how do you clear a harddrive of a second hand computer?

Answer 1

Make sure that you have an operating system to install, then format the disk completely and re-install. If the PC already has an operating system and you DON'T want to delete it, then it's a longer and more complicated job and you may end up with a damaged or infected operating system, so a Format/Reinstall is always the best way.

Answer 2

I did this on mine a few months ago. I bought an old pc pentium II with no OS
and a bad harddrive for a few dollars in a flee market. I found another hard drive in the same place. So here is what you do: If your pc has an OS installed and working you can delete unnecessary files from it manually but is risky, you might delete some vital files, so better use some uninstaller software, I have remove-it works pretty good. Next option is to erase evrything
and reinstall the OS if you have the disk and the code number associated with it. To do this you have to partition the hard drive and then format it, this will give you a clean harddrive to reinstall your OS. You'll need a start up disk to do this, you can ask a friend that has a pc to make you one.

Answer 3

I can give you some complex ways of doing this, or I can give you an easy way. Install a new copy of Windows onto it, and choose to format it while you are setting it up... By the way, setting up an operating system isn't very hard at all. If you'd like some of the other methods, you can email me, but believe me, this is the easiest way, since it will then be customized to suit you.

Answer 4

format the drive if your using windows XP then simply insert the disc and follow the on screen instructions

if your using any other windows like 98 etc then you will require a startup disk place in the floppy drive and start the pc when it stops loading typle format c: press enter it will ask you are you sure type Y and enter

if it's a machine your selling format at least 3 times to remove everything

Answer 5

Enter your Drive facility and select erase.
Here you are given choices
Select zero everything
Click start and have a sleep.
It can take hours if you have a lot of capacity.
All the little magnetic dots are written to zero except the boot blocks you need to re-start.
You have now written out anything that was on there.
Any other means leaves something behind.

Answer 6

You have to format the hard drive, if it is windows xp you must put the XP cd into the computer and restart the enter the setup menu and select boot from cd then follow the instructions to reinstall and format the previous operating system.

Answer 7

you need to buy specific software, just reformatting WILL NOT WORK. The software writes over the files numerous times making them impossible to retrieve. The BBC recently did a programme on computer hard drives, they found they were being sent to India or Thailand, and they bought a few hard drives and brought them back to the UK, they then installed them and retrieved all their files, then told the original owners their bank details, passwords, and personal details, the owners thought they had been wiped.

Answer 8

There are 2 ways to format a hdd, you can format it in windows if you have a 2nd hdd with windows instaled by right clicking it and press format. The easiest way is to format it during a fresh instalation of windows (just follow the onscreen instructions).

Answer 9

You don't say if you have the software it came with? If you do, then do a recovery, by inserting the disc, turning off computer, then hold down the 'C' key and turn the computer back on. This will set the computer to how it was originally.

Answer 10

Format the drive