Bootable ISOs: HDD Eraser (ShredOS / Nwipe)

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HDD Eraser (ShredOS / Nwipe)

Data Destruction Bootable Live Nwipe Engine

Overview

ShredOS is a tiny live OS that boots straight into Nwipe (a maintained fork of DBAN) for secure, automated disk erasure. It’s ideal for sanitizing HDDs before resale, recycling, or re-deployment. 

Quick Start:
  1. Boot the PC from your USB and choose ShredOS / Nwipe.
  2. Once it fully boots to the blue background screen where you can Select hard drive disk(s) to be wiped: UNPLUG THE BOOTABLE USB FLASH DRIVE FROM PC (so that you don't erase it accidentally, the util should continue to work as by now it's loaded into internal memory)
  3. Nwipe opens automatically. Use the arrow keys/spacebar to select the target drive(s).
  4. Press Shift + S to begin with the default erase method.
  5. Wait for completion → confirm PASS/OK → power off and disconnect drives.

Permanently destructive: These actions cannot be undone. Verify the target drive before starting.

Use Cases

Expand a scenario to view step-by-step instructions.

⚡ Standard One-Pass Erase (quick decommission)

  1. Boot ShredOS → in Nwipe, select the target HDD with Space.
  2. Press F3 for Options → choose a method like PRNG stream (1 pass) or Zero fill.
  3. (Optional) Enable Verify to confirm the wipe.
  4. Press Shift + S to start. 
  5. When it shows DONE/PASS, power off.
When to use: Fast, practical for internal reuse or personal drives without regulatory requirements.
🛡️ Multi-Pass Erase (policy/compliance)
  1. Select drives → F3 Options → choose DoD 5220.22-M (3+ passes) or Gutmann (35 passes) if required.
  2. Enable Verify and Log file output (see Save report below).
  3. Start with Shift + S.
  4. Expect long runtimes on large disks.
⚠️ Note: Many organizations accept 1–2 pass methods with verification for HDDs. Always follow your written policy.
🧾 Save a Wipe Report / Certificate
  1. Plug in a second USB drive to store logs (separate from the boot USB).
  2. In Nwipe Options (F3), set Log file path to that USB mount (e.g., /media/usb/).
  3. Run the wipe. After completion, copy the .log or .txt report for record-keeping.
Tip: Name logs with device serial + date (e.g., WD-XYZ123_2025-10-14.log).
💡 SSDs / NVMe Drives (use Secure Erase instead)

ShredOS/Nwipe can write-wipe SSDs, but it’s not recommended. For SSD/NVMe, use controller-level commands:

  • ATA Secure Erase (SATA SSDs) via tools like hdparm in a Linux environment.
  • NVMe Format/Sanitize (NVMe SSDs) via nvme-cli or vendor utilities.

Use ShredOS primarily for HDDs. For SSDs, boot a Linux toolkit (e.g., SystemRescue) and run the appropriate secure erase.

Additional Resources

✅ Best for HDD sanitization with logs and verification.
⚠️ Destructive: double-check target drives; disconnect any disks you don’t intend to wipe.
💡 For SSDs/NVMe, prefer Secure Erase / Sanitize commands or vendor tools.

Available on These USB Drives

Tip: For asset disposition, keep wipe logs and device serials together. A second USB for logs makes record-keeping easy.