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I need to erase then recycle a bunch of SAS HDDs. They are from servers (I removed from a local ISP for a client) that require 20 amp power, which my house doesn't have, so I can't just erase them in the server using a bootable CD...

I have tried a SAS to SATA adapter, but it's passive, so doesn't work. Seems like there is no simple, inexpensive solution for this dilemma. I'm not going to pay hundreds of dollars for something I'll probably only need to use once.

Is there a simple solution for this, such as an external enclosure that converts SAS to USB? I can't find anything online at a reasonable price.

Maybe I'll just take out the platters and smash them with a hammer.

tomahawk
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    Smash the platters. Drill the platters. Sand/grind the platters. Throw the drives in a bonfire. Etc., etc. – joeqwerty Apr 12 '21 at 14:03
  • @joeqwerty FTW!!! :) – tomahawk Apr 12 '21 at 14:09
  • See for example https://serverfault.com/q/868863/546643 with regard to physically destroying drives versus wiping the data. But note that what is a suitable approach really depends on what exactly you're contracted to do and what needs to happen afterwards with the drives – Bob Apr 12 '21 at 14:11

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Physically destroy the spindles. Hammer, drill, skewer, press, shred, melt...

When they are going to be scrapped anyway, destruction with whatever tools are on hand is inexpensive. If compliance requires you to prove data deletion, hire a local shredding service to do it with documentation.

Or, deletion without destruction may be acceptable. Perhaps when important data was never stored on them, or if encryption was used and the keys are destroyed. Already this gets rather nuanced, physical destruction is simpler in some ways.

John Mahowald
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  • Most modern disks will be encrypted internally, and you can instruct them to generate a new key, which makes the data inaccessible instantly. For good measure, you can then overwrite with (unencrypted) zeroes. – Simon Richter Apr 13 '21 at 13:39
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SAS controllers can typically talk to SATA disks, so if you get an SAS controller, you can reuse it later even if you only attach SATA disks, or find it handy if you want to connect a SSD that is faster than 600 MB/s.

Plus, if you are permitted to reuse the disks after erasing them, getting a disk array for the price of a controller is a sweet deal.

Simon Richter
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