How to safely erase deleted files in Linux

The following tutorial will teach all Linux users how to safely erase available hard drive (HDD), solid state drive (SSD), and USB flash drive space, so that no one can restore the deleted files.

Have you noticed that when you delete a file from the system or permanently delete it from the recycle bin, it will disappear in the file system, but the file does not actually disappear, it resides in the available space of your disk drive and can still be restored using the data recovery application.

This tutorial provides two methods. The first is to use an application named Wipe Free Space, which was developed by the Polish developer Bogdan drozdoski. The second method uses the well-known BleachBit software.

Although BleachBit is a graphics application and Wipe Free Spac is a command line software, developers also provide easy-to-use graphical user interfaces (guis ), it can be easily used by novice users to safely erase the available space of their disks.

Editor's note: Before continuing reading, it is best to know that these applications will erase the available space on unused clusters and blocks, it also erased the so-called "Idle space" on the used block, that is, the space that can be used again after deleting the file and any other data.

Method 1-Wipe Free Space & Wipe Free Space GUI

From the default software source repository of your Linux release version, you can easily install the Wipe Free Space command line application. You can use the RPM-Based Binary Package for Linux release, or use the source code for compilation and installation.

After the installation is complete, you can download the graphic user interface front-end program from the connection at the end of this article, save it in the home directory, decompress it, and double-click run. sh (or execute sh run. sh command) to open the file.

After the application is opened, you can add the executable file path of the wipefreespace directory, so click "Browse" to search for it under/usr/bin. Then add the file system to be erased.

Make sure that the "Wipe only with zeros" option on the left of the window is selected. If you need to select more options, first check the manual to learn how to use them, because they may cause your drive to crash. Click "start erase" to start the task.

Method 2-BleachBit

This is the easiest method, and is recommended for beginners. BleachBit applications can be easily installed from the default software source repository of your Linux release version. Open it. Make sure that you select the "available disk space" option in the System Section on the sidebar. Click "clear" to start execution.

Available space options for BleachBit

The entire erasure operation takes a long time. You can see the detailed progress in the main window. If you have any problems in this tutorial, do not hesitate to post a comment below.

Download Wipe Free Space GUI 0.5:

Free in http://linux.bkjia.com/

The username and password are both www.bkjia.com

The specific download directory is in/July 15,/July 10/July 10/. How can I safely erase the deleted file content in Linux?

For the download method, see