If you specify to erase disks using 1pass, 3pass, or 7pass method, Oracle Exadata System Software automatically uses the optimal Secure Eraser method, if it is supported by the underlying hardware.

As disks get larger and larger, the traditional multi-pass overwrite methods such as 1-pass, 3-pass and 7-pass take more time to complete than the erasure method used by Secure Eraser. For example, a 10 TB hard drive can take more than 4 days for 7-pass erase, but only 1 minute using Secure Eraser. See Securely Erasing Database Servers and Storage Servers for a table of supported hardware and estimated erasure times.

It is much faster and more secure to use Secure Eraser on the disks when it is supported. The Secure Eraser methods used in DROP CELL and DROP CELLDISK are the same as those in the Secure Eraser feature and are fully compliant with NIST SP-800-88r1 standard.

See DROP CELL and DROP CELLDISK for more information.

Minimum requirements:

• Oracle Exadata System Software 19.1.0
• Oracle Exadata Database Machine X5-2 or later