permanently deleting files

what do you guys recommend is the best way to permanently delete files?

i deleted some files in windows vista, but when i do a search for them, i still see them in search results. however, i am unable to open or view these files.

how do i remove the reference, names and also completely delete files permanently?

please help

thank you

 

Try here for some wideranging discussions: some heated discussions, opinions somewhat divided, but some good hashing back and forth about the 'write' tools
https://www.wilderssecurity.com/showthread.php?t=209024
https://www.wilderssecurity.com/showthread.php?t=207597
https://www.wilderssecurity.com/showthread.php?t=206024
HTH

 

i thought formatting the hard disk completely deletes all data forever, is that not right?

i think eraser should work.

can you guys please show me how do i delete names, files and references to already deleted files using eraser?

really appreciate it

thank you

 

Keep in mind that Windows recreates files during reboot, so deleting them is quite useless. In my system I replace these files with their original contents during the installation. Cleaning = deleting files or replacing files.
Simple example :
If a system file contained "hello" during the original installation and the system file is changed in "byebye" during the day, I change the contents back in "hello" during reboot.
This is of course a simple unreal example, but it's the principle that counts.
I'm almost sure that Farstone has softwares to make that possible.
http://www.farstone.com/

 

well all i need is a simple way to completely remove these files from my computer that i am about to sell.

i had personal account information, bank statements, credit card passwords, etc on this comp. i deleted them but when i search i still see all the file names although i am unable to open them.

2 questions:

- how do i get rid of these files from the drive that have already been deleted?

- will reformatting the drive as slave delete them permanently?

please help.

thank you

 

Heh heh:
http://geeksaresexy.blogspot.com/2006/08/disk-wiping-utilities-how-to-get-rid.html

Darik's realistically still tool of choice
http://dban.sourceforge.net/

Eraser is good but file names may persist: no recoverable data

Tool of choice for many
http://www.x-ways.net/winhex/allfeatures.html

This works
http://blogs.zdnet.com/storage/?p=129
http://cmrr.ucsd.edu/people/Hughes/DataSanitizationTutorial.pdf
http://cmrr.ucsd.edu/people/Hughes/SecureErase.shtml

Then fdisk..

Lol: If we see pictures of you in a diaper: we will know...

 

Thanks, this was helpful.

i am trying to use X-ways security but it keeps giving me an error that I do not have permission to access the drive. Although, I am logged in as admin in Windows Vista (worst OS ever!)

please guide

thank you

 

haha, thank for the info and interesting read.

 

i have the demo version that i downloaded today

 

Something that's becoming rather popular (and very secure) is to use TrueCrypt to fully encrypt the drive with a very strong random password (generated by TrueCrypt). It's quicker than an erase. Then, to resell it - just delete the encrypted partition and a quick format. All that's recoverable is - well, a whole lot of random nothing.

 

any suggestions on how to get rid of the admin problem in X-ways?

 

sorry

Try other solutions.

 

i was finally able to resolve the issue but i guess you have to buy the x-ways security software before you can do anything. the demo is completely useless.

can you guys recommend a free software that does the same thing as x-ways security? please advise

thank you

 

check out this thread. https://www.wilderssecurity.com/showthread.php?t=208251

wipe03 software mentioned there is good.

utils that write over files several times before deleting them are good.

plus...

Bcwipe
http://www.jetico.com/bcwipe.htm

lots of secure erasers on these 2 recovery cds.

UBCD4Win
http://www.ubcd4win.com/

UBCD Dos
http://www.ultimatebootcd.com/

 

Specifically, how are you atempting to use X-Ways Security? What operation are you seeking to run?

In the case of WinHex (a related product), my understanding is that it can only erase Master File Table entries on a volume that it can lock for exclusive access, because it performs raw writes to the disk in this operation. With Windows Vista, locking the operating system volume in this way is not permitted.

 

well, i downloaded wipe03 and i think it does the job but it is asking for MFT information.

there is no option in stupid vista to do this:

The exact data can be found at: Disk Defragmenter / Analyze / View Report (screenshot).

i ran analyze on Vista through the command prompt, but it did not give me

MFT record count
MFTTotal Percent MFT in use

can someone please help?

please help!

thank you

 

so anyone?