erase hard drive

Hello I know I posted this before and have searched before to no avail -. I'll be exchanging this pc for another from the manufacturer. Please corect me where necesary; 1-download dban to desktop and "send to" my usb flashdrive. (I tapped F8 and I saw the flashdrive there so am assuming I can boot from there to run dban) 2- Boot from the flashdrive and open dban. 3-I have not seen the program but read you can skip to step 8 where you can type autonuke where it is blinking. This will provide a quick ez way to erase the drive -at least better than formatting. Any corrections appreciated. Peter.

1-download dban to desktop and "send to" my usb flashdrive. (I tapped F8 and I saw the flashdrive there so am assuming I can boot from there to run dban)

No, this won't work. The DBAN download is a bootable CD image in .iso format so you need to use it as input to create a bootable CD, DVD or Flash drive. Not sure off hand how you would create a bootable Flash drive from it, but this site has some instructions for doing so. For CD or DVD, ImgBurn is a good freeware program that will do this for you. Roxio or Nero can also do this.

Install DBAN to a USB Flash Drive using Windows

As for step 3, yes, you can enter autonuke at that point (see picture in above link).

Hello Z Below is a reply I recsived when I asked a question in the Eraser forum as part of my investigation. I am keeping your information until I can sort this out. I am not trying to waste other's time but am trying to reslolve this so i can return the machine with peace of mind. I do not know these people and defer to you;what do you think of this person's answer? I hope to work this out with you . Peter >> Eraser works natively with 64 and 32 bit Windows. The relevant version is automatically installed from the common install file. I recommend that you install the current stable release (6.0.8 ), and that you read the FAQ topic "Getting to know Eraser 6", which answers most of the basic questions. But please don't do that until you have answered my questions below. As Eraser works with Windows, it cannot fully erase the hard drive on which Windows is installed. For that, you would need a utility such as DBAN (for which there is a companion forum), but I hesitate to recommend that in your case, because DBAN has nor been updated for some years and does not work on some systems. If you can give me an idea of what kind of machine you are part-exchanging (laptop? desktop? how old?), I can offer advice as to the easiest way of making it safe to part with.>>

Ok I downloaded DBAN to desktop as a zipped file but did not unzip it. I also downloaded the image burner. Should I first open the image burner and then use it to burn a cd-r? When do I set boot order to boot from cd? I have read the tutorial am will keep reading.

If you download DBAN 2.2.6 Beta for CD-R and DVD-R media then it should have been

dban-2.2.6_i586.iso not a .zip file.

Place a blank CD-R disc in the CD burner.
Start ImgBurn, click on Write image file to disk.
Click on the Browse for a file icon (looks like a folder icon)
Navigate to dban-2.2.6_i586.iso and select it.
Click on the Burn icon at the bottom of the ImgBurn screen.

Hello Z I wanted you to see what I found in this investigation to see if this alters your opinion about the procedure. Maybe formatting and reinstalling along with modifying passwords etc would have to suffice?? Anyway, if nothing else, I wanted to thank you for your patience and help with all of this. I think II may give your system a try. Peter Yes, DBAN would be the correct tool, but that would require some tweaking and hacking on your part, as it doesn't work too well with newer computers. Alternatively, you can format and reinstall Windows, and run a Free Space erase on the new-clean Windows drive. That is not a perfect solution, but it should be sufficiently clean for most (the necessary "cleanliness" would be determined by yourself)Be sure to read the FAQ before posting. If you found this application useful, please contribute to Eraser's development. I develop Eraser but I am not an employee of Heidi Computers Ltd. My views do not represent those of Heidi Computers Ltd. Don't PM or Email me questions: they won't be answered any faster than on the forum and knowledge won't be accessible by all. Joel Eraser DevTeam Posts: 2779 Joined: Fri Aug 18, 2006 6:16 pm Location: Singapore WebsiteICQ Top ——————————————————————————– Re: support questions by DavidHB » Mon Apr 18, 2011 4:34 am As it is a branded machine, there may well be a utility to restore it to factory condition. If there is, you could use that (it will format the drive), then (as Joel says) use the Eraser free space erase to make your machine safe. I agree with Joel that this is not 100% solution, but it comes pretty close, and I recall that people have reported issues with DBAN on Dell machines. DavidI am not an Eraser programmer, but a long-time user. I have no connection with Heidi Computers Ltd, and my views are not necessarily the same as those of the Eraser programming team.

I think I've lost track of what you're trying to accomplish here. I thought it was to cleanup a computer so you could sell or give it to someone. If so, using the manufacturers Recovery partition or CD would be sufficient. Restore it and leave it, don't do anything else. Let the person who is getting the computer go through first time boot and setup the computer name and account name (and for XP install SP2 and/or SP3 and all 94 updates). If you feel the need to run Eraser after the install that's your option but I see little point. If you want to run DBAN before that is also your option, but if the hard drive has a built in Recovery Partition, running DBAN will destroy it so you will need the installation CD to install an OS after.

I think I've lost track of what you're trying to accomplish here.

I thought it was to cleanup a computer so you could sell or give it to someone. If so, using the manufacturers Recovery partition or CD would be sufficient. Restore it and leave it, don't do anything else. Let the person who is getting the computer go through first time boot and setup the computer name and account name (and for XP install SP2 and/or SP3 and all 94 updates).

If you feel the need to run Eraser after the install that's your option but I see little point.

If you want to run DBAN before that is also your option, but if the hard drive has a built in Recovery Partition, running DBAN will destroy it so you will need the installation CD to install an OS after.

>Z, this is Peter and I share your frustration.
The machine had to go back to Dell and I thought it a good idea to erase the hard drive, but did not realize that is what more than I could do. I found that out by asking and reading.
I did format to return it and any sensitive data(which I rarely put on the pc) has been changed on my data sheet so no worries about snooping.
The confusion entered the discussion when I was learning that erasing is not quite as easy as I thought and I read about some contradictions with new Dells. No more Dell for me.
You have been supportive over the years and that is appreciated. I am sorry to have caused as much confusion and used up your time with my lack of understanding..






.

no need to apologise, thats the whole point of the forum, to ask questions and learn. i don't think it's something you couldn't of done successfully if you had the time before it went back either. you just have to understand the layout of hard drives and partitions before you start formatting things, last thing we want anybody to do is delete a restore partition by mistake, they are there for a reason and should never be deleted/formatted in normal circumstances. it is possible to just zero/wipe the part of the harddrive where the operating system and data resides without touching the restore partition needed to restore the pc to as new condition afterwards, you just need to know how to point the software(whatever you use) to the correct partition, and which is the correct partition to wipe in the first place.

Thank you, Terri. I appreciate the salve. Peter