How to Zero Fill Hard Drive from Bootable USB | Easy Guide

Updated by

Sherly 

Updated on Dec 09, 2024

1. Stage 1. Create a Bootable USB
2. Stage 2. Boot PC from the Bootable USB
3. Stage 3. Zero Fill Hard Drive from Bootable USB

Are you looking for a way to zero-fill a hard drive from the bootable USB? Does a bootable USB drive need to be empty? Congratulations! You are on the right page! In this post from EaseUS, you'll learn how to create a bootable USB and how to wipe or zero-fill a hard drive via the bootable USB.

How to Zero Fill Hard Drive from Bootable USB

Before we start, make sure you have prepared the following items:

✔️A USB - A bootable USB doesn't have to be empty, but you need to back up your data first since all data on the USB will be erased when you create a bootable USB.

✔️Download EaseUS Partition Master - This is a bootable hard drive eraser that allows readers to create a bootable usb and zero-fill a hard drive from the bootable usb.

Stage 1. Create a Bootable USB

EaseUS Partition Master is a professional bootable disk creator. Its "Create bootable media" feature allows all users (including beginners) to create bootable media with simple clicks. It works smoothly on Windows 11/10/8/7/XP/Vista. Install it on your PC and follow the steps:

Step 1. To create a bootable disk of EaseUS Partition Master, you should prepare a storage media, like a USB drive, flash drive or a CD/DVD disc. Then, correctly connect the drive to your computer.

Step 2. Launch EaseUS Partition Master, and find the "Bootable Media" feature on the left. Click on it.

Step 3. You can choose the USB or CD/DVD when the drive is available. However, if you do not have a storage device at hand, you can also save the ISO file to a local drive, and later burn it to a storage media. Once made the option, click the "Create" button to begin.

• Check the Warning message and click "Yes".

Step 4. When the process finishes, you'll see a pop up window, asking if you want to restart computer from the bootable USB.

• Reboot Now: it means you want to restart the current PC and enter EaseUS Bootable Media to manage your disk partitions without OS.
• Done: it means you don't want to restart the current PC but to use the bootable USB on a new PC.

Note: To use the bootable disk on a new PC, you need to resart the target computer and press F2/F8/Del key to enter BIOS, and set the USB bootable disk as the first boot disk.

Wait patitiently and your computer will automatically boot up from the USB bootable media and enter EaseUS WinPE desktop.

Stage 2. Boot PC from the Bootable USB

If you miss the "Reboot Now" option, you can manually boot your PC into BIOS. Here is how to boot from the bootable USB we just created:

Step 1. Reconnect the USB to the PC and restart your computer.

Step 2. When you see any icon on the PC screen, press F2/F8/Del (the key may be different from the PC versions. Check it online.) to boot into the BIOS.

Step 3. Navigate to the Boot Menu section and select the Bootable USB.

Step 4. After booting into WINPE, EaseUS Partition Master will run synchronously.

Stage 3. Zero Fill Hard Drive from Bootable USB

EaseUS Partition Master can zero fill an HDD or SSD in WINPE. It also makes your data (including settings, operating system, files, or folders) unrecoverable.

Check the steps below to learn how:

We've set two options for you to wipe data. Choose the one you need.

Option 1.  Wipe Partition

• Right-click the partition you want to erase data from, and choose "Wipe".
• In the new window, set the time for which you want to wipe your partition, then click "OK".
• Click the "Execute 1 Task(s)" button in the lower right corner, check the changes, then click "Apply".

Option 2. Wipe Disk

• Select the HDD/SSD. And right-click to choose "Wipe Disk".
• Set the number of times to wipe data. (You can set to 10 at most.) Then Click "OK".
• Click "Execute 1 Task(s)" and then click "Apply".

Conclusion

If you want to wipe a hard drive where Windows is installed, you need to create a bootable disk and zero-fill the disk with the bootable USB. This post covers a professional and safe tool to help create bootable media and wipe the OS disk. EaseUS Partition Master is easy to use for even beginners. Its "wipe disk" feature allows you to erase a disk easily, including the OS. If this guide helps, do not hesitate to share it on your social media.

FAQs About Zero Fill Hard Drive Using Bootable Disk

To do a clean install on your PC or sell an old hard drive, you need to make a bootable USB flash drive to wipe the disk. Check the following FAQs to get more details.

1. Does a bootable USB drive need to be empty?

No, a bootable USB drive doesn't need to be empty. But you should create a backup of it or transfer the files you need to another location since creating a bootable USB flash drive will erase all the data on the USB disk.

2. How do I empty a bootable USB?

To empty a bootable USB drive and restore it to a standard storage device, you can follow the steps below:

Step 1. Press Windows + X and select Disk Management from the list.

Step 2. Right-click on the bootable USB drive and select Format; choose your desired file system (NTFS or FAT32), set a volume label if desired, and click OK to confirm.

3. How to format a hard drive from USB?

To format a hard drive from a bootable USB, you need to create a bootable USB drive first. Follow the steps to try:

• Create a bootable USB drive: Prepare a USB and download EaseUS Partition Master; navigate to the Bootable Media section to create a bootable USB.
• Boot PC from the Bootable USB: Restart your PC and enter the BIOS by pressing the BIOS key when you see the logo on the PC.
• Format the Hard Drive: Then, launch EaseUS Partition Master to format the target hard drive.