ReclaimNUKM FAQ and Help
NUKM Definition: NUKM is defined by the acronym for 'Next Unit of Kill Module' as it pertains to data sanitization.
This document provides detailed information on using ReclaimNUKM, including features, troubleshooting, and technical details. It will be updated as the program develops.
1. Method Selection Guide
Use this table to choose the right wipe method based on your needs:
| Use Case |
Recommended Method |
Outcome |
Notes |
| Immediate OS Use |
Quick Format |
Formatted drive |
Ready to mount/store data. |
| RAID Use |
Full Zero Fill (dd) |
Zeroed drive |
Clean for RAID; no filesystem. |
| Enterprise Drive |
Auto-detect + Quick Format |
Reformatted + formatted drive |
Proprietary sectors auto-detected and reformatted. |
| OS Installation |
Quick Format |
Formatted drive |
Bootable media preparation. |
| Secure Disposal |
Shred (3-pass) |
Securely wiped drive |
DoD compliant data destruction. |
| Fast Cleanup |
Quick Format |
Formatted drive |
Balance of speed and basic security. |
2. Overview
ReclaimNUKM is a GUI tool for securely wiping disk drives using various methods. It generates shell scripts and runs them in xterm for monitoring. Supports multiple wipe methods, filesystem selection, hardware error correction, and enterprise drive handling with automatic detection of proprietary sector formats.
3. Device Selection
Visual Feedback
When selecting devices in the listbox:
- Clicking toggles selection.
- The line highlights immediately after clicking (fixed for lag issues).
- The annotation (e.g., "[selected]") updates in the list text.
- Status updates (e.g., "[Zapped - Quick Format]") appear after operations complete, even if xterm closes.
Troubleshooting Selection
If selection doesn't highlight:
- Ensure the device isn't locked (e.g., system drive).
- Check for Tkinter issues; the app uses thread-safe updates for status changes.
3.5 Enterprise Drive Support
NEW in v1.6: ReclaimNUKM now automatically detects and handles enterprise drives with proprietary sector formats (520B/528B sectors found in NetApp, Toshiba, and other enterprise storage).
Automatic Detection
- Uses sg_readcap and sg_vpd tools to detect non-standard sectors
- Identifies protection types and data integrity features
- Shows visual warnings in the UI for drives requiring special handling
Reformatting Capability
- Option to reformat drives to standard 512B/4KB sectors using sg_format
- User confirmation required before reformatting
- Ensures compatibility with standard wiping methods
Supported Enterprise Drives
- SCSI/SAS drives with proprietary sectors
- NetApp storage systems
- Toshiba enterprise drives
- Other drives with 520B/528B sector sizes
4. User Interface Features (v1.6)
Touchscreen Mode
ReclaimNUKM includes touchscreen-optimized interface for tablet and mobile use:
- Larger buttons and controls for touch interaction
- Optimized window sizing for touch devices
- Toggle available in the control panel
Device Selection Mode
Advanced device selection for targeted operations:
- Enable/disable selection mode to choose specific devices
- Visual indicators for selected devices
- Safety warnings for locked/system drives
- Zap Selected button for manual operations
Auto-Zap Functionality
Automated wiping of newly detected drives:
- Startup confirmation dialog for enabling auto-zap
- Continuous monitoring of device connections
- Automatic wiping of newly inserted drives
- Status indicators showing auto-zap state
Operation Control
- Cancel Operation: Stop running wipe processes
- Clear Select: Deselect all chosen devices
- Terminal Logs: Option to enable terminal logging
- Customer Folders: Automatic folder creation for customer data
Responsive Logo
The application logo dynamically scales with window size for optimal viewing on different screen sizes.
4.5 USB NVMe Enclosure Support (v1.6)
NEW in v1.6: ReclaimNUKM automatically detects and handles USB NVMe enclosures that may require special initialization procedures.
Automatic Detection
- Identifies USB NVMe enclosures by chipset (RTL9210, RTL9220, JMicron, ASMedia)
- Shows warnings for enclosures requiring special handling
- Provides troubleshooting recommendations
Initialization Procedures
- Multiple wake-up attempts with I/O operations
- SCSI start/stop unit commands
- USB device reset using usbreset utility
- Power cycling via UDisks
Recovery Methods
- Metadata clearing for zero-capacity enclosures
- Partition table recreation
- GPT creation with parted
- Additional I/O wake-up sequences
Troubleshooting USB NVMe Issues
- Try different USB ports (preferably USB 3.0+)
- Unplug and re-plug the enclosure
- Use a different USB cable
- Check kernel messages:
dmesg | grep -i nvme
- Test on different computer if possible
5. Wipe Methods
Available Methods
- Quick Format: Creates partition table (GPT/MSDOS), formats with selected filesystem (exFAT/NTFS/EXT4/None), applies volume labels.
- Zero Device (DD): Zeros entire device using dd or ddrescue with hardware error compensation.
- Shred (3 Pass): 3 random passes + 1 zero pass using GNU shred.
Filesystem Options
- exFAT Quick/Full: Fast or full formatting with exFAT filesystem
- NTFS Quick/Full: Fast or full formatting with NTFS filesystem
- EXT4 Quick/Full: Fast or full formatting with EXT4 filesystem
- Format Options: None: Partitioning only, no filesystem formatting
HW Error Comp (Error Correction)
HW Error Comp (Hardware Error Compensation) enables error-resilient wiping using ddrescue instead of standard dd. This is crucial for drives with bad sectors or hardware errors that would cause dd to fail.
What It Does
- Uses ddrescue, which creates mapfiles to track progress and skip bad sectors.
- Allows wiping to continue despite bad sectors, retrying problematic areas.
- For Quick Format: Skips initial zeroing but may result in full-drive zeroing during formatting.
- For Full Zero Fill: Provides robust zeroing of the entire device, handling errors gracefully.
When to Use It
- When dd operations fail with "Input/output error" or similar.
- For older or damaged drives with known bad sectors.
- When maximum data destruction is needed despite hardware issues.
- Recommended for enterprise or forensic wiping where errors must not halt the process.
Cases That Require It
- Drives showing SMART errors or bad sectors in diagnostics.
- External drives that have been dropped or exposed to extreme conditions.
- RAID drives or enterprise storage with potential firmware issues.
- Any drive where a previous wipe attempt failed due to hardware errors.
Note: HW Error Comp is slower than standard dd but ensures completion. Mapfiles are stored in /tmp and cleaned up automatically.
6. Xterm and Terminal Output
Headers and Details
When xterm launches, headers show:
Target Device: /dev/sdc (WDC WD2500AAJS-75M0A0, WD-WMAV2L990370, 232G)
Wipe Method: Quick Format (Partition Table + Filesystem)
Includes model, serial, size for identification.
Status Updates
Device status in GUI updates after xterm closes or script finishes, using thread-safe Tkinter calls.
7. Performance and Differences
Quick Format Performance
- Standard: Creates partition table + formats with selected filesystem
- With HW Error Comp: Same as standard (HW Error Comp affects DD method primarily)
Quick Format now provides complete partitioning and filesystem creation rather than partial zeroing.
Full Zero Fill
- Without HW Error Comp: Uses dd (fast on good drives).
- With HW Error Comp: Uses ddrescue (slower, handles errors).
8. Troubleshooting
Syntax Errors in Scripts
If "syntax error in expression" occurs:
- Fixed by robust device size detection (tries blockdev, then lsblk).
- Ensure device is valid and accessible.
Operations Not Completing
- Check logs for errors (e.g., bad sectors).
- dd fails on errors; ddrescue retries.
- Status updates may take time due to refresh intervals.
Device Size Unknown
Falls back to lsblk; warns but continues.
Mapfile Issues
ddrescue uses /tmp/mapfiles; cleaned up automatically.
9. Technical Details
Script Generation
Python generates bash scripts with placeholders replaced. Runs in xterm for verbose output.
Dependencies
- dd, ddrescue, shred, sgdisk, mkfs.ntfs/mkfs.ext4, sg_format, sg_readcap, sg_vpd
- Python: tkinter, pyudev, PIL
Safety
Requires sudo; checks for mounted devices; best-effort cleanup.
10. UI Button Functions Flowchart
This flowchart details the functions of each major UI button and how they connect to application processes.
graph TD
UI[UI Loaded] --> B[Start Monitoring Button
Toggles monitoring mode]
B --> C{State}
C -->|Start| D[Enable Auto-Zap
Start monitoring thread]
C -->|Stop| E[Disable Auto-Zap
Stop monitoring thread]
D --> F[Monitor for New Drives]
E --> G[Stop Monitoring]
UI --> H[Zap Selected Button
Manual device wiping]
H --> I[Check selected devices]
I --> J{Devices selected?}
J -->|Yes| K[Confirm wipe action]
J -->|No| L[Show error message]
K --> M{Confirmed?}
M -->|Yes| N[Generate scripts for selected devices]
M -->|No| O[Cancel]
N --> P[Run scripts in xterm]
UI --> Q[Clear Select Button
Clear device selections]
Q --> R[Deselect all devices
Update UI]
UI --> S[Cancel Operation Button
Stop running wipes]
S --> T[Kill running processes
Close xterm windows]
UI --> U[Touchscreen Mode Button
Toggle UI layout]
U --> V{Mode}
V -->|Enable| W[Apply touchscreen layout
Resize window]
V -->|Disable| X[Apply default layout]
UI --> Y[Exit Button
Close application]
Y --> Z[Stop all threads
Destroy UI
Exit]
F --> AA[New drive detected
Auto-wipe]
AA --> P
P --> BB[Update device status
Log results]
BB --> F
10. Application Workflow Flowchart
This flowchart illustrates the main workflow of ReclaimNUKM from startup to completion.
graph TD
A[Start Application] --> B[Authenticate Sudo]
B --> C{Sudo Authentication Successful?}
C -->|No| D[Exit Application]
C -->|Yes| E[Load UI and Enumerate Block Devices]
E --> F[User Selects Wipe Method and Options
e.g., Quick Format, HW Error Comp]
F --> G{Operation Mode}
G -->|Monitoring Mode| H[Start Monitoring Thread]
H --> I[Monitor for New Drives]
I --> J{New Drive Detected?}
J -->|Yes| K[Auto-Wipe Detected Drive]
J -->|No| I
G -->|Manual Mode| L[User Selects Devices from List]
L --> M[Zap Selected Devices]
K --> N[Generate Wipe Script for Device]
M --> N
N --> O[Run Script in xterm Terminal]
O --> P[Update Device Status in UI]
P --> Q{Continue Monitoring?}
Q -->|Yes| I
Q -->|No| R[End Session]
D --> R
13. Changelog
- v1.6 Updates: Added USB NVMe enclosure support with automatic detection and recovery procedures
- v1.6 Updates: Added touchscreen mode for tablet/mobile optimization
- v1.6 Updates: Added device selection mode for targeted operations
- v1.6 Updates: Added auto-zap functionality for automated drive wiping
- v1.6 Updates: Added multiple filesystem formatting options (exFAT, NTFS, EXT4)
- v1.6 Updates: Added responsive logo that scales with window size
- v1.6 Updates: Updated Quick Format to create partitions and format filesystems
- v1.6 Updates: Enhanced hardware error compensation with ddrescue
- v1.6 Updates: Added GUI sudo authentication with zenity/kdialog support
- v1.6 Updates: Added operation control buttons (Cancel, Clear Select)
- v1.6 Updates: Added terminal logs and customer folder options
- Added UI button functions flowchart for detailed button interactions.
- Added application workflow flowchart for visual guidance.
- Added method selection guide table at the top.
- Fixed device selection lag and status updates.
- Added device details to xterm headers.
- Modified Quick Format for HW Error Comp (skip zeroing).
- Improved device size detection.