This page was last updated 2008-01-01.
Q: Why doesn't the EXE fit on a floppy disk?
Q: Why doesn't the ZIP file or its contents fit on a floppy disk?
A: The EXE file is the DBAN installation program that creates the DBAN boot media.
Download the dban-1.0.7_i386.exe file to your desktop and double-click it. This program will install DBAN to a floppy disk or USB flash device; it will not wipe the computer on which it is run.
You cannot install DBAN by copying or unpacking the EXE file to a blank floppy disk or other media.
Q: How do I make a bootable CD with the ISO file?
A: Read the HOWTO Burn the DBAN ISO file with CDBurnerXP document.
If you burn DBAN to CD-R and see just one file when you open the CD-R afterwards, then you have burned DBAN incorrectly.
Use the cdrecord command if you have a Linux computer.
DBAN may not boot if you modify the ISO file or filesystem layout in any way, like by injecting files.
Q: Can I start DBAN from DOS?
Q: Can I start DBAN from a USB device?
Q: Can I start DBAN from a compilation CD or DVD?
A: Yes, DBAN can be started with Hans Lermen's LOADLIN.EXE program. DBAN can also be started with programs like SysLinux and Grub.
(The LOADLIN server is down. Try this local LOADLIN mirror.)
Copy the kernel.bzi and initrd.gz files from the DBAN floppy disk to a DOS filesystem and run this command:
You can put this command in the AUTOEXEC.BAT file. Do not change the forward-slash characters to back-slash characters. Note that DBAN cannot return to DOS.
Q: I get this dialog when I try to install DBAN:
A: Click ignore.
You are probably running a virus scanner, like Norton AV, that traps floppy disk access.
Q: How do I start the computer with the DBAN media? It just boots from the hard disk.
A: Change the boot order of the computer.
Run the BIOS setup program and put the floppy drive and ROM drive first in the boot order. Do this by pushing <ESC> <DEL> <F1> or <F2> when you power-on the computer. The correct button varies between computers. Watch for a prompt when you power-on the computer or consult the motherboard documentation.
Some computers will ask for a password before running the BIOS setup program. You can defeat this check by opening the case and removing the CMOS cell from the motherboard, which looks like a large round watch battery.
Q: I have a laptop computer. Why does DBAN hang when it tries to detect the floppy?
A: The laptop computer is not connected to the docking station or to the external floppy drive.
Start DBAN at the boot prompt with this command:
boot: nofloppy
Alternatively, disable the floppy drive with the BIOS setup program.
The fdutils documentation has a summary of advanced Linux floppy driver command line options.
Q: Why does the floppy version of DBAN lock-up after I push enter at the boot prompt?
A: The floppy disk is bad. Use another.
Q: I suspect a driver problem or bad hardware. How do I get the dmesg?
A: Use "verbose" at the boot prompt.
Q: Is it supposed to take that much time?
A: Yes.
This forum post briefly discusses the issue.
DBAN fully uses all I/O capacity on most computers. There is no way to reduce wipe time and still fully wipe the media. Commercial products may appear to run faster than DBAN because they silently fail at BIOS addressing limits.
Q: Does DBAN have SATA support?
A: Yes, the current release has full SATA support.
If DBAN does not detect a SATA controller running in native mode, then run the controller setup program and enable the "legacy PATA support" option. (ie: "Push <F2> to enter setup" when the computer starts.)
SATA drivers for new computers will be added to DBAN as they are published for Linux. Drivers for Microsoft Windows are incompatible with DBAN and cannot be added to DBAN.
Q: Why is DBAN slow?
A: DBAN does not yet have a good driver for your motherboard chipset. Wait for the next release or provide a hardware sample.
Computers based on the Intel 945 chipset, like most Core 2 Duo laptops, are known to be slow.
Q: Does DBAN wipe remapped sectors?
A: No.
Q: Does DBAN wipe the Host Protected Area ("HPA")?
A: No.
Most vendors that are using the HPA have a toggle for it in the BIOS setup program. Future releases of DBAN may override or dishonor the HPA.
Q: Why not now and why not by default?
A: Some vendors are using the HPA instead of providing rescue media.
Wiping the HPA would surprise and strand people that expect the HPA to have rescue materials. The HPA is a low risk because it is not accessible during normal operations.
Q: I have an Adaptec AIC-7902 or IBM ServeRAID host controller. Why doesn't DBAN detect the disks in the RAID array?
A: DBAN cannot detect individual disks when host controller is in HostRaid mode.
Reboot the computer, enter the SCSI bios setup, and temporarily disable HostRaid mode.
Q: Why doesn't DBAN detect the SCSI disks attached to my RAID controller?
A: RAID controllers are unsupported. Only regular SCSI host adapters are supported.
Q: But I know people that use DBAN with RAID controllers...
Q: But why do you have changelog entries for RAID hardware?
A: DBAN does indeed have native drivers for most RAID implementations, but making it run can require configuration changes on the host. I cannot help if you lack enough clue to do this because I do not have hardware samples for development and testing. Send hardware if you want support for this equipment.
Q: I started DBAN from a floppy drive, but it says "a floppy disk in DOS format was not found" after the wipe.
A: DBAN cannot write log files to a USB floppy drive.
Q: Why does DBAN fail if there is an Iomega Zip drive in the computer?
A: The dwipe device detection routine mistakes it for a mass storage device.
This is a recurring problem that was partially fixed in the dban-1.0.3 release and should be fully fixed in the dban-1.0.4 release. A hardware sample has been donated.
Q: Will DBAN work properly if my BIOS is old or broken?
A: Yes.
DBAN will still work properly if your BIOS does not detect all of the hard disks in your computer, or if your BIOS has disk size limitations. The BIOS need only be capable of starting DBAN from the boot media.
Q: Will DBAN work with my offboard IDE or IDE-RAID controller?
A: Yes.
Note, however, that most IDE-RAID devices are not really hardware implementations. DBAN uses these devices as regular IDE controllers.
Q: How many disks can DBAN wipe concurrently?
A: 100.
DBAN has been run on a computer with 100 SCSI hard disks. There are no artificial limits in DBAN, but bus bandwidth is usually a limiting factor in practical application. The actual maximum device count is limited by the number of bits allocated for major device numbers in the kernel, which can be changed.
Q: Is the Gutmann method the best method?
A: No.
Most of the passes in the Gutmann wipe are designed to flip the bits in MFM/RLL encoded disks, which is an encoding that modern hard disks do not use.
In a followup to his paper, Gutmann said that it is unnecessary to run those passes because you cannot be reasonably certain about how a modern hard disk stores data on the platter. If the encoding is unknown, then writing random patterns is your best strategy.
In particular, Gutmann says that "in the time since this paper was published, some people have treated the 35-pass overwrite technique described in it more as a kind of voodoo incantation to banish evil spirits than the result of a technical analysis of drive encoding techniques. As a result, they advocate applying the voodoo to PRML and EPRML drives even though it will have no more effect than a simple scrubbing with random data... For any modern PRML/EPRML drive, a few passes of random scrubbing is the best you can do".
Read these papers by Peter Gutmann:
Q: What is the difference between the DBAN image in the EXE file and in the ISO file?
A: There is no difference.
The mkisofs utility is used to generate the ISO file directly from the contents of the EXE file. The IMA file is booted from the cdrom with floppy disk emulation.
Q: When does DBAN expire or deactivate?
A: DBAN does not expire or deactivate. It will always run.
Q: Does DBAN wipe the empty spaces between files?
Q: Does DBAN wipe the browser history?
Q: Does DBAN wipe the index.dat file?
Q: Does DBAN wipe the NTFS metadata?
Q: Does DBAN wipe the cookie store?
Q: Does DBAN wipe the swap file?
Q: Does DBAN wipe the registry?
A: Yes.
Q: Are you absolutely sure that DBAN works properly?
A: No.
There are several situations in which a DBAN failure could go unnoticed:
If you are seriously concerned about any of these situations, then consider drilling open your hard disk, grinding down the platters, and melting all of the parts in a furnace.
DBAN is "good enough" for "most people".
Q: Does DBAN have my favorite certification?
A: No.
If you need a statement of certification, then you must buy an EBAN contract.
Q: Does DBAN conform to my favorite certification or fulfill my local regulatory requirements? HIPAA, Sorbanes-Oxley, PIPEDA, et al?
A: No.
I will not issue a statement of conformity to you because I consider it a kind of warranty or promise. If you need a statement of conformance, then you must buy an EBAN contract.
If, however, you find a deviation or can suggest some way to improve the conformity of DBAN, then the software will be enhanced appropriately.
Q: Why did my large hard disk shrink to 128 gigabytes after running DBAN?
A: The Microsoft Windows installation media that you are using only has ATA-5 support, which has a 128 gigabyte limit.
The operating system installer must have ATA-6 support to use all of a disk that is larger than 128 gigabytes. The solution is to reinstall with Windows 2000 SP4 media or Windows XP SP1 media. If you do not have recent Microsoft Windows media, then research a "windows slipstream install" for instructions about how to create it.
Alternatively, you can install to a 128 gig partition, apply the service pack that provides 48-bit LBA, and then enlarge the filesystem afterwards.
Microsoft documents the issue in KB305098 for Windows 2000 and KB303013 for Windows XP.
Seagate gives the issue full treatment in their Windows 137GB Capacity Barrier document.
Q: I used DBAN and my C drive disappeared. Why did this happen?
A: DBAN erases the partition table, which causes all drive letters to disappear.
The Microsoft Windows installer will automatically create a partition and filesystem during installation. Using FDISK after running DBAN is usually unnecessary.
Q: Why does my computer start into a black screen after using DBAN?
A: You must reinstall an operating system because DBAN removes it.
Q: Why does the device manager have yellow and red icons after using DBAN?
Q: Why is my video resolution low after using DBAN?
Q: Why is sound broken after using DBAN?
A: You must reinstall drivers for this hardware after reinstalling the operating system. These drivers were factory installed, but they may not be on the Microsoft Windows installation or rescue media. All major computer manufacturers provide drivers for Microsoft Windows on their web sites.
Q: May I bundle DBAN with a magazine or in a compilation disc?
A: Yes.
Q: May I mirror DBAN or otherwise provide it for download?
A: Yes.
Q: May I use DBAN in my consulting business?
A: Yes.
Q: How many copies of DBAN may I distribute to people in my organization?
A: You may distribute unlimited copies.
Q: May I rebrand DBAN?
A: No.
If you rebrand DBAN without my permission, then I will send an unadulterated copy of DBAN to your customers and submit a GPL fulfilment demand to your legal department. This includes changing the product banner to "Disk Wipe" or a similarly generic name.
Read the GPL FAQ, which provides more information about how DBAN is licensed, and don't do anything that will increase my support load.
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