Paragon Disk Wiper - 8.5 User Manual

Disk Wiper™ 8.5

User Manual

Disk Wiper™ 8.5 2 User Manual

CONTENTS

1 Introduction................................................................................................................... 4

2 Key Features.................................................................................................................. 4

3 Disk Wiper Editions...................................................................................................... 5

4 Installation ..................................................................................................................... 6

4.1 Package Contents................................................................................................................................. 6

4.2 Minimum System Requirements ........................................................................................................ 6

4.3 Installation Procedure ......................................................................................................................... 6

5 Basic Concepts............................................................................................................... 8

5.1 Data Sanitization..................................................................................................................................8

5.2 Data Security Standards......................................................................................................................8

5.3 64-bit Support.......................................................................................................................................9

5.4 Scheduling...........................................................................................................................................10

6 Interface Overview...................................................................................................... 11

6.1 General Layout...................................................................................................................................11

6.2 Main Menu .........................................................................................................................................12

6.3 Tool Bar ..............................................................................................................................................13

6.4 Virtual Operations Bar......................................................................................................................13

6.5 Common Tasks Bar ...........................................................................................................................14

6.6 Disk Map............................................................................................................................................. 15

6.7 Explorer Bar.......................................................................................................................................15

6.8 Legend Bar .........................................................................................................................................16

6.9 Status Bar ...........................................................................................................................................16

7 Settings Overview........................................................................................................ 18

7.1 General Options ................................................................................................................................. 18

7.2 Wipe Options......................................................................................................................................19

7.3 Partitioning Options ..........................................................................................................................19

7.4 E-Mail Options................................................................................................................................... 20

7.5 Virtual Mode Options........................................................................................................................ 21

7.6 Operation Dependency Options........................................................................................................22

8 Getting Information about Disks............................................................................... 24

9 Wipe Tasks................................................................................................................... 26

9.1 Wipe Hard Disk/Partition .................................................................................................................26

9.2 Clear Free Space ................................................................................................................................30

9.3 Build Wiping Media...........................................................................................................................31

10 Scheduling Operations................................................................................................ 34

10.1 Save to Scheduler ...............................................................................................................................36

11 Scripting.......................................................................................................................37

12 Partition Management................................................................................................ 39

12.1 Create Partition..................................................................................................................................39

12.2 Format Partition ................................................................................................................................41

12.3 Delete Partition...................................................................................................................................43

13 Hard Disk Management ............................................................................................. 45

13.1 Update MBR.......................................................................................................................................45

Disk Wiper™ 8.5 3 User Manual

14 Extra Functionality ..................................................................................................... 46

14.1 View Partition/Hard Disk Properties............................................................................................... 46

14.2 Mount Partition..................................................................................................................................46

14.3 Test Surface ........................................................................................................................................48

14.4 Check File System Integrity.............................................................................................................. 48

14.5 Edit/View Sectors............................................................................................................................... 49

14.6 Send Log Files ....................................................................................................................................50

15 Glossary........................................................................................................................52

Disk Wiper™ 8.5 4 User Manual

1 Introduction

Data security nowadays is the burning issue not only for companies and government agencies, but rank and file people as well. Our personality is now fully embedded in computer technology. It is computer you apply to when at work, it is also computer you use at home for entertainment or as a reservoir for containing some valuable data such as personal correspondence, banking account information, credit card numbers, financial records, whatever… It is obvious that this kind of data should in no way be available to others. That is why, when disposing of a storage device (a hard disk or a flash memory drive), the crucial thing is to make sure it does not contain any information, because simple deletion, or even reformatting do not guarantee data security at all. To do that, you need a specially designed tool.

Our program is a fast, convenient and reliable solution providing irreversible destruction of data on separate partitions or entire hard disks (IDE, SCSI, SATA, USB, etc.) as well as any type of flash memory devices. The key features of the program are listed in the special chapter

Setting up any operation is accomplished by using practical wizards. Each step of the wizard includes indepth information in order to allow the user to make the right choice. Graphical representations of the data help the user to gain a better understanding.

In this manual you will find the answers to many of the technical questions which might arise while using the program.

2 Key Features

Let us list some of the key features:

 User friendly interface. Easily understood icons accompany all functions of the program.  Previewing the resulting layout of hard disks before actually executing operations (so-called virtual

operations).

 Support of major national government and military data erasure standards as well as the possibility to

create a customized algorithm.

 Wipe Wizard that enables to successfully destroy all on-disk information including standard

bootstrap code and other system service structures, thus providing high level of security, and that even beginners may understand.

 Wiping Media Builder that helps the user to create bootable media with the DOS-based version of

the program to boot from and destroy all on-disk information even when the current operating system cannot boot anymore. The DOS-based version can boast the same interface as the Windows version does, providing a unique possibility to enjoy XP-like environment and functionality under DOS.

 Clear Free Space function to destroy any remnants of deleted files/directories left on disk without

affecting the used data.

 Schedule the operation. The user can set a convenient time for the program to perform the operation

automatically.

 Basic functions for initializing, partitioning and formatting hard disks. Instead of the standard

Windows disk tools, the program supports all file systems.

 Shutdown After Apply function enables to set the computer to automatically switch off on the

successful accomplishment of any scheduled operation.

Some features may be unavailable in the version of the product you have. To learn more about it please consult the Disk Wiper Editions chapter.

Disk Wiper™ 8.5 5 User Manual

3 Disk Wiper Editions

The product is being released in several editions, Personal and Professional, which vary in price and provided functionality:

 The Personal edition does not enable to use national government and military data erasure standards,

but two wipe algorithms (Paragon’s and customized).

 The Personal edition does not support scripting, i.e. it cannot perform batch tasks in the unattended

mode.

 Generate Script and Save to Scheduler program’s dialogs are unavailable in the Personal edition.  There is no possibility to send notifications by e-mail on the carried out operations in the Personal

edition.

Supported Operating Systems

Windows 95

Windows 98

Windows Me

Windows NT

Windows NT Server Family

Windows 2000 Professional

Windows XP Home Edition

Windows XP Professional/ 64-bit

Windows 2000 Server Family

Windows Storage Server 2003

Windows Server 2003 Web

Windows Server 2003 Standard

Windows Server 2003 Standard 64-bit

Windows Server 2003 Enterprise

Windows Server 2003 Enterprise 64-bit/ Itanium

Windows Server 2003 Datacenter

Windows Server 2003 Datacenter 64bit/ Itanium

Windows Small Business Server 2003 Standard/ Premium

Windows Vista

Personal Professional

Yes Yes

No No

Yes Yes

No No

Yes Yes

No No

Yes Yes

Please take into consideration the mentioned above peculiarities of the certain versions when working with the program.

Disk Wiper™ 8.5 6 User Manual

4 Installation

This chapter provides information which is needed to perform the correct installation of the program, and in addition, checks if the current installation is working correctly.

4.1 Package Contents

The installation package includes the following components:

 Launcher (with an embedded HTML browser)  Wipe Wizard  Wiping Media Builder  Partition Management  Hard Disk Management  Scheduler with Task Editor  Extra Functionality

4.2 Minimum System Requirements

To use the program on a computer satisfactorily, ensure that it meets the following minimum system requirements:

 Operating systems: Windows 95/98/ME/NT/2000/XP/2003 Server/Vista and XP 64-bit  Internet Explorer 5.0 or higher  Intel Pentium CPU or its equivalent, with 300 MHz processor clock speed  128 MB of RAM  Hard disk drive with 40 MB of available space  SVGA video adapter and monitor  Mouse

4.3 Installation Procedure

The installation process consists of the following steps:

1. Run Setup Application From the folder, where the setup files are kept, run the SETUP.EXE file. This application will guide the user through the process of the program installation. The setup utility is compiled with the InstallShield SDK, hence it contains the standard user interface and set of installation steps.

In case there is some previous version of the program installed on the computer, the program will offer the user to uninstall it first.

2. Starting Setup The Welcome page informs that the application is being installed. Click the Next button to continue.

3. Confirm License Agreement The License Agreement page displays the Paragon License Agreement. Read the agreement and then click the Yes button to accept. If the user does not agree with any conditions stated there, the installation process will be interrupted.

Disk Wiper™ 8.5 7 User Manual

4. Select an Installation Folder The Destination Location page allows the user to choose the folder where the program will be installed. By default, the installation folder will be created as:

C:\Program Files\Paragon Software\Paragon Disk Wiper. To select another folder, click the Browse button.

After you have selected the required folder, click the Next button to continue.

Do not install the program on network drives. Do not use Terminal Server sessions to install and run the program. In both cases, the program functionality will be limited

5. Select a Program Group

The Program Folder page enables the user to select the application's program group for the Start Menu. By default, it will be the program group:

Start > Programs > Paragon Disk Wiper.

Click the Next button to continue.

6. Verify Setup Settings

The Start Copying page allows the user to verify settings, which have already been made and correct them if necessary. Press the Back button to return to the previous page and modify the installation settings. Click the Next button to complete the installation process.

7. Copying Files

The Setup Status page shows the overall progress of the installation. Click the Cancel button to abort the setup.

8. Finishing the Installation

The Final page reports the end of the setup process.

Disk Wiper™ 8.5 8 User Manual

5 Basic Concepts

This chapter explains terms and ideas that show how the program works. To understand these helps to obtain a general notion of the operation performance and makes it easier for the user to operate the program.

5.1 Data Sanitization

Data security is a two-sided problem. It is to be made clear, that providing confidentiality implies not only information to be stored properly, but also be destroyed according to certain rules. The first step to protecting yourself is to know exactly which security precautions work and which do not.

Many people believe the misconception that repartitioning a disk will result in complete destruction of its contents. Actually that is not quite so. Repartitioning the drive only alters references to partitions in the Partition Table, leaving all file data intact. In fact, there are a number of programs available to successfully recover previously deleted partitions.

Formatting a drive also does not guarantee data destruction. Formatting procedure implies modification of the Master File Table (MFT) that keeps track of where file contents are stored on the disk and verification of each sector for consistency. Even a low-level format does not actually erase the file contents for good, since they can still be resurrected from their deleted state with minimal effort by using the popular today Magnetic Force Microscopy technology.

The only way to make sure that all the data has been erased from a hard drive is to overwrite all on-disk sectors with random patterns of ones and zeros. Although this sounds complex, there is an easy way to do this.

The process of deliberately, irreversibly removing or destroying the data stored on a memory device (magnetic disks, flash memory drives, etc.) is generally known as Data Sanitization. A device that has been sanitized has no usable residual data and even advanced forensic tools should not ever be able to recover it, thus providing maximum level of security.

5.2 Data Security Standards

To irreversibly destroy all on-disk information there have been developed a number of disk sanitizing standards. They are distinguished by wiping patterns and number of passes:

1. US DoD 5220.22-M. US Department of Defense recommends to overwrite all addressable locations with a character, its complement and then a random character. Finally, the target data area is to be verified;

2. US Navy standards NAVSO P-5239-26.

 NAVSO P-5239-26 for RLL encoded drives. At first to write the fixed value (0xffffffff) to

the target data area, then the fixed value (0x27ffffff), and then random values. Finally, the target data area is to be verified;

 NAVSO P-5239-26 for MFM encoded drives. At first to write the fixed value (0xffffffff) to

the target data area, then the fixed value (0xbfffffff), and then random values. Finally, the target data area is to be verified;

3. British HMG Infosec Standard No.5. At first to write a single character pattern, then its complement and then a random character. Finally, the target data area is to be verified;

Disk Wiper™ 8.5 9 User Manual

4. German VSItR Standard. Overwrite the deleted information 7 times, consistently filling it with the following patterns: 0x00, 0xFF, 0x00, 0xFF, 0x00, 0xFF, 0xAA. Finally, the target data area is to be verified;

5. Australian ASCI 33. Overwrite with a character (C), then verify. Overwrite with –C (the first pass character’s inverse), then verify again. Overwrite everything with both C and –C once again but without verification. Fill everything with random characters.

6. Russian GOST R 50739-95. Destroy information by a single pass with writing random characters into each sector byte.

7. Peter Gutmann's algorithm. A whopping 35 passes, with 27 random-order passes using specific patterns combined with eight passes using random patterns;

8. Bruce Schneier's algorithm. Two passes of specific patterns followed by five passes using a cryptographically secure pseudo-random sequence;

9. Paragon's algorithm.

 Overwrite each sector with a forcefully randomized 512-byte string, new for each sector,

using CSPRNG (cryptographically secure pseudo-random number generator).

 Overwrite each erased sector with its complement.  Overwrite each sector with a 512-byte string (CSPRNG), again forcefully randomized and

different from the first pass, and new for each sector.

 Fill each erased sector with 0xAA value. Finally, the target data area is to be verified.

Military and government standards always require 100 percent residual data verification. It is necessary to make sure that the operation has been properly accomplished. Besides corrupted sectors discovered during the operation are to be logged to keep the user informed, since these sectors may contain classified information.

All of the above-mentioned data erasure standards are implemented in the program. Besides the user has the possibility to create a customized algorithm, defining up to 4 wiping patterns, number of passes for each wiping pattern and for the group of patterns, thus providing the maximum possible security level.

Some features may be unavailable in the version of the product you have. To learn more about it please consult the Disk Wiper Editions chapter.

5.3 64-bit Support

The bulk of software today is written for a 32-bit processor. It can meet the requirements of almost any end user. However that is not the case when dealing with servers processing large amounts of data with complex calculations of very large numbers. That is where 64-bit architecture comes into play.

It can boast improved scalability for business applications that enables to support more customer databases and more simultaneous users on each server. Besides a 64-bit kernel can access more system resources, such as memory allocation per user. A 64-bit processor can handle over 4 billion times more memory addresses than a 32-bit processor. With these resources, even a very large database can be cached in memory.

Although many business applications run without problems on 32-bit systems, others have grown so complex that they use up the 4 GB memory limitation of a 32-bit address space. With this large amount of data, fewer memory resources are available to meet memory needs. On a 64-bit server, most queries are able to perform in the buffers available to the database.

Some 32-bit applications make the transition to the 64-bit environment seamlessly others do not. For instance, system-level utilities and programs that provide direct hardware access are likely to fail. Our program offers a full-fledged support of the 64-bit architecture providing fault-tolerant work for system dependent modules.

Disk Wiper™ 8.5 10 User Manual

5.4 Scheduling

The automation of the program’s operations is particularly effective when the user has to repeat a sequence of actions on a regular basis. For example, when a specific project is being developed on a computer on a day-to-day basis and a clear free space operation is made every evening so as to destroy any remnants of deleted files/directories left on disk, thus maintaining confidentiality, it should be possible to simplify certain routine operations.

Another aspect of any automation process is that it runs automatically without the user having to be present. The program is able to execute operations without the user being involved. In addition, it allows an optimization of your computer’s work-load. This is especially important when operations require a considerable amount of computer resources – processor time, memory and more. A number of operations, which can decrease the performance, can be run during the night or whenever the computer has the least work-load to perform.

The program has a special tool for scheduling example, some operations may be performed daily, others - weekly and so on. The scheduled operation starts at a specified time without interrupting the user's current activity.

. The user can set out a timetable for various operations. For

Some features may be unavailable in the version of the product you have. To learn more about it please consult the Disk Wiper Editions chapter.

Disk Wiper™ 8.5 11 User Manual

6 Interface Overview

This chapter introduces the graphical interface of the program to the user. The design of the interface precludes any mistake being made on the part of the user. Most operations are performed through the system of wizards. Buttons and menus are accompanied by easy understandable icons. Nevertheless, any problems that might occur while managing the program can be tackled by reading this very chapter.

6.1 General Layout

When the user starts the program, the first component that is displayed is called the Launcher. It enables the user to run wizards and utilities, to specify program settings, to visualize the operating environment and the hard disk configuration.

The Launcher’s window can be conditionally subdivided into several sections that differ in their purpose and functionality:

1. Main Menu

2. Tool Bar

3. Virtual Operations Bar

4. Common Tasks Bar

5. Explorer Bar

6. Disk Map

7. Legend Bar

8. Status Bar

Some of the panels have similar functionality with a synchronized layout. The program enables the user to conceal some of the panels to simplify the interface management.

Disk Wiper™ 8.5 12 User Manual

All panels are separated by vertical and horizontal expandable sliders, allowing the user to customize the screen layout.

6.2 Main Menu

The Main Menu provides access to the entire functionality of the program. The available functions are as listed below:

MENU ITEM FUNCTIONALITY

Tools

Generate Script… Generate a script for the task

Save to Scheduler… Schedule pending operations

Send Log Files Compress and send the log to the Paragon Support Team

Wiping Media Builder…

Create the DOS-based version of the program to boot from and destroy all ondisk information even when the current operating system cannot boot anymore

Settings... Edit the general settings of the program

Exit Exit the program

Changes

Undo "the last virtual operation"

Redo "the last virtual operation"

Cancel the last virtual operation on the List of Pending Operations

Cancel the last undo virtual operation on the List of Pending Operations

View Changes… Display the List of Pending Operations

Apply Changes Launch the real execution of virtual operations

Discard All Changes Cancel all virtual operations on the List of Pending Operations

Reload Disk Info Refresh the current information about disks

Wizards

Wipe Hard Disk or Partition...

Hard Disk

Destroy all on-disk information including standard bootstrap code and other system service structures

Update MBR Update MBR (Master Boot Record) of the selected hard disk

Edit/View Sectors… View/edit sectors of the selected hard disk

Properties… Get in-depth information on the properties of selected hard disk

Partition

Create Partition… Create a partition of any file system with the Create Partition dialog

Format Partition… Format a partition of any file system Format Partition dialog

Delete Partition… Delete a partition of any file system Delete Partition dialog

Assign Drive Letter… Assign drive letter to the selected partition

Remove Drive Letter…

Clear Free Space…

Remove drive letter for the selected partition

Destroy any remnants of deleted files/directories left on disk without affecting the used data

Disk Wiper™ 8.5 13 User Manual

Test Surface… Test surface of the selected partition/block of free space

Check File System Integrity…

Edit/View Sectors… View/edit sectors of the selected partition

Properties… Get in-depth information on the properties of selected partition

View

Toolbar

Status Bar Display the Status bar

Common Tasks Bar Display the Common tasks bar

Disk Map Legend Display the Disk map legend

Disk Map Location

Help

Help Open the Help system

About Open the dialog with information about the program

The Main Menu contents available at the moment may vary depending on the selected object.

Some features may be unavailable in the version of the product you have. To learn more about it please consult the Disk Wiper Editions chapter.

Check the selected partition for possible file system errors

Manage the Tool Bar representation: show / hide standard and navigation buttons, text labels and large icons.

Select whether the Disk map will be located on the top of the main window or at the bottom

6.3 Tool Bar

The Toolbar provides fast access to the most frequently used operations:

BUTTON FUNCTIONALITY

Wipe a hard disk or partition

Open the Help system

6.4 Virtual Operations Bar

The program supports previewing the resulting layout of hard disks before actually executing operations (socalled virtual mode of execution). In fact, when the virtual mode is enabled accomplish operations immediately, but places them on the List of Pending Operations for later accomplishment.

The Virtual Operations Bar enables to manage pending operations.

, the program does not

BUTTON FUNCTIONALITY

Cancel the last virtual operation on the List

of Pending Operations

Disk Wiper™ 8.5 14 User Manual

Cancel the last undo virtual operation on the List of Pending Operations

Display the List of Pending Operations

Launch the real execution of virtual operations

Cancel all virtual operations on the List of Pending Operations

Virtual mode is an effective way of protection from any troubles, since no operations will be executed until clicking the Apply button for confirmation, thus giving a second chance to weigh all pros and cons of this or that particular operation. The program politely reminds the user that there are unsaved changes by showing the following window:

6.5 Common Tasks Bar

The Common Tasks Bar is located on the left side of the main window. It is intended for easy access to the program's wizards that provide all the functionality needed to manage copy operations.

The bar contains two tabs named Wiping Tools and News and Documentation. Each of these contains a separate button bar which can be folded by clicking it.

Wiping Tools

Starting the Wipe Wizard. The Wipe Wizard assists the user with destroying all on-disk information.

Starting the Wiping Media Builder Wizard that helps to create bootable media with the DOS-based version of the program.

News and Documentation

Opening the page which contains information about the program. This page will be displayed in the Explorer bar.

Launching the Help system.

Opening a brief review on the Data Sanitization issue.

Opening a brief review on the Paragon Scripting Language.

Some features may be unavailable in the version of the product you have. To learn more about it please consult the Disk Wiper Editions chapter.

Disk Wiper™ 8.5 15 User Manual

6.6 Disk Map

The Disk Map is displayed in the Explorer bar when the Disk View tab is selected. It is located either at the top or at the bottom of the window, depending on the state of the Disk Map Location option (Main menu: View > Disk Map Location). The user can change the current location of the map with this option.

As the name infers, the Disk Map displays the layout of physical and logical disks. Physical disks are represented with rectangle bars that contain small-sized bars. These small-sized bars represent logical disks. Their color depends on the file system of the appropriate partition.

Large-sized bars display the following information about physical disks:

 Manufacturer,  Model.

Small-sized bars display the following information about logical disks:

 Serial number,  Drive letter,  Total size,  File system.

Furthermore, it is possible to estimate the used disk space by looking at the size of the bar’s shaded area.

Disk Map is synchronized with the Explorer bar bar displays detailed information of the selected disk.

The user can click a large-sized bar to display information about the appropriate physical disk in the Explorer bar. A click on a small-sized bar will lead to displaying information about the appropriate logical disk.

. When the user selects a disk on the Disk Map the Explorer

6.7 Explorer Bar

The Explorer Bar is located in the center of the main window which emphasizes its importance. The bar displays reference information including:

 User Manual,  Information about the program consisting of the product's name, the version of the program and a list

of helpful links,

 Detailed information about disks selected on the Disk Map,  List of scheduled operations,

According to these categories the Explorer bar has five tabs:

 Disk View, which allows the user to view detailed information about any of the disks.  Scheduled Tasks, which gives the user the possibility of browsing and editing scheduled operations.  Help System, which contains the User Manual and information about the program.

The user is able to access the desired information by clicking on the appropriate tab.

Disk Wiper™ 8.5 16 User Manual

The Explorer Bar is a fully-functional embedded HTML browser, which enables the user to address, for example, our company's website to look through important technical notes or download the latest updates without having to close the program. The Help System of the program is HTML-oriented. The user can read the user manual and follow external links from to get additional information.

To easily navigate through browsed pages, the program provides the following functionality:

BUTTON FUNCTIONALITY

Return to the previously browsed page

Open the next browsed page

Stop loading the current page

Refresh the contents of the current page

6.8 Legend Bar

The Legend Bar explains the color scheme used for disk and partition presentation. The user can hide (or show) the bar with the appropriate Main menu item: View > Disk Map Legend. When it is activated it can be found at the bottom of the Explorer bar

The program distinguishes between the following types of known file systems:

- FAT16/32,

- NTFS,

- Linux Ext2/3,

- Linux ReiserFS.

6.9 Status Bar

This is the bottom part of the main window. The status bar displays menu hints, for each item the cursor points to.

+ 36 hidden pages

Paragon Disk Wiper - 8.5 User Manual

Specifications and Main Features

Frequently Asked Questions

User Manual