I've got a micro SD card that has some Linux data and partitions on it, but I only have access to a Windows PC. I'm not very tech-savvy, so I need some straightforward advice on how to safely wipe this SD card so I can reuse it. Are there any specific steps I should follow?
2 Answers
Formatting the SD card should be enough in most cases. Just right-click on the drive in Windows and hit 'Format'. However, since your SD card has a Linux filesystem, it might not show up in File Explorer. You'll probably need to use diskpart to clean it first before formatting. Also, keep in mind that if you're concerned about privacy, consider encryption, but that's not necessary for just reusing the card.
You can easily wipe your SD card using the Command Prompt in Windows. Just follow these steps: Open Command Prompt and type 'diskpart' to launch the Disk Partition tool. Then, type 'list disk' to see all your drives. Find your SD card from the list and type 'select disk X', replacing 'X' with your SD card's number. After that, run 'clean' to wipe it. Finally, exit and reformat the card in Windows Disk Management for reuse. Super simple!
Yeah, I can't see the drive in File Explorer, so I'll try the diskpart method. Thanks for the tip!