I accidentally overwrote the software in the USB onto my computer’s HDD. I would like to restart Windows after erasing all HDD data, but is that possible? We apologize for the inconvenience, but we would appreciate it if you could give us some guidance on how to delete the data and be able to use Windows again. Also, I previously tried to insert a software called HDDErase into the USB to erase the overwritten data, but it did not work. If there is an easier and better HDD removal tool, I would like to know how to install it.
Ouch!
If you are just looking to reinstall Windows, there are a lot of tutorials out there you can follow. For example:
If you want to securely erase all data on your HDD, you can look here:
https://superuser.com/questions/1360332/how-safely-does-reinstalling-windows-wipe-old-data
The method you select might vary based on whether it is a HDD or SSD.
Thank you for answering. This question was bad. I forgot to tell you something important. Since I installed the software directly onto the entire HDD of my computer, I cannot use anything other than that software on that computer. The software is equipped with Linux, etc., and Linux-based operations are possible. You can also use another computer. Is it possible to use Windows again using USB, etc.? Also, at that time, I would like to erase the original data on the computer’s HDD, etc., so it would be helpful if you could tell me how to do that.
so… you accidentally installed Linux, is what you’re saying. I assume what you’re trying to say is that you’ve accidentally blown up the bootloader, but still have the windows data still laying around.
If you load the Windows recovery disk, you may be able to recover your bootloader from the command prompt using bootrec , but there’s not a guarantee that there wont be some data loss…
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In this case, you might be able to recover from within Linux.
- Boot into Your Linux System
- Open a Terminal
- If your system uses UEFI as opposed to BIOS, mount the EFI Partition
- Identify your EFI partition using:
lsblk or fdisk -l - Mount it using:
sudo mount /dev/sdXn /boot/efi - Replace
/dev/sdXnwith your actual EFI partition. - If you are not using EFI, you can skip this step.
- Identify your EFI partition using:
- Reinstall GRUB
- For BIOS systems:
sudo grub-install /dev/sdX - For UEFI systems:
sudo grub-install --target=x86_64-efi --efi-directory=/boot/efi --bootloader-id=GRUB - Replace
/dev/sdXwith your main disk (without a partition number).
- For BIOS systems:
- Generate a new GRUB configuration file to include both Linux and Windows:
sudo update-grub
This should restore the GRUB boot loader, and it should detect both your Linux and Windows installations.
Please note: if you are not sure what you are doing and there is data you cannot afford to lose on the machine, take your PC to a repair shop.
The above is only an outline of what should work. We cannot be held responsible for lost data / borked PC configs.
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Thank you for teaching me the details. It seems a little difficult for me, but it seems worth a try. Luckily the information I need is not in the original Windows data. Rather, I don’t want to leave any data behind. I would like to completely erase it as much as possible and then reinstall Windows. So, if it’s easier, I would be even happier if you could tell me how to overwrite the new Windows and erase the records on the HDD or SSD instead of restoring the data.
So the link James gave you in post 2 called “How to Clean Install Windows” would… have been your answer.
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I suggest using Microsoft’s instructions when possible. There are many reasons for that, one of which is that you get the most current information. I have wasted time using instructions that are not current instead of the current Microsoft instructions. Sometimes the other sites are more understandable but as I said, if you can use the Microsoft instructions then that would be best.
You do not say whether you are using Windows 11 or Windows 10. Assuming Windows 11 see Windows 11 Clean Installation. You probably need to use a different computer to install the Installation Media onto the USB drive.
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When I checked it now, I couldn’t enter it from the URL. I guess I didn’t check because I couldn’t get in before either. Like you said, I’m going to do some new research. However, I don’t know if I can use Microsoft’s functions in the current situation, so I will try it out and then send the message again. Thank you for your advice.
If you have the boot disk for the hard drive the partition(s) are on it should have an option to “zero fill” (completely erase) the partition by filling it with zeros if all you wanted was to erase the partition. The disk mfg. should have included one with the drive.
Sorry for the late reply. The execution was delayed because I didn’t have a 16GB USB handy. I followed your advice and was able to restart Windows. thank you. It seems that the records have been completely deleted, so it is safe. Thanks also to semicodin.