Hey guys,

I want to shred/sanitize my SSDs. If it was a normal harddrive I would stick to ShredOS / nwipe, but since SSD’s seem to be a little more complicated, I need your advice.

When reading through some posts in the internet, many people recommend using the software from the manufacturer for sanitizing. Currently I am using the SSD SN850X from Western digital, but I also have a SSD 990 PRO from Samsung. Both manufacturers don’t seem to have a specialized linux-compatible software to perform this kind of action.

How would be your approach to shred your SSD (without physically destroying it)?

~sp3ctre

  • hendrik@palaver.p3x.deEnglish
    2·
    1 day ago

    Yes, thanks. Just invalidating or trimming the memory doesn’t cut it. OP wants it erased so it needs to be one of the proper erase commands. I think blkdiscard also has flags for that, so I believe you could do it with that command as well, if it’s supported by the device and you append the correct options. (zero, secure) I think other commands are easier to use (if supported).

    • 𝕽𝖚𝖆𝖎𝖉𝖍𝖗𝖎𝖌𝖍@midwest.social
      2·
      1 day ago

      I did read (on the Arch wiki) that blkdiscard -z is identical to dd if=/dev/zero, so that tracks. It’s (blkdiscard) is easier to use. However, given my memory and how infrequently I’ll ever use it, I’ll have forgotten the name of the command by next week. I’ll never forget dd, though, mainly because it’s more general purpose and I use it occasionally.

      OP probably wants blkdiscard -z, though.

      • hendrik@palaver.p3x.deEnglish
        1·
        1 day ago

        I’m not sure about that. I think OP wants something like ATA secure erase. That would be hdparm and a bunch of options, and not blkdiscard. Unless they specifically know what they’re doing and what options to pick. And what the controller will do in return.