Erasing a Solid State Drive (SSD) (2024)

FAQs

Can SSD drives be wiped? ›

Using Vendor Tools to Securely Erase an SSD

Some disk vendors provide proprietary utilities that can be utilized to issue a "secure erase" command to a disk. This is usually very fast provided you have access to the correct utility. Not all vendors provide such a tool, and the offerings may change over time.

A standard DoD 5220.22-M erasure is 7 passes. The more passes, the longer the secure erase takes. The DoD short method should be fine for most people so you can skip this step if you agree.

If possible, use software provided by the manufacturer of the drive to erase an SSD. Many manufacturers offer software that allows for securely erasing the drive, as well as other functions such as updating firmware or checking the health of the drive. Use the instructions provided by the manufacturer to erase the SSD.

Some SSD manufacturers have developed firmware-based recovery tools that can be used to recover data. These tools work by accessing the SSD's internal memory and searching for deleted data. However, these tools may not be effective if the data has been overwritten or if hardware encryption is in use.

Permanently delete files from SSD drives

SSDs also handle file deletions differently than mechanical drives: They don't give you the same control over where data gets saved, so overwrite programs won't work. So, instead of writing over deleted files, SSD users need to encrypt the disk.

Is 1 pass erase enough? Yes, according to NIST SP 800-88 Rev 1, one pass overwrite with binary Zeros or Ones is enough to erase data permanently.

Summary: To safely remove data from hard drive and SSD storages in laptop, desktop, and Mac devices before selling, donating, reallocating, or disposing of them, organizations must securely wipe this asset using professional data wiping tool like BitRaser.

However, SSDs can be put through a limited number of erase cycles before becoming unreliable. This is usually around 3,000/100,000(MLC/SLC) cycles. Wear leveling works around these limitations by spreading erasures and re-writes across multiple blocks in an SSD.

Shredding is a method of physically destroying an SSD by reducing it to tiny pieces using a specialized shredder. This method is often used for the large-scale destruction of electronic devices and ensures that the data on the SSD is completely destroyed beyond any hope of recovery.

How to make SSD unrecoverable? ›

However, extensive tests and studies have consistently demonstrated that common household magnets, such as those found in speakers or fridge magnets, pose no threat to SSDs. In fact, SSDs are built to withstand a wide range of environmental factors, including magnetism, static electricity, and physical shock.

An SSD that stores two bits of data per cell, commonly referred to as multi-level cell flash, generally sustains up to 10,000 write cycles with planar NAND and up to 35,000 write cycles with 3D NAND.

The short answer is usually no and sometimes yes. It varies on a case by case basis. A factory reset does not usually delete data, instead it places your data into unallocated space on the hard drive which the system may then overwrite during the reset / reinstall process.

How to Erase an SSD. There are several effective methods for removing the contents of an SSD. Please note, all of these methods will delete any operating system data, user data, and other contents of the partitions currently on the drive, and some methods also remove the partitions themselves.

A way to find these is by using built-in disk clean-up tools on your operating system, such as “Disk Cleanup” on Windows, or third-party software to clear files and free up storage. Most, if not all, operating systems will have one. We recommend WinDerStat for Windows and GrandPerspective for macOS.

What do solid-state drives do? SSDs store data permanently inside an integrated circuit, typically using flash memory. The flash memory inside an SSD means data is written, transferred, and erased electronically and silently — SSDs don't have the moving parts found inside mechanical hard-disk drives (HDDs).

Boot the drive and choose option 1, Default Settings. Once booted head to Start (bottom-left) > System Tools > Erase Disk. Choose the Internal:Secure Erase command writes zeroes to entire data area option, then confirm the drive you want to erase on the next screen. Does SSD permanently delete files?

If I replace my SSD will I lose everything? The answer is "of course not". In this post, We'll explain two safe and efficient ways to change SSD without losing data for you, including Windows backup application and a professional drive migration tool.