Zero external hard drive - how it works

If the normal formatting of an external hard drive is no longer sufficient, you can also completely zero it - i.e. safely delete it. We show you how it works.

Zero hard drive with Windows

The accessible hard disk sectors are overwritten with zeros via the formatting function under Windows (from Vista).

1. The data from Windows is overwritten with a so-called mid-level formatting and is therefore zeroed.
2. To do this, open your "computer" using the Windows button.
3. Right-click the hard drive you want to safely format.
4. The "Format ..." item is then located in the context menu.
5. Remove the tick from "Quick format" and press "Start".
6. Formatting takes some time. After that, your external hard drive is deleted relatively well and safely.

Eraser: Safely erase external hard drive

If you want to erase the data on your hard drive even more securely, you can use a special tool such as "Eraser".

1. Install and open "Eraser" on your computer.
2. You will see the empty task field "Erase Schedule". Right-click in the empty field and select "New Task".
3. Select the "Run immediately" option so that your hard drive is securely deleted immediately after the task has been created.
4. With "Add Data" you select the files and folders to be deleted. Select your external hard drive there.
5. With "Erasure method" you set how often the hard disk should be overwritten. The following always applies: the more often, the safer, but also the longer.
6. If you confirm the task with OK, you will find it in the overview.
7. The job begins immediately with the deletion of the hard disk. The data are not only overwritten with zeros, but a random value is generated for each bit. This is still a safe extinguishing method.

By the way: You can encrypt your external hard drive for your sensitive data.