How can I reformat or wipe old drives for recycling?

WD External and Portable SSD External SSD for Windows
1

I have several old HDs, (WD & other makers) that I want to reformat or wipe prior to recycling. Can I do this by slipping the drives into an external drive case connected to a USB port using WD Dashboard? Or, what would be a better tool for the job?

Obviously, I don’t want to risk wiping my internal HDs!

2

Hi,

You can now easily wipe your old external drives for recycling. Just download Bitraser File Eraser tool, this software available at free of cost for 30 days. You can download it on your system then connect your external drive and wipe it with the help of this amazing file eraser tool.

3

To permanently delete a data without overwriting, jumbling or destroying the storage device you need a data eraser software BitRaser File Eraser. This software helps the user to completely wipe out their data from any storage device & to make the drive reusable or resell. Using a reliable data eraser tool like BitRaser will erase the data from storage device, beyond the scope of any recovery!

4

Thanks Lizzy, but this seems like a promotion for a product. Is the term NAYYY still used?

Ed

5

WD has a tool called Data Lifeguard, it can zero fill the entire drive making any data recovery impossible.

How to: How to Fully Erase, Low-Level Format, or Write Zeros on a Drive

6

Thanks. My understanding is Data Lifeguard is supersede by WD Dashboard. I’ve installed the latter and am learning how to use it safely. My current issue is when I connect my external drive containing the HD I want to wipe my preset automatic backup immediately started backing it up to my backup HD in a different external drive enclosure!