Hi Folks.
My wife has a HP notebook, that she is selling to a neighbour. What is the best way of removing all of her "stuff", before the sale.
Thanks
Selling My Wife's Computer - Best Way to Remove Data?
SuperMick on 14/09/2019 - 10:32
Last edited 15/09/2019 - 16:49 by 1 other user
Last edited 15/09/2019 - 16:49 by 1 other user
Comments
Hard labour that.
Or just use drill.
If you have all your files backed up, head over to this article and look for the "Erasing everything" heading.
I'm assuming you have windows 10. There is a recovery option in settings where you can delete everything.
Have you backed everything up?
Replace the HDD with a new one
This is the safest way. Even if you reset Windows or delete/format HDD, you can still retrieve bits of old data via sophisticated means. If there are no sensitive information then nothing to worry about.
There's no need to do that. If you do a full format, then it will be impossible to recover anything, other than with specialised recovery hardware, which the general public does not have access to.
Read the OP. He asked what's the best way…….
What I posted, is really all that is needed, unless OP is paranoid.
That is definately NOT true.
I have sourced and used several free utilities to recover raw hardrive fragments which can be rebuilt into data.
This refers to platter drives. I don't know ssd procedures.This can not be done after a full format. It's can only be done after a quick format, as the data on the drive does not actually get erased then.
With a full format, every single sector on the drive is overwritten. Once that is done, using specialised hardware is the only way to access any of the previous data. With just a quick format, it's typically very easy to recover data.
If its Windows 10 you can use the RESET PC option
https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/12415/windows-10-re…
Take a look at the above link , with reset PC it has a remove everything option
as well as a Data erasure option, it will take a while but it best a part form replacing the HDD as we all know
unless its written over , data is always present on a used hard drive.Reinstalls Windows 10 and removes your personal files.
Removes apps and drivers you installed.
Removes changes you made to settings.
Removes any apps your PC manufacturer installed. (If your PC came with Windows 10, apps from your PC manufacturer will be reinstalled.)
Note: Remove everything > Change settings gives you two options.
Data erasure On removes files and cleans the drive. If you're planning to donate, recycle, or sell your PC, use this option. This might take an hour or two, but it makes it harder for other people to recover files you've removed.
Data erasure Off just removes files. It takes less time, but is less secure.What if it's windows 7? I too want to sell my laptop, have done a reinstall and deleted the windows.old files, but not sure if someone can recover them using a data recovery tool.
When you install Windows, you have the option to delete all partitions. If you do that, you will start with an empty hard drive, so there will be no winodws.old or any files or folders from the previous Windows install.
Sell it without HDD - put the HDD in an external enclosure/ case and use it as an external HDD
Great idea, thanks. Somehow I didn't think of this.
Use EASUS partition master and do a full wipe. I think if you wipe it ten times, data is unrecoverable.
Keep the computer and sell the wife
^^^^^^
Sounds like a win/win situation to me.
dban
If it W10 just reset to factory condition(Don't keep any data). No need to do anything else.
If it's got W7/8/8.1, upgrade it to W10. This for future update reasons. If your palming off an older OS, just give it away/to them, otherwise you neighbour is gonna hate you down the track.
I like second hand technology. I've found some very interesting stuff ranging from a police interview to home made amateur movies.
Thanks everybody for your input. It's a Windows 10 computer, and I'm going to do a full reset. That seems to be the way to go after your comments. Thanks again
Was it the " police interview" or the " home made amateur movies" that convinced you? Enquiring minds wish to know…
How many dollors the neighbor paid for the computor?
ode1 convinced me. The neighbour paid what we asked.
Thanks again
Unless you have the relevant tools to completely wipe a HDD then just remove it and either put another one in there or sell it without the HDD. Unless you run the correct setup (which I do) then the data can be recovered by an advanced IT tech.
The old rule was to fully write 1s and 0s 7 times over the lot. Platters had 7 magnetic layers, so I read decades ago.
Q/. How critical is the info?
I'd suggest formatting fully once, then re-partitioning (or multi-part) the drive slightly smaller than current specs, then a full formatting, and install fresh OS.If you must do it 100%, drill several holes through board and platters, or just keep it for backups.
What your talking about is 'Zero Writing'. You only do this to 'platter' based drives, never to SSD's.
Yes, the OP didn't say which. My mistake.
Anyway ssd's are cheap so neighbour can buy for $30 or so.
I would take the harddrive out, mount it on another computer and use Eraser: https://sourceforge.net/projects/eraser/
Chuck it back in and reinstall windows.
Take a nail to the hard drive, then force it through with a hammer