How to Format a Hard Drive in Windows Follow these easy steps to format a hard drive in Windows 10, Windows 8, Windows 7, Windows Vista, or Windows XP: Open Disk Management, the hard drive manager included with all versions of Windows.
If your Windows 10 system is slow and sluggish or if it’s severely infected with some troublesome virus, spyware, and malware that can’t be removed with the help of an anti-virus or anti-malware program, the only option you are left with is – format the Windows 10 OS. Full formatting – not quick formatting – removes all data from the Windows 10 hard drive including the viruses, malware, and spyware that are hidden deep inside the operating system.
However, this is not the only scenario where you need to format Windows. Before selling your Windows 10 powered laptop, PC, or the hard drives, it’s important that all your personal files and folders including programs and software files you used are permanently erased from the system or the drive to ensure privacy and protect yourself from data theft and data leakage.
You can either choose to delete data by formatting the partitions on your Windows 10 PC via Disk Management tool and system repair disc or use a data erasure tool that destroys data permanently beyond the scope of data recovery.
But first, let’s learn why you should always erase data – not just format or delete – for better data protection and privacy.
Format Vs Erase
Quick format, which is most commonly used format option, deletes access to the files that are stored in the drive. As a result, the deleted files after format still remains on the same drive or volume unless overwritten. Normal format removes the old file system and creates a new one but the data can still be easily recovered from such hard drives.
Erase makes data recovery impossible as it writes a pattern of 1’s and 0’s on the entire hard drive or where data was stored. Wiping and Scrubbing are two techniques that are used for erasing data. Wiping wipes the entire drive or volume including empty space containing previously deleted files and folders.
If you want to remove virus and malware or going to use the same system (or hard drive) after reinstalling Windows or any other OS, you can use Disk management tool or a system repair disc to format Windows 10. Follow these steps to format non-system hard drive volumes or disk using Disk Management:
- Press ‘Windows+R’, type diskmgmt.msc and hit ‘Enter’.
- Right-click on the volume other than C: and select ‘Format’. Confirm when prompted.
- Type the volume label and uncheck the ‘Perform a quick format’ checkbox.
- Click ‘OK’ twice and wait for few minutes or hours (depending on the disk or volume size) until the format is completed.
However, recovery of data from a formatted (& re-formatted) volume or hard drive is an easy task with the help of a clever data recovery tool.
To format Windows 10 drive (C:), you need a system repair disc and boot the system via the repair disc.
In case you are going to sell your PC or hard drives, erasing the data is the best way to safeguard privacy and protect data from theft and leakage. Erased data using a free wipe or shredder tool can still be recovered with the help of forensic tools or sophisticated data recovery software as they follow a basic pattern to fill drive with 0’s and 1’s. To make data recovery impossible, you need to use a powerful tool such as BitRaser for File that uses 17 international data erasure standards (algorithms) like NATO, U.S. Department of Defense (DoD 5220.22-M) 3 pass/7pass, etc. to erase files and folders or data from the entire volume beyond the scope of data recovery.
Follow these steps to securely erase Windows 10 without CD using BitRaser for File:
- Remove the hard drive from the system.
- Use SATA/IDE to USB converter and connect the hard drive to a different Windows PC.
- Download and install BitRaser for file on the PC.
- Run the software after installation.
- Click ‘Erase Now’ and choose volume(s) of the connected hard drive.
- Click the ‘Erase Now’ button to begin the erase process.
- Wait for few minutes or hours (depending on the size of volumes). When finished, you don’t need to restart the system. Unplug the hard drive and remove the SATA/IDE to USB converter.
- Insert the drive into your system, format it, and install your favorite OS or use it as a backup drive.
BitRaser for File removes every bit of data from the hard drive beyond recovery. This also removes all those annoying malware and virus from the hard drive.
Conclusion
Never sell or donate your PC, laptop, or other storage devices without executing proper data sanitization. To safeguard your privacy and ensure data protection, use effective data erasure tool like the one we mentioned in this post. Free eraser and wipe tools just work but aren’t effective at erasing data that cannot be recovered since they follow a standard pattern of writing 1’s and 0’s. Whereas BitRaser for File uses 17 different algorithms – many of them with multiple passes – to ensure data is sanitized accurately.
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To format C means to format the C drive, or the primary partition that Windows or your other operating system is installed on. When you format C, you erase the operating system and other information on the C drive.
Unfortunately, it's very much not a straightforward process to format C. You can't format the C drive like you can format another drive in Windows because you're within Windows when you perform the format. To format C from within Windows would be like lifting a chair in the air while sitting on it — you can't do it.
The solution is to format C from outside of Windows, meaning you need a way to format a drive from somewhere other than your Windows installation. The easiest way to do this is to boot from an operating system (with formatting abilities) via a CD/DVD/BD drive, flash drive, or floppy drive.
While that all might sound very complicated it's actually quite easy to do. Below are several completely free ways to format your C drive, each of which we've linked to extensive instructions.
If you're trying to format your C drive because you want to replace or reinstall Windows, you do not need to format C ahead of time. Formatting is done automatically during the Windows installation. Skip this article entirely and instead learn how to do a clean install of Windows.
Formatting your C drive does not permanently erase the data on the drive. If you want to completely erase the information on the C drive, see No. 5 below: Wipe the Drive Clean With Data Destruction Software.
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Format C From a Windows Setup Disc or Flash Drive
The easiest way to format C is by completing part of a Windows installation. It's not easiest as far as the number of steps goes, but since most of us have a Windows Setup DVD or flash drive lying around, we have easy access to a means to format drives outside of Windows.
You can only format C this way using Windows 10, Windows 8, Windows 7, or Windows Vista installation media. Keep reading if you only have a Windows XP disc.
However, it doesn't at all matter what Windows operating system is on your C drive, including Windows XP. The only requirement is that the setup media needs to be from a newer version of Windows.
Feel free to borrow a friend's disc or flash drive if you'd like to try this method. Since you won't be installing Windows, you don't need to worry about having a 'valid' copy of Windows or a product key.
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Format C From a System Repair Disc
If you don't have access to Windows installation media, but you do still have access to a working copy of Windows 10, Windows 8, or Windows 7, you can create a System Repair Disc or Recovery Drive (depending on your version of Windows) and then boot from that and format C from there.
You can only format C in one of these two ways if you have access to Windows 10, 8, or 7 to create the media. If you don't, find someone who does and create the repair disc or flash drive from their computer.
A Recovery Drive or System Repair Disc can format a C drive that has any Windows operating system on it, including Windows XP, or Windows Vista.
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Format C From Recovery Console
If you have a Windows XP Setup CD, you can format C from the Recovery Console.
The biggest caveat here is that you must also have Windows XP installed on your C drive. However, if you don't have access to a newer version of Windows, this option may be your best bet.
This Recovery Console method to format C also applies to Windows 2000. Recovery Console does not exist in Windows Vista or later, nor does it exist in Windows ME, Windows 98, or earlier.
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Format C From a Free Diagnostic & Repair Tool
Several free, bootable, CD/DVD based diagnostic and repair tools exist that have been put together by PC enthusiasts and companies other than Microsoft.
This will be your best option to format C if you don't have access to any kind of Windows install media and can't get access to a newer version of Windows to create a repair disc or recovery drive.
Any of these tools that have formatting capabilities will be able to format C without a problem.
At the moment, the link above goes directly to the Ultimate Boot CD site, one of several programs that allow formatting from a bootable disc. We'll update this link to a list of such programs soon.
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Wipe the Drive Clean With Data Destruction Software
Data destruction software goes a step beyond formatting C. Data destruction software truly destroys the data on a drive, returning it to the essentially the same state it was in after leaving the hard drive factory.
If you're wanting to format C because you want to make sure everything on your primary drive is permanently erased, you should wipe your hard drive using these instructions.