Re-cycling very old PC-s (not MACs) ..how about using Staples?

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Jyb33
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Re-cycling very old PC-s (not MACs) ..how about using Staples?

Post by Jyb33 »

I posted an earlier version of this in another thread that was and continues to be (except for one response) totally focused on MACs....so I
started a new thread here...
I just decided to get rid of 2 large desktops from the late 1990s (with windows95 and windows98)....
There's no good way to to install "wipe" software on these (no way to connect to internet to download, and no way
transfer the software onto them with their floppy drives....and modern flash drives won't work...or parallel-port iomega
zip drives.........although I guess I could transfer via "cd-rom")....but anyway.....all I did for security was type in "format c:"...(which took about 7 minutes to finish)... which I realize won't prevent hackers from getting data off the hard drives..(and there probably was some sensitive data on there from 20 years ago)

But I'm thinking of giving these to STAPLES ....since they recycle lots of electronics (including these)....
It would be so much easier than taking out and destroying the hard drives...

This is from their website (below). It sounds great....but I wonder how likely it is to actually happen....??
I seems ideal though. ????? Are they reliable?

"Materials Staples collects from customers are kept in an employee-only area of the store for a short time until
sufficient material has been collected to backhaul to our Staples® warehouse locations. The Staples warehouses consolidate the electronics into full truckloads and ship the material to the facilities of our national recycling partner, ERI Direct. There, the material is triaged based on potential for remanufacturing or parts harvesting. Items that can be refurbished or that may have parts that can be reused are separated and processed separately.

Any computers, phones or other data-containing devices with hard drives entering the reuse market are wiped to
Department of Defense specifications or the hard drives/memory cards are destroyed. Older electronic items are
pre-processed and then run through a large shredder to separate various metals, plastics and glass for sending
to different, downstream recycling facilities."
Makefile
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Re: Re-cycling very old PC-s (not MACs) ..how about using Staples?

Post by Makefile »

You might check prices on eBay first to see if it's worth coming across a boot disk that can actually write all zeros to the drive rather than just formatting, so that you can sell instead of scrap. You may be surprised at the prices, especially if you can part these out and the motherboards are standard AT or ATX. The last few 486 motherboards made (with PCI, 72-pin SIMMs, etc.) can go for $100 or even more, for example. Some socket 7, super socket 7, 370, etc. motherboards might be sought after as well.
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Re: Re-cycling very old PC-s (not MACs) ..how about using Staples?

Post by lostdog »

Make a Linux live boot CD or USB. Here are the directions. Linux live should be able to run on those old desktops.

https://helpdeskgeek.com/how-to/perform ... x-live-cd/
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Re: Re-cycling very old PC-s (not MACs) ..how about using Staples?

Post by samsoes »

Pull out the hard drives, place them in old pillowcases and smash them to smithereens, using a rock, hammer, etc. Then bring the PC's (less the hard drives) to Staples for recycling without any worries. Put the pieces of the hard drives in the trash, spread across several trash pickups.
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Re: Re-cycling very old PC-s (not MACs) ..how about using Staples?

Post by Makefile »

lostdog wrote: Sun Mar 14, 2021 1:22 pm Make a Linux live boot CD or USB. Here are the directions. Linux live should be able to run on those old desktops.

https://helpdeskgeek.com/how-to/perform ... x-live-cd/
Heh the OP said Windows 95. These machines probably don't even have USB, or if they do a buggy USB 1.0 implementation, much less the ability to boot from it. The ability to boot from CD-ROM only dates to 1997ish, and these machines probably have only 16MB or 32MB of memory so something like tomsrtbt or a set of old Slackware install floppies could work.
chw
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Re: Re-cycling very old PC-s (not MACs) ..how about using Staples?

Post by chw »

Bring to Staples. They will even remove the hard drive for you to destroy at home.
toast0
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Re: Re-cycling very old PC-s (not MACs) ..how about using Staples?

Post by toast0 »

format c: is usually not very thorough, so I would just pull the hard drive and destroy it or leave it in a box of 'destroy later' somewhere. However, there's a fair amount of interest in older computers, so it's worth posting on craigslist/fb marketplace/etc to see if someone wants to reuse it rather than sending it to recycling.

If you really want to clean the drive, copying tools via cd-r is probably the most accessible. But, if the computer is still bootable after you formatted it (maybe you did format c: /s), you could fill up the hard drive with garbage, and that'll get you most of the way there. find the biggest file you can find, and do copy /b X + X file.ext will give you a file that's twice as big. keep doing that and you'll soon run out of disk space.
Target2019
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Re: Re-cycling very old PC-s (not MACs) ..how about using Staples?

Post by Target2019 »

An IDE to USB adapter will help you attach the drive to another computer:
https://www.amazon.com/Sabrent-5-25-INC ... b_title_ce

then you can use a disk utility or command to blow those bits to a black hole.
8-)
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Jyb33
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Re: Re-cycling very old PC-s (not MACs) ..how about using Staples?

Post by Jyb33 »

Thanks for the comments, but it's pretty funny that noone has any comments on Staples (i.e., the
quote from their website about what they say they do)...I guess noone believe what they say....
TravelGeek
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Re: Re-cycling very old PC-s (not MACs) ..how about using Staples?

Post by TravelGeek »

Jyb33 wrote: Sun Mar 14, 2021 9:27 pm Thanks for the comments, but it's pretty funny that noone has any comments on Staples (i.e., the
quote from their website about what they say they do)...I guess noone believe what they say....
Staples has 305 stores. I assume no one here reading this thread would have enough information to know whether your particular store will safely dispose of your hard disk. But you have been given good advice: just take the disks out and turn the rest of the hardware in. Then physically destroy the disks or store them in the garage with other crap (I have at least a dozen disks that one of these years I will destroy and dispose of; the computers are long gone).

There are probably a dozen more threads where hard disk and computer recycling was discussed - maybe search for “recycling old hard disks”.
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Jyb33
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Re: Re-cycling very old PC-s (not MACs) ..how about using Staples?

Post by Jyb33 »

TravelGeek wrote: Sun Mar 14, 2021 9:40 pm
Jyb33 wrote: Sun Mar 14, 2021 9:27 pm Thanks for the comments, but it's pretty funny that noone has any comments on Staples (i.e., the
quote from their website about what they say they do)...I guess noone believe what they say....
Staples has 305 stores. I assume no one here reading this thread would have enough information to know whether your particular store will safely dispose of your hard disk. But you have been given good advice: just take the disks out and turn the rest of the hardware in. Then physically destroy the disks or store them in the garage with other crap (I have at least a dozen disks that one of these years I will destroy and dispose of; the computers are long gone).

There are probably a dozen more threads where hard disk and computer recycling was discussed - maybe search for “recycling old hard disks”.
That quote was from their national website, and it says that their handling of computers/whatever
applies to all staples stores. So that's the context when I write about "STAPLES".
TravelGeek
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Re: Re-cycling very old PC-s (not MACs) ..how about using Staples?

Post by TravelGeek »

Jyb33 wrote: Sun Mar 14, 2021 9:52 pm
That quote was from their national website, and it says that their handling of computers/whatever
applies to all staples stores. So that's the context when I write about "STAPLES".
I realize that. But what do you want to know - whether that is really going to happen at all stores? Whether all employees are honest? Whether they actually keep your stuff in a secure “employees only” location while waiting for enough stuff to build up to ship it out? Whether there are any bored employees at your local store who might try to revive your old hardware to perhaps eBay it while they wait for a customer to come in? (my local store is pretty deserted and overstaffed). My bet is that one will be able to answer questions like that.

Personally, I think with ancient hardware the chances are pretty slim that anyone would bother to mess with it. You can easily eliminate any risk though and still take advantage of their recycling service.
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Jyb33
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Re: Re-cycling very old PC-s (not MACs) ..how about using Staples?

Post by Jyb33 »

TravelGeek wrote: Sun Mar 14, 2021 10:00 pm
Jyb33 wrote: Sun Mar 14, 2021 9:52 pm
That quote was from their national website, and it says that their handling of computers/whatever
applies to all staples stores. So that's the context when I write about "STAPLES".
I realize that. But what do you want to know - whether that is really going to happen at all stores? Whether all employees are honest? Whether they actually keep your stuff in a secure “employees only” location while waiting for enough stuff to build up to ship it out? Whether there are any bored employees at your local store who might try to revive your old hardware to perhaps eBay it while they wait for a customer to come in? (my local store is pretty deserted and overstaffed). My bet is that one will be able to answer questions like that.

Personally, I think with ancient hardware the chances are pretty slim that anyone would bother to mess with it. You can easily eliminate any risk though and still take advantage of their recycling service.
thanks....yeah...no guarantees...but i guess the risk is low when giving the old PC's to any staples ..It's just another matter of "risk tolerance".....This reminds me of some of the advice I've seen regarding shredding. Some people have been advised to give their hundred pounds of paper to a shreddiing company, if they don't want to do it themselves......same risk..
amd2135
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Re: Re-cycling very old PC-s (not MACs) ..how about using Staples?

Post by amd2135 »

Makefile wrote: Sun Mar 14, 2021 1:02 pm You might check prices on eBay first ... You may be surprised at the prices
I second this. Depending on what you have, those machines could be worth ~$100 - $300 each depending. People buy these types of machines to play older games that don't run properly on newer hardware. Someone might be willing to buy one or both without a hard drive on Craigslist. Just a thought.

I personally have been looking for an old 486 desktop, but I don't want to fork over the $$$ for one. They tend to go for even more...
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Jyb33
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Re: Re-cycling very old PC-s (not MACs) ..how about using Staples?

Post by Jyb33 »

amd2135 wrote: Sun Mar 14, 2021 10:18 pm
Makefile wrote: Sun Mar 14, 2021 1:02 pm You might check prices on eBay first ... You may be surprised at the prices
I second this. Depending on what you have, those machines could be worth ~$100 - $300 each depending. People buy these types of machines to play older games that don't run properly on newer hardware. Someone might be willing to buy one or both without a hard drive on Craigslist. Just a thought.

I personally have been looking for an old 486 desktop, but I don't want to fork over the $$$ for one. They tend to go for even more...

That's good to know....i don't have the time though.....(i wish i did)......Yeah...i just found out my old games from the 1990s
(like "myst"....) don't run on newer PCs.
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F150HD
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Re: Re-cycling very old PC-s (not MACs) ..how about using Staples?

Post by F150HD »

samsoes wrote: Sun Mar 14, 2021 1:57 pm Pull out the hard drives, place them in old pillowcases and smash them to smithereens, using a rock, hammer, etc. Then bring the PC's (less the hard drives) to Staples for recycling without any worries. Put the pieces of the hard drives in the trash, spread across several trash pickups.
^^^ this without any hesitation. Dissemble, drill holes, damage, destroy etc.

In todays day and age unclear why anyone would consider otherwise. Why give away a possible gateway to loads of ones personal information.
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Jyb33
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Re: Re-cycling very old PC-s (not MACs) ..how about using Staples?

Post by Jyb33 »

Makefile wrote: Sun Mar 14, 2021 2:06 pm
lostdog wrote: Sun Mar 14, 2021 1:22 pm Make a Linux live boot CD or USB. Here are the directions. Linux live should be able to run on those old desktops.

https://helpdeskgeek.com/how-to/perform ... x-live-cd/
Heh the OP said Windows 95. These machines probably don't even have USB, or if they do a buggy USB 1.0 implementation, much less the ability to boot from it. The ability to boot from CD-ROM only dates to 1997ish, and these machines probably have only 16MB or 32MB of memory so something like tomsrtbt or a set of old Slackware install floppies could work.
******************************************************************************************
I just realized the CD drives do work in my old desktops with win98 and win95 (three of them).....So I just downloaded Dban (with one of my win10 laptops) and burned it to CD........I'll now try to go into the bios of my old desktops and change the boot order to CD.......Any predictions on whether this latest version of Dban will work? (For some reason, I'm predicting about 5% chance, that the old desktops will actually boot from this cd and then actually run dban...just a gut feeling).
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Jyb33
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Re: Re-cycling very old PC-s (not MACs) ..how about using Staples?

Post by Jyb33 »

toast0 wrote: Sun Mar 14, 2021 3:42 pm format c: is usually not very thorough, so I would just pull the hard drive and destroy it or leave it in a box of 'destroy later' somewhere. However, there's a fair amount of interest in older computers, so it's worth posting on craigslist/fb marketplace/etc to see if someone wants to reuse it rather than sending it to recycling.

If you really want to clean the drive, copying tools via cd-r is probably the most accessible. But, if the computer is still bootable after you formatted it (maybe you did format c: /s), you could fill up the hard drive with garbage, and that'll get you most of the way there. find the biggest file you can find, and do copy /b X + X file.ext will give you a file that's twice as big. keep doing that and you'll soon run out of disk space.
I only used format C:......Anyway, do you think Dban will work (see my post just prior to this one). thanks.
adamthesmythe
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Re: Re-cycling very old PC-s (not MACs) ..how about using Staples?

Post by adamthesmythe »

The question is what is on (or has been on) the hard drive.

If it was sensitive (lots of financial info and stored passwords, or, Other Stuff) then remove and/or destroy the hard drive.

If nothing sensitive, then give it to Staples as is.

Removing a hard drive is a one-screwdriver task.

Reading an old hard drive with a newer computer may require a little googling and maybe some cheap cables. Just so you know.
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Re: Re-cycling very old PC-s (not MACs) ..how about using Staples?

Post by Jack FFR1846 »

I eScrap and come across drives all the time. What I do with these is take apart the drives and pull the aluminum platters. They go into my box full of Neodymium Magnets from disk drives. Eventually, it'll be time to bring my aluminum scrap. I take these platters and put them in a vice to bend them and break them in half. Then off to aluminum scrap.

For my own drives, I go an extra step and grind the magnetic material off of the platters. But that's a lot of work. It guarantees that no data will be recovered because any material that had data is now dust on my shop floor.

Pulling a disk drive apart to get the platters out requires either a precision philips or a torx driver or both. It's not hard. Pull the cover and the platters are exposed. Unscrew the retainer with typically 6 or 8 torx screws and pull off the retainer and aluminum spacers. Easy to just turn over the drive and bang it on the work bench once.

The scrap value in drives are mainly the controller board and the aluminum base, which is thick and heavy. The platters are very light and the covers are typically stainless steel, which I don't separate from regular steel. So 2 cents a pound.
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Re: Re-cycling very old PC-s (not MACs) ..how about using Staples?

Post by toast0 »

Jyb33 wrote: Mon Mar 15, 2021 2:17 amI only used format C:......Anyway, do you think Dban will work (see my post just prior to this one). thanks.
Yeah, Dban should work, as long as the BIOS will let you boot from cd. I can't find a system requirements, but it acknowledges old systems in the FAQ, so I'd guess it runs mostly everywhere.
trinc
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Re: Re-cycling very old PC-s (not MACs) ..how about using Staples?

Post by trinc »

about pulling the HDD.

If someone wanted to actually use them then having a functional HDD could be important. It is increasingly difficult to find the drivers for the old computers.

A lot of us old games have gone through emulators and now virtualbox... much easier than keeping and old box alive. ( BTW, all Myst games have been ported ).

I however, ( EE ) have a few old burners that use the printer port and some serial programmers that just don't function well with standard clock reduction techniques.

I run two older units ( 386xt & 486dx2 )

My vote is for craigslist or ebay, there are people out there that need them.

Tim
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Re: Re-cycling very old PC-s (not MACs) ..how about using Staples?

Post by dukeblue219 »

I like to remind folks that it is practically impossible to recover data from a magnetic HDD that has been overwritten even once. All these multiple-pass software tools are just unnecessary, and destroying with hammers or bullets is just for fun.

It would take nation-state level resources to even begin to recover file fragments from an erased hard drive.
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Jyb33
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Re: Re-cycling very old PC-s (not MACs) ..how about using Staples?

Post by Jyb33 »

I just tried Dban on 3 old PC's (late 1990's) with win98 (and one with win95).......neither of my dban CD's booted up the PC.....my PC's all
booted directly from the HD....despite my carefully setting the boot order in the BIOS's. I don't know if it's a Dban problem , or
just the incompatibility of CD-RW media with these old machines. My procedure was: download Dban to a win10 laptop, burn
the cd-rw's (i did it two ways on 2 separate ones: (1) "like a CD" (2) "usb style".....or whatever win10 called the styles.
Then try those CD's in all my old PC's......didn't work. I guess I'll just take the HD's out before bringing to staples.

For those of you who "smash" your HD's....do you all do what Jack...wrote above? (unscrew and decompose the whole HD...
to get to the platters)....or do you just smash the large HD with all it's covers on (pretty thick ones....with a circuit board on
the bottom of the one I'm looking at right now)....
MarkBarb
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Re: Re-cycling very old PC-s (not MACs) ..how about using Staples?

Post by MarkBarb »

Jyb33 wrote: Sun Mar 14, 2021 10:32 pm
amd2135 wrote: Sun Mar 14, 2021 10:18 pm
Makefile wrote: Sun Mar 14, 2021 1:02 pm You might check prices on eBay first ... You may be surprised at the prices
I second this. Depending on what you have, those machines could be worth ~$100 - $300 each depending. People buy these types of machines to play older games that don't run properly on newer hardware. Someone might be willing to buy one or both without a hard drive on Craigslist. Just a thought.

I personally have been looking for an old 486 desktop, but I don't want to fork over the $$$ for one. They tend to go for even more...

That's good to know....i don't have the time though.....(i wish i did)......Yeah...i just found out my old games from the 1990s
(like "myst"....) don't run on newer PCs.
Good Old Games (gog.com) is your friend.
rotLobster
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Re: Re-cycling very old PC-s (not MACs) ..how about using Staples?

Post by rotLobster »

i started buying pcs in the late 80s. i've owned dozens if not more pcs. i have drives going back to then. if the drives work i dont throw them away. i have some really old wide SCSI drives for instance along with the old controllers and i have one old PC i can access these with.

if a drive goes bad, i take it to a rifle range and use it as a target. seriously. a few remington 260 rounds through them and they are destroyed. all my hardware, except drives go to staples.
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jabberwockOG
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Re: Re-cycling very old PC-s (not MACs) ..how about using Staples?

Post by jabberwockOG »

Remove HD, vigorously apply framing hammer 1.0, toss HD in the trash. Take the PC to local recycle.
ballons
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Re: Re-cycling very old PC-s (not MACs) ..how about using Staples?

Post by ballons »

Jyb33 wrote: Mon Mar 15, 2021 5:49 pm I just tried Dban on 3 old PC's (late 1990's) with win98 (and one with win95).......neither of my dban CD's booted up the PC.....my PC's all
booted directly from the HD....despite my carefully setting the boot order in the BIOS's. I don't know if it's a Dban problem , or
just the incompatibility of CD-RW media with these old machines. My procedure was: download Dban to a win10 laptop, burn
the cd-rw's (i did it two ways on 2 separate ones: (1) "like a CD" (2) "usb style".....or whatever win10 called the styles.
Then try those CD's in all my old PC's......didn't work. I guess I'll just take the HD's out before bringing to staples.
https://windowsreport.com/burn-iso-files-windows-10/

Their drives may not like CD-RW, use CD-R.

Other things to try to boot:
http://www.ultimatebootcd.com/
https://antixlinux.com/download/
http://www.tinycorelinux.net/downloads.html

https://www.linuxsecrets.com/tinycoreli ... ndows.html

Easiest method is to pull the drive and toss it in the trash. Drilling one or two holes in the drive is enough. Or just disassemble the drive with a screwdriver.
inbox788
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Re: Re-cycling very old PC-s (not MACs) ..how about using Staples?

Post by inbox788 »

OP, if you're worried about data privacy, I'd go along with the hammer or other destruction methods mentioned.
trinc wrote: Mon Mar 15, 2021 4:57 pmI run two older units ( 386xt & 486dx2 )

My vote is for craigslist or ebay, there are people out there that need them.
Why are folks using such old systems? Are you sure they're not salvaging them for gold? That's about the right vintage where the extraction of gold might be worth the trouble and OP might look into it as well.
The Intel 386 and 486 ceramic CPU's currently are the highest price paid (per pound) for CPU's by the gold recycling companies. This is due to them having gold plated heat spreaders, and the amount of gold plated pins found on the underside of these CPU's, and smaller package size (less ceramic material used in the CPU's packaging per pound).

Also, the Intel Pentium Pro Processor remains a top CPU desired by gold recyclers. It's gold contents are one of the highest of any mainstream CPU package from the 1990's to date, mostly due to it's much larger package size which contributes to a an increased number of gold plated pins, and much larger gold plated heat spreader cap. The Pentium Pro also had two separate chips inside so this doubled the amount of solid gold wire bonding that is usually found in a single chip CPU like the Intel 386 and 486 chips. Gold refining yields of the Pentium Pro have been reported to be as high as around .33 grams per CPU.
https://www.chipsetc.com/gold-value-in- ... chips.html

At $1700/ounce or $55/gram, that 1/3 gram is nearly $20 for the Pentium Pro. [Strange that they're selling for $36+ on eBay for scrap https://www.ebay.com/itm/Lot-2-pcs-Inte ... 3631745553 ]
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Re: Re-cycling very old PC-s (not MACs) ..how about using Staples?

Post by adamthesmythe »

dukeblue219 wrote: Mon Mar 15, 2021 5:05 pm I like to remind folks that it is practically impossible to recover data from a magnetic HDD that has been overwritten even once. All these multiple-pass software tools are just unnecessary, and destroying with hammers or bullets is just for fun.

It would take nation-state level resources to even begin to recover file fragments from an erased hard drive.
This does not seem to be good enough for some around here. Even opening up a hard drive and getting the inside dusty (that is, merely opening it up) provides a considerable barrier to reading anything. Scratching the platter once makes it more difficult. Bending the heads up makes it even harder. These things alone mean that reading any data requires a spin stand, maybe a clean room, software and a bunch of skilled technician hours.

A degausser is a very secure way of destroying data, but few will have access. I do believe that a reasonable level of physical destruction makes you data very very safe. Maybe not until men are incapable of evil but at least until you are suspected of having nuclear secrets.

(Grinding off the storage media is way overkill, and in addition should be done only if you have a good idea what exotic metals are being used.)
Last edited by adamthesmythe on Mon Mar 15, 2021 7:03 pm, edited 1 time in total.
j9j
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Re: Re-cycling very old PC-s (not MACs) ..how about using Staples?

Post by j9j »

samsoes wrote: Sun Mar 14, 2021 1:57 pm Pull out the hard drives, place them in old pillowcases and smash them to smithereens, using a rock, hammer, etc. Then bring the PC's (less the hard drives) to Staples for recycling without any worries. Put the pieces of the hard drives in the trash, spread across several trash pickups.
Physically destroy the hard drives similar to what mentioned above and donate the computer. I would not trust any staples ‘process’ with sensitive data.
Makefile
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Re: Re-cycling very old PC-s (not MACs) ..how about using Staples?

Post by Makefile »

inbox788 wrote: Mon Mar 15, 2021 7:00 pm OP, if you're worried about data privacy, I'd go along with the hammer or other destruction methods mentioned.
trinc wrote: Mon Mar 15, 2021 4:57 pmI run two older units ( 386xt & 486dx2 )

My vote is for craigslist or ebay, there are people out there that need them.
Why are folks using such old systems? Are you sure they're not salvaging them for gold? That's about the right vintage where the extraction of gold might be worth the trouble and OP might look into it as well.
Why do people restore old cars? I do think a big element of it is to set up a top-end system like one never could have afforded at the time, or revisit technical concepts (like low level assembly programming) in a much simpler environment with better tech knowledge.
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Re: Re-cycling very old PC-s (not MACs) ..how about using Staples?

Post by Katietsu »

adamthesmythe wrote: Mon Mar 15, 2021 12:34 pm The question is what is on (or has been on) the hard drive.

If it was sensitive (lots of financial info and stored passwords, or, Other Stuff) then remove and/or destroy the hard drive.

If nothing sensitive, then give it to Staples as is.

Removing a hard drive is a one-screwdriver task.

Reading an old hard drive with a newer computer may require a little googling and maybe some cheap cables. Just so you know.

How much sensitive financial info and passwords are still sensitive 25 years later? Other than possibly my social security number, I can not think of any 1995 data that I would be worried about a Staples employee finding out.

I understand this might not be true for everyone. But time does make some information less important.
hudson
Posts: 7119
Joined: Fri Apr 06, 2007 9:15 am

Re: Re-cycling very old PC-s (not MACs) ..how about using Staples?

Post by hudson »

I don’t trust software solutions.
I remove drives and throw them on a garage shelf.
When the mood strikes, I’ll destroy the drives.

When I worked in info tech, I pulled and saved hard drives for years.
Before I retired, I had a trusted tradesman quarter them all with an industrial band saw. Then they went to a certified recycler.
Last edited by hudson on Tue Mar 16, 2021 8:16 am, edited 1 time in total.
not4me
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Joined: Thu May 25, 2017 3:08 pm

Re: Re-cycling very old PC-s (not MACs) ..how about using Staples?

Post by not4me »

Jyb33 wrote: Mon Mar 15, 2021 5:49 pm My procedure was: download Dban to a win10 laptop, burn
the cd-rw's (i did it two ways on 2 separate ones: (1) "like a CD" (2) "usb style".....or whatever win10 called the styles.
Then try those CD's in all my old PC's......didn't work. I guess I'll just take the HD's out before bringing to staples.
I don't see a problem with removing the drive & taking rest to staples, but I suspect your procedure may be the reason that it didn't work. Basically, when the boot order was changed, it went to see if it was pointed at something it could boot from. When it didn't find that, it went down the list & booted. 2 parts -- dban needs to be downloaded as an ISO file -- your download likely did that ok, but sometimes that isn't done right. Since you used win10 & I'm not up on their terms, I'm not sure either what 'style' to use -- maybe others can chime in. I've heard win10 lets you do this easier. There are 3rd party packages that burn iso files to cd also. There are step by step instructions on internet if you haven't already looked. But this getting the iso format onto a cd is not the same as 'ordinary' files. Once you have a bootable cd with iso format, the pc will boot from there & so is really operating system independent (that is, shouldn't matter that it is win 98, etc)
Raylon
Posts: 3
Joined: Tue Feb 04, 2014 8:15 pm

Re: Re-cycling very old PC-s (not MACs) ..how about using Staples?

Post by Raylon »

Jack FFR1846 wrote: Mon Mar 15, 2021 12:51 pm I eScrap and come across drives all the time. What I do with these is take apart the drives and pull the aluminum platters. They go into my box full of Neodymium Magnets from disk drives. Eventually, it'll be time to bring my aluminum scrap. I take these platters and put them in a vice to bend them and break them in half. Then off to aluminum scrap.

For my own drives, I go an extra step and grind the magnetic material off of the platters. But that's a lot of work. It guarantees that no data will be recovered because any material that had data is now dust on my shop floor.
That seems like a crazy amount of work. At my work we take a drill and drill three holes in about 30 seconds and trash them. No way to recover anything after that.
inbox788
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Joined: Thu Mar 15, 2012 5:24 pm

Re: Re-cycling very old PC-s (not MACs) ..how about using Staples?

Post by inbox788 »

Raylon wrote: Tue Mar 16, 2021 1:04 pm
Jack FFR1846 wrote: Mon Mar 15, 2021 12:51 pm I eScrap and come across drives all the time. What I do with these is take apart the drives and pull the aluminum platters. They go into my box full of Neodymium Magnets from disk drives. Eventually, it'll be time to bring my aluminum scrap. I take these platters and put them in a vice to bend them and break them in half. Then off to aluminum scrap.

For my own drives, I go an extra step and grind the magnetic material off of the platters. But that's a lot of work. It guarantees that no data will be recovered because any material that had data is now dust on my shop floor.
That seems like a crazy amount of work. At my work we take a drill and drill three holes in about 30 seconds and trash them. No way to recover anything after that.
If you don't have a drill, I would think that taking a hammer to the circuit board would be sufficient to deter 99.99%+ of the data scavengers. Sure it doesn't actually erase the data off the platters, but who would go through all the trouble to recover the data unless they knew it was something or from someone significant? And a few strikes are likely to damage some internals further making recovery challenging.
dukeblue219
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Joined: Fri Jan 29, 2016 11:40 am

Re: Re-cycling very old PC-s (not MACs) ..how about using Staples?

Post by dukeblue219 »

inbox788 wrote: Tue Mar 16, 2021 7:54 pm If you don't have a drill, I would think that taking a hammer to the circuit board would be sufficient to deter 99.99%+ of the data scavengers. Sure it doesn't actually erase the data off the platters, but who would go through all the trouble to recover the data unless they knew it was something or from someone significant?
Nobody. For all the freely available username and passwords and stolen SSNs on the internet, no criminal is spending money on data recovery from even a superficially-damaged magnetic drive in the vague hope of finding some banking details.
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