Top 2 Ways to Perform Intel SSD Secure Erase - All Windows

User Case: How to Secure Erase Older Intel SSD for Selling on

“Hi Guys, I have an older Intel 320 series SSD that I no longer use, so I thought I'd sell it, OK, I know I won't get a lot for it but it will be some money. I tried to Secure Erase it whilst it was in the PC as a Master drive, of course you can't, so I thought I'd 'Google' it. But it tells you: and it tells you: Note Windows® 10 and Windows 8*/8.1* blocks Secure Erase functionality. I'm running Windows 10 home on the PC and Premium on my laptop, so since they are both win 10 I can't do that, what can I do? I really want to make sure that no one can get to the data on the drive.Many ThanksSteve”

-Question from Tenforums

How to Perform Intel SSD Secure Erase - 2 Ways Included

For different reasons, some Intel SSD users want to erase their drives. SSDs are known to be faster, more durable, more compact, quieter, and use less energy than HDDs. So, how can you perform an Intel SSD secure erase operation? Here are a total of two methods for you. If you're interested, read on!

#1. Secure Erase SSD Intel via Intel® Memory and Storage Tool

After Intel has discontinued support for the Intel SSD Toolbox, its replacement is a new tool called Intel Memory and Storage Tools, also released by Intel, to support Intel SSD products. It is drive management software with a Graphical User Interface for Windows* that allows you to view current drive information, perform firmware updates, run full diagnostic scans, perform secure erase processes, and provide SMART attributes from Intel® Optane™ SSDs.

You can follow the steps below to learn how to securely erase data on Intel solid state drives replacement.

1. Download and install the Intel® Memory and Storage Tool on the primary system drive. Open the application.
2. On the left side of the screen, choose the disk to be erased. Click on “Features” and select “Secure Erase”.

3. Then click on “Erase”.

4. Read the warning message and press the “Yes” button to perform Intel SSD wipe.

* When using this Intel SSD erase tool, you need to pay attention to the following points.

• This tool only supports Intel SSDs.
• Intel drives cannot have partitions. You need to delete all drive partitions. Intel Secure Erase SSD will erase all partitions and destroy all data on the drive. If you have any data on your drive that you want to keep, you need to back it up first.
• (NVMe) Intel RST drivers are not supported.
• For SATA drives, the Secure Erase feature is only supported in Windows 7*. Later OS versions will prevent this feature.

#2. Intel SSD Secure Erase via AOMEI Backupper

While Intel provides you with special tools to securely erase your SSD, it does have some limitations. You cannot securely erase a drive that is currently working. The main one is that Windows 8*/8.1* and Windows® 10 do not allow secure erasing.

This is where you can use third-party software to perform an Intel SSD secure erase on Windows 10. AOMEI Backupper is an erase tool designed for all Windows PCs, including Windows 11/10/8.1/8/7/Vista/XP. Before you securely wipe your Intel SSD, check out what features this software has to offer!

🛸 It supports you to erase partitions or entire discs. You can delete selected partitions or delete unallocated space to free up space. Deleted data will not be recoverable.
🌋 It supports wiping USB drives, hard drives and SD cards. All brands of disks are supported, including Intel, Western Digital, Samsung and SanDisk.
🥗 It allows you to create bootable media in advance to help you successfully start your computer in the event of an accident.
🍇 It gives you multiple secure erase methods such as DoD 52220.22-M (with 7 passes) or Gutmann (with 35 passes).

Below you can learn how to use AOMEI Backupper for Intel SSD secure erase by following the steps shown in the picture. Click the download button to install this software on your computer. Deleted data cannot be recovered, you can backup your files first to protect the important data you don't want to lose.

1. Connect the Intel SSD you want to erase to your computer and make sure it can be detected. Launch AOMEI Backupper on your computer. Click "Tools" on the left panel and select "Disk Wipe" on the right.

2. You will then be asked to select the type of wipe you want. If you want to erase everything on your Intel SSD, select "Wipe Disk" to delete all partitions and clear all sectors on the disk.

3. Select the hard drive you want to wipe data and click "Next" to continue.

4. On the Wiping Method page, choose Fill sectors with Zero. Then click "Start" to begin the zero filling process. You can also choose other erasure methods according to your needs.

5. You will then be taken to the erase process page. If you want to stop the process, you can click Cancel in the right corner. When the operation is complete, click Finish.

Final Words

After reading this article, you can master two methods to perform an Intel SSD Secure Erase. One is to use the tool provided by Intel for you, and one is to use a third-party erase tool. After comparison, AOMEI Backupper has more features and works with more versions of Windows. To facilitate your erasing process, it is recommended that you use the latter to erase disk data to protect data privacy.

In addition to the erase function, AOMEI Backupper has built-in backup, restore, sync and clone functions. You can use it to sync your files to cloud services like OneDrive, Google Drive in real time. This way you can access your files on different devices, which is helpful for your daily work.