I have an old Laptop I don't use anymore. Now my question is how to delete everything on the Laptop? I do know how to delete everything, but it will leave traces on my hard drive. So, can I delete everything, or is that impossible? I just don't like anybody reading my old letters and so on. I got nothing illegal on the laptop, so just restore it to the factory settings? Like to hear from you. And no, I am not in LOS at the moment; please refrain from advising me on shops in Thailand. And I have to add, I am not a computer wizard.

Thanks in advance

You need to also wipe it by overwriting.

There's a few ways to do this. You could simply fill it with multiple copies of a large file.

Or use BCWipe or 'File Shredder' or something like that.

Or encrypt the entire drive with something like Veracrypt then remove it and throw it away.

I would go with BCWipe - it has a free trial and you're only going to need it once.

Edited May 31May 31 by ukrules

1 hour ago, still kicking said:

I have an old Laptop I don't use anymore. Now my question is how to delete everything on the Laptop? I do know how to delete everything, but it will leave traces on my hard drive. So, can I delete everything, or is that impossible? I just don't like anybody reading my old letters and so on. I got nothing illegal on the laptop, so just restore it to the factory settings? Like to hear from you. And no, I am not in LOS at the moment; please refrain from advising me on shops in Thailand. And I have to add, I am not a computer wizard.

Thanks in advance

Most laptops have a door that allows you to remove the HDD. Have a look underneath the laptop, for a small screw holding closed a door. Remove the HDD, destroy it or store it in a safe place.

BTW, There may be a door for RAM upgrade, ignore this door.

Edited May 31May 31 by SAFETY FIRST

Install Linux on it and use it for many more years.

38 minutes ago, gargamon said:

Install Linux on it and use it for many more years.

I find that using Linux on a laptop can be quite clunky.

1 hour ago, gargamon said:

Install Linux on it and use it for many more years.

This is a good idea.

I've got a couple of old laptops with Spotify only on them. I plug in a 7 - 1 speaker system, turn it on when friends are around having a few beers outside.

An inflammatory post has been removed.

This method has always worked well for me.

1. Delete your files (or format the drive).

2. Fill the entire drive with large files until it’s nearly full.

3. Delete those files.

4. Repeat once or twice.

Have a Google of 'command for Format Drive'.

Get to the CMD (command line), then Format C:

Long time since I used the command line, but something like that.

8 minutes ago, carlyai said:

Have a Google of 'command for Format Drive'.

Get to the CMD (command line), then Format C:

Long time since I used the command line, but something like that.

Simply formatting the hard drive will not 'permanently' remove data. It can easily be recovered with any of a dozen free tools.
Look for a free program that will give you a 'DOD Wipe.' (Dept. of Defense) This sort of program will automatically write Xs and Os, overwriting anything that is on the disk, filling it completely. Then it will delete it all, rewrite, and delete a few times, making it absolutely impossible for the original data to be recovered.
Other than removing and replacing (should you wish to sell the laptop), this is the only secure method of cleaning a drive.

What about. 'clean C:' ?