Erase a CD or DVD

Windows 7 More
Rewritable CDs (for example, CD-RW discs) and rewritable DVDs (for example, DVD-RW, DVD+RW, or DVD+RAM) can be erased and written to many times. After you erase a rewritable CD, DVD, or Blu‑ray Disc, you can format the disc and burn files to it again. For more information, see Burn a CD or DVD in Windows Explorer.
Hide all

To erase all of the files on a disc

You can erase all the files at one time on a rewritable disc, such as CD-RW, DVD-RW, DVD+RW, or DVD-RAM discs. You can do this for discs that use either the Live File System or Mastered disc format. The following steps for erasing a disc won't work for recordable discs, such as CD-R, DVD-R, or DVD+R discs.
  1. Insert the rewritable disc, such as a CD-RW, DVD-RW, DVD+RW, or DVD-RAM disc, into your computer's CD, DVD, or Blu‑ray Disc burner.
  2. Open Computer by clicking the Start button Picture of the Start button, and then clicking Computer.
  3. In Windows Explorer, click the CD, DVD, or Blu‑ray Disc burner icon.
  4. On the toolbar, click Erase this disc, and then follow the steps in the wizard.

To delete one or more files on a disc

If you have a rewritable disc (such as a CD-RW or DVD-RW disc) or recordable disc (such as a CD-R or DVD-R disc) formatted using the Live File System, you can delete one, some, or all the files on the disc.
  1. Insert the recordable or rewritable disc into your computer's CD, DVD, or Blu‑ray Disc burner.
  2. Open Computer by clicking the Start button Picture of the Start button, and then clicking Computer.
  3. Double-click the CD, DVD, or Blu‑ray Disc burner icon in Windows Explorer to view the files on the disc.
  4. Select the files or folders that you want to delete.
    To select more than one file, press and hold the Ctrl key, and then click the files you want to delete.
  5. Press the Delete key.