Format Hard Drive

  • Thread starter Thread starter Guest
  • Start date Start date
G

Guest

I need to clean up my hard drive. Once I back up my files, what do I do? How do I restore my CD/DVD drive so I can re install Windows XP? Do I create an emergency floppy disk? I know there are questions on partitioning etc during the restoration process, is there help available for this

Thank
 
Mike K said:
I need to clean up my hard drive. Once I back up my files, what do I
do? How do I restore my CD/DVD drive so I can re install Windows XP?
Do I create an emergency floppy disk? I know there are questions on
partitioning etc during the restoration process, is there help
available for this?

Thanks
Click to expand...

Your computer almost certainly can boot from the CD-ROM, without a boot
floppy. Enter the BIOS setup (when booting, before the Windows screens
appear, look for a plain-text line that says something similiar to "Press F2
to Enter Setup" - the actually line will vary, as will the key or key
combination to press - check your manual for details). Once in the Setup,
look for an entry that allows you to set the boot options. Set the CD-ROM
to the first boot option.

Now, insert the Windows XP CD-ROM into your computer, while running, and
reboot. The computer should boot from the CD-ROM. During the setup, you
can select to delete or format the partition (unless you have a reason to
change the partitioning, just format) and continue the installation. Once
done, reinstall all applications, then copy the backup files to the system.
 
Hi Mike,

I need to clean up my hard drive. Once I back up my files, what do I do? How do I restore my CD/DVD drive so I can re install Windows XP? Do I create an emergency floppy disk? I know there are questions on partitioning etc during the restoration process, is there help available for this?
Click to expand...

The XP CD is bootable, so you could boot from it and do the install
process. Disconnect all peripherals except monitor, keyboard and mouse
and install. You can install the drivers for the CD/DVD drive with the
CD you received, if you purchased it separately.

Clean Install Windows XP
http://michaelstevenstech.com/cleanxpinstall.html


You can go here for floppy disks
http://www.bootdisk.com/bootdisk.htm

Don't forget to disconnect from the Internet while you install, and
don't connect until you have enabled XP's firewall or a third-party
firewall of your choice. Also make sure to go to Windows Update and
download all the patches.

Good luck
 
Back
Top