ZeroTrace HID
Self-Destruct
Full flash erase from the web UI
Self-destruct triggers a full chip-erase of the ESP32-S3's flash memory. After it runs, the device contains no firmware, no scripts, no configuration — just a blank flash chip.
Trigger
- Web UI → Settings → Self-Destruct → Confirm
- Script primitive:
selfDestruct confirm
The script primitive requires the literal string confirm to prevent accidental triggers from typos or partial payloads.
What it erases
- Firmware partition
- LittleFS user filesystem (all scripts and payloads)
- Configuration partition (WiFi credentials, mode, BLE identity)
- TraceNetwork passphrase
After self-destruct the device boots into ROM bootloader mode — no radios, no LED, no web UI. Re-flashing via the Web Flasher restores it.
Recovery
Software recovery is impossible — the chip-erase is destructive at the flash-controller level. Forensic recovery would require chip decapping and electron-microscope analysis with vanishingly small odds of partial recovery; this is not a defended attack surface.
Self-destruct cannot be undone. Use it deliberately. Store no secrets on the device that you can't tolerate being permanently lost in a self-destruct event.