How do you clean up a computer so you can sell it?

7 thoughts on “How do you clean up a computer so you can sell it?”

1. gntolng says:

   October 16, 2009 at 8:42 am

   http://www.whitecanyon.com/wipedrive-wipe-hard-drive.php?source=overture+wipe+computer&OVRAW=wipe%20disc&OVKEY=wipe%20disc&OVMTC=standard&OVADID=2063562512&OVKWID=17221038012

   This is the best $39.95 I ever spent. I keep it handy for just such occasions and have used it numerous times. It will overwrite your hard drive many times where no one will be able to recover any data. Just follow the simple instructions and when finished, reinstall the operating system.

2. Roger L says:

   October 16, 2009 at 8:42 am

   Good advice: Clean the exterior only, do not disasemble.

   Bad advice clean it inside and take it apart.Murphy says it will break if you do that.

3. Apprentice says:

   October 16, 2009 at 8:42 am

   no disk do it this way
   do destructive
   system restore
   first click on my computer
   choose properties
   then on system restore
   make sure system restore is checked
   then shut down
   then
   1- click start at bottom of screen
   2 – then click choose all programs
   3 – then click pc help tools or could be in accessory’s
   4 – then click on system restore
   5 – then click on restore to an earlier date or factory settings
   6 – choose a date when it was working – or factory settings
   7 – let it run it may take a while – follow directions – if any
   8 – restart THEN CHECK STATUS
   choose destructive recovery as last resort you will have to look hard to find this option
   i don"t know your computers options etc
   BUT that’s what it took to restore mine to get settings i wanted etc
   then

   add and remove programs
   remove programs you are not using
   click start bottom left on task bar(the blue bar probaly at bottom of your screen)
   control panel
   add and remove programs
   find the program(s) you want to remove

4. zenthran says:

   October 16, 2009 at 8:42 am

   Using your opearting system’s install disk. Just restart your computer with it in the cd-rom drive and when you get to the option for install choose new install.

5. Mike C says:

   October 16, 2009 at 8:42 am

   If you have a Windows install disk or a manufacturers recovery disk use that.

6. Ciddire says:

   October 16, 2009 at 8:42 am

   Insert the windows Disk, press enter when prompted, in windows set up, use current partition and choose reformat and install.

   Will whipe everything and install windows.

7. Manny says:

   October 16, 2009 at 8:42 am

   Everyone’s intentions are good, but not completely correct.

   If you do a system restore it will restore to a point in time the system was stable. That does not mean you deleted files you don’t want other to get their hands on.

   Also, if you use the reinstall procedure using the recovery disk it will not delete the data.

   What you need is a clean install. What I mean by that is to destroy the primary partition, re-create it, and format.

   Once you have formatted the primary partition just run the installation CD or recovery program in your secondary partition.

   This process will write over the files you had in your previous running system.

   When you delete/recreate/format a partition you are just erasing the pointers to the files, but not the files. That is why you need to write over to completely destroy them. If a new file is written to the same sector in the HD the old file was on it will not be able to recover it later on.

   In some companies they don’t risk the chance files can be recovered, even with all these procedures, so they send all their HD’s to be destroyed at a secure facility.

   Cheers.

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