New Hard Drive

[Jim Corderman]

I installed a new (2nd) HD on my computer and I need to know how I can
format it so that it will be seen by windows.

 

[Carey Frisch [MVP]]

How to use Disk Management to configure basic disks in Windows XP
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;309000

--
Carey Frisch
Microsoft MVP
Windows - Shell/User
Microsoft Community Newsgroups
news://msnews.microsoft.com/

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

:

| I installed a new (2nd) HD on my computer and I need to know how I can
| format it so that it will be seen by windows.
|
| --
| Jim Corderman

 

[Rick \Nutcase\ Rogers]

Hi Jim,

If it's been partitioned, just right click it in Windows Explorer (double
click "My Computer" and select format). If not, click start/run, type
diskmgmt.msc and click ok. From this tool, right click the drive to create
partition(s).

--
Best of Luck,

Rick Rogers, aka "Nutcase" - Microsoft MVP

Associate Expert - WindowsXP Expert Zone

Windows help - www.rickrogers.org

 

[Anna]

:

| I installed a new (2nd) HD on my computer and I need to know how I can
| format it so that it will be seen by windows.
|
| --
| Jim Corderman

How to use Disk Management to configure basic disks in Windows XP
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;309000

--
Carey Frisch
Microsoft MVP
Windows - Shell/User
Microsoft Community Newsgroups
news://msnews.microsoft.com/

Jim:
Coincidentally, today, in one of the MS XP newsgroups, someone raised the
identical question to yours, Here's my response to her which I trust will be
of use to you....

As you know, before the system will recognize a new hard drive, it must be
partitioned & formatted. You can easily do this within the XP operating
system by accessing the Disk Management utility - Start > right-click My
Computer > Computer Management > Disk Management.

But before accessing the DM utility, make sure you've correctly
connected/configured your new hard drive, i. e., it's been correctly
jumpered and the data (flat ribbon) cable is properly connected to the drive
and the appropriate motherboard's IDE connector. (I'm assuming that your new
HD is a PATA drive and not a SATA drive). Also ensure that the power plug
(commonly know as a Molex plug) is securely fastened to your drive's power
connector.

Assuming this is a brand-new drive, i.e., hasn't been previously
partitioned/formatted, you will most likely (but not always) get the
"Welcome to the Initialize and Convert Disk Wizard" dialog box. Note that in
the Disk Management window your new HD will be shown probably as Disk 1,
"Unknown" together with its capacity in GB ("Unallocated") and "Not
Initialized". (You'll see a small red-circled icon with a small white bar in
the middle of this icon).

Step through the Wizard to initialize your disk. There are just a few
screens and the process is pretty straightforward. You shouldn't have any
trouble. Just remember that you SHOULD NOT select the option to convert your
disk to a "dynamic" disk. Again, DO NOT SELECT THAT OPTION.

Now you must partition and format your new drive. Again the process is
pretty straightforward. You start by right-clicking on the schematic of your
new disk - the area that shows the disk as "Unallocated", and select from
the sub-menu "New Partition". The "New Partition Wizard" will open and
you'll be stepping through that "Wizard".

On the "Select Partition Type" window that opens, select the option,
"Primary Partition".

The "Select Partition Size" window will open where the maximum size (in MB)
of your new HD will be shown. If you want only a single partition
encompassing the entire capacity of the drive, just accept the figure shown.
If, on the other hand, you want to create multiple partitions on the drive,
so indicate the size in MB for the first partition and you will have a
subsequent opportunity to create additional partitions on that drive.

The next dialog box will allow you to assign a drive letter to your new
drive. It is best to do so at this point (rather than selecting the "Do not
assign a drive letter..." option). Either accept the default letter shown,
or choose one to your liking.

Now you will come to the formatting process...

On the "Format Partition" dialog box that opens, you probably should accept
the defaults shown unless you have good reason to do otherwise. The default
settings will create an NTFS file system with the appropriate "allocation
unit size" (cluster size). The new drive will be given the label "New
Volume". You can change it if you want. It's not really important. (You can
always change that given name at a later date). There's an option to
"Perform a quick format". If you select that option the formatting process
will go very quickly, but it will not be as thorough a process as a regular
format in terms of the system examining the drive for defects. The downside
to a non-quick format is that it it's quite time-consuming depending upon
the size of your HD. In our own case, where secondary drives are involved
and we're working with a brand-new drive, and have no reason to suspect the
drive may be defective, we usually select the "quick format" option. But
many users feel otherwise and select a regular (non-quick) format. So if
time (at least at *this* time!) is not an important consideration for you,
do not select the quick format option.

After you get the "Completing the New Partition Wizard" window showing the
selections you have previously made, the formatting process will begin after
you click the "Finish" button. But before clicking that button, review your
selections to ensure they're the ones you want. You can always go back and
change one or more of your previously selected settings by clicking on the
"Back" button.

Again, if you've selected the "quick format" option, the formatting will go
very quickly. If not, it will take a considerable amount of time. As an
example, the last time I (non-quick) formatted a 120 GB disk, it took about
45 minutes.

If you run into any difficulties, remember that the Help file in Disk
Management is your friend.

Good luck.
Anna

 

[Jim Corderman]

Thanks that did it for me

Jim:
Coincidentally, today, in one of the MS XP newsgroups, someone raised the
identical question to yours, Here's my response to her which I trust will
be of use to you....

As you know, before the system will recognize a new hard drive, it must be
partitioned & formatted. You can easily do this within the XP operating
system by accessing the Disk Management utility - Start > right-click My
Computer > Computer Management > Disk Management.

But before accessing the DM utility, make sure you've correctly
connected/configured your new hard drive, i. e., it's been correctly
jumpered and the data (flat ribbon) cable is properly connected to the
drive and the appropriate motherboard's IDE connector. (I'm assuming that
your new HD is a PATA drive and not a SATA drive). Also ensure that the
power plug (commonly know as a Molex plug) is securely fastened to your
drive's power connector.

Assuming this is a brand-new drive, i.e., hasn't been previously
partitioned/formatted, you will most likely (but not always) get the
"Welcome to the Initialize and Convert Disk Wizard" dialog box. Note that
in the Disk Management window your new HD will be shown probably as Disk
1, "Unknown" together with its capacity in GB ("Unallocated") and "Not
Initialized". (You'll see a small red-circled icon with a small white bar
in the middle of this icon).

Step through the Wizard to initialize your disk. There are just a few
screens and the process is pretty straightforward. You shouldn't have any
trouble. Just remember that you SHOULD NOT select the option to convert
your disk to a "dynamic" disk. Again, DO NOT SELECT THAT OPTION.

Now you must partition and format your new drive. Again the process is
pretty straightforward. You start by right-clicking on the schematic of
your new disk - the area that shows the disk as "Unallocated", and select
from the sub-menu "New Partition". The "New Partition Wizard" will open
and you'll be stepping through that "Wizard".

On the "Select Partition Type" window that opens, select the option,
"Primary Partition".

The "Select Partition Size" window will open where the maximum size (in
MB) of your new HD will be shown. If you want only a single partition
encompassing the entire capacity of the drive, just accept the figure
shown. If, on the other hand, you want to create multiple partitions on
the drive, so indicate the size in MB for the first partition and you will
have a subsequent opportunity to create additional partitions on that
drive.

The next dialog box will allow you to assign a drive letter to your new
drive. It is best to do so at this point (rather than selecting the "Do
not assign a drive letter..." option). Either accept the default letter
shown, or choose one to your liking.

Now you will come to the formatting process...

On the "Format Partition" dialog box that opens, you probably should
accept the defaults shown unless you have good reason to do otherwise. The
default settings will create an NTFS file system with the appropriate
"allocation unit size" (cluster size). The new drive will be given the
label "New Volume". You can change it if you want. It's not really
important. (You can always change that given name at a later date).
There's an option to "Perform a quick format". If you select that option
the formatting process will go very quickly, but it will not be as
thorough a process as a regular format in terms of the system examining
the drive for defects. The downside
to a non-quick format is that it it's quite time-consuming depending upon
the size of your HD. In our own case, where secondary drives are involved
and we're working with a brand-new drive, and have no reason to suspect
the drive may be defective, we usually select the "quick format" option.
But many users feel otherwise and select a regular (non-quick) format. So
if time (at least at *this* time!) is not an important consideration for
you, do not select the quick format option.

After you get the "Completing the New Partition Wizard" window showing the
selections you have previously made, the formatting process will begin
after you click the "Finish" button. But before clicking that button,
review your selections to ensure they're the ones you want. You can always
go back and change one or more of your previously selected settings by
clicking on the
"Back" button.

Again, if you've selected the "quick format" option, the formatting will
go very quickly. If not, it will take a considerable amount of time. As an
example, the last time I (non-quick) formatted a 120 GB disk, it took
about 45 minutes.

If you run into any difficulties, remember that the Help file in Disk
Management is your friend.

Good luck.
Anna