Using Dban to Securely Wipe data from hard disk

"DBAN is free erasure software designed for the home user. It automatically deletes the contents of any hard disk that it can detect. This method can help prevent identity theft before recycling a computer. DBAN is also a commonly used solution to remove viruses and spyware from Microsoft Windows installations. "

--- Original Site < http://dban.org/ >

About its short commings and drawbacks read the info from the original site (link given above)

So lets move directly into how to use it. The tool comes in a iso format and you can either write it on CD/DVD or on flash drive. I would recommenend you to use it on a flash drive since its on 15 mb in size and if you use a CD or DVD then its wasted.

I will first show you how to use dban by creating a Virtual machine for ir. I am using Virtual Box which comes by default in fedora 19 (I am using fedora 19 at present).

So first download the iso file from here : http://sourceforge.net/projects/dban/files/dban/dban-2.2.8/dban-2.2.8_i586.iso/download

The file is only ~15 MB in size and so the download will be quick.  I downloaded it here :-



Now download and install virtual box or VMware Player which ever you wish to use. I am using Virtual Box. If you don't have them already then you can download them from the following :-

Virtual Box : https://www.virtualbox.org/wiki/Downloads

VMware Player: https://my.vmware.com/web/vmware/free#desktop_end_user_computing/vmware_player/6_0

The application I am using is called Boxes and is more like Virtual Box and comes installed with Fedora 21. So open Boxes and click new.



You will get the following screen :-



Click on Continue and the following screen will appear :-



As you can see Virtual Box have already listed the ISO's but if it doesn't shows up then you can Click on Select File and Choose the DBAN ISO file



After you choose open the following screen will appear :-



If you wanna customize then click on customize. After you do so you will :-



But in our case there is nothing to customize we are wiping data. You will probably perform it on your complete HDD and so it unnecessary. If you have done this much then click on Create on Top right corner (in case of Virtual Box)



The following screen will appear showing the different DBAN options and its main interface:-



Click on the blue screen to enter the VM. If you press Enter autonuke setting will start which is the default and the recommended option. To see the other cmmands available press F3. You will see the following :-



We will go with the default option and we will press enter on the first screen screen that appears. After we do so will see the following :-





Now its will list all your HDD or flash drives attached. Now select the drive you want to wipe and press SPACE to select it. You can use UP and DOWN keys to select other drives (if any). After you have done this press F10 to start the process.



You will be able to see the time remaining to complete, no. of rounds or number of steps etc etc.Once the process s complet a black screen will come with the confirmation that the data has been wiped clean :)

---

Install using Flash Drive

To use dban using a flash drive you first need to write it onto the drive itself.

To write the ISO in flash drive I would recommened you to use Universal USB Installer if you're on Windows Since it comes with a pre loaded config for DBAN ISO and so it will be better imho. Linux users can use Unetbootin.

After you have done so simply boot your system and from Boot Options run using the flash drive and the rest i like I explained above after you create the VM.

Thats all for today and I hope you like the tutorial.

 

 

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