Eraser creates folder\files

[logictek]

Hi,

I've installed Eraser on a Windows XP machine with one hard drive, containing 2 partitions, and set it to wipe every thursday at 8 PM, using the default wipe algorithm (I think Guttman, 35 passes?). After the task ran, I saw a random-named folder on the root of C, containing random-named files, each around 222 MB.

I'd thought eraser was using the Windows disk API to directly talk to and wipe the free space. Another possibility is to fill the hard drive with files, containing randomized data, but this is tricky under windows, as to wipe the last bit of space, you'd need to leave 'some' space free, else Windows would likely lock up.

Any ideas what caused this?
Thanks,
Andrew

 

[DavidHB]

Any ideas what caused this?

Yes. Eraser failed to complete and did not delete its wiping files. Just delete the files and all will be well. More information is available in the FAQ (start with the one on Common Eraser Questions).

I haven't (yet) seen this with recent builds of Eraser. What version are you using?

David