can you erase a HD with a magnet?

chrisalviola · 10-27-2006, 10:28 AM

A magnet gives off magnetic field which can change the polarity of magnetic particles in floppies, but in hard drives is it same? what about those metal detectors?

my questions is can you erase the files on the harddrives if you place a magnet?

kof2000 · 10-27-2006, 10:31 AM

if the head is metallic you probably would lose more than data and have an extra paperweight.

PC eye · 10-27-2006, 10:33 AM

Hard drives like floppy disk use magnetism in order to store information. The effect on a hard drive to see it completely wiped clean would depend on the actual strength of the magnetic field created by a nearby magnet. With a very small and weak magnet you may see some effect. But distance, strength, and the drive's metal casing are factors to weigh in.

chrisalviola · 10-27-2006, 10:38 AM

i have my Computer near a huge speaker a sub woofer. this thing have huge magnets right?
i tought optical disks like hard drives use lasers to burn data into the disk unlike floppies which use magnetic particles to store data same with cds and dvds

**apj101** · 10-27-2006, 11:15 AM

yep it will ruin it, but you could do this
http://www.oz.net/~coilgun/levitation/harddrive.htm

PC eye · 10-27-2006, 12:20 PM

Anyone planning an anti-gravity machine? ...wwwwwwwwwwwwwhing!

HaGa11aZ · 10-28-2006, 12:07 PM

all i know is... placing two HD magnets next to each other equals nearly impossible to seperate...

::hic::

SirKenin · 10-28-2006, 12:14 PM

Yup, you sure can. But if the speaker is shielded, which it could very well be, then you have nothing to worry about.

Rambo · 10-28-2006, 12:58 PM

You can also get anti-magnetic speakers too.

I have one question though: Are Magnetic Screwdrivers (which have just enough magnetic strength to hold a screw) safe to use? I would imagine so, but just checking...

SirKenin · 10-28-2006, 01:47 PM

They aren't safe to use on HDDs, no. A lot of shoddy, so-called "technicians" use them, but they shouldn't.

10-27-2006, 10:28 AM	#1 (permalink)
chrisalviola Platinum Member Join Date: Jul 2006 Posts: 864	can you erase a HD with a magnet? A magnet gives off magnetic field which can change the polarity of magnetic particles in floppies, but in hard drives is it same? what about those metal detectors? my questions is can you erase the files on the harddrives if you place a magnet?

10-27-2006, 10:31 AM	#2 (permalink)
kof2000 Diamond Member Join Date: Aug 2004 Location: Oahu Age: 26 Posts: 6,273	if the head is metallic you probably would lose more than data and have an extra paperweight. __________________ QX9650@4.2 swiftech \|9600@3.0 9700 nt 780i \| 790fx 8gb ddr1200 \| 8gb ddr1200 2x150gb 3x1tb \|2x250gb 3x8800gtx \|3x2900xt 1gb 2x20xdvdrw \|2x20xdvdrw 15in1 card reader \|15in1 card reader ng15/g9 \|ng15/g9 1200w psu \|1200w psu 2x28" LCD \|2x28" LCD

10-27-2006, 11:15 AM	#5 (permalink)
apj101 Administrator Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: London Age: 26 Posts: 9,143	yep it will ruin it, but you could do this http://www.oz.net/~coilgun/levitation/harddrive.htm __________________ What did one snow man say to the other? can you smell carrot? The fight is won or lost far away from witnesses - behind the lines, in the gym, and out there on the road, long before I dance under those lights. How you do anything, is how you do everything!

10-28-2006, 12:07 PM	#7 (permalink)
HaGa11aZ Bronze Member Join Date: Oct 2006 Posts: 54	all i know is... placing two HD magnets next to each other equals nearly impossible to seperate... ::hic:: __________________ ECS KN1 Lite nForce 4 Ultra s 939 Athlon 64 3400+ @ 2.2 gHz XFX GeForce 7900 GT 1 GB Corsair XMS RAM 120 GB SATA 1.5 Gb/s Barracuda M-Audio Audiophile 192 DAC

10-28-2006, 12:58 PM	#9 (permalink)
Rambo Diamond Member Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: United Kingdom Posts: 3,829	You can also get anti-magnetic speakers too. I have one question though: Are Magnetic Screwdrivers (which have just enough magnetic strength to hold a screw) safe to use? I would imagine so, but just checking... __________________ "75% of all statistics are made up, including this one. 62.481% of people who read that believe it is true. *And if you're one of the 37.519% who don't, copy and paste this into your signature." -* tlarkin, Cromewell, and Rambo. Intel E6300 Conroe @ 2.8 Ghz GigaByte GA 965P DS3 LGA 775 Sapphire Radeon X1800XT 256MB GeIL 2 x GX22 DDR2 Kit = 4GB RAM Antec TruePower 2.0 TP-II 550 Watt Last edited by Rambo; 10-28-2006 at 01:05 PM.

10-27-2006, 10:33 AM	#3 (permalink)
PC eye Diamond Member Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: Inside a pc Posts: 19,226	Hard drives like floppy disk use magnetism in order to store information. The effect on a hard drive to see it completely wiped clean would depend on the actual strength of the magnetic field created by a nearby magnet. With a very small and weak magnet you may see some effect. But distance, strength, and the drive's metal casing are factors to weigh in.

10-27-2006, 10:38 AM	#4 (permalink)
chrisalviola Platinum Member Join Date: Jul 2006 Posts: 864	i have my Computer near a huge speaker a sub woofer. this thing have huge magnets right? i tought optical disks like hard drives use lasers to burn data into the disk unlike floppies which use magnetic particles to store data same with cds and dvds

10-27-2006, 12:20 PM	#6 (permalink)
PC eye Diamond Member Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: Inside a pc Posts: 19,226	Anyone planning an anti-gravity machine? ...wwwwwwwwwwwwwhing!

10-28-2006, 12:14 PM	#8 (permalink)
SirKenin banned Join Date: Aug 2006 Posts: 4,711	Yup, you sure can. But if the speaker is shielded, which it could very well be, then you have nothing to worry about.

10-28-2006, 01:47 PM	#10 (permalink)
SirKenin banned Join Date: Aug 2006 Posts: 4,711	They aren't safe to use on HDDs, no. A lot of shoddy, so-called "technicians" use them, but they shouldn't.

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