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Do I really have to use secure erase
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this post was submitted on 19 Aug 2026
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Follow the steps here to perform a secure erase that resets the cells and wipes any on-device encryption keys:
https://wiki.archlinux.org/title/Solid_state_drive/Memory_cell_clearing
You can do this from a live-boot environment if you wish. I would very strongly recommend disconnecting ALL other drives before performing this step as the best precaution against accidentally nuking the wrong drive. However if you choose to do this with other drives connected triple check you have the right drive selected before each step.
parted_magic has gui tools for this (among many other things) on a bootable image. it's not free, but a one-off download is only like 20 bucks (use that version forever). secure erase and running smart tests are about the only things i use it for, and even just for that it is definitely worth the lunch money.