How to Wipe Seagate Expansion External Hard Drive or SSD?

Quick Navigation:

• About Seagate Expansion External Hard Drive
• What Is Data Wiping? Why Should Wipe Your Seagate Expansion Drive?
• Methods to Format and Wipe Seagate Expansion External Hard Drive
• Conclusion

In this modern world, data security is more important than ever. Whether you're selling your old hard drive, repurposing it, or simply want to ensure your sensitive information doesn't get accessible by the unauthorized person, wiping the Seagate Expansion external hard drive or SSD is a crucial step. Unlike simple file deletion, which leaves data recoverable, wiping a drive ensures that your information is permanently erased and irrecoverable. In this article, let us explore how to wipe the Seagate Expansion external hard drive safely and effectively.

About Seagate Expansion External Hard Drive

The Seagate Expansion External Hard Drive is a highly popular storage solution known for its reliability, ease of use, and impressive storage capacity options. Designed for both personal and professional use, these drives offer a simple plug-and-play setup, making them an ideal choice for users looking to quickly expand their storage without any complicated installation processes. Available in various sizes, from 1TB to 8TB or more, the Seagate Expansion series provides ample space for backing up files, storing large media libraries, or offloading data from your primary device, all while maintaining a compact and portable design. However, there comes a time when you might need to wipe the data on these drives.

What Is Data Wiping? Why Should Wipe Your Seagate Expansion Drive?

Before introducing the methods of wiping a Seagate Expansion drive, it's important to understand what data wiping entails. As mentioned earlier, simply deleting files does not remove them from your drive. The data still exists on the disk and can be recovered with the right tools. This is where data wiping comes in.

Levels of Data Wiping:

• Basic File Deletion: This is the process most people are familiar with. When you delete a file, it goes to the Recycle Bin or Trash, and when you empty these, the file is no longer visible to the user. However, the data still resides on the disk until it is overwritten by new data.
• Formatting: Formatting a drive is a step further than deleting files. It erases the directory structure and marks the entire disk as available for new data. However, like simple deletion, the data can still be recovered until it is overwritten.
• Secure Erase: This is the most thorough method of wiping a drive. It involves overwriting every bit of data on the drive with random or predefined patterns, ensuring that the original data is completely unrecoverable.

Why Wiping is Necessary:

Wiping a drive is crucial when you plan to dispose of, sell, or repurpose your Seagate Expansion external hard drive. Without wiping, anyone with basic data recovery tools can retrieve your old data. This is particularly important if the drive contained sensitive information such as personal photos, financial records, or confidential work documents.

Preparing for Data Wiping:

Before wiping your Seagate Expansion drive, you must take a few preparatory steps to ensure the process goes smoothly.

• Back Up Important Data: Wiping a drive is irreversible. Once the data is overwritten, it cannot be recovered. Therefore, it's crucial to back up any important data before you proceed. You can transfer your files to another storage device or cloud storage.
• Ensure Proper Connection: Ensure that the Seagate Expansion drive is properly connected to your computer and recognized by the system. This might involve checking the USB connection or ensuring that the drive is mounted correctly if you're using macOS.
• Check Drive Health: Before wiping your drive, it's a good idea to check its health. Tools like Command Prompt for Windows or Disk Utility for macOS can help you assess the drive's condition. If the drive is failing or has bad sectors, you might want to consider a different approach, such as using specialized tools that handle drives with issues.

Methods to Format and Wipe Seagate Expansion External Hard Drive

There are several methods you can use to wipe your Seagate Expansion drive, depending on your operating system and the level of security you require.

Using Built-in Tools (Windows/Mac):

Both Windows and macOS come with built-in tools that allow you to erase a drive. These tools are generally sufficient for most users.

Windows Disk Management: Formatting the Drive:

1. Open Disk Management: Right-click on the Start button and select "Disk Management."
2. Select the Drive: In the Disk Management window, locate your Seagate Expansion drive.
3. Format the Drive: Right-click on the drive and select "Format." Choose a file system (NTFS for Windows users, exFAT for compatibility with Mac), and make sure to uncheck the "Quick Format" option if you want to overwrite data. Click "OK" to start the process.

macOS Disk Utility: Erasing the Drive:

1. Open Disk Utility: You can find Disk Utility in the Applications > Utilities folder.
2. Select the Drive: In the Disk Utility window, select your Seagate Expansion drive from the list on the left.
3. Erase the Drive: Click on the "Erase" button at the top. Choose the format (APFS for macOS, exFAT for compatibility with Windows), and select a secure erase option if available. Click "Erase" to begin.

Note: The formatted data is not lost forever, data recovery software can easily recover deleted and formatted data from your Seagate Expansion external hard drive.

Using Third-Party Disk Wipe Software

Since data recovery software is able to recover deleted or formatted data from your Seagate Expansion external hard drive, you'd better use a disk wipe program to wipe your Seagate Expansion external hard drive before you sell, donate or dispose of it.

DoYourData Super Eraser is one of the best disk wipe software. It supports to securely and permanently erase data from PC, Mac, HDD, SSD, USB flash drive, digital camera, SD card or other storage devices. Once the data is erased by DoYourData Super Eraser, the data is lost for good, can't be recovered by any data recovery software.

It can help you securely format and wipe your Seagate Expansion external hard drive on Windows or macOS and permanently erase all data from the drive.

Step 1. Open DoYourData Super Eraser, then choose Wipe Hard Drive. This mode will wipe everything (including the existing data, deleted/lost data) from your Seagate Expansion external hard drive beyond the scope of data recovery.

Step 2. Select the Seagate Expansion external hard drive, click on Wipe Now button.

Step 3. Then select a wanted data erasure standard, and click on Continue button.

It will format and wipe the Seagate Expansion external hard drive. All data stored on the drive will be erased permanently, no way to recover the erased data.

If you only want to format the Seagate Expansion external hard drive, choose Disk Manager tool and select the Seagate Expansion external hard drive, click on Format button. Select a file system such as NTFS, ExFAT, click on Continue button to complete the formatting process.

DoYourData Super Eraser for Mac can help you mount Seagate Expansion external hard drive, fix damaged Seagate Expansion external hard drive and format Seagate Expansion external hard drive on Mac.

Other Disk Wipe Software:

• CCleaner: This popular tool has a built-in drive wiper. It allows you to securely erase the entire drive with multiple passes, making data recovery nearly impossible.
• DBAN (Darik's Boot and Nuke): This is a free, open-source tool that is highly effective for wiping hard drives. It's particularly useful for HDDs but can be used for SSDs with caution.

Step-by-Step Guide Using CCleaner

1. Install CCleaner: Download and install CCleaner from the official website.
2. Open CCleaner: Go to the "Tools" section and select "Drive Wiper."
3. Select the Drive: Choose your Seagate Expansion drive from the list.
4. Choose the Wipe Method: You can choose between "Simple Overwrite" (1 pass) or "Advanced Overwrite" (3 or more passes). The more passes, the more secure the wipe.
5. Start the Wipe: Click "Wipe" and let the process complete. This might take some time depending on the size of the drive and the method chosen.

Using DBAN

1. Download DBAN: Get the ISO file from the official DBAN website.
2. Create a Bootable USB: Use a tool like Rufus to create a bootable USB drive with the DBAN ISO.
3. Boot from USB: Restart your computer and boot from the USB drive.
4. Select the Drive: DBAN will list all connected drives. Be very careful to select the correct one (your Seagate Expansion drive).
5. Choose the Wipe Method: DBAN offers several methods, including DoD 5220.22-M (a 3-pass method). Select your desired method.
6. Start the Wipe: Confirm and start the process. This can take several hours depending on the drive size and the method used.

Command Line Methods

For those who are comfortable with command line tools, both Windows and macOS offer methods to securely erase a drive.

Using Command Prompt (Windows):

1. Open Command Prompt: Search for "cmd" in the Start menu, right-click, and choose "Run as administrator."
2. List Disks: Type diskpart and press Enter, then type list disk to see all connected drives.
3. Select Disk: Identify your Seagate Expansion drive and type select disk X (replace X with the correct disk number).
4. Clean the Disk: Type clean all to wipe the entire disk. This command securely wipes all data by overwriting it.

Using Terminal (macOS):

1. Open Terminal: You can find Terminal in Applications > Utilities.
2. List Disks: Type diskutil list to see all connected drives.
3. Erase Disk: Identify your Seagate Expansion drive and type diskutil secureErase 4 /dev/diskX (replace X with the correct disk number). The number 4 indicates the most secure erase option (three-pass overwrite).

Wiping an SSD vs. a HDD: Important Considerations

When wiping an SSD, it's important to consider the differences between SSDs and traditional HDDs. SSDs use NAND flash memory, which operates differently from the magnetic platters in HDDs. Here are some key considerations:

1. Wear Leveling: SSDs distribute data evenly across memory cells to extend their lifespan. As a result, wiping an SSD may not erase all data from all cells using traditional methods.
2. TRIM Command: SSDs notify the drive of which data blocks are no longer in use using the TRIM command. In this way, the drive's performance is maintained and extended. Using the TRIM command after wiping an SSD can ensure that data is thoroughly erased.
3. Secure Erase: As mentioned earlier, Secure Erase is the most effective way to wipe an SSD, resetting it to factory settings and ensuring that all data is removed.

Conclusion

Wiping a Seagate Expansion external hard drive is a straightforward process, but it's important to choose the right method based on your needs. Whether you're preparing the drive for resale, giving it away, or simply ensuring that sensitive data is permanently erased, this guide provides all the information you need to securely wipe your drive. You can make sure that your data is safe and that your Seagate Expansion drive is prepared for use by following the instructions provided below.

Wiping a drive is a serious task, especially when dealing with sensitive information. Always double-check that you've backed up any important data before proceeding. With the right tools and methods, you can securely and confidently wipe your Seagate Expansion external hard drive, safeguarding your data and ensuring privacy.