What Is the Best HDD Zero Fill Utility? (Tutorial Attached)

Why zero fill hard drive in Windows 10/11?

Zero-filling a hard drive is a process that completely erases all data by overwriting every sector with zeros. This method ensures that previously stored information is no longer recoverable. Here’s why you might need to perform a zero-fill on your drive:

🎯Secure Data Erasure: A zero-fill operation makes it nearly impossible to restore deleted data, making it ideal when selling or donating your computer or hard drive.

🎯Fixing Corrupt Hard Drives: Zero-filling can help recover a failing drive by removing stubborn file system corruption and reset the drive to a clean, factory-like state.

🎯Restoring Performance on Older Drives: Over time, HDDs can become sluggish due to fragmented or excessive unused data. Zero-filling clears all residual data, improving read/write efficiency.

2 Recommended zero fill hard drive utilities

If you're looking to securely erase your hard drive by writing zeros to every sector, two highly recommended tools are AOMEI Backupper Professional and Diskpart.

1. AOMEI Backupper Professional

AOMEI Backupper Professional is a powerful disk wipe tool that includes an intuitive feature for securely wiping a drive, including zero-fill options. It’s user-friendly and ideal for both beginners and advanced users. Here’s why AOMEI Backupper is an excellent choice:

2. Diskpart (Built-in Windows Tool)

For users who prefer a free and built-in option, Diskpart is a powerful command-line tool in Windows that can be used to write zeros to a hard drive. Though not as user-friendly as AOMEI Backupper, Diskpart is effective and works directly within the Windows environment.

Diskpart’s clean all command allows you to erase a disk completely and securely by overwriting all sectors with zeros. Beyond zero filling, Diskpart can be used to manage partitions, format disks, and more.

How to write zeros to hard drive in Windows 10/11

Now follow the instructions below to use the above tools to write zeros to hard drive in Windows 10/11.

1. Using disk wipe software

Step 1. Open zero fill hard drive utility - AOMEI Backupper. In the main window, click on the Tools tab and select Disk Wipe.

Step 2. When asked to select the wiping type, select Wipe Disk and click Next.

Step 3. In the next window, select the HDD you wish to wipe and click Next.

Note: If you select a system disk, the program will prompt you to execute the operation in reboot mode.

Step 4. Choose Fill sectors with Zero and click Start to begin writing zeros to hard drive.

2. Using Diskpart

Step 1. Open Command Prompt as Administrator.

Step 2. Type diskpart to launch the Diskpart tool.

Step 3. Use list disk to display all connected drives.

Step 4. Select the drive you want to wipe using select disk [disk_number].

Step 5. Use the command clean all to zero-fill the drive (this will overwrite all sectors with zeros).

Step 6. Type exit twice to close Diskpart and Command Prompt successively.

Note: You cannot use Diskpart to wipe the system disk while it's actively in use by Windows. To get it done, create a bootable USB first and run Diskpart commands in WinRE.

FAQs about zero filling a hard drive

1. Can I Zero Fill a Solid-State Drive (SSD)?

Answer: While you can technically zero-fill an SSD, it’s not recommended. SSDs handle data differently from HDDs, and performing a zero-fill operation can reduce the drive’s lifespan due to wear leveling. Instead, you should use a specialized Secure Erase tool designed for SSDs.

2. How Long Does Zero Filling Take?

Answer: The time it takes to zero-fill a hard drive depends on several factors:

• Drive size: Larger drives (e.g., 1TB or more) will take significantly longer to wipe than smaller drives (e.g., 500GB).
• Drive speed: The read/write speed of the drive will also impact the duration.

On average, a 500GB HDD can take 3-4 hours to zero-fill, while larger drives might take 8 hours or more.

3. Is Zero Filling the Same as Formatting a Hard Drive?

Answer: No, zero-filling and formatting are not the same. While formatting a drive simply removes file pointers and marks the space as available for new data, it does not fully erase the data. Zero-filling, on the other hand, overwrites every bit of data on the drive with zeros, ensuring complete data destruction. Formatting does not make data unrecoverable, but zero-filling does.

To sum up

If you are looking for HDD zero fill utility, AOMEI Backupper and Diskpart are two recommended choices. Whether you're preparing a drive for reuse or securely erasing sensitive data, these two utilities can help you with the zero-fill operation.

In fact, AOMEI Backupper is more than just disk wipe software; it also offers backup, restore, sync, and clone features. You can use it to clone an SSD to a larger SSD, expanding your computer's storage. Give it a try yourself!