If you decide to sell or give your PC to someone else, it’s advisable to delete all of your personal files beforehand — for obvious reasons. The problem is that actually deleting anything on a computer isn’t as easy as it sounds.
Even if you empty the Recycle Bin, it’s usually easy to recover deleted files using freely available software and that raises some important security concerns.
What happens when Windows deletes a file?
Origin pro 2018 crack free download. The problem is that when you delete a file in Windows, the file isn’t actually “deleted” as such. Instead, Windows simply marks the space it occupies on the hard drive as “empty” so that it can be used to store something else and the data that makes up the file simply stays on the drive until then.
So what can you do when you really do want to delete a file forever so that it can’t be restored? The answer lies in what happens to a deleted file once part of it has been overwritten with something else.
As soon as a new file uses some of the disk space an old file used to occupy, the chances of undeleting that old file diminish. Some file recovery software can reconstruct files even if some of the data has been overwritten (recovering something is better than nothing, in some cases) but this becomes impossible beyond a certain point. Check out our guide to recovering deleted files on Windows 10 here.
How secure delete works
That’s just how secure delete software works. Rather than simply mark a file as “deleted” but leave its data in place, secure delete software actually overwrites that space with other data. In most cases, simply overwriting it with ones or zeros (which is how data is actually represented on a hard drive) is enough to render it unrecoverable, but it is still possible to analyse a hard drive using a microscope to discover the “ghost image” of overwritten data — not that anyone buying a second-hand PC via Ebay would bother.
That said, the size and sophisticated storage technology of modern multi-terabyte hard drives make this already difficult technique effectively impossible, but writing over old files several times with random data destroys it irrevocably.
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Of course the most paranoid PC users will still claim that the only way to ensure the contents of a hard drive can’t be recovered is to remove the drive, disassemble it and physically destroy the magnetic platters that store the data. That’s probably taking things a bit far for most purposes, but it’s still far from foolproof if someone really, really wants to get that data back. It may be prohibitively expensive, but it can be done.
Kroll Ontrack is a data recovery company that specialises in such difficult cases. It has successfully downloaded photos from digital cameras that were all but destroyed in fires, for example, and retrieved 99% of the data from a hard drive recovered from the remains of the 2003 Columbia Space Shuttle disaster.
So if you want to securely delete files stored on your hard drive, the simple option is to use a free secure delete utility. There are a few available, but we’ve chosen Eraser, which supports Windows XP or upwards, including Windows 10. Remember, you download third-party software at your own risk - ensure you read all the installation steps carefully and if you aren't happy, don't use the software.
Securely delete your files
Step 1: Download the free Eraser tool
Go to http://eraser.heidi.ie and click Download at the top. Look for the download link under Build Name partway down the page. Click the link called Eraser 6.2.0.2982.
Step 2: Start the download from the SourceForge site Images of fallout 4.
The download link will take you to a site called SourceForge, which is a hosting site for open-source software. The download will begin automatically after a few seconds.
Step 3: Install Eraser
Double-click the downloaded .exe file to begin the installation and select the Typical installation option. There’s nothing to catch you out with the installation, otherwise.
Step 4: Right-click a file to delete it securely
To securely delete any file, right-click it and select Eraser - Erase from the menu that appears. Click the Yes button on the dialog box to continue — and bear in mind that you won’t be able to recover the file afterwards.
Step 5: Change the secure delete options
If you click the Options button on the dialog box, rather than Yes, you can double-click the Erasure Method and change it from the default overwrite option to one that involves overwriting a file repeatedly. This really isn’t necessary, though, and can make the delete process much slower.
Windows can’t seem to shake its legacy off. After evolving to a point which looks very modern and nothing like the comical Windows XP or the super stoic Windows 7, there are still some things that won’t leave Windows 10 alone. Corrupt files being only one of them.
I’ve already seen a few users facing an error message while deleting unwanted files on their systems. Files that insist that they are ‘In Use’ when clearly nothing is open on the users system. How can you get rid of such undeletable files? No need to google, we are here to make your life easier.
Cool Tip for Windows 10 Users: The Digital Citizen blog has an interesting post that compares browsers to see which one saves battery on Windows 10. Check it out.
1. Try Killing the Task
I spoke about Window’s legacy for a reason. Sure, it has its cons, but it’s got it pros too. One great thing that I’ve always liked about Windows is the great Task Manager. This not only gives you an idea of running apps and services at any time on your computer, you can also use it to kill services that might be stopping you from deleting certain files.
So, for example, if you can recognize the type of file yourself (say Excel), then hunt for the locked file or process in the Task Manager window and right-click on it. Then, click on End task. Not to worry here, if it’s a system based task, you won’t be able to kill it anyway. Even if you have administrator access.
2. Delete File Using Third Party Tool
Administrator access denied? Don't worry. There is a neat 3rd party solution that can help getting rid of files and even folders that Windows won’t let you delete. It’s called Unlocker and once you’ve downloaded and installed it, all you gotta do is right-click on the files/folders and then select Unlocker.
Here, you might get a list of processes which are associated with a certain file or folder. Click on Unlock All and this should free up the file/folder to be removed. If it doesn’t work, try Kill Process.
3. Delete File Using Command Prompt
This option is for those who have some experience with Microsoft Windows command prompts. Go to Start menu or press the Windows button on your keyboard and go to Run or just press Win+R. A tiny box will appear at the bottom right corner of your desktop.
Here, type in Cmd and press Enter to open command prompt. You will now see a black window, enter the command line del /f filename there. Make sure the ‘filename’ is the name of the file you want to delete. You can also force delete multiple files that you can specify using commas.
You can also delete a folder using command prompt. Do the above steps till you find the command window and type in the command line RD /S /Q <Folder Path>. Here, the file path would be what the address bar on windows explorer is showing when you go to the folder that you want to delete. For example, RD /S /Q C:UsersXXXPremiumFolder X.
4. Safe Boot if All Else Fails
If nothing works out, then Safe Boot is the ultimate savior. Do this step only if you’ve tried all else and not had any luck. There are plenty of ways to go in Safe Mode, but the one I like most if by typing msconfig in the search box of Windows 10 and then heading over to the Boot tab of the window that pops up.
Here, select the Safe boot option and once you click Apply you will be prompted to reboot the system.
It will now automatically take you to the Safe Mode, where you can delete the file. To get back to the regular mode, go back to the MSCONFIG window and uncheck Safe boot from the boot menu and the PC will reboot back to its normal state.
Any Alternatives?
These are the best options for removing files/folders that won’t go without a fight. But, if you have better alternatives, then we’d like to hear back. Join us in our forums to discuss.
Read Next4 Ways to Quickly Lock Files and Folders in Windows 10 NativelyAlso See#file deletion #Lists
Did You Know
You can pin the Recycle Bin on the Start menu in Windows 10.
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On any computer, we have the tendency to download a lot of junk from the internet, such as images, documents, videos, software, and more, which typically, we use once or twice and never delete. Over time, these files can pile up and use a lot of valuable space on the hard drive.
Since the Creators Update, Windows 10 includes Storage sense, a feature to automatically delete temporary files and those that have been in the recycle bin for over 30 days. And now with the Windows 10 Fall Creators Update, the feature also includes an option to delete files in the Downloads folders that haven’t change in the last month.
In this guide, you’ll learn the steps to configure Storage sense to cleanup files that haven’t changed over 30 days on Windows 10.
How to cleanup the Downloads folder automatically
To configure Storage sense to automatically delete files in the Downloads folder, do the following:
Inside the settings page, you can also turn on other options to free up space in your device storage, including Delete temporary files that my apps aren’t using and Delete files that have been in the recycle bin for over 30 days.
Once you completed the steps, Windows 10 will automatically cleanup the Downloads folder to free up space on your hard drive.
If you enable this feature, it would be a really good idea to move the files you want to keep to your Documents or OneDrive folders, because Windows 10 won’t care and after a month, if they haven’t changed they’ll be deleted.
If you can’t find this option in the Settings app, it’s because you don’t have the Windows 10 Fall Creators Update installed on your PC. This feature is available starting with Windows 10 build 16199 and later.
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