How to Wipe Unallocated Space in Windows 10/8/7 [2 Effective Ways]

Updated by

Sherly 

Last updated on April 22, 2024

Are you looking for a way to thoroughly wipe unallocated space? Do you want to protect your privacy from prying eyes? This article will present two effective methods to help you erase unallocated space, but first, let's understand why we need to wipe unallocated space.

Why is it necessary to clean unallocated space?

When you delete a partition, it becomes unallocated space, but does that mean your data is completely gone? Of course not.

When you delete a partition, the data in the unallocated space is not completely erased. This is due to how file systems (such as NTFS, FAT32, etc.) operate. When you delete a partition in Windows, the files within it are not entirely wiped out; they are merely marked as "deleted" in the Master File Table (the hard drive index). The main reason for wiping unallocated space is:

• Protect Privacy: Completely wipe partition data to prevent malicious recovery by others.

But how can we wipe unallocated space if there is no such option in Disk Management? Don't worry, the following part will show you two methods to wipe unallocated space.

Two Effective Ways to Clean Up Unallocated Space

How do we wipe unallocated space so that others can't recover our data? It's actually pretty simple if you have the right tools. This section will offer one tool built into Windows and a third-party option. We'll start with the simpler of the two.

Method 1: Use A Partition Master Tool to Delete Unallocated Space – Simple

tools Partition Master Free is a disk partition management tool that can help you with this. Besides erasing entire disks and certain partitions, it can also wipe data from unallocated space on Windows 11/10/8/7/XP and Windows Vista. It's user-friendly, so you can easily erase unallocated space following its instructions. Download it now and follow the guide below.

< strong > Step 1. < /strong > Right-click the unallocated space you want to wipe and select "Wipe".

Step 2: In the new window, set the time you want to devote to erasing the partition, then click “OK.”

Step 3. Click Run 1 Task in the bottom right to check for changes, and then click Apply.

There you go, Partition Assistant helped you get rid of the unallocated space. And it can do more than that; let's check out some of its other features.

Features of Partition Master:

• Delete unallocated space
• Format unallocated disk
• Add unallocated space to Drive D:
• Convert unallocated space to usable space
• Create partition from unallocated space

It can also manage your unallocated space and disk partitions. Please download it without hesitation to give it a try.

Method 2: Wipe Unallocated Space with Cipher.exe - Complex

Cipher.exe is a utility found in Windows XP and later versions of Windows computers. It was initially developed for encrypting and decrypting files but also has an “overwrite” option that lets you securely erase or delete files. It overwrites your partition or disk three times.

But first, you need to create a new partition out of the unallocated space. Here are the steps to do that.

Step 1. Right-click the Windows icon and select “Disk Management.”

Step 2. Right-click on the unallocated space and select “New Simple Volume.” Follow the New Simple Volume Wizard to create a new partition and assign it a new drive letter or number.

Step 3: Right-click the Windows icon and select “Run.”

4. Type cmd and press “Enter,” then type cipher /w:c and press “Enter” again. Replace C with the new drive letter.

This process might take some time, depending on how much data you have on that partition. The `/w` stands for “Wipe,” and running this command overwrites all unallocated space on the hard drive three times:

• First time - 0x00
• Second time - 0xFF
• Third time - Random number

Thus, you have to wait patiently, or you can choose a disk partition tool – Partition Master for help.

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Conclusions

This article offers two methods to help you erase or wipe unallocated space. Partition Master is a better choice. It can erase all popular brands of SSD, like Samsung, SanDisk, etc. It erases the hard drive to protect your privacy and helps manage disk partitions better by merging, moving, deleting, and resizing partitions. Don't hesitate to download it if you encounter any partition issues.

If you have other questions about unallocated space, the next section may help.

Frequently Asked Questions on How to Wipe Unallocated Space

If you don't want your data to be recoverable, it's important to erase or wipe your data properly. This section addresses some questions you might have about wiping unallocated space.

1. Can I format unallocated space?

Yes, you can. But before formatting the unallocated space, you need to create a new partition on the unallocated space first. Then, you can format the new partition with the unallocated space.

How do I delete unallocated space?

Follow the steps and give it a try:

Step 1: Right-click on the "Unallocated" space in Disk Management and select "New Simple Volume".

Step 2. Run the New Simple Volume Wizard and create a new partition.

Step 3: Right-click the new partition and select "Delete Volume."

3. How can I make unallocated space usable?

There are two ways to use unallocated space:

Method 1: Create a New Partition on Unallocated Space

Method 2: Extend an existing partition with unallocated space.