Complete hard drive eraser program question?

[Denvers Dawgs]

I have on a floppy disk that program that totally and completely erases your hard drive (can't remember the actual name, maybe fdisk?). I now have a new pc with no floppy drive. How would I go about using that program on this new pc?

Also how can I get the files off the floppy to save to something else (usb, cd, etc)? If I put the floppy into an older pc with a floppy drive will it automatically run the erasure program or would I need to start the PC with the floppy inside for it to begin erase process, thus making it safe to insert floppy on an already running pc.

[SLK001]

If you're trying to do a security erase, then fdisk is not for you. Go on the web and search for a secure erasing program. Norton use to have a tool that performed a secure erase.

As for getting the files off the floppy, using a DOS window and the copy command usually works just fine.

[Scorpion King]

A floppy drive is a dumb drive - ie no autorun. You can put that disk into any floppy drive you want and it won't do anything unless you attempt to run the programs that are on it - ie from a DOS Command Line, from inside Windows Explorer, boot up (if it's a bootable floppy and if the autoexec.bat file is setup to autorun any of the programs on that disk). etc, etc. It's pretty safe to insert and view the file list, running the program is another matter I suppose.

If you want to create a bootable CD-R from a bootable floppy then you will need a computer with a floppy drive, a cd-burner, and either a burning program with the ability to create a bootable CD, or create the bootable CD from scratch using an image file of a bootable floppy disk - a hex editor, etc, etc. Instructions on how to do it manually and/or with software is easy to find using google.

There are other ways to erase the files on a hdd, the how-to is pretty much up to you.

You can also do all this with your XP installation CD.... lol

Good luck.

[deckard8]

Dban - Auto HD eraser - Both floppy & CD/DVD versions

http://dban.sourceforge.net/

[Denvers Dawgs]

Ah that was it, Dban. I have that on floppy. I'm gonna get the cd/dvd version now thanks, deckard8

[redwudz]

Another method I use to get into a problem system is a Bart PE disc. If you can boot from a CD drive, it will run a version of Windows from the CD/DVD drive. You don't even need a hard drive on the system.

Once you boot, you can erase or delete most anything on the boot/C or other drives. I use it for eliminating a XP install so I can reformat/reinstall other OS's.

Do a Google search for 'Bart PE'. It's a handy diagnostic disc for dealing with problem PCs also. Handy to have around.

I also have a external USB floppy drive that came with my laptop and is powered by the USB bus. It boots automatically with most computers. If you run into major problems with a boot drive on occasion, one of those are a good option. With that I use a Windows 98 startup floppy disc. But PE has more options. W98 startup will partition with fdisk, but it will only format to FAT32.

If you were hoping for a easy solution, like booting from a USB thumb drive, unfortunately that is fairly complicated. Mostly because of Windows. Presently, floppies or the CD/DVD drive are the best solutions.

[Denvers Dawgs]

Yea I think I'm going to use the Dban for cd. I downloaded the ISO, just need to burn it now. Thanks for all the help guys..