Sometimes it’s nice to have a clean start. Your Chromebook makes it easy for you to wipe the slate clean and start over. On the Chromebook, this is known as powerwashing. You may find doing so useful when you have too much junk on your device.
Or maybe you want to reset your Chromebook to its default settings because you’re giving your Chromebook to another person. You can wipe your device quickly, easily, and securely by using Chromebook’s built-in Powerwash feature.
To powerwash your Chromebook, log in to your Chromebook and follow these steps:
- Open the Settings panel on the Shelf and click Settings.
- Scroll to the bottom of the screen and click Show Advanced Settings.
- Click the Powerwash button in the Powerwash section at the bottom of the screen.A dialog box appears, telling you that a restart is required.
The Chromebook Powerwash feature. - If you’re positive that you want to wipe your Chromebook clean, click the Restart button.
Are you sure?
You can’t undo power washing any more than you can unbreak an egg. After you click Restart, your Chromebook turns into a secure, power-cleaning machine. Nothing on the device will be left. The good news is that it won’t touch anything on your Google Drive or other web services. But anything stored locally on your Chromebook will be gone forever.
Your Chromebook restarts, as clean as can be — just like new.