Where do my deleted files go?

[kurse]

Hey, I download a lot of stuff over the net and sometimes I don't like the programs, games, music, or any other file sometimes. So,....I delete them, but my files are still in my hard drive correct? Can anyone explain in more detail what happends to the files I delete and is there a REAL way to get rid of everything I deleted out of my hard drive?

[Shiranai_Baka]

yes, just press empty recycle bin, and its all gone, if you really want to get rid of EVERYTHING, do a format or a low level(?) format.

[uNz[i]]

This is how it works as far as I understand it.

Deleting a file simply removes the file's header info from the computers file table.

The OS may not be able to see the file once it's deleted, but the file data itself will remain on the drive until that section of the hard disk gets overwritten by something else.

Even after that, it's still possible to retrieve the originally deleted file.

[Ariel_001]

dban (http://dban.sourceforge.net/) is good for wiping files off your HD. :) and Sdelete (http://www.sysinternals.com/ntw2k/source/sdelete.shtml) I think is also good. :blink:

[tesco]

programs like ariel posted write over your files you want to delete with 0's and 1's to make them corrupt, so that it is unrecoverable. :)

[peat moss]

I like System Mechanics " Incinerator " for individual files, set at 7 times wipe.
Once a month I use system shield for a harddrive wipe. It does take awhile tho. :)

[kurse]

What about Sureclean? Doesn't that delete with 0's and 1's? So how do actually format my hard drive? Is it safe?

[ahctlucabbuS]

I like System Mechanics " Incinerator " for individual files, set at 7 times wipe.
Once a month I use system shield for a harddrive wipe. It does take awhile tho. :)

*me wonders what you have on your hard drive* :blink:

[sparsely]

depends on who you're hiding stuff from.
last I read (ages ago) the goverment had equipment and techniques capable of recovring data that had been overwritten up to 12 times.

[peat moss]

*me wonders what you have on your hard drive* :blink:
oh nothing important ! But I learned after selling and buying used harddrives to becareful! :D You can reclaim disk space by overwriting your deleted files aswell !

[peat moss]

What about Sureclean? Doesn't that delete with 0's and 1's? So how do actually format my hard drive? Is it safe?



Formating your harddrive will wipe out all your files . You'd have to install everything again . :)

Sorry kurse , you want to clean up deleted files right? Formating is a different animal . Most of the programs like sureclean ,I'v tryed seem to work without problems. Try a regcleaning program instead , you'll get better results , something you can see. :)

[Ariel_001]

Formating your harddrive will wipe out all your files . You'd have to install everything again . :) ...

Data will still remain even after a format. better use a disk wipping tool.

[peat moss]

Data will still remain even after a format. better use a disk wipping tool.

Yes your right Ariel, I was worried with my post that Kusre would think that formatting a harddrive would not have consquences . Thats all I meant . :) I find that I'm talking apples and their talking oranges . Better safe than sorry I guess. :)

[keyser_soze]

wiping your freespace will overwrite the deleted files as many times as u want with steganos security suite and should be ok if your keeping the drive as even after being wrote over windows will also keep writing over it again but if your getting rid of your hard drive safest way would be to delete as much stuff as u can then run the freespace wiper then download Killdisk (http://www.killdisk.com/) and format your hard drive with it, you just extract to a floppy and set your pc to boot up from floppy it will then give u instructions to which drive to wipe and let it go voila clean HD. :cool:

[Expire]

If im correct Windows washer is good at deleting shit out of ur bin and other places of course and put some code after the delete so it cant be retrieved.

Im gussing after time it will totaly disapear.

[keyser_soze]

another quick point before wiping your freespace is to make sure u empty your restore points. :)