formatting trouble

  • Thread starter Thread starter Guest
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G

Guest

hi i have just formatted my hard drive for winXP using and OEM xp disk. the
installation went fine, but after loading all updates, i went to folders and
noticed that ALL my old Program folders were still on my drive. why is this
and how can i get rid of them and all other files when formatting for win xp.
 
Are you sure you formatted ? - did you see the Yellow progress
bar showing the formatting ? Using a physical drive with a single
partition or multiple partitions ?

Usually in the situation you describe, I use the Disk Management
phase to delete the Partition, re-create it/format and then proceed.
 
i don't remember seeing a yellow progress bar. but i didn't delete the
partitions i know that. i left them as they were. should i of deleted them
prior to formatting? i thought it was formatted as the platform started from
scratch when i booted and the system had no crap on the desktop and it ran
much faster.
 
I'm confused a little ( Not an uncommon state). If you formatted the XP
partition, then no prior data would appear on the drive. Perhaps you did
a new install over the existing one. I haven't done that one in a while but
suspect your Program Files content is "Orphaned", present but unused.
In other words you did get a "Fresh" install but used a partition with old
data so things just got overwritten.
 
well i had thought i formatted it. i followed instructions on the cd.
i do want to format the drive and start fresh. how can this be done. as i
have no bootables with the command format. in the past i have formatted from
dos promt. do i have to remove partitions or just ensure i formatt the
partition with xp in it.
 
If conditions are as you descibed in your last sentence, you did not format
the partition where XP boots.
If you have more than one partition, then indicate so.
If you have a dual boot system, then indicate so.
If windows is not installed on the first primary partition, then indicate
so.

Typically, a clean install involves removing the XP boot partition with the
XP install CD. Then recreating that partition, formatting will be invisible
to the user and not mentioned in this part of the installation. This where
XP is installed on one partition, and no other OS is involved as bootable
elsewhere.
--
Lil' Dave
Beware the rule quoters, the corp mindset, the Borg
Else you will be absorbed
Joe Black said:
hi i have just formatted my hard drive for winXP using and OEM xp disk. the
installation went fine, but after loading all updates, i went to folders and
noticed that ALL my old Program folders were still on my drive. why is this
and how can i get rid of them and all other files when formatting for win
Click to expand...
xp.
 
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