[ale] erasing a hard drive

[The Don Lachlan]

On Fri, Aug 26, 2011 at 07:43:51PM -0400, Michael Trausch wrote:
> Only if that "mp3" is a FIFO that is being fed the same actual mp3 over and
> over again...

Epic Rickroll!

-L

> On Aug 26, 2011 4:28 PM, "Jim Kinney" <jim.kinney at gmail.com> wrote:
> > Dd if=/randomladygaga.mp3 of=/dev/sda
> > On Aug 26, 2011 3:15 PM, "Lightner, Jeff" <JLightner at water.com> wrote:
> >> Yep - I started using /dev/urandom instead of /dev/zero when I read
> > something that said if the overwrite data is predictable (e.g. all zeros)
> it
> > might be easier to decide what real data it was trying to mask.
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >> -----Original Message-----
> >> From: ale-bounces at ale.org [mailto:ale-bounces at ale.org] On Behalf Of David
> > Tomaschik
> >> Sent: Friday, August 26, 2011 2:52 PM
> >> To: Atlanta Linux Enthusiasts
> >> Subject: Re: [ale] erasing a hard drive
> >>
> >> On Fri, Aug 26, 2011 at 1:37 PM, Lightner, Jeff <JLightner at water.com>
> > wrote:
> >>> Of course you don't need a software at all.
> >>>
> >>> Erasing the data in a filesystem then unmounting the filesystem and
> > running:
> >>> dd if=/dev/urandom of=/dev/sda1/scramble bs=1M
> >>>
> >>> - will write random data on the partition (sda1 in the above - you can
> > substitute other partitions/drive letters as necessary)
> >>>
> >>> However, any time I've seen this question come up someone invariably
> > posts that it really isn't necessary for "modern drives". They never quite
> > say what their definition of "modern" is.
> >>>
> >>> In the past it was required to do something like the above multiple
> times
> > but it really isn't necessary unless you're doing DOD or CIA work.
> >>
> >> It is necessary to do at least one overwrite pass. Recovering data
> >> from a drive that has not been overwritten at all (e.g., mkfs or rm
> >> only) is trivial.
> >>
> >> The theory behind multiple overwrites has to do with the fact that
> >> data isn't really stored in discrete chunks on the drive, and there
> >> are algorithms that can theoretically recover/rebuild data from the
> >> "edges" of the tracks. However, this is substantially less of an
> >> issue these days. For one, those techniques were developed against
> >> MFM and RLL encoded drives. Drives using PRML and EPRML and
> >> perpendicular recording are believed to be far more resistant to this
> >> (as they have less area in which other traces are left.)
> >>
> >> For a better explanation than I could write, see
> >> http://www.cs.auckland.ac.nz/~pgut001/pubs/secure_del.html (especially
> >> the epilogue).
> >>
> >>
> >> --
> >> David Tomaschik, RHCE, LPIC-1
> >> System Administrator/Open Source Advocate
> >> OpenPGP: 0x5DEA789B
> >> http://systemoverlord.com
> >> david at systemoverlord.com
> >>
> >> _______________________________________________
> >> Ale mailing list
> >> Ale at ale.org
> >> http://mail.ale.org/mailman/listinfo/ale
> >> See JOBS, ANNOUNCE and SCHOOLS lists at
> >> http://mail.ale.org/mailman/listinfo
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >> Proud partner. Susan G. Komen for the Cure.
> >>
> >>
> >> Please consider our environment before printing this e-mail or
> > attachments.
> >>
> >> ----------------------------------
> >> CONFIDENTIALITY NOTICE: This e-mail may contain privileged or
> confidential
> > information and is for the sole use of the intended recipient(s). If you
> are
> > not the intended recipient, any disclosure, copying, distribution, or use
> of
> > the contents of this information is prohibited and may be unlawful. If you
> > have received this electronic transmission in error, please reply
> > immediately to the sender that you have received the message in error, and
> > delete it. Thank you.
> >> ----------------------------------
> >>
> >> _______________________________________________
> >> Ale mailing list
> >> Ale at ale.org
> >> http://mail.ale.org/mailman/listinfo/ale
> >> See JOBS, ANNOUNCE and SCHOOLS lists at
> >> http://mail.ale.org/mailman/listinfo

> _______________________________________________
> Ale mailing list
> Ale at ale.org
> http://mail.ale.org/mailman/listinfo/ale
> See JOBS, ANNOUNCE and SCHOOLS lists at
> http://mail.ale.org/mailman/listinfo