How to Wipe a Hard Drive on a Dead Computer? (Windows & Mac)

Summary: When your computer stops working, your hard drive may still hold sensitive data. So, before you plan to sell your used computer by disposal, or want to reuse your hard drive, it’s important to wipe your data to protect your privacy securely. This guide will walk you through how to wipe a hard drive on a dead computer, and possible manual methods for both Windows and Mac environments.

Wipe a Hard Drive on a Dead Laptop – Reasons to Know

Now, in this section, you will learn what happens when you wipe a hard drive on Mac and Windows & also how to wipe a hard drive on a dead computer. Go through all these points before moving further in the article.

• To protect your personal files, financial data, and passwords from potential misuse.
• Deleting data secures your personal identity.
• If you wipe your drive completely, it becomes safe to donate to someone or resell your used computer.
• Ensure and meet compliance with data laws like GDPR or HIPAA.

How to Wipe a Hard Drive on a Dead Computer (Windows & Mac) – Video Tutorial

Here, in this part you will see possible manual methods for both Windows & Mac operating systems. Follow these useful steps to know how to do the wiping on the hard drive. Here is the complete process to delete all contents of a Hard Drive on a Dead Computer.

Also Read: How to Delete Everything on Dell Laptop? 101 Guide

Also Read: How to Erase Windows From Mac? Ultimate Guide

#1. Wipe a Hard Drive on a Dead Laptop For Windows Using Another Computer

If you want to securely wipe a hard drive from a dead laptop, connect it to a working computer. It will ensure a quick and permanent deletion of all your sensitive data present in the hard drive.

1. Firstly, turn off the computer by switching off the power button.
2. Open the laptop panel and remove the hard drive associated with it.
3. Next, connect the drive to a working computer through a SATA-to-USB adapter.
4. Connect the adapter into the working laptop which you have connected to drive with.
5. Now, you need to open the Disk Management tool.
6. Right-click on the Start Menu and select the option Disk Management.
7. You can find the connected drive by its data capacity & storage.
8. Right-click on each drive partition and select the Delete Volume option.
9. After you delete all your partitions, the drive will show you Unallocated Space.
10. Just right-click on the unallocated space and select New Simple Volume.
11. Follow the wizard on-screen instructions given below:

• Firstly, assign a drive letter ( e.g., F: Volume)
• Choose a file system like NTFS or exFAT.
• Now, check Perform a quick format option.
• Click on Next to overwrite the drive data.
• Verify that your drive appears in the This PC section and is empty.

#2. Wipe a Hard Drive on a Dead Computer For Mac Using Another Mac

• Firstly, use a compatible adapter or any external cable to connect the drive.
• Next, open Disk Utility and select the drive that you want to erase with security options to overwrite data.
• Then, connect the dead Mac to a working Mac using a Thunderbolt or FireWire cable.
• Boot the dead Mac by holding the T key in Target Disk Mode.
• Access the drive on the working Mac and erase it using the Disk Utility option.

Follow the below steps to do so:

• Now, open macOS Disk Utility.
• Then, you need to select Show All Devices by going to the view option.
• Now, select your Mac Drive which you want to wipe and hit the Erase button.

Wipe a Hard Drive on a Dead Computer [Windows & Mac] – Automated Solution

When you try to wipe a hard drive on a dead laptop, then it becomes a challenging task to do. Simply deleting files from the hard drive will not be enough to secure your sensitive data. There is a risk that your data can be exposed through unauthorized access. To prevent this, you can go with the SysTools Certified Wiping Program. It will erase hard drive data completely, making it unrecoverable by any means, and also perfect for non-functional computers.

Also Read: How to Factory Reset Toshiba External Hard Drive Completely?

 

Quick Steps to Completely Wipe a Hard Drive on a Dead Computer

Follow these quick steps for both Windows & Mac operating systems to wipe all your data from the hard drive. Before we proceed to steps, we hope that you have extracted the hard drive from the dead computer and connected it to the working laptop or PC.

1. Download and launch the Professional Software.
2. Henceforth, click on the Disk or Partition option.
3. Select the drive you want to wipe
4. After that, click on Next to start scanning your data from the selected drive.
5. Choose a data-wiping method.
6. Click Wipe to begin the process.
7. Once complete, view the details of the deleted drive on the screen.

Conclusion

So, in this article we have discussed how to wipe a hard drive on a dead computer and how easy it is with the right tools. Connecting the drive to another system or using bootable media can be used for complete erasure. If you want to enhance your data security, then you can consider professional tools to protect your privacy as mentioned above.

Frequently Asked Questions