Hard disk formatting from DOS?

Formatting a Hard Disk Drive

How to Format

If you purchased your computer from systems vendor such as a Dell , HP Compaq or Gateway system, you most likely will have a set-up or a restore-and-recovery CD (also referred to as a master CD) which came with the system. If this is the type of system you use, then a format is an easy process as the master CD will format the hard drive, reinstall your Windows operating system, and install any software and programs which came with the system. If you no longer have your master set-up CD, you should contact the manufacturer to get a replacement.

If you aren't using this type of mass-market system, then a hard drive format will consist of you formatting the hard drive manually, installing your Windows OS from CD, then installing your software programs and hardware drivers. Before you begin the formatting process, it is important to make sure you have all your driver CDs located, Windows CD and your software CDs to ensure a smooth set-up.

It's also important to know about your operating system before you format. For example, if you're going to be reinstalling Windows 98 or Windows Me then you should have a Windows 98 or ME start-up disk to complete the procedure. In this instance, you would restart the system with the start-up floppy in the drive. Upon system boot, you will choose to have CD-ROM support. Once the files load you can then choose to run the format command on your main drive (usually C drive). If you are using Windows 2000 or Windows XP, the Windows installation process offers "format your hard drive" as an option. Here you would ensure your computer is set to boot from CD-ROM (a setting in your system BIOS), insert the Windows CD and restart the computer. From there you will be on your way to reformatting.

The Format Command

Format is a Microsoft DOS command. It's a command line you can run to remove information from a computer disk, floppy disk or hard disk. It is an external command found in many of the Windows Operating systems. Hard drive formatting is done in three steps:

(1) Low-level formatting creates the physical structure on the hard drive. Partitioning divides the hard drive into logical pieces that become volumes. High-level formatting defines the logical structures on the partition and places at the start of the disk any necessary operating system files.

The format command syntax is the following:

FORMAT drive: [/parameters]

- where drive: specifies the volume to format (the hard disk letter followed by a colon) — example format c:

— where [parameters] formats the disk with different options — example format c: /s will copy system files to the formatted disk or format c: /q performs a quick format.

The syntax used between Windows 95, 98 and ME differ slightly from Windows 2000 and XP. To see the available Format command parameters for your operating system, you can type FORMAT /? at the DOS command line.

Does Formatting Really erase All Data?

It's important to remember that "format" and "delete" do not mean erase! Reformatting a disk does not erase the data on the disk, only the address tables. The good news is that if you accidentally reformat a hard disk, a computer specialist should be able to recover most or all the data that was on the disk. The bad news is that for any business or corporation that is planning to donate old computers to charity, this could pose a security risk if that computer disk drive contained confidential business information. Remember — just because you may donate the computer to charity that doesn't mean an honest person will end up with it. While that shouldn't deter you from recycling old computers in this way, it should be an incentive to ensure all business data has been completely wiped from the hard drive. Never just delete the files and assume they are gone because you can't see them on the hard drive. Businesses should at the very least run the format command to erase the hard drive. The safest method to completely remove data is to overwrite the disk. You can do this yourself, although it is quite time consuming. To overwrite the disk would mean to format, then fill the disk completely with data, and format again. The easiest way to do this is to use a software program that will overwrite the disk for you. Most of these programs, which are often referred to as "Data Dump" software, will meet even the strict deletion requirements of the U.S. military. As an added bonus, a few good data dump programs can be freely downloaded from the Internet.

Several Data Dump programs can be found in our list of reference links below.

first you restart comp. and go to bios setup and select boot drive CD and save chang after this proc. you go to bot from cd and start formating and copy 98 satup .

Below are the steps required to install the standard version of Microsoft Windows 98 and the Second Edition of Windows 98. It is important to realize that some computer manufacturers may have their own install of Windows 98, therefore the below steps may not all apply to how Windows 98 is installed on your computer. If the below steps do not apply to your computer's setup of Windows 98 and you are unable to determine how to install Windows, it is recommended you contact your computer manufacturer for additional help; Computer Hope will not how to install Windows using your manufacturer CD.

1) If you have not already, you may wish to read through document CH000186 for additional information about erasing your hard disk drive and starting over.

2) From the MS-DOS prompt, switch to the CD-ROM drive; commonly this is the D: drive. Additional information about switching drives in MS-DOS can be found on document CH000515.

3) Once in the CD-ROM drive, type cd win98 and press enter.

4) Once in the WIN98 directory, type setup and press enter.

5) Press Enter to start the check and this should start the Microsoft Windows 98 setup installation. Microsoft Windows 98 will start by checking the hard disk drive for any errors; once completed, press the Continue button to start the installation.

6) If you agree with the Microsoft Windows 98 license agreement, check I accept the Agreement and click the Next button.

7) If you are installing Windows 98 SE, Insert your Microsoft Windows 98 SE product key. If you have lost this key, please see document CH000156.

8) If you are using the Microsoft Windows 98 SE upgrade CD, you may be prompted to insert the original Windows 98 CD or point to the Windows 98 setup at this point.

9) Windows 98 will then prompt you to where you wish to install Windows 98. Unless you wish for a different directory, leave it at the default C:\Windows directory and click Next.

10) Choose the Type of Setup you wish to do; most users will wish to remain with the Typical setup. Once the setup has been selected, click the Next button. If you have chosen a setup other than Typical, the below steps may not all apply to your setup.

11) Choose Install the most common components (Recommended) and click Next.

12) Enter the computer's Identification, if you do not plan on connecting to the computer to a network you can leave the default data and click Next. This information can also be entered later.

13) Enter your location and click Next.

14) Click Next to create a startup disk.

15) If you do not wish to create a startup disk, Click Cancel, otherwise put a blank diskette in the computer and click Ok.

16) Click Ok when prompted to remove the disk.

17) Click Next to start copying files.

18) Once ready, click Okto restart the computer. Make sure if any diskette is in the computer that it is removed from the computer.

19) If you are installing the original Windows 98, you may be prompted for the Product key after the computer restarts; insert your Windows 98 product key and click Next. If you have lost this key, please see document CH000156.

20)Continue through the remainder of the setup answering each of the questions.

If you have a connection to the Internet it is recommended that you download and update all the Microsoft Windows updates and critical updates to get your computer running more smoothly and to help protect it from any potential risks

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http://www.computerhope.com/issues/ch000569.htm

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It is not question of being in DOS it is a question of where you are going to issue the command from i.e. another disk (floppy or CD. Effectively you need to boot your PC from a floppy disk or a CD in order to format a hard drive. The contents of your FD or CD are then loaded into RAM. You also need to have your hard disk mounted at boot time so that it is visible when your issue the format command.

How are you getting to dos ?? You need to start your computer with a Boot disk if you want to format it. Or if its windows 98 you can choose to shut down into dos.