Data at scale
Every drive in a decommissioned rack held data. Each needs an erasure result tied to its serial number.
Data centers
Data center decommissioning. Every drive accounted for.
K12 Computers buys and disposes of retired data center equipment: servers, storage arrays, drives and network gear. Drives are erased to NIST 800-88 guidelines with third-party verified software, every asset is recorded by serial number, equipment with resale value is remarketed and the rest is recycled through R2v3-certified processes.
- R2v3 & ISO certified
- NIST 800-88 erasure
- Updated
Key facts
Data centers, at a glance.
- Equipment
- Servers, storage arrays, HDDs, SSDs, network gear
- Erasure standard
- NIST SP 800-88
- Records
- Per-asset and per-drive serial reporting
- Recycling
- R2v3-certified processes
- Payout
- Remarketing of equipment with value
- Districts served
- 300+
- Devices processed
- 5 million+
- Paid out
- $80 million+
R2v3 · ISO 9001 · ISO 14001 · ISO 45001 · WISE Certified · Inc. 5000
What is at stake
Why disposition matters here.
Audit trails
Security and compliance audits ask how retired hardware left the building. Serialized reports answer that.
Resale timing
Enterprise hardware loses value quickly. Moving it out soon after a migration recovers more.
01
Every drive needs its own record
A decommissioned rack holds dozens of drives, each with its own serial number and data. NIST SP 800-88 explains that the right sanitization method depends on the media, for example magnetic hard drives and flash-based SSDs need different techniques.
K12 erases drives with third-party verified software and records each result against its serial number, so the audit trail covers every drive.
02
Move hardware while it still has value
Enterprise hardware loses resale value quickly after a migration. Scheduling disposition as part of the decommission plan, instead of storing retired racks, recovers more. K12 remarkets equipment with value and recycles the rest through R2v3-certified processes.
What we take
Rack to report, every asset serialized.
Data center refreshes retire servers, storage and network gear at once. K12 records assets at pickup, erases drives to NIST 800-88 guidelines and reports final disposition for each serial number.
- ServersRack and tower servers
- Storage and drivesArrays, HDDs and SSDs
- Network equipmentSwitches, routers and firewalls
- Racks, power and e-wasteEverything else from the decommission
Step by step
How a decommission runs.
Every step is recorded in the K12 portal. New to the terms? See the ITAD glossary.
- 01
Scope
Send an asset list and flag any drives your policy requires to be physically destroyed.
- 02
Collect
Scheduled pickup with a receiving report matched to your asset list.
- 03
Erase and audit
NIST 800-88 drive erasure and serialized audit, on site or at our facility.
- 04
Remarket and report
Resale of equipment with value, recycling for the rest, and a full report set.
Portal & app
Follow every device in the K12 app.
Your orders, devices, documents and payouts, in a portal that works as well on your phone as on your desk.
Who buys used servers and data center equipment?
K12 Computers buys retired servers, storage and network equipment, with NIST 800-88 drive erasure, serialized asset reports and R2v3-certified recycling for equipment without resale value.
What documentation comes with data center decommissioning?
Receiving reports, serialized audit reports, data deletion certifications per device, shipment summaries and purchase orders, plus custom reports on request.
Does K12 handle SSDs differently from hard drives?
Sanitization follows NIST SP 800-88, which addresses different media types. Tell K12 about any drives your policy requires to be physically destroyed.
What reports come with a decommission?
K12 provides receiving reports, serialized audit reports, data deletion certifications, shipment summaries, purchase orders and impact reports.
References
Standards and guidance cited on this page.
Primary sources from regulators, standards bodies and platform vendors. Links checked November 2026.
- NISTSP 800-88 Rev. 2, Guidelines for Media Sanitization (September 2025)
- SERI, Sustainable Electronics Recycling InternationalThe R2 Standard (R2v3)
- U.S. Environmental Protection AgencyCertified Electronics Recyclers
Verify K12 Computers independently
SERI R2 DirectoryInc.Winston-Salem JournalTIPSChoice PartnersNC TECH AssociationLinkedIn
Keep exploring
Programs for this sector.
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