Where do my deleted files go?
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?
Re: Where do my deleted files go?
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.
Re: Where do my deleted files go?
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.
Re: Where do my deleted files go?
dban is good for wiping files off your HD. :) and Sdelete I think is also good. :blink:
Re: Where do my deleted files go?
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. :)
Re: Where do my deleted files go?
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. :)
Re: Where do my deleted files go?
What about Sureclean? Doesn't that delete with 0's and 1's? So how do actually format my hard drive? Is it safe?
Re: Where do my deleted files go?
Quote:
Originally Posted by 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. :)
*me wonders what you have on your hard drive* :blink:
Re: Where do my deleted files go?
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.
Re: Where do my deleted files go?
Quote:
Originally Posted by Barky
*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 !