Core Concepts

Wipe Methods

All data sanitization methods supported by Swipe, from quick zero-fill to NIST 800-88 Purge.

Software Methods

The CPU writes patterns to every sector of the drive. Works on all drive types.

Zero Fill

Writes 0x00 to every sector.

1 Pass Fastest

Best for: Non-sensitive data, quick device recycling. Not suitable for classified data.

Random Fill

Writes cryptographically random bytes using ISAAC PRNG.

1 Pass Moderate

Best for: General-purpose secure erasure. Provides better entropy than zero/one fill.

DoD 5220.22-M (3-Pass)

Pass 1: 0xFF → Pass 2: 0x00 → Pass 3: Random

3 Passes Standard

Best for: Government and corporate compliance. Time = ~3× single pass.

DoD 5220.22-M ECE (7-Pass)

Extended version with 7 alternating pattern passes.

7 Passes Secure

Best for: High-security requirements. Significantly slower but very thorough.

Gutmann Method

35 passes with specific patterns designed for older magnetic media.

35 Passes Maximum

Best for: Legacy compliance or extreme requirements. Generally considered overkill for modern drives.

NIST 800-88 Clear

NIST Special Publication 800-88 Rev. 1 compliant clear method.

NIST Recommended

Best for: Federal agencies, enterprise compliance. The modern standard for software-based sanitization.

Hardware Methods (Purge)

The drive firmware handles the erasure internally. Much faster but requires hardware support.

ATA Security Erase

Sends ATA SECURITY ERASE UNIT command. Drive firmware erases all user-accessible sectors.

ATA Firmware

Requires: ATA/SATA drive with security feature set. Drive must not be frozen. Typically takes 30-120 minutes for HDDs, seconds for SSDs.

ATA Enhanced Secure Erase

Enhanced variant that also erases reallocated and reserved sectors.

ATA Enhanced

Requires: Drive must report enhanced erase capability. Accesses sectors that software methods cannot reach.

NVMe Sanitize (Crypto Erase)

Destroys the encryption key, rendering all data permanently unrecoverable in milliseconds.

NVMe Instant

Requires: NVMe drive with Crypto Erase support. The fastest possible sanitization method.

Comparison Table

Method Passes Speed Security Use Case
Zero Fill 1 ★★★★★ ★★☆☆☆ Quick recycle
Random 1 ★★★★☆ ★★★☆☆ General secure
DoD 3-Pass 3 ★★★☆☆ ★★★★☆ Corporate
DoD 7-Pass 7 ★★☆☆☆ ★★★★★ Government
Gutmann 35 ★☆☆☆☆ ★★★★★ Legacy max
NIST Clear 1-3 ★★★★☆ ★★★★☆ Modern standard
ATA Secure Erase FW ★★★★★ ★★★★★ SATA drives
NVMe Crypto Erase FW ★★★★★ ★★★★★ NVMe SSDs