The wipe free space function in BleachBit is designed to securely erase the remnants of deleted files from your disk’s free space. Here’s how it works:
How Wipe Free Space Works
- Creating a Large Temporary File:
- BleachBit creates a large temporary file that fills up the free space on your disk. This file overwrites the areas where deleted files previously resided.
- Overwriting Data:
- The temporary file is filled with blank data (usually zeros), effectively overwriting any remnants of deleted files. This process ensures that the original data cannot be recovered.
- Deleting the Temporary File:
- Once the free space is filled and overwritten, BleachBit deletes the temporary file, leaving the free space securely wiped.
Benefits of Wiping Free Space
- Prevents Data Recovery: By overwriting the free space, BleachBit makes it extremely difficult for data recovery tools to retrieve any previously deleted files.
- Enhances Privacy: This function is particularly useful for ensuring that sensitive information is completely removed from your system.
Considerations
- Time-Consuming: Wiping free space can take a significant amount of time, depending on the size of the free space and the speed of your hardware.
- No Change in Free Space: After the process is complete, the amount of free space on your disk remains the same as before the operation.
This function provides an extra layer of security by ensuring that deleted files cannot be recovered, making it a valuable tool for maintaining privacy and data security.
To wipe free space on the agent, select the Settings menu and the Wipe Free Space menu item to open the Wipe Free Space form.
Replace D:\temp with any writable directory in the partition you want to wipe. Select execute to send the request to your RMM platform.
