How to format a disk but leave one folder. Formatting the hard drive. Formatting a non-system hard drive or partition in Windows

How to format a disk? This question is often asked by users who have just purchased a new one. After connecting, a new, unformatted one HDD begins to appear in the system. However, it cannot be opened and cannot be worked with.

In order to bring such a disk into working condition, it is necessary to at least format it. In addition, if necessary, you can perform it on logical partitions; we have already talked about this in one of the previous articles.

Formatting a disk is preparation for writing files. Formatting records the necessary logical information to store data and boot the operating system (if necessary).

Format the disk using standard Windows utilities

Using the Windows operating system, you can format a new disk in several ways. The easiest way is to format it through “My Computer”.

  • Open My Computer
  • Find the required drive
  • Click right click mouse and select “Format”

After this, the format disk window will open, here you can specify the volume label, select quick or full format, and also specify other formatting options, if available.

After clicking on the “Start” button, the disk will be formatted. You can use any other removable drive in a similar way.

Another method to format the disk is formatting through Disk Management. To run this built-in operating system the program must be followed along the path: Start - Control Panel - System - Administration - Computer Management - Disk Management.

Here you also need to select the disk to format, right-click and select “Format”. You will then be given the option to specify formatting options.


Another way to format a disk is formatting via . To launch the console, click the “Start” button and enter CMD in the search bar.

Formatting disks via the console is performed using the FORMAT command; in order to find out what parameters we can pass to this command, we need to enter FORMAT /?. As you can see, after this we will receive detailed help on the FORMAT command. The command to format a disk might look like this: FORMAT D: /FS:NTFS /V:DATA /Q. In this case, drive D: will be formatted as a file NTFS system, the DATA label is assigned to it, and the formatting itself will be performed in “Fast” mode.

If you need to format the C: drive, most likely you are planning to reinstall the operating system. The most in a simple way to do this will be to use the installer's capabilities. Here you need to select drive C: and click on the text link “Format”

Popular list free programs for various types of formatting hard drives(HDD, SSD, RAID) and removable media (USB, Firewire, SD). In this article you will learn how to properly format your hard drive, learn about various types HDD formatting – including low-level. We will also select good program For breaking down hard disk.

Methods for formatting HDD - from simple to complex

Formatting is a simple operation that can be performed by inexperienced users. Next, I will tell you how to format a HDD yourself - from simple to complex, depending on your skills and level of PC proficiency.

Using standard Windows tools when formatting

operating room Windows system The XP-10 has built-in tools to perform this operation. Formatting hard drive done like this:

  1. Open “Explorer” (or another file manager),
  2. Go to the “My Computer” section
  3. Click on the desired drive
  4. Select “Format”
  5. Next, click on the “Start” button

This is the easiest way to format your computer without additional tools. Despite its simplicity, however, all stages must be performed consciously, clearly understanding why you are doing it. Before giving your consent to formatting, carefully check whether the drive you have selected is correct.

Perhaps the video instructions show more clearly how to format a disk.

An alternative formatting method in Windows 7/8/10

  1. IN various systems The path to Disk Management is your own - the easiest way is to open the program search and enter “management”. When the system displays a search result, find “Computer Management” and open it
  2. In the menu on the left, go to "Disk Management"
  3. Right-click on the desired partition and select Format. Since the process occurs inside a running OS, the “Format” menu item will be inactive on the system partition
  4. Next, select a label for the new section, the type of future file system and the required cluster size (if you don’t know what size you need, leave “default”)
  5. For formatting high level You can leave the “Quick Format” checkbox active. If you need to deep clean the partition contents, uncheck this box.
  6. After clicking the “OK” button, the system will ask for confirmation - click “OK” again
Administration section "Computer Management"

Formatting a hard drive via the Windows command line

To start formatting, open on your computer command line(console). To do this, use the key combination WIN + R, in the "Run" window that appears, enter CMD command, press ENTER.

Note. To format a disk via the command line, you will need administrator rights. Start - CMD - open the context menu by clicking on the application icon "Command Line" - Run as administrator. If you try to format the disk without administrator rights, you will not succeed: access will be denied. Anyway, watch the video where I show you how to format as an administrator.

To format via the console, use the following commands:

Format drive letter

Press Enter. We carefully read what is written in the console and perform further actions with the hard drive depending on the situation.

Full hard drive formatting via HDD Low Level Format Tool

Low-level formatting will optimize the HDD structure. This is useful when preparing to reinstall the operating system. At the same time, you can solve problems with faulty sectors of hard disk.

For low level formatting HDD Low Level Format Tool is suitable. The utility will help you format your computer's hard drive, external HDD, tablet SD card and other storage devices.

In addition to the basic functions, HDD Low Level Format Tool can be used to read SMART indicators, check read errors, disk uptime, etc.

How fully format the hard drive:

  1. After installation we launch HDD program Low Level Format
  2. In the Drive selection window, select the hard drive (if several HDDs are connected to the PC). The easiest way to distinguish one hard drive from another is by capacity. Click Continue
  3. Go to the LOW-LEVEL Format tab
  4. To quickly format (delete partitions and MBR records), select the Perform quick wipe option.
  5. For full formatting hard drive, the above option should be ignored
  6. Before completely formatting your hard drive, make sure you have selected the correct drive. Only then click the Format this device button.

AOMEI Partition Assistant

AOMEI Partition Assistant

The program offers a number of useful functions, including low-level formatting of hard drives and most types of removable media. The interface resembles standard means Windows, so it won’t be difficult to figure it out:

  1. The main window automatically displays the disk with the installed OS. If you need to format another device, select it by clicking “Disk” in the top menu
  2. In the bottom block of the left menu, select “Erase Hard Drive”
  3. When you click this button, you will be prompted for the number of passes for the operation. If you plan to restore destroyed data in the future, then select a value from 1 to 7. If you specify a parameter of 8 or more, it will be almost impossible to recover information from the device
  4. Confirm your choice by clicking "Yes"
  5. To start formatting, you will need to reboot the system - once you click the "Reboot Now" button there is no going back, so make sure you select the correct drive and required settings operations

After restarting the computer, the program will perform all the specified actions and you will have a clean hard drive at your disposal.

DiskWipe

DiskWipe is an excellent solution for situations when data on storage media needs to be destroyed beyond recovery. The program uses several proven algorithms (Dod 5220-22.M, US Army, Peter Guttman), and advanced settings allow you to select the formatting depth. According to the developers, the program does not contain hidden viruses, etc., and also does not transmit user data.

DiskWipe

It’s extremely easy to format the desired device using DiskWipe:

  1. Launch the program. In the block on the left you will see all devices available for formatting
  2. Select the desired device and click "Wipe Disk" in the top menu
  3. Advanced settings will open with preset standard values. For complete and irrevocable formatting, you can check all available fields and indicate “Highest” in the right block
  4. After selecting settings and clicking “OK”, formatting of the selected device will begin

Paragon Partition Manager

A test period of 30 days allows you to evaluate the capabilities of the program and format the necessary devices in various modes. Since Paragon Partition Manager has several options for working with partitions (partitioning, recovery, and others), it is distributed shareware.

Paragon Partition Manager

The formatting process is intuitive:

  1. In the main window, click "Partition Manager" in the menu on the left, then select "Launch Partition Manager"
  2. From the proposed list of devices, select the one you need, open the context menu with the right mouse button, and click “Format partition”
  3. Specify the type of future file system and volume name, then click “Format”
  4. The procedure will be queued - to apply the changes, you must click on the green checkmark in the top menu
  5. After confirming the operation (the “Yes” button), it will no longer be possible to stop its execution.

Separately, it is worth noting the fact that Paragon Partition Manager not only formats the device, but also creates a new partition with the specified file system, so after the system boots, the disk can be used without additional actions.

reference Information

What is formatting?

Disk formatting is the procedure of applying marks to a data storage device - a hard drive (HDD), memory card, CD/DVD or other storage medium. The formatting operation is equally useful for new and “worn” HDDs that have served their life.

A disk that has no partitions is absolutely useless. In addition to the fact that you mark up the disk, formatting deletes all data almost irrevocably (although there are many programs for recovering after formatting). Therefore, you need to be careful and prepare in advance to format your hard drive.

Over the years of operation of the operating system (Windows, Mac OS, Linux), the hard drive turns into a “garbage dump”, since many programs leave their files on the disk, and after uninstallation their “roots” still remain on the HDD. As a result, the system is slow and unstable. Various freezes and slowdowns occur, the disk clicks, makes noise, and behaves inappropriately. After reformatting, the hard drive is optimized and begins to work better. Many devices last a long time without this procedure. I advise you to be on the safe side and format your hard drive at least once a year.

Sooner or later, formatting the disk is inevitable. However, before doing this, it is very important to update or reinstall the operating system on your computer. Along with deletion necessary files you get a completely clean environment without defects, harmful viruses, unused programs, data that lead to conflicts. Thus, before reformatting the hard drive, we reinstall the OS.

Before formatting, do backup copy all important data on another drive. As already mentioned, during this procedure, various service information and marks are written to the disk, which allow information to be written to the HDD in the future without hindrance.

Steps to format a hard drive

    Low level– at this stage, basic markings are applied to the disk at a low level. Typically, this is done by the hardware developer. In this case, special tracks and service data are written to the disk. This information remains on the hard drive almost forever - it can only be overwritten using proprietary utilities. These programs can only replace service data. By the way, if you perform low-level formatting of the hard drive, then you will no longer be able to recover data later, unfortunately or fortunately. Therefore, if your goal is to destroy information, then you can use this format. Read about low-level formatting

    Section breakdown. It is clear that storing data on a disk without partitions is quite inconvenient. For some logical organization, the HDD is divided into special zones, disks - drive C:, drive D: and so on. For these purposes, both utility utilities built into the OS and external programs for formatting a hard drive, which I have written about more than once.

    High level. During this type of reformatting, boot sectors and file tables are created.

Types of disk formatting

Perhaps you know that regular means systems provide 2 methods by which you can format a hard drive - external or internal:

    quick formatting: takes less time, allows you to carry out the procedure as is. The point is that with this type of computer formatting, the files in the file table are overwritten with zeros, while the data is stored as if nothing had happened, and you can later restore it. Also when this method you're not optimizing file structure, and if there were defects on the hard drive, you will not fix them with the quick method

    normal formatting: Longer and deeper formatting of the hard drive. The data on the internal or external drive is completely destroyed, the file system is checked for possible mistakes, damage. bad sectors, bad blocks. Thus, with the usual reformatting method, you kill two birds with one stone, although you lose a little more time.

Question from a user

Hello.

I want to completely delete all content on the disk, and then reinstall the system. I have two drives ("C:" and "D:") - I was able to format one, but there is a problem with the "C:" drive. Can you tell me how I can format the system hard drive (on which Windows 8 is installed)?

Good day to all!

In general, on today’s modern system, formatting a disk is not a difficult operation, I would even say simple (not like it was 20 years ago). Perhaps, questions arise only in cases where Windows does not see the disk, errors appear during formatting, or when trying to format system disk(as in your case).

In the article below I will discuss several formatting methods - depending on your tasks and the specific problem, choose the one you need. So...

Important: After formatting the drive, all information on it will be deleted! Make a copy of the necessary files from the disk to third-party media in advance.

From under Windows

Via My Computer

Probably the classic and easiest way to format a disk is to go to “My Computer” (or “This Computer”, depending on the version of your OS), and find the desired disk partition in it. Then select this section, right-click on it - and in context menu select required (ie formatting, see screenshot below).

Note: if the "My Computer" icon is not on the desktop, and you do not know how to open it, press the button combination WIN+E- Explorer will open: in the menu on the left, select the link to “My Computer/This Computer”.

Format disk // This PC // Windows 10

  1. file system: FAT 32, NTFS, exFAT, etc. In most cases, the best option for a hard drive is to use NTFS;
  2. allocation unit size: 4096 bytes (optimal);
  3. volume label: disk name, you can enter any (I recommend using the Latin alphabet, as some programs do not read Russian font correctly).

In general, the default settings will usually suit most users - you can immediately click the "Start" button. In a few minutes you will receive a “clean” disk...

Via Disk Management

In cases where you go to “My Computer” - and it simply does not show your connected disk (this often happens with new disks that have not been formatted) - then you need to use either special utilities or use the “disk management” tool , built into Windows.

To open Disk Management you need to:

  1. press a combination of buttons WIN+R to open the Run window;
  2. enter the command diskmgmt.msc and press Enter. The Disk Management application should open.

Next, you will see not only all connected disks, flash drives, memory cards, etc., but also what partitions were created on them - i.e. the entire structure. Select the desired section and right-click on it - in the context menu, click on the item "Format..." (see red arrows in the screenshot below).

Via command line

In cases where Explorer freezes (for example), also in the event of various types of errors, you can try formatting the disk through the command line.

First you need to open it as an administrator. For this:


format G: /FS:NTFS /q

G: - letter of the drive to be formatted (specify carefully!);

/FS:NTFS - select a file system;

/q - quick formatting.

Basically, the disk must be formatted.

In Windows 10, by the way, a small “error” may appear - the system will ask you to specify the volume label for the disk, and then write that “The specified disk label is invalid” (although you seem to have specified everything correctly, example below).

In this case, do the following...

First, open the drive you want to format in a command prompt, for example, drive G: (see screenshot below).

Team VOL- look at the volume label

Next, enter the formatting command again, and in the disk label field - the label that we found out in the previous step (in my case - Windows 8). Next, you will be warned that all data will be destroyed during formatting (you agree by entering y and pressing Enter ).

In the next step you will be prompted to enter a volume label - now you can enter any name (32 characters). You can simply leave the field empty by pressing Enter. Actually, that’s it - the disk will be formatted (screenshot below).

With the help of special utilities

The best programs and utilities for working with a hard drive:

There are now hundreds of different programs and utilities for working with hard drives. Operations such as formatting, partitioning, defragmentation, etc. can be done in more convenient programs than those built into Windows. The link to the article with the best of them is given above.

In my opinion, one of those that deserves attention is AOMEI Partition Assistant.

AOMEI Partition Assistant

It allows you to quickly, safely, and easily carry out the most necessary operations with disk drives:

  1. change their partition size (including without formatting);
  2. move partitions;
  3. merge sections;
  4. format drives;
  5. change labels and much more!

What’s also captivating is that the program has many different step-by-step wizards - they will help solve the problem even for those users who have only recently become acquainted with a PC. Well, for example, you can convert a file FAT system 32 to NTFS without data loss, transfer Windows from a hard drive to a newfangled SSD, etc.

Via BIOS

(for formatting system partitions, for example, on which Windows is installed)

If you want to format a partition on which Windows is installed, you won’t be able to do it just like that. The bottom line is that you need to boot from another medium - for example, from another hard drive (on which Windows is installed) or from bootable flash drive, and then format your disk.

Naturally, you need to prepare such media in advance (for example, an installation flash drive with Windows) - since after formatting the system partition of the drive, Windows will no longer boot from it (don’t install it again yet. I explained it chaotically, but in general terms, I think it’s clear ☻).

Using a Windows installation flash drive

The easiest way to format the system partition of a disk is to use a Windows installation flash drive. You can learn how to create and prepare it (if you don’t have one) from my previous articles (links are provided below).

Utilities for creating bootable USB flash drives with Windows -

Creating a bootable Windows 10 USB flash drive -

Creating a bootable USB flash drive for installing Windows XP, 7, 8, 10 (UEFI and Legacy) -

The easiest way to boot from a flash drive is to use a special boot menu - BOOT MENU, which can be called up immediately after turning on the computer/laptop (or by changing the boot priority in the BIOS). In order not to repeat myself here, I will provide a couple of links to detailed articles about this.

Hotkeys to enter the BIOS menu, Boot Menu, recovery from a hidden partition -

How to configure the BIOS to boot from a flash drive or disk (CD/DVD/USB) -

Next, after booting from the installation flash drive, you need to go to selecting a partition for installing Windows. In this step, you can format the entire disk (delete all partitions and create them again), as well as its individual partitions.

If there are difficulties and you do not know how to get to this step when Windows installation- I recommend reading this article:

With the help of special programs

Take the same AOMEI Partition Assistant that I recommended using when working under Windows, just above in the article. She has an excellent tool in her arsenal for creating a special emergency flash drive from which you can boot when your system crashes (or it is not installed on the disk at all).

I have an article on programs for working with hard drives on my blog:(including information about AOMEI Partition Assistant).

To create such a flash drive, you need to run the program on your working PC "Master/Make Bootable CD Master".

To boot from such a flash drive, use also Boot Menu, links to instructions were given above in the article, in the previous step. When you boot from the emergency flash drive, the menu and operation of the program will be similar to that running under Windows. Also click on the desired disk and perform the necessary operation (screenshot below).

AOMEI Partition Assistant - formatting a partition

That's all, a separate merci for additions.

Most often, it is necessary to format a hard drive before using it directly and is required by every owner personal computer. Thanks to the quality and volume that distinguishes modern hard disks, they can be used throughout the service life without additional reformatting. However, formatting your hard drive from time to time is the most convenient way its updates.

Since the Windows OS can become “littered,” that is, it can store old files on the disk that are not used by existing programs, which nevertheless occupy a certain amount of memory and can negatively affect the efficiency of the entire system. Various applications are periodically installed and uninstalled on each computer, resulting in a file dump that leads to serious problems, because each application becomes part of the operating system and affects the configuration of the entire environment.

To get out of this situation in the most optimal way, you should periodically format your hard drive and reinstall the operating system. This radical method is the most effective, since not only unnecessary files and information that clog the operating system are destroyed on the disk, but also malware and viruses. That is why, before formatting the hard drive, you should write down all important information to avoid losing it. In addition, during formatting, special service electronic marks are applied to the disk, thanks to which you can find any necessary information and is guaranteed to work with it correctly (read and write). In addition to applying service marks to the hard drive, during the formatting procedure service information for the file system is also generated. Since unpartitioned disks are unusable, formatting is the first step in preparing any new disk for further use. As mentioned above, formatting is a way to quickly clean up your hard drive, as well as effective way checking for defects and various defective areas, thereby significantly reducing the risk of data loss in the future.

What is the difference between quick and regular formatting?

The Windows operating system offers the user two formatting methods - quick ( Quick Format) and normal ( Format). For the uninitiated user, the difference between them lies in the time interval that each procedure takes. However, beyond this apparent factor, there is a deeper difference.

Quick formatting is a method of cleaning a disk that creates new table files without completely overwriting it and erasing the information present on the disk. Quick formatting takes less time than regular formatting. In essence, quick formatting resets the file table without destroying physical data, which can later be restored. This method is only appropriate if the hard drive has been formatted before and the user is sure that there are no bad sectors on it.

By choosing the normal formatting mode, the user completely deletes files from the formatted disk, and also checks it for bad sectors. It is this check that takes the most time, which affects the overall duration of the entire operation.

About low-level formatting.

Previously we talked about so-called high-level formatting, but in normal operating conditions the concept of low-level formatting is also very common. Under the conditions of this operation, special markings are applied to the surface of the disk, which is necessary for normal operation drive. Thanks to it, not only the storage of all information and free access to it is carried out, but also the correct functioning internal systems the drive itself and hiding existing physical surface defects.

Is it possible to restore the necessary information after the formatting procedure?

It is worth noting right away that it is impossible to restore information after low-level formatting. If high-level formatting has been performed, then the chances of partially restoring previously destroyed information are quite significant, since during formatting new logical structures are created, and previous data is also partially overwritten.

Now let’s move from the theoretical to the practical part and try to format the hard drive ourselves. In this practical part, we will consider several options for formatting a hard drive from simple to complex, so:

1. An easy way to format your hard drive

Opening "My computer" and right-click on the disk that needs to be formatted. A menu appears and you need to select "Format". Then press the button "Begin".

To get there you need to do the following (for different Windows versions the path may be slightly different):

Open Start → Control Panel → Administrative Tools → Computer Management → Disk Management.


Here you select the disk that needs to be formatted and perform all the same operations as in the simple method.

3. Command line

First you need to open the command line, to do this, press the keyboard shortcut WIN+R, in the window that appears, enter CMD and press ENTER.

You get to the command line, now we write in it:

format d:- format drive D:\

format c:-format drive C:\

After entering and pressing the key ENTER the following message will appear on the screen:

ATTENTION, ALL DATA ON THE FIXED DISK WITH: WILL BE DESTROYED! Start formatting?

If you are ready to delete, then put Y and press ENTER. Everything will be deleted!

4. Windows installation disc

if you have installation disk and you know how Windows is installed, you should know at what stage you can format the disks. Probably no one will ever use this option just for formatting, but it is very convenient if you are going to reinstall Windows immediately after formatting.


(80 Votes)

Today we want to talk about one interesting situation. I have a computer with Windows XP. The hard drive is divided into two sections: C - system and D - data. When trying to format drive D, the system gives an error:

Windows can't complete formatting

Why does this problem arise?

Such a pun with sections and arrangement boot sector arises in the following situation. At reinstalling Windows The system partition is deleted and then recreated in the unallocated area, which is located in front of the other partition:


As you can see from the second picture, the newly created section is named “Section3” for a reason.

What happens in this case?

As a result:

  • the second partition on the disk is the primary one
  • the partition that is physically located first is the logical one
  • The first one is system, however, the second disk is bootable.

The picture below shows that:

  • drive D is active and bootable, because is the only main section, and drive C contains the system and is logical, which occupies the entire additional partition;
  • The additional partition is physically located in front of the main one - where the other main partition was previously located:

Attention! At Microsoft, for some reason, the “Download” label means a disk containing Windows folders and Program Files, and under “System” - active section. Although, it would be logical to swap the names.

Let's look at the contents of drive C - indeed, there are folders here Windows, Program Files And Documents and Settings:

However, on drive D we see boot.ini, ntldr and other boot-related files. Therefore, neither C nor D can be formatted:

How to avoid this situation when installing the system

  1. If during reinstallation you do not need to save any data on the SSD/HDD, delete all partitions (D key), then create them again and install Windows on the very first one.
  2. If you do not want to format the hard drive completely because of the data you need, then under no circumstances delete any partitions in the installer! Just select the first one to install the system, then quickly format it and install Windows on it.

How to fix the situation

Method 1. The easiest way for the user: save all important data to an external hard drive or SSD and reinstall Windows, taking into account the recommendations from the previous paragraph:

  1. save all important data to external drive;
  2. reinstall Windows, during which:
    • delete ALL partitions from the hard drive;
    • create the first partition for the system;
    • create another or several for the data;
    • install Windows on the first one.

Method 2- complex: make the first partition bootable, active, edit the boot.ini file.

Install the MiniTool Partition Wizard Home Edition program. (You can download the program from here: http://www.partitionwizard.com/free-partition-manager.html)

1 Convert partition C from logical to main.

Click the button Apply up:

Click Yes:

Click Restart Now:

The computer will restart and convert the logical drive to basic (primary). Expect:

After reboot you will receive an error message:

Windows can't start because the hal.dll file is corrupted or missing

Now we boot from ERD Commander (or DaRT 5).

2 Copy everything system files from D to C.

Attention! When you boot into DaRT or ERD Commander, the primary and logical drive letters will swap places! Be guided by the volume of partitions and their contents! Simply put, all system files should be in the root directory of the volume containing the Windows and Program Files folders.

3 Open the boot.ini file and correct the boot partition number. Usually instead (2) needs to be registered (1) .

4 Launch the command line and make the desired partition active:

Let's reboot. The system should boot from the first disk and now the other (non-system) disk can be formatted.