You’ll need to use a bootable CD or USB drive to format it. Search for Create and format hard disk partitions and click the top result to open the Disk Management console. In some cases, formatting can also create one or more new file systems. If you ever need to reformat the drive, you can change the partition's format the same way in which you would. This article has been viewed 751,335 times. Under the Format menu, choose the file system you want to use. Quick tip: To perform a full format that includes a disk check, clear the quick format option. By Amy | Follow | Last Updated August 26, 2020. It should only take a few seconds to format your drive. Reformatting hard disk drive will delete all the files on the computer including harmful files to restore the system to the optimal performance. Include your email address to get a message when this question is answered. DiskPart command-line tool to resolve the problem, Windows 10 on Windows Central – All you need to know, How to format existing partition using Disk Management, How to create and format partition using Disk Management. You’ll want to do it before you sell your machine, for sure, but it’s also one of the steps you take when you’re setting up a new external hard drive or looking to stuff a new hard drive in your desktop PC. Click the new partition. If not specified, hard disk formatting refers to high level formatting, while floppy disk formatting usually contains two formats at the same time. 7. Unpartitioned drives appear with solid black bars and the label “Unallocated.” Partitioned drives appear with solid blue bars and a drive letter. Hence, making sure your data has been backed up before formatting the drive is crucial. When you're dealing with a drive that already has a partition, you can format the existing partition to delete its files and start with a clean storage. Read our, Learn more about PCWorld's Digital Editions. On the other hand, when clearing the option, a full format will be performed, which not only wipes the drive clean, but it'll also check for bad sectors. After you complete the steps, the new hard drive will be initialized, partitioned, and properly formatted. To format an internal or external hard drive to use for backup or additional storage, the drive needs to be partitioned. DiskPart allows you to format a hard drive, too. Be sure to back up any data you want to save before you begin. Step 1: Press Windows and R key at the same time to open the Run window. Right-click the blue bar or the white space below it and select Format. It’s a simple tool to format a hard drive because you can achieve it just by typing some commands. There are plenty of other live operating systems you can use to wipe your primary drive, but those two examples are the simplest solutions for tech newbies. Insert your Windows installation disc or restore disc into your disc drive and restart your computer. You want to do this to make sure that the drive is empty, working as expected, and free of malware that might otherwise harm the current setup and files. Get all the tech help you need with wikiHow Tech Pro. If you’re installing a new hard drive, or need to wipe your drive clean for that “fresh” feeling, you’ll end up formatting your drive. 1. Click Next. Then, pretend like you’re reinstalling Windows 10, but format your drive as part of the process. Enter a partition size and click Shrink. If your disk is 2TB or more in size, select GPT; otherwise, stick with MBR. No, format is not the same as erase. Alternatively, you can make a backup before formatting the hard drive. Just as the picture shows. Hard disk utility programs can clean and fir those files sometimes, but the easiest method to improve performance is to execute a full hard drive format and reinstall all necessary files recovering them to the undamaged condition. 8. To find the data back, you need a professional tool. Alternatively, the, What Does Formatting a Hard Drive Do? … Show full articles without "Continue Reading" button for {0} hours. In these days of data insecurity, I sometimes feel that the difference between securely wiping and erasing needs to more strongly asserted. Give your drive a name under Volume Label, and check the Quick Format box. Step 2: After setting the partition label, file system for the partition, click the OK button to continue the process. You may know the answers now. Assign a drive letter of your choice. A quick format is much faster than a normal format, which fully erases any existing data on the volume. Formatting a computer's hard drive is an important step if you're disposing of it and wish to remove all your personal data, and also if you want to completely remove an old Windows installation. If you are using a manufacturer’s factory restore disc or hard-drive recovery partition, follow the prompts to initiate the restoration process. If you have some benefits because of the formatting operation, what are they? If you operate this on Windows Disk Management, you cannot finish this operation. To format the volume with the default settings, in the Format dialog box, select OK, and then select OK again. It's in your Mac's menu bar at the top of the screen. Plug your drive into the computer and, if necessary, into a wall outlet. In the left pane, click Disk Management (under Storage). Type diskmgmt.msc in the window, and then click OK. Can I start using a hard disk for data storage after formatting it? There are 1000 megabytes (MB) in one gigabyte (GB). Do not select Perform a quick format or Enable file and folder compression. You have multiple ways to do that. You need to format a hard drive if you plan on using it in Windows. Select Format this volume. So, if you would like to format your hard drive to improve computer’s performance or for other reasons, you can choose one from the given methods randomly. Have you ever asked yourself? Step 2: If it’s a new hard drive, you need to initialize it before using it. You'll have to manually clean out the hard drive. In the Format Partition dialog box, do one of the following: If you don't want to format the volume right now, select Do not format this volume, and then select Next. Click OK. The “Computer Management” window will open. This article was co-authored by our trained team of editors and researchers who validated it for accuracy and comprehensiveness. How to format a hard drive completely: Download HDD Low Level Format … Formatting a hard drive can improve your computer performance through deleting harmful programs during the process. Alex is a tech tinkerer who built his first computer while in middle school. If you are using Windows, format it to the NTFS file system with a block size of 4096 bytes. Its Data Recovery feature enables you to retrieve your data very easily as long as you don’t make any change to the formatted hard drive. Boot your PC from the Windows disc. For example, you can utilize the Windows built-in program - Disk Cleanup to delete data. Brief introductions to disk formatting, the purpose of formatting a hard drive, as well as how to format are talked in this post of MiniTool. If you use the professional tool – MiniTool Partition Wizard, the case is different. Once you complete the steps, the tool will format the selected partition on the drive, and then you can begin storing files. In the New Simple Volume Wizard, select Next. To create a single, whole-drive partition, make sure the “Simple volume size in MB” value is the same as the “Maximum disk space in MB” value. To create a partition or volume (the two terms are often used interchangeably) on a hard disk, you must be logged in as an administrator, and there must be either unallocated disk space or free space within an extended partition on the hard disk. Next, I will show you the detailed steps to format a hard drive. Not to get too off topic, but I would make a bigger mention that this is not the same as a secure wipe; while these methods will make the hard drive's space available for a new file system/volume with a blank slate, the old data, files, and directory structure are still accessible through file recovery software. It’s as easy as that. To set up a new hard drive with raw space on Windows 10, use these steps: Right-click the hard drive marked as "Unknown" and "Not Initialized" and select the Initialize Disk option. Confirm your selections and click Finish. There are two most direct effects of formatting a hard drive.
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