How do I totally clean up a used computer before selling it?

5 thoughts on “How do I totally clean up a used computer before selling it?”

1. Jim says:

   March 26, 2011 at 6:21 pm

   DBAN doesn’t always boot. when it doesn’t, mine does.
   I think my algorithms are more secure than dban’s. but the frequency wipe takes a LONG time – 64 passes. twice as long as guttmann.

   if you want to be nice to the person who gets the machine next, reinstall windows, doing a full drive format in the drive in the process. then install the drivers, and the OEM software that came with the machine (any Office software, etc). that way, the person that gets the machine will be able to hit the ground running just like you did when you got it.
   and *please* give the new owner the media… nobody seems to do that anymore, and it is SO important if anything goes wrong to have a system restore disc.

   by the way, there may be a System Restore partition on the hard drive with all the OS and software and drivers on it – in that case (HP, Dell), don’t wipe! boot the computer and look for special boot keys on the screen and quickly press it. you may have to do several tries.

   with major manufacturer computers I don’t suggest a wipe due to the system restore and EISA CONFIG partitions (don’t wipe!)!

   you can see "unusual" partitions (unknown, eisa config, hidden) with Start, Control panel, Administrative tools, Computer Management, Disk Management.

2. Colanth says:

   March 26, 2011 at 6:21 pm

   The ONLY 100% certain method is to remove the hard drive. No matter what you do, if the hard drive exists (even if it doesn’t work, you’ve used government-strength "cleaning" programs, etc.), data can be recovered.

   If you’re not that paranoid, reinstall the operating system with a full format. (You’ll need the installation disks – the recovery disks won’t do it.)

   If you’re a little more paranoid than that you can use DBAN before you reinstall the operating system.

   (Once you "nuke" the disk, the recovery disks are useless – there’s no operating system to recover.)

3. cory j says:

   March 26, 2011 at 6:21 pm

   download Darik’s Boot and Nuke (or DBAN), It completely deletes EVERYTHING on the hard drive, with absolutely NO chance of recovery. http://www.dban.org

4. elpasi2 says:

   March 26, 2011 at 6:21 pm

   Do you have the recovery CD that came with the laptop? The one for doing a clean install? If so:

   Download and run DBAN (Darin’s Boot and Nuke) – this will obliterate all data on the computer.
   Insert the recovery CD, and install a fresh copy of your OS. This will ensure data is inaccessible as DBAN overwrites all data on the hard drive with a pattern of junk, hiding anything still on there.

5. Adrian says:

   March 26, 2011 at 6:21 pm

   Download, and burn a Linux CD, then install Linux on it… That will wipe most of the old stuff out.
   Otherwise, use a recovery Cd or partition, or wipe the disk totally. Do not sell the computer without wiping it clean, there is too much data stored on it, that a knowledgeable person could recover, including saved user IDs and passwords

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