2.0 Has A Way To Erase All Content.

[dturner]

Don't recall seeing this before. There is a new feature in 2.0 that will allow you to erase all content and settings on the phone. It then restores it with virgin firmware. This will be very useful for anyone wanting to sell their V1 that has been upgraded to 2.0.
Here is a link to the video.
http://www.cnettv.com/9742-1_53-50003034.html

[Lincoln]

I think was discovered a few days before the launch of the firmware, if I'm not mistaken. A very neat feature, nonetheless. What would be very useful is to have a remote wipe feature - for those without an Exchange account set up.

[xwtfbrendan]

This was known it was in the firmware. Remember the hype about how great remote wipe could be? It has to trigger a local command on the phone.

[YvilKittyInSpace]

There has always been a way to delete all content and settings from the very first iPhone. I used it several times when I accidentally deleted something because this allowed me to restore once again from my previous backup.

It just didn't take as long as it does now. On 1.1.4 it took only a few minutes

[styfle]

omg he said it takes about an hour to erase lol

[scudder]

The official User Guide on the Apple website for iPhone now states that earse All Content and Settings will take from 1 - 4 hours... guess that depends how much you have on it. So, 1.1.4 took about two minutes. I had the misfortune to run this setting with 2.0 (about 6GB on the iphone at the time) and it took an hour to erase. Also took an hour to restore from the backup on iTunes. Why this would be so tardy I have no idea.

[dcom]

There has always been a way to delete all content and settings from the very first iPhone. I used it several times when I accidentally deleted something because this allowed me to restore once again from my previous backup.

It just didn't take as long as it does now. On 1.1.4 it took only a few minutes

I think that erase didn't complete wipe the data. Someone with the right tools and know-how could still get in and maybe see stuff that you put in it. There is a wipe procedure for 1.1.4 that will zero out the data areas but it involves SSH and a utility called umount. You can see it here (http://www.iclarified.com/entry/index.php?enid=1347). I did that on my phones before putting them up for sale. It takes 30-45 minutes on an 8Gig.

[kdarling]

I think that erase didn't complete wipe the data. Someone with the right tools and know-how could still get in and maybe see stuff that you put in it.

That's correct. Previous to 2.0, the "erase" was just a surface name delete from the file system directory. Anyone could buy the phone and get in with the right tools and see everything from the previous owner.

In fact, people proved you could buy a refurbished iPhone and find the web pages, history, mail, and so forth from a previous owner. That was pretty embarrassing for Apple.

[Lincoln]

That's correct. Previous to 2.0, the "erase" was just a surface name delete from the file system directory. Anyone could buy the phone and get in with the right tools and see everything from the previous owner.

In fact, people proved you could buy a refurbished iPhone and find the web pages, history, mail, and so forth from a previous owner. That was pretty embarrassing for Apple.

True. I believe the "dev team" came up with a way to completely erase it, but apparently that method is no longer needed.