My old computer is broken and I want to trash or sell it but I do not know what part I need to keep. I've seen shows and they say you should safe guard or destroy a certain part of the cpu. Which part of the cpu should I remove?
2007-06-16 07:16:28 · 10 answers · asked by Mary E 1 in Computers & Internet ➔ Hardware ➔ Desktops
Yep, the hard drive is the correct answer since that is the peripheral that contains all your data. There are a few ways you can handle it. One is to open your computer up, have a friend identify the hard drive (which looks like a tiny metal box with wires going into it) and remove it. You can store it or get a demagnitizer which wipes out the data. Another is to use software which will permanently erase the data (such as eraseyourharddrive.com).
Also make sure to check your CD-ROM and floppy disk drives to make sure those disks are removed before you dump your machine.
Good luck.
2007-06-16 07:27:15 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
The hard drive.
Below is a link to some information on the hard drive and a picture of what a hard drive looks like. Your hard drive will look like the picture on the right.
http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.ptdd.com/datarecovery/images/hard-drive2.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.ptdd.com/datarecovery/hard-drive.htm&h=375&w=500&sz=47&hl=en&start=3&sig2=hxt4kfehjycs0FooGhG-MQ&tbnid=Dhpoc4ZxPZLeiM:&tbnh=98&tbnw=130&ei=ZSp0RtCOELTgiwHpi4HdBw&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dhard%2Bdrive%26gbv%3D2%26svnum%3D10%26hl%3Den%26safe%3Doff
Before you take the computer apart, make sure you unplug it! It is dangerous to work on a computer that power is being supplied to.
Also, the big, (most likely beige) box that you call the CPU is actually called the tower. The CPU is actually a sflat, 2 by 2 inch chip inside the tower.
Email me at
jonkspace-v1@yahoo.com
for more info.
Hope that helps!
NOTE: Do not set fire to the hard drive! it will not burn easily, since the storage disks are made of some hard (and fairly heavy) metal. My idea for you would be just to throw it away. The ONLY risk would be that some raccoon-style robber would rip through your garbage bags and find it. That is a VERY small risk. Once it is at the landfill, it is as good as gone.
If you set a high powered magnet on the hard drive for a while, it will destroy the data better than drilling holes in it could.
2007-06-16 07:26:49 · answer #2 · answered by Vertigo 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Mary, any personal information you had on the old computer is on the hard drive.
The hard drive is the file room, where all your programs, pictures, e-mails, and everything else is stored.
You can clean up the hard drive to make it hard to find your information - you'd do a procedure called formatting the hard drive - but the information can still be recovered if someone really wanted it.
The only way to absolutely make sure your information never gets out is to destroy the hard drive.
There's a downside - without a hard drive, your old computer is worthless.
2007-06-16 07:21:21 · answer #3 · answered by Stuart 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
hard drive, its a small box, 3.5" wide, and about 1" thick, on the top its smooth, and on the bottom it has like, a computer chip. (its green) the box of the hard drive is black usually, with a silver top part. it might say on the top: "western digital" or "Hitachi" or another hard drive company on it.
Good Luck!
to destroy a hard drive, take a drill, and drill all the way through the hard drive in a few places, and then (if you really want to "super destroy it") pour some lighter fluid or gasoline through the holes, and light that puppy! lol (just stand back a little) You could also take a hammer, and smash it, but someone might possibly get the info off of it still.
2007-06-16 07:24:28 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
The hard drive. It's a rectangular little box bolted in near the front of the tower. It has a long slender gray cable and a red-black-yellow coloured power cable coming from it.
2007-06-16 07:19:28 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
part cpu personal information
2016-02-02 03:13:35 · answer #6 · answered by Dexter 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The hard drive.
It is a rectangular metal box (5x4x3/4 inches) with a ribon cable connected to it and a plastic wire connector that has a red, a yellow, and a black wire.
2007-06-16 07:18:29 · answer #7 · answered by No Chance Without Bernoulli 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
erm i did computing a few yrs ago in skwl so il giv it a shot>> cpu- central processing unit= process data, monitor(screen) is an output device, displays images in bit format, mouse/keboard- input device
2016-03-14 00:04:46 · answer #8 · answered by Janice 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Remove the hard drive and all will be okay.
2007-06-16 07:19:45 · answer #9 · answered by duanehullihan 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
that's the central processing unit. all you need is the main hard drive (usually the "c" drive)
2007-06-16 07:20:06 · answer #10 · answered by Joe V 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋