How to do a complete wipe of a system?
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I have just inherited a system, and I want to completely wipe it (there were a few non-system files, and I have copied that over to stick drive). It is Windows 10 Home, 20H2. At the end of all this, I want there to be like a new computer with this same OS. I don't have anything like a rebuild disk, etc. Since it is so weak, it might go to Goodwill.
Hi, GOT a Certified or legal copy of Win ten in there? If so and if you can get the activation code from the Microsoft label or you know what ever that bunch of char' are... then... Back when I could see to use DOS I would use SpinRight to completely rehab all hard drives with a deep wipe just in case there was sensitive or compromising crap that a forensics could uncover... Then do a fresh install? Or take the old drives outside and put in a shallow hole and put in plenty of thermate and burn the drives until atomized? The second solution is likely to get you in some trouble depending on your neighbors? ..., But seriously, Spin Right was my goto for several reasons. Besides security there is the nice feature of rehabilitating the drives. Hope this is of use. blessings chuck
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I have just inherited a system, and I want to completely wipe it (there were a few non-system files, and I have copied that over to stick drive). It is Windows 10 Home, 20H2. At the end of all this, I want there to be like a new computer with this same OS. I don't have anything like a rebuild disk, etc. Since it is so weak, it might go to Goodwill.
ACSC ISM provides the following: Security Control: 0354; Revision: 5; Updated: Sep-18; Applicability: O, P, S, TS Non-volatile magnetic media is sanitised by booting from separate media to the media being sanitised and then overwriting the media at least once (or three times if pre-2001 or under 15 Gigabytes) in its entirety with a random pattern followed by a read back for verification. You can boot from a linux boot disk and use DD to achieve that. How to Wipe Hard Drive Clean Using dd Command in Linux - LookLinux[^] Or: Security Control: 1067; Revision: 3; Updated: Sep-18; Applicability: O, P, S, TS The ATA secure erase command is used where available, in addition to using block overwriting software, to ensure the growth defects table (g-list) is overwritten.
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Don't mess around with individual partitions. Get MS's Win10 ISO download tool, boot from it, and just tell it to nuke all partitions. It'll create those small partitions it needs for boot/recovery, and allocate the rest of it to itself. Then let it install itself. Then, if you're really paranoid about wiping might still be recoverable after that, run [sdelete](https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/sysinternals/downloads/sdelete) from SysInternals. This'll wipe any sector that is still marked as unused (even though data from previous files might still be there), so that data effectively gets overwritten with garbage. For an extra level of paranoia - start the whole thing by running DBAN. The drive will be as clean as can be reasonably expected. Then reinstall Win10, and call it a day. Or just replace the whole damned drive with one you no longer care about, after wiping it with DBAN (in case that one might ever have contained data you don't want to be recovered). Do whatever you want with the drive you've just removed.
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Hi, GOT a Certified or legal copy of Win ten in there? If so and if you can get the activation code from the Microsoft label or you know what ever that bunch of char' are... then... Back when I could see to use DOS I would use SpinRight to completely rehab all hard drives with a deep wipe just in case there was sensitive or compromising crap that a forensics could uncover... Then do a fresh install? Or take the old drives outside and put in a shallow hole and put in plenty of thermate and burn the drives until atomized? The second solution is likely to get you in some trouble depending on your neighbors? ..., But seriously, Spin Right was my goto for several reasons. Besides security there is the nice feature of rehabilitating the drives. Hope this is of use. blessings chuck
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swampwiz wrote:
Since it is so weak, it might go to Goodwill.
You might consider reviving it with a Linux distro. I like Twister OS[^]. It has themes that look and function like Windows from Windows 95 to Windows 10. It also has a DOS emulator and Wine to run Windows apps.
"When you are dead, you won't even know that you are dead. It's a pain only felt by others; same thing when you are stupid." Ignorant - An individual without knowledge, but is willing to learn. Stupid - An individual without knowledge and is incapable of learning. Idiot - An individual without knowledge and allows social media to do the thinking for them.
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If the system already had a version of Windows that was activated, MS stores (on their end) a fingerprint of the hardware that allows you to nuke the system, reinstall Windows, and it'll still recognize the hardware and re-associate it with the key it already knows about. The details of which have never been fully documented, I believe, but that's the gist of it. I went through that process a number of times, and I don't believe I was ever asked to re-enter a key under these sorts of circumstances. *If* you start changing the hardware at the same time however, then all bets are off.
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Hi, GOT a Certified or legal copy of Win ten in there? If so and if you can get the activation code from the Microsoft label or you know what ever that bunch of char' are... then... Back when I could see to use DOS I would use SpinRight to completely rehab all hard drives with a deep wipe just in case there was sensitive or compromising crap that a forensics could uncover... Then do a fresh install? Or take the old drives outside and put in a shallow hole and put in plenty of thermate and burn the drives until atomized? The second solution is likely to get you in some trouble depending on your neighbors? ..., But seriously, Spin Right was my goto for several reasons. Besides security there is the nice feature of rehabilitating the drives. Hope this is of use. blessings chuck
Member 14751866 wrote:
I would use SpinRight to completely rehab all hard drives with a deep wipe
[SpinRite](https://www.grc.com/sr/spinrite.htm) is all about data recovery, not secure wiping. I'm rather familiar with the software, and I listen to its [author](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steve\_Gibson\_(computer\_programmer))'s [podcast](https://twit.tv/shows/security-now) weekly, and I've never heard him mention anything about some wiping feature in his software.
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Hi swampwiz, Sorry to be so late to reply. Does Microsoft still advise putting a label somewhere on or in the case of the system? I used to put the label under the power supply at the bottom of my personal unit rather than gluing it to the outside. But I'm not playing the game their way. I like some of the other solutions I am reading like switching to a Linux distro or using the built in reset. If you do do the built in reset you can then use one of the free wiping utilities to clean up what is left... Some even clean up under files by moving them from place to place on the physical disk or a good defrag program will let you do that... but it is best to recover a license. Many times you can call in to activate a system and get win ten activated without the original code Or... What is the name of that utility... something advisorDuckDuckGo? Thanks. Gather detailed system information with Belarc Advisor ... — https://www.techrepublic.com/article/gather-detailed-system-information-with-belarc-advisor/ You may be able to get the license code that way? I am sorry if I am rambling. Only just got my coffee pressed and really I'm not qualified to do more than pretend to know anything official. Still I suggest a good wiping just in case some pervert was using the system or there is a root kit on one of the system drives. hope I was some help. PS... some root kits etc even hide partitions so badly as to render a drive unclean-able without something like spinright doing a low level decontamination or... what is that term? something using professional tools like a forensics lab would use to root out those hidden partitions. blessings chuck
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Member 14751866 wrote:
I would use SpinRight to completely rehab all hard drives with a deep wipe
[SpinRite](https://www.grc.com/sr/spinrite.htm) is all about data recovery, not secure wiping. I'm rather familiar with the software, and I listen to its [author](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steve\_Gibson\_(computer\_programmer))'s [podcast](https://twit.tv/shows/security-now) weekly, and I've never heard him mention anything about some wiping feature in his software.
You are right... dandy72 , I am old and have forgotten so much of what I knew. Spinright used to be able to do a low level format that could root out hidden partitions but not any more... and the Boot Tools I used to use had some other thing for the best wiping practice? I should keep my peace lest I show any more of my ignorance... sorry. reff: ""The ability to low-level format hard drives was lost back in the early 1990's when disc surfaces began incorporating factory written "embedded servo data". If you have a very old drive that can truly be low-level reformatted, SpinRite v5.0 will do that for you (which all v6.0 owners are welcome to download and run anytime)."" fromGRC | SpinRite 6.0 FAQ - Frequently Asked Questions — https://www.grc.com/sr/faq.htm I'll learn to keep quiet perhaps when I am dead? LOL thanks chuck
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You are right... dandy72 , I am old and have forgotten so much of what I knew. Spinright used to be able to do a low level format that could root out hidden partitions but not any more... and the Boot Tools I used to use had some other thing for the best wiping practice? I should keep my peace lest I show any more of my ignorance... sorry. reff: ""The ability to low-level format hard drives was lost back in the early 1990's when disc surfaces began incorporating factory written "embedded servo data". If you have a very old drive that can truly be low-level reformatted, SpinRite v5.0 will do that for you (which all v6.0 owners are welcome to download and run anytime)."" fromGRC | SpinRite 6.0 FAQ - Frequently Asked Questions — https://www.grc.com/sr/faq.htm I'll learn to keep quiet perhaps when I am dead? LOL thanks chuck
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It's been a long, long time I've had to do that...but I can't imagine a low-level format is much significantly secure than a "normal" format, in terms of recoverability...? If that's the goal, that's still where I recommend DBAN.
Right... I endorse your first posting about that and fully agree. As far as I can tell there are few tools that can dig out hidden partitions now short of tools for professionals and legal forensics like DOE etc. Being paranoid as I am I like the thermate solution. AKA buying new hard drives all together and ditching the old ones... but that is for me if I am going to use a used system for myself... That said, now there is no clean and secure computer that you did not build yourself from the chip level up. There is no sort of secure? Like being sort of pregnant? Building our computers and vital infrastructure with hardware from a rival country seems like a really bad idea? but what do I know In short ignore the old man cringing and wincing in the corner and you are so right. thanks chuck