If you've got an old computer hard drive that's been gathering dust in the closet, don't let it sit there. Find out how to recycle your old hard drive on this page.
How to Destroy a Hard Drive
Run the Special: Delete command, and when prompted, type y. Next, press Enter to confirm the deletion and move on. Describe the files you want to delete to make it much easier to spot them: Right-click the file or press F2 to list files, select them all and press Delete. You can also use the Properties command to do a selective delete or browse the files you want to delete. Or use the Shift-Delete and right-click menu commands to select all or selected files and press Delete. If your PC is connected to the internet and Redmond has the bandwidth for it, they also offer a special mode that will automatically destroy files on startup (more information).
To enable this feature, check the box next to Saved data will be deleted automatically when the computer turns on. If you have a Windows 10 Home license subscription, then follow the instructions in How to Stop the mad recycling machine. If your PC is an Enterprise version, you’ll need to download the Windows 10 Insider Fast and Enterprise Management Tools. They can be found here. All Enterprise versions of Windows can run these tools. With these tools installed, run the /sourcesyscmd command. The /sourcesyscmd in this command simply creates space for the /e switch that will launch the tools. Pro tip: If you use the /sourcesyscmd switch to specify all the source computers, then you can uncheck all the checkboxes on the 30 computers that you want to destroy. When you press Next, the process will stop.
You can now press y to confirm that all the computers you select are in fact destroyed and move on. When you next start your PC or open Task Manager, a deletion notice will appear. Next up, make sure that all your files and programs are deleted from your computer. What does that mean? You must physically uninstall your programs, which means you have to use the Windows 10 PC Settings to uninstall individual files and programs. Of course, Microsoft has several ways of doing so for you but most involve copying and pasting files and programs into a specific folder in Notepad, or going to the Microsoft Edge app and typing the program name in the search box. How to uninstall Windows programs using the Windows 10 app Typing the name of the program you wish to uninstall into the command prompt will also usually unload the program but leave debris in your system (and possibly slow down your PC).
How to Get Rid of an Old Computer Tower
You need to remove the computer from any Wi-Fi network. After getting a new Wi-Fi router, check to ensure it’s not sharing your network-attached storage (NAS) device. On the specifications for NAS devices, Windows will list them as ‘not supported’ if they don’t support 802.11 b/g/n Wi-Fi. Since your NAS is physically separate from your main PC, it can’t be using the internet either. Remove it from the network and disconnect any peripherals it may have connected to it, then read on to see how to safely recycle an old hard drive in this disaster recovery guide. Anyone who has a hard drive in their old PC can recycle it quite easily.
You just need to know how. You may have read in the past that it’s best to recycle a hard drive at room temperature. I agree with that as long as it is free of cracks, dust and other deposits. My old 8TB drive came in my original mentor’s recycling bin, and he sent me a letter to that effect back in 2003. Despite being stored at room temperature, it still held a lot of data. Hard drives can and should be recycled at room temperature, between 14 and 18 degrees Celsius, however that is the temperature in Finland. Whatever the temperature is inside your recycling container, it is in your computer’s idle room temperature range. Also, recycle drives with a metal core, such as HDDs. This means they are lubricated exclusively with water. Make sure you do not include hard drives with magnetic media. Most USB flash drives are safe to recycle, even years old. However, if your computer is equipped with USB 3.0 storage, you should unplug it as soon as it stops working.
Next, fill the storage device with water and shake it vigorously to dislodge any debris and shavings. Using a soft bristle brush, gently clean the debris from the surface of the machine. Repeat until the water runs off the devices outside the container. Depending on the model of storage container you use, you will need to fill it with the following: Under 1GB: 1 cup of warm water and just a little bit of soap 1 to 1.5GB: 1/2 cup of warm water and a little bit of soap 2GB and up: 1 cup of warm water and a little bit of soap Deciding how much water to add is easy. The size of the hard drive dictates how much you should add but the surface of the device determines the amount of water to fill the container. Mine is 4.2" x 4.6" x 7.4" (10.
How to Prepare a Computer for Disposal
The next big item that you should dispose of is your hard drive. First, figure out if you have regular or solid- state hard drives. Don’t worry, it will take some time but following this process can speed up the process of determining the category of hard drive you have. Stick with ATA mode when determining the size of your drive. Following this procedure can shorten the life of your hard drive considerably. But don’t expect any miracles and don’t overwork your hard drive. Your old hard drive could be recycled if your Hard Drive Recovery Center mixer is functioning properly. Note that you can also recycle regular hard drives. The method for doing so depends on your local regulations. In most cases, you’ll have to contact your local recycling center or government office. Check with your local government if the recycling centers are open and running 24/7.
To recycle regular hard drives, see the article How to make a hard drive click-empty. There are many types of reusable hard drives available but onlycha drives made of magnetic media are always good to go. To recycle magnetic media hard drives using something like gracekeeper or erasure finder, follow the instructions in these articles How to make a hard drive click-empty using erasure finder or How to make a hard drive click-empty using gracekeeper. You only have to do this once as your computer will normally give you prompts that will allow you to opt out of further recycling. To opt out and for the purification to take effect, go to the Settings and Security. Click on your local account you wish to opt out from and then click Delete.
When your PC is ready, plug it into a workstation with an available power supply and go back to the task at hand. If you need to remove your private data (documents, photos, etc.) you should first use an external disk encryption program to do that. Read How to Convert your iPhone to a Hard Disk Drive for detailed instructions on how to do that. If you don’t have an external disk drive to use as an encryption medium, you should instead use an online tool to do that, here is a list of online programs you can try. A regular external drive can also be used as an encryption medium. But a word of caution: Please be aware that not all online programs offer full disk encryption. You can read How to set a password for online data recovery here.
