How to Use HP Secure Erase to Wipe Disk (2 Ways)

What is HP Secure Erase?

HP Secure Erase is an important part of HP system security, which is used to protect HP users' sensitive data. It works on solid-state drives and hard disk drives. HP added Secure Erase to the standard BIOS in 2011. Systems sold in 2009 or later can upgrade the BIOS to include Secure Erase.

HP Secure Erase will overwrite all data on the disk with DoD52220.22-M standard, which overwrites the disk for 3 passes. In this way, all data on an erased disk will be fully removed and basically cannot be recovered.

Why Should We Wipe Disk?

HDD and SSD are the most commonly used storage devices in our daily life. When you need to sell, discard or transfer your old disks, you will need to securely erase the disks. Some users will simply choose to format the disk. In fact, formatting still leaves fragments of information so that the data of the disk can be easily recovered by data recovery software. For those who store sensitive data or large amounts of data, formatting a drive can't effectively protect information security. And what you really need is a clean, secure wipe.

A securely wiped disk ensures that your information is safe from the future owner of the device. Besides, whether you sell it to a stranger or your friend, they will receive a clean, well-maintained disk. It helps increase the shelf life of the disk while providing the best possible value. That's why a secure erase is necessary, and it's important to choose a trusted disk erase tool.

How to Use HP Secure Erase to Wipe Disk

If your HP computer sold in 2011 or later, you can follow the steps below to use HP Secure Erase utility to wipe disk. If your HP systems sold in 2009 or 2010, you need to upgrade the BIOS to include Hp Secure Erase. If your HP computer sold before 2009, it doesn’t support this tool.

Step 1. Turn on or restart your HP computer. Press F10 repeatedly as soon as the HP logo appears on the screen to enter the BIOS setting menu.

Step 2. Then select the Security tab.

Step 3. Select Hard Drive Utilities or Hard Drive Tools.

Step 4. Choose Secure Erase to open HP Secure Erase.

Step 5. Select the drive from the listed devices.

Step 6. It will warn you that this operation will erase all data on the disk, confirm your operation and click Continue. And a few minutes later, the disk will be wiped successfully.

Wipe Disk with Alternative Tool When HP Secure Erase Drive Is Locked

HP Secure Erase can help some HP users to solve disk erasing problems, but some users have reported that the disk will be locked when they use this tool. You need to unlock it with the BIOS password. If you forget the password, then you can't erase the disk in HP BIOS.

At this time, you can choose a safe and reliable third-party alternative tool to help you. For example, AOMEI Backupper Professional. You can use it to wipe disks as well as partitions and unallocated space. As for wiping the disk, it supports multiple wiping methods, including DoD 52220.22-M used by HP Secure Erase.

More importantly, it not only can erase the drive with 3 passes like HP Secure Erase but also allows you to adjust the erasing times, ranging from 3 to 7. If you pursue the most thorough erasing way, this software provides you with the Gutmann wiping method, which can wipe your disk 35 times in total.

Therefore, when your drive is locked, you can use this alternative tool to wipe your disk easily. And here are the specific steps. Before you start wiping process, please backup your important files, because all the data on the disk will be erased and difficult to recover.

Step 1. Download AOMEI Backupper Professional, install, and launch it. Then click Tools > Disk Wipe.

Step 2. Choose Wipe disk and click Next.

Step 3. Choose the disk you want to wipe and click Next.

Step 4. Choose DoD 52220.22-M wiping method, set wiping times based on your own needs. Then click Start.

Summary

This article shows you how to wipe your disk with HP Secure Erase. You need to be aware that the drive may be locked when you use it. You can enter the BIOS password to unlock it. If you forget the password, you can use a reliable alternative tool - AOMEI Backupper Professional to erase the disks.

Its DoD 52220.22-M method allows you to adjust the wiping times in the range of 3 to 7. If you adjust it three times, you can achieve the same results as HP Secure Erase. If you want the most thorough erasing method. Gutmann can help you erase the disk 35 times and can ensure your data will not be leaked.

In addition, it is a great cloning software as well. It allows you to clone only OS partition, clone GPT to MBR, etc. You can download this software to explore more features. If you want to perform the operation on Windows Server systems，you can download AOMEI Backupper Server.