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I'm preparing to sell a computer. It came with Windows 7 (no install disks).
I want to wipe all my data in the most secure way possible, (not just remove links, but overwrite the drive). My goal is to ensure that I have removed any personal data and malware.
I would like to use a tool like DBAN (http://www.howtogeek.com/howto/15817/wipe-delete-and-securely-destroy-your-hard-drives-data-the-easy-way/), but it says this will remove the recovery partition here (http://www.howtogeek.com/171980/how-to-prepare-a-computer-tablet-or-phone-before-selling-it/).
In that page, it also says "If your laptop or desktop computer has a traditional magnetic hard drive, it’s possible for people to recover the data from the hard drive even after you reformat it and reinstall the operating system. This is because reinstalling the operating system won’t erase every sector of the disk."
So, is it possible to both eliminate the possibilities of someone recovering my data and/or malware resurrecting itself, and still be able to install Windows without hassle afterwards? What would be the easiest way to accomplish this?
PS: I believe I have malware that is preventing me from booting to Windows. I can boot from a Ubuntu USB.
Thanks. Does the Magical Jelly Bean require using my Windows? Like I said, it won't boot to Windows. Unfortunately my product key is no longer legible on the sticker either (although I do have the beginning, and a service tag, and express service code that I can read). The bar code also looks scannable. If I took it somewhere could they get the product key from that? Where would I need to go? – capybaralet – 2015-01-21T01:16:29.620
Yes, unfortunately the Magical Jelly Bean tool requires you to boot into windows. However, if you have a smartphone, you could try downloading a barcode scanner app to see if it can read the barcode from the sticker and, if so, it contains the Windows product key. – Kristian – 2015-01-21T08:26:31.247