Is HDDerase compatible on a regular AMD PC with a WD drive without the SSD drive? Every time I ran HDDerase it would lock down once I got to the prompt. Would that be that I don't have SSD? I did a Google search, but it talks about HDDerase using SSD drives after I specified without SSD.

I have my drive in BIOS on SATA 1. That's the way my uncle put it. I understand that HDDerase will wipe the HPA? Did I read that correctly?

Would DBAN erase the HPA? If not, what tool would that will do both erase the entire drive with Gutmann, and erase the HPA? Are there any free tools for this? MHDD, and Victoria doesn't work for me.

Here is my drive: ATA WDC WD1001FALS-0

I have just a regular desktop eMachines PC, and all of my hardware is internal.

This new thread seems to be a partial duplicate of previous questions from your earlier threads (for the benefit of other readers, I've listed them below, so they can see the history of your questions up to now).

I'll answer a couple of today's questions, but as I explained before (and as is explained in the HDDErase readme file), HDDErase requires specific BIOS functionality & settings. Readers here cannot see what BIOS options are available (and working) on your specific PC, unless they have the same PC model (and ideally the same BIOS version, in case the options changed between versions).

As explained in the HDDErase readme file, specific BIOS behaviour can leave the drive "frozen" (because it may send a "Security Freeze Lock" command to the drive) and therefore the drive is unable to accept the "Security Erase Unit" command, which is used by HDDErase. We can't see / test / adjust settings on your PC It is also possible that your PC BIOS does not provide the necesssary functionality to run HDDErase successfully - again, other readers here with different PCs cannot know this. FYI some PCs seem compatible with HDDErase v3.3 but not with the latest HDDErase v4.0.


That depends on the BIOS settings and behaviour of your PC. I have used HDDErase successfully on AMD-based PCs, with WD (and other) disks. See the HDDErase readme file for more info on the BIOS-related issues you might meet:

http://cmrr.ucsd.edu/people/Hughes/HDDEraseReadMe.txt


No, this is not because you don't have an SSD - see the answer to your next question below. You might get more suggestions if you explain what you mean by "lock down", and provide a screen photo showing the screen at this point.


HDDErase is commonly used by people with SSDs to remove internal fragmentation (which reduces performance on SSDs). That does not mean that HDDErase can only be used on machines with SSDs.


This is discussed in detail, in the HDDErase readme file (linked above).


These are links to your previous threads, so that other readers can see the advice you have already been given:
darik-showing-unrecognized-drives-t20334.html
what-tool-used-wipe-drive-hard-recover-t20343.html
what-are-the-commands-use-erase-using-mhdd-t20557.html
mhdd-lba-drive-not-ready-t20609.html
how-many-rounds-does-the-gutmann-method-support-t20653.html

I am very sorry for the duplicate posts. I hope you will forgive me, please?

I found a tool that works. It's called HDAT2. I learn very slow, so please bare with me.

Both HPA, and the Max Password was disabled. I enabled the password. Did I do that right? Or how do I disable it only if it should be disabled? How do I erase the HPA? I know for sure that wiping the hard drive works. I am unsure on how to remove the HPA, and wipe it.

I want to start completely over where there are no traces left of any kind of data, so that I can partition, format, and install Windows.

Another question, after wiping out the HPA. Will my hard drive be setup automatically?

Oh dear, so I wasted my time answering your questions about HDDErase


I rarely use HDAT2, but you will find a link to their forum on the HDAT2 website, so you can ask your questions about HDAT2 there.


You have said above that the drive does not have an HPA, as you say it was reported as "disabled". If you have questions about what is reported by HDAT2, you can ask on their web forum.


That depends what you mean by "setup" (the likely answer is "no", but you would need to be clearer what you mean exactly), and see above answer regarding the HPA.

I'm sorry, but you didn't waste your time. I found the tool after you posted. I'm sorry about.

I have to pull up a Google search for the HDAT2 forums. I'm believe I'm not a member. I would need to register. That's fine if I register. I'll ask over there to see about enabling HPA in that particular tool.

I meant as a setup as in if someone is installing a brand new hard drive such as buying it from Newegg, and then installing it manually. I let my Uncle do all the tech hardware stuff for me such as installing new hardware. I don't get to see him. I live in PA, and he lives in NJ about 6 miles from Ground Zero which are the towers. He's the one who installed my WD drive for me.

I want to say thank you so much for your time, and your help.

I'll go to that forum.