How can I do this w/o going into MacOS Recovery? I am donating a hard drive that is only APFS and I want to wipe it so a document with passwords can't be recovered. Is it even possible then to do it? Thank you in advance.
[Re-Titled by Moderator]
Original Title: Can i How to Wipe an APFS Disk so all data is gone
Mac Studio (2022)
Is it a Hard Drive or an SSD?
Was Filevault enabled on this drive?
This is very important information especially if the drive is a Hard Drive, since a simple erase of an unencrypted Hard Drive will still retain your data that is accessible using data recovery software.
What is the exact model of this Mac? And does it still boot? You can get the exact model by clicking the Apple menu and selecting "About This Mac", or if it cannot boot, then you can get the exact model by entering the system serial number on the check coverage page here (don't post the serial number on this forum as it is considered personal information):
View Coverage - AppleCare & Warranty
There are several options for destroying the data on an unencrypted Hard Drive, but which option is easiest depends on the exact model of the Mac and whether it still functions. Of course any option requires the Hard Drive to be healthy.....a failing Hard Drive may not be able to complete a secure erase or encryption process.
If your Mac is still functional and uses a Hard Drive with Filevault enabled, or an SSD, then a simple erase with Disk Utility is sufficient to destroy your data. In fact, here is an Apple article with instructions for transferring ownership of a Mac to someone else (even a recycling center):
What to do before you sell, give away, trade in, or recycle your Mac - Apple Support
Otherwise you need to provide the requested details to find out your options.
Is it a Hard Drive or an SSD?
Was Filevault enabled on this drive?
This is very important information especially if the drive is a Hard Drive, since a simple erase of an unencrypted Hard Drive will still retain your data that is accessible using data recovery software.
What is the exact model of this Mac? And does it still boot? You can get the exact model by clicking the Apple menu and selecting "About This Mac", or if it cannot boot, then you can get the exact model by entering the system serial number on the check coverage page here (don't post the serial number on this forum as it is considered personal information):
View Coverage - AppleCare & Warranty
There are several options for destroying the data on an unencrypted Hard Drive, but which option is easiest depends on the exact model of the Mac and whether it still functions. Of course any option requires the Hard Drive to be healthy.....a failing Hard Drive may not be able to complete a secure erase or encryption process.
If your Mac is still functional and uses a Hard Drive with Filevault enabled, or an SSD, then a simple erase with Disk Utility is sufficient to destroy your data. In fact, here is an Apple article with instructions for transferring ownership of a Mac to someone else (even a recycling center):
What to do before you sell, give away, trade in, or recycle your Mac - Apple Support
Otherwise you need to provide the requested details to find out your options.
Erase and reformat a storage device in Disk Utility on Mac - Apple Support
Note the 'and'. You cannot just erase a drive, you must erase and reformat it. That means you need to select a format first. If you select an APFS format, you don't get the secure erase options. In Disk Utility, click the Erase option (upper right), select GUID Partition Map, then select Mac OS Extended as the format. Then you should be able to click the security options button at the bottom left to bring up the slider with the options:
Chris Winkler1 wrote:
How can I do this w/o going into MacOS Recovery? I am donating a hard drive that is only APFS and I want to wipe it so a document with passwords can't be recovered. Is it even possible then to do it? Thank you in advance.
ref: Erase and reformat a storage device in Disk Utility on Mac
Erase and reformat a storage device in Disk Utility on Mac - Apple Support
If it is a hard disk drive (HDD, spinning disk), Disk Utility will give you the option of securely erasing the drive, choose one depending on your needs (more secure = more time).
If it is a solid state drive (SSD), there is no secure erase option in Disk Utility and none is needed because when you reformat the drive, the TRIM command is employed by default and that's functionally the same as securely erasing the drive.
Hi, I'll answer your questions, thanks.
HDD
It was a time machine b/u for my wife and it did not ask for a password before I erased it.
It's an older external drive, do you still need computer info? 2023 Mac Studio.
The drive is healthy, how would I find out if its FileVault enabled?
Hi, thanks for writing. It's a HDD and it does NOT give any options on erasing it, just 4 versions of APFS. Why is there no option to securely erase it like there was in the past. I am donating it to veterans, though there are passwords on there, in TechTool Pro it will not wipe APFS volume, it says to use the Volume Initialization tool.
And that only gives me the 4 APFS choices. Can someone help me wipe this drive, otherwise I'll have to smash it, it's only 500GB, and I would prefer to donate it. Thanks in advance for your help.
I replied to this and either I did not hit post, or admin deleted it. It's a 500GB old Time Machine backup I have not used in years. I did reboot in Recovery Mode, and it did erase APFS and it said "Erasing Backup will permanently erase all data stored on it" so I think that worked. Did that totally erase any old spreadsheets?
I will end here and reply to neuroanatomist below as he got me to the point of wiping it.
I was not able to follow your instructions, rather I was able to go to Partition, make it the Mac OS Extended. I tried to erase with security in disc utility and I could not. So I fired up TechTool Pro and in this format its letting me wipe.
So thanks to everyone who helped!!! Now I can sleep knowing they can't extract all of our passwords.
Use disk utilities to erase and reformat. I assume it is an SSD? I believe there are secure erase software apps that can also be used if really needed.
Can I securely wipe an APFS disk without using macOS recovery?
