Formatting an SSD with win10 installed

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Tomf1120

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Dec 2, 2016
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I bought a new SSD and, assuming it would be simple, plugged in the SATA data and power cables and fired up my PC. The BIOS recognised it but Windows did not. I read somewhere else to install Windows up until the drive partition section and I did. Nothing. I then bit the bullet and installed Windows entirely, hoping I could remove it and leave my SSD in perfect NTFS format so my original Windows 10 install would recognise it. It didn't.

Any ideas on how to remove Windows from a hard drive. Note: I cannot access it from my original Windows install, it isn't recognised.
 
Solution
RealBeast
You have a couple choices.

If your motherboard is hot swap capable (most newer models are) you can start it up from the SSD, go into the bios and turn on the hot plug capability for the HDD SATA connector, reboot, and then attach the HDD once the SSD is running the OS (just be careful to orient the power cable correctly), then check disk management (you can rescan the drives if needed).

You could also back the data up from the HDD and reformat it, then it will be happy to be a storage drive with the SSD running the OS.

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RealBeast

RealBeast

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Go into disk management and initialize the new drive, then you can quick format it. Drives are usually shipped in an unpartitioned state, so to show up in windows it needs to be initialized.

Not quite sure what you did for the install, did you install to the HDD?
 
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Tomf1120

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Dec 2, 2016
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I installed to the HDD about a year ago with to begin with and it worked first time of asking. I installed windows 10 to my separate SSD today as I could not access it from the disk management tool in my original Win10 install on my HDD and I still can't now, it is only visible from the BIOS.
 
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BadAsAl

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Oct 13, 2009
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Open DISKPART from an admin command prompt and run LIST DISK.
Do you see all of your disks? Should be Disk 0, Disk 1, etc.
It will give you the size and format (last column). Do you see the SSD and if so what is the format?
 
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Tomf1120

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Dec 2, 2016
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No the HDD was still attached and absolutely nothing from disk management, even after refreshing etc.



It came up with nothing but the HDD and the USB drive I had plugged in at the time.
 
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RealBeast

RealBeast

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You never did an install to the SSD, the OS is on the HDD.

What is your actual goal? Do you want your OS on the SSD (which is what I would recommend)?

I would disconnect the HDD, attach the SSD, and do a clean install to the SSD. Depending on your hardware, you most likely will do a UEFI install (unless it is an older board). What model is your board?





 
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Tomf1120

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Dec 2, 2016
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This is where the problem lies, the OS is on both the SSD and the HDD since I basically accidentally installed it on the SSD and they are running as totally separate entities. You are correct that the OS would be better off on the SSD so how would I go about erasing the OS from my HDD and possibly migrating some of the data across?

 
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RealBeast

RealBeast

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Sep 13, 2010
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You have a couple choices.

If your motherboard is hot swap capable (most newer models are) you can start it up from the SSD, go into the bios and turn on the hot plug capability for the HDD SATA connector, reboot, and then attach the HDD once the SSD is running the OS (just be careful to orient the power cable correctly), then check disk management (you can rescan the drives if needed).

You could also back the data up from the HDD and reformat it, then it will be happy to be a storage drive with the SSD running the OS.

 
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