Sometimes an external drive needs to be erased so as to clean it and ready it for improved function.  Normally, this can be done by a simple reformat:

• How to reformat in Windows 7
• How to reformat in Windows Vista
• How to reformat in Windows XP/2000
• How to reformat in MacOS X (see the 2nd section, for MacOSX)

However, sometimes these reformatting methods fail.  This article will describe a way to perform a stronger erase function that could succeed where these others might fail.

Seagate DiscWizard will allow you to erase data completely and securely from any internal or external drive.  The program uses fast and secure wiping algorithms for data-destruction, an action also known as Zero-Fill.

This process has been successfully tested with drives connected via USB, FireWire, and eSATA.

Before starting:

1. You must create a DiscWizard bootable CD.  See Document ID: 201951 for full instructions.

2. Disconnect all other external drives from the computer except for the one to be erased, in order to avoid confusion and wipe the wrong drive.

Once the bootable CD is created, boot your computer to the CD.  Remember that you may need to change your computer's boot configuration to boot from CD.

Once you have booted to DiscWizard, the process is as follows:

1. Select Wipe Disc, under the Tools section of the page.
   
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2. Click Next.
   
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3. Select the drive to Zero Fill and click Next. It will detect external devices. 
   Be extremely careful to select the correct drive to wipe. Since you have booted to a CD, this erase program will have access to your C: drive, which is in most cases the bootable drive, with all of your data and programs on it.  When in doubt, do not erase.  Write down which drives are available to wipe, disconnect the external drive that you want to wipe, reboot the computer, go back to the DiscWizard screen, and see which one has disappeared.  Then reconnect it and reboot to erase the correct drive.
   Always have a backup of your important data.  Seagate is not responsible for lost user data. 
   
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4. Select "Delete Partitions on the destination hard disc".
   
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5. Select your option.
   * Quick - Choose this method for quick data wiping.  The sectors will be zeroed in one pass.
   Even though the option is called "Quick" this may take several hours to complete, depending on the capacity of the drive.  
   If all you want to do is remove the presence of an old format, you can cancel the erase after a few minutes.  All references to the old operating system are deleted at the beginning of the process.  The drive will appear to be blank and unformatted to the next operating system setup.  
   If you are running the Disc Wipe procedure to fix marginal or defective sectors, then you should let the erase run all the way to the end.
   
   * Normal - This method uses two overwriting passes.  On the first pass, all bits on the hard disk are set to one (1).
   On the second pass, all sectors on the hard disk are set to zero (0).
   
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6. Click Proceed to start the process.
   This process may take several hours to complete, depending on the capacity of the drive.  You can cancel the erase at any time.  Any data in the sectors that were erased before the cancel are lost.
   
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After the erase action is complete:

1. Remove the DiscWizard CD.

2. Shut down the computer.

3. Power down the external drive and disconnect its USB/FireWire/eSATA cable.

4. Power on the computer.

5. Once the computer is finished booting up, power on the external drive and reconnect it to the computer.  The wipe is complete and the drive is ready to format. 
   How to format in Windows 7 / Vista.
   How to format in Windows XP/2000.