Wipe Hard Drive

[Tim Sperry]

I want to reinstall Win 2000 on a hard drive that had a previous install. I
know that when you install Win2000 it reserves 8 MB on the drive for storing
information about the install. How can I remove all information on the drive
to start with a fresh install so Win 2000 doesn't see any previous install?
It seams as even when you re-partition and format the drive Win2000 knows
there was a previous install.

Thank you,
Tim

 

[Pegasus \(MVP\)]

I want to reinstall Win 2000 on a hard drive that had a previous install. I
know that when you install Win2000 it reserves 8 MB on the drive for storing
information about the install. How can I remove all information on the drive
to start with a fresh install so Win 2000 doesn't see any previous install?
It seams as even when you re-partition and format the drive Win2000 knows
there was a previous install.

Thank you,
Tim

I'm not aware that Win2000 stores any information about previous
installations. However, if you really want to wipe a disk, no mattter
what, then you can boot the PC with a Win98 boot disk from
www.bootdisk.com, then delete all partitions with delpart.exe from
http://www.russelltexas.com/delpart.htm.

 

[philo]

I want to reinstall Win 2000 on a hard drive that had a previous install. I
know that when you install Win2000 it reserves 8 MB on the drive for
storing
information about the install. How can I remove all information on the
drive
to start with a fresh install so Win 2000 doesn't see any previous
install?
It seams as even when you re-partition and format the drive Win2000 knows
there was a previous install.

Thank you,
Tim

that extra 8 megs you see does not store previous data...
basically all you need to do when you boot from your win2k cd to
reinstall windows is opt to format the drive first...

if you wish, you may delete the entire partition
then recreate

 

[Leonard Severt [MSFT]]

I want to reinstall Win 2000 on a hard drive that had a previous
install. I know that when you install Win2000 it reserves 8 MB on the
drive for storing information about the install. How can I remove all
information on the drive to start with a fresh install so Win 2000
doesn't see any previous install? It seams as even when you
re-partition and format the drive Win2000 knows there was a previous
install.

Thank you,
Tim

Tim,

If you format a drive Windows (no version) doesn't know anything about
any software that has ever been on the system. Windows does not store
any "hidden" system information on the drive. You are thinking about
EISA type partitions that are used by most OEM's on servers that are
used to store system utility information used in repairing or reporting
problems. Those are generally 32 meg in size and are at beginning of
drive. Windows has nothing to do with them.

Leonard Severt

Microsoft Enterprise Support

 

[Guest]

Tim,

If you format a drive Windows (no version) doesn't know anything about
any software that has ever been on the system. Windows does not store
any "hidden" system information on the drive. You are thinking about
EISA type partitions that are used by most OEM's on servers that are
used to store system utility information used in repairing or reporting
problems. Those are generally 32 meg in size and are at beginning of
drive. Windows has nothing to do with them.

Leonard Severt

Microsoft Enterprise Support

While most of this information seems like it would be correct, I do have
several cases where nothing makes sense. that 8Gb partition (which seems
virtual because only Win2k sees it and explains what it is during the
re-installation), can be blown away by any partition removing program (and I
have tried many many of them). But, after your obligatory reboot (and power
off to be sure) and add "a" partition back to it, my data is fresh and intact
like the partition was never missed. I've been alternating creating
different size partitions, formatting them, writing zero's to them, then
blowing them away again, to make my normal one I will install win2k pro on
and after I install I find files and directories only implemented with the
..NET install which came way after this win2k CD was manufactured and written.
Its not so strange that people think there's a root kit involved that is
immune to disk utilities. Its also not hard to comprehend how it could be
set up to work the way it does.

 

[Ashp]

While most of this information seems like it would be correct, I do have
several cases where nothing makes sense. that 8Gb partition (which seems
virtual because only Win2k sees it and explains what it is during the
re-installation), can be blown away by any partition removing program (and I
have tried many many of them). But, after your obligatory reboot (and power
off to be sure) and add "a" partition back to it, my data is fresh and intact
like the partition was never missed. I've been alternating creating
different size partitions, formatting them, writing zero's to them, then
blowing them away again, to make my normal one I will install win2k pro on
and after I install I find files and directories only implemented with the
.NET install which came way after this win2k CD was manufactured and written.
Its not so strange that people think there's a root kit involved that is
immune to disk utilities. Its also not hard to comprehend how it could be
set up to work the way it does.

8MB or 8GB ? Whichever the possiblity of a rootkit that is immune to
disk utilities/format is impossible. Are you using original microsoft media?

Ash.