DOS boot disk using a utility such as Rufus.
- Copy the Erase HDD executable file to a USB drive.
- Restart the computer and change the boot priority order in the system BIOS to boot the USB drive.
- Type “HDD erase” at the DOS prompt and press Enter.
- When prompted to continue, press “Y” and enter.
- Press any key to continue. After the disclaimer, press “Y” to agree.
- Press “Y” again when you receive a warning about the PC power from the outlet, and not from the battery.
- Then find the disk you want to erase from the list and write the letters and numbers to the left of the specified disk (for example, “PO”). Triple check, you select the correct drive.
- Enter a letter and a numeric value and press Enter.
- Go to the options menu by entering “Y” and enter.
- Type “1” and press Enter to perform a secure erase.
- Press “Y” and enter again to start the secure erase process.
- When the process is completed (it may take from several minutes to several hours depending on the size of the SSD), enter “N” and press “Enter,” then return to the options menu and exit the program.
Convenient third-party utilities for secure erase SSD windows 10
The third method involves using a third-party utility other than Erase HDD. These programs often create user-friendly environments that resemble Windows 10 for ease of use. Examples include the popular Parted Magic and Blancco Drive Eraser.
These utilities function almost the same as the manufacturer’s tools. But, unfortunately, most often a price tag is attached to them. They, however, make the process much easier for the inexperienced user.
The ultimate artisanal method to securely erase SSD in windows 10
An SSD really only deletes data when it overwrites it. With this in mind, you can manually erase confidential information on your hard drive by deleting all data on the drive in Windows Explorer. Fill with media files such as movies or music.
After filling in, all old data will be destroyed, which will make them unrecoverable. Then delete the media files, and you will have a clean SSD. The SSD will be empty, and only random media files will be restored.
This method only works for solid-state drives that do not have Windows 10 files.
