Factory reset will reset the device back to the EOS.swi image and configs that the device came with from the factory saved on a different partition. The device can be reset either through push-button or through the command line interface. Once the factory reset is requested, the device will reboot and will delete all files on the normal partition to be replaced with the swi image and config files that were saved in the recovery partition during manufacturing.

Prior to 4.32.2F, the “reset system storage secure” CLI command can be used to perform a best-effort storage device wipe of all sensitive data. However, this command has the limitation that it wipes EOS from the storage device, leaving the system “stuck” in Aboot. The “reset system storage secure rollback” command provides the same secure erase functionality, but additionally allows the user to preserve a subset of files on the main flash device by copying them into RAM during the secure erase procedure. The set of files that are preserved is configurable. After a successful wipe, the system will return to EOS after the erase is complete if the EOS SWI image and adequate configuration files are preserved (such as boot-config and startup-config).