How to format a Hard Drive partition in Windows XP

How to format a Hard Drive partition in Windows XP



At some stage in your computer's life things are going to take a turn for the worse, and you will need to format a partition. In the guide below I’m going to tell you how to format a partition correctly.

Formatting a partition can seem a daunting task to many users, but by carefully following this guide and taking your time, the job will be a great deal easier than you first thought.

This guide will only apply to those who have created extra partitions on their Hard Drive. If you installed your Operating System on the C: partition to protect it and then created a D: partition for everyday use, this will show you how to clean the D: partition keeping your system files safe.

Keep in mind that, in order for you to be able to perform the tasks described herein, you have to log on as Administrator or with an account that has administrative rights (i.e. as a member of the Administrators group).


If you no longer want to keep your files then follow the procedure on how to format your partition without keeping files. However, if you want to keep some files, I highly suggest that you back them up to a storage device.



How to format a partition WITHOUT KEEPING files:


So, you made the choice to wipe your partition clean losing all your files.

*Please note: I cannot accept responsibility if you follow these instructions and you lose all data on the partition. If you want to keep any files, go to How to format a partition KEEPING files.


Now getting the job done:


Step 1

Go to Start and select Control Panel. After the Control Panel window opens click on Administrative Tools and let the new window open.



Step 2

In the new window there should be several shortcuts to different services. We need to go to Computer Management, so double click on it and open the Computer Management window.


(Alternative way for Steps 1-2: Click Start, click Run, type compmgmt.msc, and then click OK.)


Step 3

In the Computer Management window, you will see on the left panel three (3) directories. We need to find and select Disk Management. Single click the shortcut once you find it. If done correctly, Disk Management options should show in the main area of the window.



Step 4

Here you will see information about all your disk drives that you have on your system. Now you need to select the partition you want to format. You should see D: (or the other partitions you have on your system).


Step 5

Now to format the partition you need to select which one you want (bearing in mind you will not be able to format the partition with the system files and documentation on). Right-click the partition you want to format and click Format.



Step 6

Once you click Format, you will be presented with a new window with 5 options.

• Volume Label
• File System
• Allocation Unit Size
• Perform a Quick Format
• Enable File and Folder Compression.

In the Format dialog box, you may choose to type a name of the volume in the Volume Label box. Common names are D:, Data. You can call it whatever you want.

Please note: This is an optional step and won’t affect the format if not changed. If you prefer to not call it anything, just leave the text field blank (no text in the field at all)


Step 7

Click the file system that you would like the partition to use. The default version for XP is NTFS and this is the file system you should use.

If you want, you can also change the disk allocation unit size.

Suggestion

The choices are NTFS & FAT32. Should you be working with a dual-boot windows system of which one system is NOT XP and NOT NTFS format, to be able to access files on this partition from both installations you should choose FAT32, otherwise you won't be able to see the contents of the drive.

It is better to leave the disk allocation size as default unless you really understand what you are doing.


Step 8

Next, choose whether you want to Perform a Quick Format or Enable File and Folder Compression. I choose to leave these 2 options UNTICKED, but ticking them is a personal preference of the user who is formatting the drive.

After you are satisfied that these are the settings you want, proceed and click OK. If you are prompted to format the partition, then click OK.


The format process will now start.

After the format process has ended, you will have a totally clean drive that is ready to store data.

Explanation of terms

Quick Format should only be performed if the drive has been previously formatted, but it's preferable to leave it unchecked and do a full format to correct any possible errors.

Choosing Enable File and Folder Compression will result in increased space on your partition at the cost of slower access time. It is only available when formatting in NTFS.


Step 9

Close all open windows and feel free to test your clean partition.



How to format a partition KEEPING files:


So, you have decided to backup important files on your partition before you format it. It is recommended that you store these files temporarily on an external storage such as a Flash Drive, CD, DVD or a floppy disc.

I cannot choose what files you want to keep, so it is up to you to decide what you want to keep and what disappears forever.

Once you have decided, copy and paste the files onto a floppy or flash drive.

If you intend on putting them on a CD or DVD, you may need to use burning software to put them on there. I recommend a program called CopyToDVD/CD as the user interface, since it is easy to use and navigate around. The program has a free 30-day trial for users to test it out.

http://www.vso-software.fr/products/.../copytodvd.php

Alternatively, you could use the burning utility that is built into Windows.

To use this utility, simply select whatever files you want to keep by right-clicking and selecting; Send to E: under the context menu (or whatever letter is assigned to your CD or DVD writer).

Once you have chosen which files you want to keep, you may have noticed a yellow balloon in the system tray (near the clock), otherwise you will notice a little CD Icon.

Click this and select burn to CD from the right hand menu.

Now, use the method of your choice to backup the files to a CD/DVD.

Once you are totally assured you have all the important files of your choice backed up, proceed with steps 1–9 above.

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Formatting a partition can seem a daunting task to many users, but by carefully following this guide and taking your time, the job will be a great deal easier than you first thought. Good luck!!