Turn off HDD access in Windows 10
Turn off HDD access in Windows 10
I use this system for both professional and personal tasks. It includes four SSDs—two running Windows 10, one Linux, and one for storage. I frequently test software, access customer files, and connect external drives or USB devices. I’m concerned about malware like viruses or ransomware. I already have a separate Windows 10 installation for work, but I’d like to fully isolate all other drives. Would it be safer to disable personal drives in Device Manager, or is there another better approach?
Disconnecting the SATA cables is the most secure option. Consider using a hot-swap front bay to remove the disks manually.
You can remove drive letters from devices you don’t want to use. This doesn’t fully prevent access but hides their presence. Use a user account with minimal permissions and configure drive settings so it only receives the access it needs. This greatly reduces the impact of malware, as most attacks require admin-level privileges. If you must run programs, do so in a virtual machine or sandbox tool like Sandboxie. Or simply refuse to allow executables.
@Origami Cactus I know that's the safest way, but it's a miniITX system, and also that would be way too impractical for me. @Mira Yurizaki Thanks for your reply, buto I'm not sure that's actually safer than disabling the drives. I was looking for something that makes it impossible for the OS to access my personal drives, or even completely hides them from the OS. Also, I need an account with admin privileges, and not everything works perfectly in an VM.