We format the hdd using third-party programs. Formatting the system partition

About how to format HDD, every computer user should know. This procedure is equally necessary both for installing the operating system and for cleaning the drive from information that is no longer relevant to the user. Permanently deleting user and system data is what it means to format a computer disk. Therefore, always save information that is important to you before starting such a procedure.

Not only desktop PCs, but also some laptops (usually 17-inch) have the ability to connect another drive inside the case. That is, the owner of such a device will be interested in the question of how to format second hard disk correctly, without loss of data and device performance. The main thing is to be careful during the procedure and reformat hard drive 2, that is, the secondary storage device. To do this, remember its name and volume so as not to get confused. Before formatting your hard drive, just in case, back up the most important things to cloud resources.

For magnetic hard drives, hard drive formatting is a standard procedure that has almost no effect on the device’s resource, but can instantly identify its malfunction. If your computer cannot complete formatting the HDD, freezes and “glitches” during this operation, this means a breakdown now or in the future. No “miracle programs” will be able to restore the “magnetic properties” of disks or “start problem clusters” - all this is nonsense. Test programs They can only show where exactly on the disk there are problems with the surface. A half-hearted temporary solution could be formatting only in certain areas, that is, creating file system partitions where there are no problems. The Winchester will lose some of its volume, but will be able to serve for some time. However, this is advice for old HDDs, new defective devices usually have problems throughout the surface and last several weeks.

Formatting for OS installation

Typically, when you purchase a new drive, you should format it using a storage solution supported by your operating system (OS). Thus, you will only need to format a hard drive in FAT32 on an old, low-performance PC with Windows 95.98 or even 2000 installed. For new operating systems, Microsoft recommends using NTFS or at least exFAT.

According to the corporation itself, formatting hard drives in FAT32 on new devices with large volumes drives is impractical due to reduced system performance. By default, all new operating systems, from Windows XP to 10, cannot regular means"format" hard magnetic storage by creating partitions larger than 32 GB. That is, Windows itself will not let you do this, although there are special programs that can do this.

Formatting HDD under Windows

Please remember that before installing Windows 7 or more new masters for diagnostics and repair personal computers Disks are not necessarily formatted. If the update and transition to more new system is not expected, then you can leave the disks unchanged. However, when the computer is infected with viruses and cannot be revived, it is better to completely format the hard drive to avoid re-infection of the system. Of course, you will have to restore user data, but this is more reliable.

Typically, Windows 7 offers formatting in two options: during installation of the operating system and in Explorer. You can simply go to “Computer” or “This Computer” (for Win 8-10) and right-click on the disk of interest and select “Format” from the drop-down menu. Next, in the “Format” window, you will be asked to select a file system (NTFS is best), cluster size (leave the value on automatic) and volume label (leave empty), you don’t have to check the box next to “Quick formatting”, since it’s better to reformat first completely, thoroughly cleaning the drive. Don't use fast mode.

Windows OS engineering menu

On operating systems Windows family It is possible to use advanced tools to configure the system. If you are interested in how to format hard disks, Windows 7 may suggest using the Administrative Tools section. To launch it, follow the path: “Start”, “Control Panel”, “System and Security”, “Administration”. Here select the “Computer Management” section, then “Storage Devices” and “Disk Management”. If you were looking for how to properly format a hard drive, then this the best option no installation required third party utilities.

You will see a complete list of available physical drives and the file partitions placed on them. Even hidden system partitions and those formatted for unsupported file systems (for example, EXT4 from Linux) are visible. In this menu you can delete, expand and shrink partitions, and move them. System utility formats any partition, can create a volume label, and assign an active volume.

Preparing a disk for Linux OS

It is important to remember that before using the drive, it must be formatted for a specific file system. For Unix-like systems which are called Linux-like, The best decision— EXT4. It's relative new standard, providing high system performance even with weak hardware. This one file markup Linux has almost no fragmentation when writing/reading files, as happens on FAT32 or NTFS. As a result, Linux hard drives do not lose performance over time (to eliminate this unpleasant phenomenon, Microsoft has introduced automatic defragmentation by timer on all operating systems newer than XP).

On new Linux distributions, starting with Ubuntu 16.04, disk formatting is possible directly from the Nautilus window standard utility Disks. All you need to do is select the device and right-click on it, a pop-up list will appear in which you need to select the “Format” item. Next, the Linux window will suggest a file system, and you will also need to specify the volume label and cluster size. You can also use the terminal and enter commands or the GParted program - it will allow you not only to format, but also move partitions.

Erasing a hard drive on a Mac

Preparing a disk on a Mac is no more difficult than on other operating systems. Here, formatting hard drive partitions is done using “Disk Utility”, which can be found in the “Programs” folder, then you need to go to “Utilities” (Utilities). You can simply use Spotlight. Since formatting a disk on OS X 10.11 El Capitan has become easier thanks to a change in the interface, do not use old manuals - you will only get confused.

Depending on how the drive will be used, your Mac may offer the use of only the OS X Extended file system (Mac partition scheme - GUID) or for collaboration from Windows PC - ExFAT (Master Boot Record partition scheme).

Connect the HDD, run " Disk Utility» and select ways to format your hard drive from the suggested options. Select the disk in the “Erase” section, the file system type and confirm the action with the “Erase” button. If desired, the hard drive can be formatted with several partitions for different systems. Remember that a properly formatted drive will last longer and perform better.

Know how to format new hard disk, every user must. You just don’t need to use outdated literary sources. The days of 2 GB disk space and the FAT16 system are gone forever. They will describe to you what formatting is, but will suggest using outdated file systems. Therefore, use the latest sources related to at least Windows Vista. Remember the unspoken rule: before you format system disk, you need to save information from it (provided that you need it). Typically, performing a full “slow” erase is recommended when first using or reinstalling the system. In other cases, it is better to use Quick Format. Remember that during active HDD usage consumes its resource and loses durability. When we format it, it is very “stressed”, so it is not recommended to carry out this operation too often. Even before you properly format your hard drive, think about whether this procedure is really necessary. May be enough easy removal data from section D, for example.

Despite the fact that experts do not recommend doing independent laptop repairs, such a need still arises from time to time. The effect of viruses or damage to the file system forces you to perform unscheduled treatment of your computer. In this case, it is often necessary to format the laptop disk.

Instructions

1. Before everyone else, transfer all your expensive data from your laptop to another computer. After formatting they will be lost.

2. Pre-prefer a CD or DVD assembly of the operating system or an easy boot one LiveCD, which allow you to boot from a CD-ROM, bypassing the computer's hard drive. Burn the image to a blank CD at tiny speeds. Check whether it is readable by the laptop drive. As an alternative for the same purpose, it is allowed to pre-create bootable USB flash drive.

3. Turn on the laptop and change the boot order if necessary. IN desktop computer similar action carried out through the BIOS, on laptops - by pressing the corresponding command key F1..12 when turned on. The first device to boot from is CD-ROM or USB. Connect a bootable USB flash drive or insert a CD. Restart your laptop.

4. Once the corresponding device is identified, the interface will begin loading from the removable media. It will appear before your eyes graphical shell. In it you will easily find access to laptop disks, which you can now easily format. If you allow software to fill the boot disk, you can use it for formatting and other operations with hard drives. specialized programs with advanced functionality and a comfortable interface, say, Acronis Disk Director, the one that is often found on LiveCDs. They are also allowed, say, to split the disk into several logical ones, or, on the contrary, to combine them.

5. When reinstalling the operating system on a clean, formatted disk, do not forget that drivers for some devices, say, video cards, may have to be found and installed separately, since not all ready-made software packages are suitable for laptops.

Formatting hard drives is usually done when you need to completely clear all the information stored on them. Formatting all drives – good method get rid of viruses and files that have clogged up your computer.

Instructions

1. Before starting formatting, it is advisable to do backups main files and folders. To do this, you need to copy them just in case portable media information (flash card, CD, portable hard drive, etc.).

2. Later you need to go to the “My Computer” directory and select the disk that needs to be formatted.

3. By clicking right click mouse on the disk name, call up a list of actions. In it you need to select the line “Format...”.

4. The Format dialog box appears. IN top line Disk capacity information is displayed. The following shows the initial file system of the disk. You can specify a different file system for which the disk will be formatted. After this comes the line “Cluster size”. Cluster is smallest size on disk for storing one file. The cluster size is set mechanically by the system, but it is also possible to change it at your discretion. Below the “Cluster size” there is a line “Volume label” - this is the name of the disk, which can also be changed to your own (traditionally the name is set by the manufacturer).

5. Before formatting, you can choose the formatting method you prefer. In the “Format” window on laptops, there are traditionally 2 vigorous formatting methods to choose from: - Rapid (cleaning contents). With this formatting method, only the file system tables are cleared, while the physical data remains; - Apply compression. Allows you to compress files on your hard drive during the formatting process.

6. When all the necessary parameters have been specified, you need to click on the “Start” button. A window will appear warning you that formatting will destroy all files on the selected drive. To start the formatting process, click the “OK” button; to cancel, click the “Cancel” button.

Video on the topic

Helpful advice
It is worth remembering that frequent formatting of the hard drive causes damage to it, as a result of which the drive may become unusable.

When using a computer, various situations may arise. One of them is formatting the hard drive, which is done through the BIOS. Many people believe that this process unthinkable, but it is not so. In order to format a rough disk using BIOS system, you need to perform certain operations.

You will need

• Personal Computer

Instructions

1. Formatting via BIOS is carried out if you have a floppy disk. Take it and insert it into the drive. Open Control Panel via Start and select Add/Remove Programs and Windows components" A window will open in front of you. Click on the “Boot Disk” tab and click the “Make” button. Next instructions will appear on the screen. It’s not difficult to create a disk; simply follow each step. After this, turn off the entire computer. Insert the boot floppy disk into the drive and turn on the computer. If the BIOS itself is set to boot from a hard drive or from a CD, and not from an elastic disk, then first set it to boot from an elastic disk.

2. To do this, press the “Del” button at the beginning of booting when turning on. After entering Bios, find the item in the “Advanced BIOS Features” menu and enter it. In the “First Boot Device” item, using the “PgDn” key, set the value to “Floppy”. Use the "Esc" key to close the menu. Press "F10" to exit BIOS. Confirm the exit together with saving the changed parameters by pressing the “Enter” key. Now, when you turn on the computer, if there is a boot floppy disk in the drive, the computer will start booting not from the hard drive, but from the floppy disk.

3. A menu will appear on the screen. Using the cursor keys, select “No. 2. Start computer with CD-Rom Support”. To confirm the download, press "Enter". Wait a couple of seconds. When the download is complete, the command line “A:\^” will flash at the bottom of the screen. Type on the keyboard: the command “Format C:”, and press “Enter” again. Later, when a warning appears about the permissible deletion of all files during formatting, press “Enter” again.

4. There may be another option. If the disk is completely new, then after loading a message will appear: “no hard disks were found on the computer.” Then type the command “Fdisk” on your keyboard and press “Enter”. The process of partitioning the disk into sectors will begin. Do boot partition MS DOS. After reboot, do formatting. After this, the HDD is ready for work, namely for installing the operating system. If instead of a floppy disk there is a bootable CD, then enter the BIOS again, as described above. In the “First Boot Device” line, insert the value “CD-Rom”. After loading, follow each message that appears on the screen. Select either NTFS or Fat32. NTFS more new file system.

Video on the topic

Formatting hard disk is the process of giving it a specific design for storing information or a file system. Moreover, each information from hard disk erased.

Instructions

1. Go to “My Computer” and right-click on the logical drive, the one you are going to format. In the context menu that appears, select “Format...”. A settings window will open with the heading “Format (label and letter disk)».

2. In the "Format..." settings window, you can prefer the file system in which you will store information on this logical drive. Choose the NTFS file system if you need to work with huge files (4 GB or more), but keep in mind that this file system will only be recognized by operating systems based on the NT kernel. If you don’t have such a need, then you can absolutely use the file FAT system or FAT32.

3. Specify the name of the logical disk in the Volume Label field, select below necessary methods formatting: “Quick”, “Apply compression”, then click on the “Start” button.

4. If for some reason the formatting of the logical disk cannot be performed, then install a hard drive management utility on your computer. disk mi. One of the most famous utilities of this kind is Acronis. Disk Director.

5. Launch the program and select manual mode work. On the list local disks, the one that occupies a large part of the program window, select with the mouse that logical drive, the one that you are going to format.

6. Right-click on the disk and in the appeared context menu select the "Format" command.

7. At the top of the program window there is a toolbar, on which an icon is activated, depicting a racing flag with a black and white checkered color. Click on it with the left mouse button to complete all the intended tasks. In our case, this is only formatting. There is no need to restart your computer - the program will do everything quickly.

Video on the topic

When an operating system is installed on a clean, rough disk for the first time, it is, as usual, divided into several partitions. In this case, only the system partition is formatted. After a complete OS installation when trying to open other sections of hard disk, a notification appears that the disk is unformatted. Accordingly, you will not be able to access it. In order for the hard drive to be completely ready for work, it is necessary to format the partitions.

You will need

• – a computer with Windows OS;
• – Norton program PartitionMagic 8.0.

Instructions

1. Clean hard formatting process disk but it is necessary in order to assign a file system to the partition, since it will not work without it. The formatting process itself is slightly different from the standard one. Unless it is necessary to strictly prefer the file system.

2. Open My Computer. Right-click on the hard partition disk A. Next, select “Format” from the context menu. A dialog box will appear in which you can specify formatting options for the hard drive partition. disk A. Click the arrow icon next to the File System option.

3. Now you should prefer a file system under which the brute will work disk. If you have Windows XP or higher operating system installed early version, then FAT32 or NTFS file systems will be available to you. It is recommended to prefer option 2, because this file system is the most optimal today. For owners of the Windows 7 operating system, only NTFS will be available.

4. Next, select the “Fast cleaning, smoothing” option. After this, click “Start”. After a few seconds the hard section disk but it will be formatted, and you will be able to open it. Now this section is completely ready for work. Thus, you need to format all hard drive partitions. disk and (in addition to the systemic one, of course).

5. There are times when an oversight occurs during the formatting process. The Norton PartitionMagic 8.0 program will help you fix this problem. Download it and install it on your computer. You will be able to install the program in any case, system tea disk will be available.

6. Launch Norton PartitionMagic 8.0. After launch, you will see that in the program window there is a list of all hard drive partitions. disk A. Right-click on the section. Next, select “Format” from the context menu. Click the arrow icon next to the Partition Type option and select a file system. Click OK. The partition will be formatted.

Note!
When formatting, all data from the partition is deleted.

Formatting a hard drive is the process of creating a file system on its partition, accompanied by deleting data and compiling new structure FS. Functionality for formatting hard drives and solid-state drives is contained in almost all modern operating systems, but the standard mechanism is not always optimal and applicable. This material will tell you in more detail how to format a hard drive in several ways.

Format HDD standard the means are very simple. To do this, in Explorer you need to select required section, right-click and select “Format” from the pop-up menu.

In the menu that opens, select formatting options. It is recommended to use NTFS as the file system, and leave the cluster size as standard. Checking the box next to “Quick formatting” significantly speeds up the process, but only the FS table is created anew. The data itself physically remains on the disk, although it becomes inaccessible. If you do not check the box, all data will be physically erased (filling each memory cell with zeros), but the process will take a long time. A hard drive with a capacity of several terabytes will take hours to format. But such formatting allows you to permanently destroy data, for example, when transferring the drive to a new owner.

An alternative way to format the HDD using standard means is through the “Control Panel”. To do this, you need to find the “Administration” menu, select “Computer Management” in it and find “Disk Management” in the left column. The menu that opens will display all drives in the form of a structure. The advantage of this method is that this way you can format disks that do not have a partition and therefore are not displayed in Explorer.

How to format a hard drive via the command line

To format a disk via the command line, there is a utility command called format. To use it, you need to run the command line as an administrator and enter format command.It should look like this:

format [drive letter]:- formatting will happen without any questions, into the same FS that is on the disk, in a slow way(with complete erasure).

format [drive letter]: /q — the “/q” flag triggers a quick format, without physically clearing the contents of its memory. The flag can be placed in combination with any other keys.

format [drive letter]: fs:[file system]— formatting the selected partition into one of the supported file systems: NTFS, FAT, FAT32.

format [drive letter]: fs:[file system] /q- the same thing, but with quick formatting.

How to format your hard drive before installing Windows

To format your hard drive before installing Windows, you must select full installation, wait until the menu for selecting the partition to install appears, click on to the desired disk and click the “Format” button at the bottom. The system will independently determine optimal method formatting, file system type and cluster size. The whole process takes less than a minute.

Before you format your hard drive, installing Windows may require creating additional system partitions to load the OS. The screenshot below shows that such a partition takes up 100 MB. It stores part of the system bootloader.

The disadvantage of formatting this way is that you can't manually manipulate the parameters. Ordinary users do not need this, but sometimes it is necessary that instead of the standard NTFS systems there was the same FAT32. For example, such a need arises on tablets with Intel processors and two installed OS (Windows + Android), like the ten-inch Chuwi Hi10. In order for the Windows partition to be visible from Android, it must be formatted in a compatible file system. Work with NTFS without special plugins and third party programs The “green robot” can’t.

The correct answer to this question is “not at all.” Computer bios It is intended for slightly different purposes and does not have functionality for working with HDD. Usually, “formatting from under Bios” is popularly called formatting via the command line in a text operating system(for example, MS-DOS). The advantage of this solution is that you can even work with a system partition that is not in use.

For hard disk format via boot disk with DOS you need to create an image of such an OS, write it to a flash drive and copy the formatting utility there. Instead of DOS you can also use special program for working with HDD, for example, GParted. This option is preferable as it is more functional.

To format a HDD from BIOS using a bootable USB flash drive, you need to download. This automatic installer, which will download and write the latest version of Gparted to a flash drive.

After creating the flash drive, you need to restart the PC, go into Bios (usually by pressing DEl or F2) and find Boot menu. In it you should select the item containing the words “Boot device priority” or something similar in meaning. Among them, you should put your flash drive first. Then you need to press F10, agree to save the settings and wait for loading from the flash drive.

In the loaded menu of the GParted program, you need to select the language, select the disk and find the item responsible for formatting. You can select the file system, cluster size, format type, and other options.

Formatting refers to the process of applying special marks to the drive. It can be used for both new and used drives. Format new HDD necessary to create markup, without which it will not be perceived by the operating system. If there is already any information on the hard drive, it is erased.

For these reasons, formatting may be relevant in different cases: when connecting a new HDD to a computer, for complete cleaning disk when reinstalling the OS. How to do this correctly and what methods exist? This is what this article will discuss.

HDD formatting is required for several reasons:

• Creating basic markup for further work with the hard drive

  This is performed after connecting the new HDD to the PC for the first time, otherwise it simply will not be visible among the local drives.

• Clearing all saved files

  Over the years of operation of a computer or laptop, the hard drive accumulates great amount unnecessary data. These are not only custom, but also system files, which are no longer needed, but are not deleted on their own.

  As a result, the drive may become overfilled, unstable and slow work. The easiest way to get rid of garbage is to save necessary files V cloud storage or to a flash drive and format the hard drive. This is in some way radical method optimization of HDD operation.

• Complete reinstallation of the operating system

  For better quality and clean install It is best for the OS to use a blank disk.

• Error correction

  Fatal viruses and malware software, damaged blocks and sectors and other problems with the hard drive are often corrected by creating new markup.

Formatting steps

This procedure is divided into 3 stages:

1. Low level

   The term " low level formatting» has been adapted for users. In the usual sense, this is the erasure of information, as a result of which everything is freed disk space. If in the process were found bad sectors, then they are marked unused in order to eliminate future problems with writing and reading data.

   On older computers, the Low Format feature was available directly in the BIOS. Now, due to the complex structure of modern HDDs, this feature is not available in the BIOS, and real low-level formatting is done only once - during manufacturing at the factory.

2. Partitioning (optional step)

   Many users split one physical disk into several logical partitions. After this, one installed HDD becomes available under different letters. Usually « Local disk(WITH:)" used for OS, "Local disk (D:)" and subsequent ones - for the distribution of user files.

3. High level

   This method is the most popular among users. During this process, the file system and file tables are formed. After this, the HDD becomes available for data storage. Formatting on high level is performed after partitioning, data on the location of all files recorded on the hard drive is erased. After it, you can fully or partially restore data, unlike low-level recovery.

Formatting Types

There are two types that are used to format internal and external HDD:

• Fast

  It doesn’t take very much time, since the whole process boils down to overwriting the file location data with zeros. However, the files themselves do not disappear anywhere and will be overwritten with new information. The structure is not optimized, and if there are problems, they are overlooked and not corrected.

• Complete

  All information is completely deleted from the hard drive, and at the same time the file system is checked for various errors, bad sectors are corrected.

HDD formatting methods

You can format your hard drive different methods. For this purpose they are used as built-in Windows tools or third party programs. If you want to carry out this procedure and clean the HDD, then use one of the suggested options.

Method 1: Using formatting programs

There are both small utilities and powerful programs, performing additional tasks in addition to the main one, for example, partitioning the hard drive and checking for errors. To format OS partitions, you will need to create a bootable USB flash drive with the program installed.

Acronis Disk Director

One of the most famous utilities that works with physical disks and their partitions. The program is paid, but very powerful, as it has many features and functions.
Allows you to format hard drive, changing the file system, cluster size and volume label. The interface resembles the standard one Windows program "Disk Management", and the operating principle is correspondingly similar.

Method 3: Via BIOS and command line

To format the HDD in this way, you will need a bootable USB flash drive with a recorded OS. All data, including Windows, will be deleted, so if you need to format a drive with an installed OS, this procedure will not be possible using the previous method.

Follow these steps:

1. Connect the flash drive to your computer.
2. Restart your PC and go into BIOS. To do this, after start, press the enter key - usually this is one of them: F2, DEL, F12, F8, Esc or Ctrl+F2(the specific key depends on your configuration).
3. Using the keyboard, change the device from which the computer will boot. To do this, go to the section "Boot" and the list of boot devices in first place ( "1st Boot Priority") insert your flash drive.

   

   If the BIOS interface is like in the screenshot below, then go "Advanced BIOS Features"/"BIOS Features Setup" and select "First Boot Device".

   

Please note that due to differences in BIOS versions Menu item names may vary. If your BIOS does not have specified parameter, then look for the most suitable name.

4. Click F10 To save the settings and exit, to confirm your actions, press "Y". After this, the PC will boot from the selected device.
5. IN running environment work with Windows 7, at the very bottom, click on the button "System Restore.
   
   

   In the options window, select "Command line".

   

   On Windows 8/10, also select "System Restore".

   

   Then press the buttons in sequence Diagnostics > Troubleshooting > Command Prompt.

   

6. Determine the drive that will need to be formatted. The fact is that when you start a PC from a bootable flash drive, their letter designations may differ from those that you are used to seeing in Windows, so first you need to find out the real letter of that hard drive. To do this, write to command line the following command:

   wmic logicaldisk get deviceid, volumename, size, description

   The easiest way to determine a HDD is by its size - it is indicated in bytes.

   After the letter has been determined, write this on the command line:

   format /FS:NTFS X: /q - with changing the file system to NTFS
   format /FS:FAT32 X: /q - with changing the file system to FAT32
   or just
   format X: /q - quick formatting without changing the file system.

   Click Enter every time the command line requires it, until the process completes.

   Clarifications: Instead of X use the letter of your HDD.
   You can also assign a volume label (disk name in Windows Explorer), replacing the command /q on /v:IMYA DISKA
   Modern hard drives use NTFS. For older PCs, FAT32 is suitable.

   

Method 4: Formatting before installing the OS

If you plan to format the drive before installing new version operating system, then repeat steps 1-5 from the previous method.

Now you know what formatting is, what it is, and how it can be done. The method depends on which drive needs to be formatted and what conditions are available for this.

For simple and quick formatting, the built-in Windows utilities, which can be launched through Explorer. If it is impossible to boot into Windows (for example, due to viruses), then a suitable method formatting via BIOS and command line. And if you are going to reinstall the operating system, then formatting can be done through the Windows Installer.

Using third-party utilities, for example, Acronis Disk Director, makes sense only if you do not have an OS image, but you can create a bootable USB flash drive with the program. Otherwise, it's a matter of taste - to use standard tool from Windows, or a program from another manufacturer.

Formatting a hard drive is the process of creating a logical layout of a data storage area located on a magnetic medium and necessary for further filling with information and working with it. Usually formatting is carried out before starting work with the HDD, for complete destruction information or to repair damage caused by a virus.

Types of hard drive formatting

Low-level formatting is HDD markup on physical level, which usually remains unchanged throughout the entire existence of the carrier. It is carried out at the manufacturer's factory and cannot be done at home. Programs that claim to allow low-level formatting are usually, at best, only able to overwrite control information.

Partitioning is necessary to create markup on logical drives, which will allow you to store information in a more organized way. For example, the only hard drive of a laptop can be divided into two disks, one of which can be used for the operating system, the other for storing files. This will allow you to reinstall the OS without erasing information stored on the non-system partition. Partitioning non-system disks can be done from under Windows.

High-level formatting is divided into full and quick. Fast only involves clearing file system tables, which are kind of directories for storing files. Full formatting(verification), in addition to destroying the information in the tables, also includes searching for broken blocks and replacing them with working ones. There are several formatting options.

Formatting the HDD during Windows installation

In order to start installing the operating system, you should set the settings in the BIOS so that the first device from which the computer starts booting is installation disk. To enter the BIOS, you must restart the operating system and press the Delete key several times after the computer starts up again.

In the window that appears, go to the Boot section and specify there, as the device from which the computer will first boot, the disk drive where you insert the installation disk.

After setting the necessary boot parameters, insert the installation disk into the drive, save the changes to the BIOS and restart the computer. Typically the F10 key is used for this. If you have done everything correctly, the operating system installation and recovery window will appear in front of you.

Click Enter key To begin installation, click Windows. After this, the text will appear in front of you license agreement, press F8 to continue further work.

After this, you will need to delete all the partitions into which the hard drive was divided in order to create a single partition on the HDD with an unallocated area. To do this, select each of the available sections one by one and press the L key.

After you delete all the partitions on your hard drive, only the single inscription “Unallocated area” will remain in the list.

Press Enter and you will be presented with options for file systems into which you can format the hard drive. Select Format partition in NTFS.

After a few minutes, formatting the hard drive will be completed. This method is good primarily because it allows you to format the system disk, while programs running under Windows do not allow you to do this. If you are going to format a HDD where there is not a running operating system, but some files, then it will be much more convenient to use another method.

Formatting a hard drive using the built-in Windows program

Open "My Computer" and right-click on the required drive and select "Format" from the pop-up menu.

In the window that appears, you can specify the necessary formatting parameters. Quick formatting takes much less time compared to full formatting, but occurs without completely erasing information, which allows, if necessary, to restore some of the information using special programs.

After you set the necessary parameters and click Start, a window will appear warning you that all data on the disk will be destroyed. Click the OK button and wait for the formatting completion message.

Using the command line to format the HDD

One of the simplest ways to format a hard drive is to use special team on the command line. Click Start -> Run or press the Win+R key combination. A small window will appear in front of you where you should enter a name cmd programs and press Enter.

In the black window that appears, type the command format and the drive letter followed by a colon, for example, format d:, and press Enter. A question will appear with the warning “Attention, all data on the fixed drive d: will be destroyed!” and the question “Start formatting?” Press Y and Enter to continue. The formatting will begin.

Formatting using the built-in Disk Management program

In the operating room Windows system There is a special built-in program that allows you to perform various operations with disks and their partitions. The program is located at Control Panel -> Administrative Tools -> Computer Management -> Disk Management.

Right-click on the required drive and select Format. In the window that appears, you can specify the formatting method (quick or full) and file system type.

Using the Partition magic utility to format the HDD

One of the most convenient and functional programs for working with disks and logical partitions is the Partition magic utility. The program can be used even if the built-in Windows software failed to complete the task.

In order to format a disk using Partition magic, you need to create a boot disk, insert it into the drive and after restarting the computer, working in the program itself, perform all the necessary operations - formatting, as well as deleting or creating a new partition.