I have an old SSD that I believe is infected with a virus since it usually leads to a Blue Screen of Death (BSOD) when I boot from it. I'm planning to wipe it clean to sell it, but I'm concerned about doing it safely to avoid infecting my laptop's hard drive. Does anyone have suggestions on how to proceed without risking any issues?
2 Answers
You can boot from a live USB of Linux Mint and use its disk formatting tool to erase the infected SSD. Just make sure you don’t accidentally erase your laptop’s hard drive! If you’re looking for another option, burn DBAN to a USB stick using Rufus, unplug your main HDD, and boot from the USB with the SSD connected. The first method is often simpler, though!
A BSOD doesn't always mean there's a virus. If you're not sure about the infection, just plug it in and format it directly. If you're still concerned, try downloading a Windows ISO, burn it to a USB drive, unplug your good drive, and then boot from that USB. You can then delete partitions as needed. Linux live ISOs and Hiren's Boot CD are good alternatives too!
Thanks for the tips! I replaced the SSD a while back, but I just want to ensure it's wiped properly before selling it. The BSOD had some memory management error messages, which is why I was worried.