deleting files permanently

[Sugar Ray]

Hi

I wanted to delete my files on my shared folder on my C drive - just wanted to check when you delete them from there are they permanently deleted?

[Ethel]

They go into your recycle bin.

Empty that and they are permanently deleted.

[vehelpfulguy]

No they are not deleted.

What Windows does is removes the pointer to them, but not the actual file itself. This is how those undelete programs manage to get them back.

There are utilities around that REALLY delete them.

Note that even a full format of a hard disk does not always delete the files. Some tools and products do exists to "find" files on a hard disk that people think have been deleted.

These tools are used by the police and other secret groups to find information about terroists and paedophiles.

Only way to REALLY delete a file is to smash the hard disk with a hammer.

[Catso]

Depends upon exactly what you mean by 'permanently deleted'.

If you delete instead of recycle, the files won't be directly and simply recoverable but the file remains on the hard drive until it gets overwritten by something else. A specialist program can (probably) retrieve the file you deleted.

To completely delete, you need what's called a secure delete utility. I think Norton/Symantec can provide one of these, and Sysinternals do, also.

[vehelpfulguy]

Sorry Ethel but files deleted from the Recylce Bin are NOT deleted.

They are MARKED by Windows for deletion but if the space on the hard drive is never needed they just stay there.

See here about people who sold hard drive with lots of personal info on them

http://www.whitecanyon.com/recycle-bin-mn-01-2 003.php

[birdie1971]

For a free file erasing program, look no further than here http://www.heidi.ie/eraser/
It's a superb little program that has won many awards.