Best 3 DBAN Alternatives to Wipe Hard Drive - 2024 New

In this article from EaseUS, you can learn the following content:

Continue to read and learn about Darik's Boot and Nuke alternatives software to wipe hard drives or SSDs.

What Is DBAN

DBAN is also known as Dariks Boot and Nuke. This is a free and open-source data deletion software that is commonly used when erasing hard drives for reuse, donation, or sale. It deletes all data on the selected hard drive, such as programs, personal files, recovery partition, and operating system. DBAN will erase all disks on your computer if you make no selection. It's basically a standalone boot disk; just download the ISO image from the DBAN official website and burn it to a supported device.

But to make things easier, you can use EaseUS Partition Master as a reliable DBAN alternative. This tool allows you to wipe hard drives and SSDs directly and can complete the disk erasure task while Windows is running normally. Plus, it doesn't require any commands, making it very user-friendly for beginners.

Let's come back to DBAN. However, this tool also has many limitations, as follows:

1. 1. The main reason should be that DBAN stopped updating in June 2015, and users were unable to obtain further technical support.
2. 2. DBAN cannot detect SSDs and does not support erasing data on solid-state drives (SSDs).
3. 3. DBAN is a free disk-wiping tool for personal use only. It does not provide data deletion certificates for audit purposes or regulatory compliance. To access more advanced features, users need to use Blancco Drive Eraser, which is designed for enterprise use.
4. 4. DBAN works outside of Windows, and it won't run when your current operating system is in use, so even if you want to wipe the external hard drive, you'll need to boot it from the optical drive.
5. 5. DBAN uses commands to erase data, which may be unfamiliar to ordinary computer users. This can easily cause data loss.

DBAN Download Link: https://dban.org/

Don't forget to share this article and let more users know the limitations of DBAN.

How to Use DBAN to Wipe Hard Drive on Windows 10/11

Since Dariks Boot and Nuke only work when the hard drive is wiped from the BIOS, you must prepare the USB to create a DBAN bootable USB. Then, follow the steps below.

Step 1. First, go to the DBAN official website to download its ISO image file, and then burn it to USB.

Step 2. Then, enter the BIOS and set DBAN bootable USB as the first boot option. Then, reboot from this device.

Step 3. Wait a moment, and you will see Dariks Boot and Nuke on the blue screen. You have several options: press the function keys shown to learn more about DBAN, or just press Enter to start the disk erasure process.

Step 4. In the next window, you can see the detected hard drives, along with a few options at the bottom. Type M to learn about disk erasure methods.

Step 5. In the "Erase Methods" section, you can press "J" or "K" to scroll up or down and know the disk erasure methods. After that, select the method you want to use and confirm by pressing the space bar.

Step 6. Select the hard drive you want to erase and press the space key to confirm. You will then see an "erase" word at the beginning of the selected box.

Step 7. Press F10 to start the erasing process. Once you see the green "DBAN Success" text, it means that the disk wipe process has been completed successfully.

As you can see, for beginners, this process can be difficult. That's why we need DBAN alternatives to wipe a hard drive. The common alternatives to Darik's Boot and Nuke are EaseUS partition Master, nwipe, shredos, parted magic, diskpart, Disk Management, etc. We pick the 3 best free alternatives to DBAN.

Top 3 DBAN Alternatives in 2024 - With How-to Guide

Here, you will get three free DBAN alternatives that can meet the needs of different users. Choose the DBAN alternative that suits you based on the list below.

• To erase the entire disk, you can use Option 1 or Option 2.
• For a specific partition or unallocated space, you can use Option 1 or Option 3.
• To wipe your hard drive without booting into Windows, you can use Option 1.

Option 1. EaseUS Partition Master Free

The first simple DBAN alternative is EaseUS Partition Master. It is an all-in-one partition manager with many powerful features. It can help completely erase all data on the disk and make it unrecoverable. As a replacement for DBAN, it effectively makes up for all the limitations of DBAN, allowing users to erase disks or SSDs while the current system is running without creating a bootable USB or CD.

Here is how to wipe data using DBAN alternative - EaseUS Partition Master Free:

We've set two options for you to wipe data. Choose the one you need.

Option 1.  Wipe Partition

• Right-click the partition you want to erase data from, and choose "Wipe".
• In the new window, set the time for which you want to wipe your partition, then click "OK".
• Click the "Execute 1 Task(s)" button in the lower right corner, check the changes, then click "Apply".

Option 2. Wipe Disk

• Select the HDD/SSD. And right-click to choose "Wipe Disk".
• Set the number of times to wipe data. (You can set to 10 at most.) Then Click "OK".
• Click "Execute 1 Task(s)" and then click "Apply".

Option 2. Diskpart Clean All Commands

Diskpart is a command-line disk partitioning utility for Windows systems. You can use the "diskpart clean all command" to delete all data on the hard drive. Proceed as follows:

Step 1. Type and enter cmd in the Windows search box and run Command Prompt as administrator.

Step 2. Wait for a moment; you will see a black Command Prompt window. Type the following commands and hit the Enter key in sequence.

• diskpart
• list disk
• select disk 0 (0 means the number of the disk you want to clean.)
• clean all

Then, type exit to leave the diskpart window.

It's a little difficult since it requires commands. Turn to EaseUS Partition Master as an easier alternative if you are a beginner.

Option 3. Disk Management - Only Format Hard Drives

Disk Management is a Windows built-in disk partition manager that allows you to format your hard drive to delete data. However, it is worth noting that the data deleted by this method can be recovered. If you want to erase the data, you must still turn to EaseUS Partition Master Free.

Here's how to use a free alternative to DBAN - Disk Management:

Step 1. Right-click the Windows image and choose "Disk Management" to launch it.

Step 2. Locate the target hard drive and right-click it.

Step 3. Click Format and follow the wizard to set the volume label, file systems, and allocation unit. (If you are not sure, just leave it as default.)

Step 4. Check the Perform a quick format box and click OK to start.

Wait patiently, and it may take a few minutes, depending on how much data you store on the hard drive.

Don't forget to share this article and let other users know the best free alternatives to DBAN.

Conclusion

What is DBAN? How do you wipe a hard drive using DBAN? After reading the above information, you must have the answer. DBAN undoubtedly brings a lot of convenience, but it also has many limitations. If you think DBAN is inconvenient, use the three simple DBAN alternatives above.

Darik's Boot and Nuke Alternatives FAQs

There are many DBAN alternatives, such as nwipe, shredos, parted magic, diskpart, EaseUS Partition Master, etc. The following focuses on the alternative to DBAN; check them if you need them.

1. Is DBAN safe for SSD?

The answer is NO. DBAN is a free disk wipe tool software designed for traditional hard drives. It does not support SSDs and may potentially damage them. To wipe an SSD, you need an erase tool, such as EaseUS Partition Master or Diskpart.

2. Is DBAN effective?

Works great! DBAN works well when you boot your PC from a bootable disk, like a USB. You can use it to wipe multiple hard drives at once. 1TB will take 1 - 3 hours.

3. Can data be recovered after DBAN?

Is a hard drive usable after DBAN? In general, data recovery services or software can't recover data from a hard drive that has been wiped with DBAN. 

However, it's possible to recover some data if the target hard drive was not completely wiped or if only certain parts of the hard drive were wiped.