In case you are installing a new hard drive or wish to clean your drive for the new state, you may end up formatting the drive.
Formatting will allows you to check errors and also prepare it for use. In case the drive has some data, then formatting will delete all the pointers to your files.
However, formatting doesn’t remove the contents securely. By the use of easy-to-use programs, a person can easily recover data even from a formatted drive.
Meanwhile, formatting can take many hours to execute, but it is a good thing if you have a new drive which not properly formatted, a drive overrun caused by malware or any other software problem, or if a drive requires new start before installation of Windows.
Most of the hard drives with solid-state drives, can be easily formatted. However, before you start formatting drive, make sure you make a back-up of important files.
Utilize Disk Management
To partition and format your drive, you can go for Window’s in-built tool- Disk Management. Using this tool, you can repartition and format any drive.
In case you have Windows 8, then you have to right-click the Windows button and then select Disk Management.
If this disk in not initialized, you will be asked to initialize it. A list of all connected drives will be displayed in the center. The unpartitioned drives will look like solid black bars with “Unallocated” as its label whereas all the partitioned drives will be in solid blue bars along with a drive letter.
Formatting your partitions
After partitioning the drives, each partition will require formatting with a filesystem. In such case, the Disk Management will make things simple to do so.
Now, right click the blue bar or the white space that is below it and then select, Format.
Now you have to choose a name for the partition under “Volume label.” You have to choose NTFS in case of File system, and you will be using the drive with Windows machines.
Confirm your choices.
Formatting for New Windows Installation
In case you wish to format your primary hard drive to reinstall Windows or wish to restore your system to the factory-fresh state, then you have to restore the discs that came with your system. If there aren’t any restore media with the system, contact the manufacturer for a replacement. You can also create your own restore disc or also reinstall Windows to factory state by consulting computer’s documentation.
Now you have to put Windows installation disc or restore disc and then restart your system. After that, you have to boot your computer from Windows disc.
Then you have to select ‘Drive options (advanced)’ for formatting the drive using Windows installer.
Now, delete any partition you wish to remove, click Drive options (advanced) and then confirm by clicking on Delete. You can easily create new partitions by selecting the unallocated space, then click on Drive options (advanced) and then click New.
Select ‘Drive options (advanced)’ to format a drive from the Windows installer.
Then you have to Format after creation of your partitions. With the completion of the formatting, you have to click Next to start the Windows installation.
With this, we end our article on how to format your hard drive and then how to install new Windows. Do let us know if you have any query. Mention your comments in the section below.