How can i do a low level format on my hard drive??

[Blade2001]

I have to do a low level format on my second hard drive (10GB Western digital) cause in it there are still remains of the EZ-BIOS utility which i used to make my comp see the drive's full storage capacity. So how do i do it?

And another thing: In fdisk, what is the "Set active partition" option? What does it do?

 

[Toejam31]

First ... are you absolutely positive that you need to do a <i>low-level</i> format to remove the BIOS utility? Generally, a format like this is used to repair bad sectors on a disk ... not for removing partitions and/or data remaining on the disk.

A low-level format, when used on a modern hard drive, can be damaging, as well as void the warranty on the drive when performed by the end user.

I were you, I'd attempt to remove all partitions on the disk, recreate them, and then do a normal format, before attempting the more drastic low-level format.

Note: Remove all extended and/or logical partitions before deleting the primary, active partition, or you might find it difficult to completely clear the disk of data.

However, if you find it necessary to low-level format, you can download the Data Lifeguard Tools from the Western Digital website:

<A HREF="http://www.westerndigital.com/service/diagnostics.html" target="_new">http://www.westerndigital.com/service/diagnostics.html</A>

Tools like this are normally extracted to a bootable floppy disk, and run from DOS. Just follow the directions, and be sure to glance at the READ ME files before using the program.

But ... to do a normal format, this won't be necessary. All you'll need is a regular bootable disk, with the FDISK and FORMAT commands on the disk. I would suggest that you make sure that your CD-ROM drive is visible when using the disk, or you might have problems installing the operating system. Occasionally, it is necessary to download 16 bit DOS drivers from the CD-ROM manufacturer and place them manually on the disk.

When running FDISK, one partition must be bootable that contains the operating system. That is the active partition. Only one per hard drive. All other partitions on a drive are extended and/or logical.

There is a new version of FDISK that should be able to "see" the disks entire capacity, unless your mainboard and/or BIOS has some kind of limitation. Get it here:

<A HREF="http://support.microsoft.com/support/kb/articles/Q263/0/44.ASP?LN=EN-US&SD=gn&FR=0&qry=32 GB&rnk=5&src=DHCS_MSPSS_gn_SRCH&SPR=W95" target="_new">http://support.microsoft.com/support/kb/articles/Q263/0/44.ASP?LN=EN-US&SD=gn&FR=0&qry=32 GB&rnk=5&src=DHCS_MSPSS_gn_SRCH&SPR=W95</A>

Toejam31

<font color=red>My Rig:</font color=red> <A HREF="http://www.anandtech.com/mysystemrig.html?rigid=6847" target="_new">http://www.anandtech.com/mysystemrig.html?rigid=6847</A>
____________________________________________________

<font color=purple>"Have you noticed how much they look like orchids? Lovely!"</font color=purple>

 

[Spdy_Gonzales]

The Western Digital Data Lifeguard Tools disk has a utility that removes the EZ-bios from a WD hard drive. Low level reformat is not necessary.

<font color=green>I wonder...what is the speed of gravity!</font color=green>