Type 'info wipefreespace' to get help.
Syntax:
wipefreespace [options] /dev/XY [...]
Command line options:
--all-zeros
Use only zeros for wiping
--background
Continue work in the background, if possible. This disables verbose mode.
-b|--superblock offset
Superblock offset on the given filesystems
-B|--blocksize size
Block size on the given filesystems
-f|--force
Wipe even if the file system has errors
-h|--help
Print help
--last-zero
Perform additional wiping with zeros
-l|--license|--licence
Print license information
--method name
Use the given method for wiping (read below)
-n|--iterations NNN
Number of passes (greater than 0)
--nopart
Do NOT wipe free space in partially used blocks
--nounrm
Do NOT wipe undelete information
--nowfs
Do NOT wipe free space on file system
--no-wipe-zero-blocks
Do NOT wipe all-zero blocks on file system (useful for virtual/sparse devices, where empty areas are read as all-zeros and do not take physical space unless actually written to)
--order type
Use the given order for wiping (read below)
--use-dedicated
Use the program dedicated for the given filesystem type if supported. Fallback to WipeFreeSpace if unsupported (currently, only 'ntfswipe' is supported)
--use-ioctl
Disable device caching during work (can be DANGEROUS). NOTE: this may not work for sub-partitions on drives. To disable the cache, run the 'hdparm' utility with the correct options to disable the cache before running wipefreespace and enable the cache afterwards.
-v|--verbose
Verbose output. Use twice for more. This also enables progress bars, but be warned: these may not always be accurate or increase at a constant rate.
-V|--version
Print version number
The /dev/XY part stands for a device with a supported file system. Examples: /dev/hda1, /dev/fd0.
More than one device can be given on the command line, but they will be wiped sequentially, NOT in multiple threads. WipeFreeSpace is not multithreaded and probably won't be, because the libraries used can be not thread-safe.
But, you can run multiple WipeFreeSpace processes (but not wiping the same filesystem) in multiple terminals (or under screen/nohup) as a substitute for multi-threading.
The following method names (case-insensitive) are available:
WipeFreeSpace also works for file systems created inside regular files on any host file system.
WipeFreeSpace supports two wiping orders:
NOTE: wiping with just one pattern at a time (-n 1) will NOT perform wiping with all patterns of the given method one by one, it will always use the first pattern. However, it will be MUCH faster than any "full" method.
If you need just random wiping, run
wipefreespace -n 1 /dev/XY
a few times in a row.
Any option affects all filesystems given on the command line, not just the ones following it.
To perform a command after wiping (like sending e-mail), simply run a program after WipeFreeSpace is finished, for example:
wipefreespace [options] /dev/XY; mail [options]
or in a script:
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To run WipeFreeSpace with a higher or lower priority, simply use the renice utility, for example:
renice +1 $(pidof wipefreespace)