Formatting PC

Archived from groups: microsoft.public.windowsxp.help_and_support (More info?)

"Tazzy" <Tazzy@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message
news 2EF7002-BAC7-4CB1-B8C8-72BF8D8BA887@microsoft.com...
> How do I format my pc and the load windows XP on the PC. I have Windows 98
> on
> my pc and want to keep some files and folders on the px when I format it.
>
> I heard that you must format your PC if you want to install a new
> operating
> system. I also heard that when you format yor pc, you can actually select
> what the pc should not delete.
>
>

the best thing to do is *backup* all the data you want to keep
ie: burn a cd and confirm that it's good

then just bootup with your XP cd and format the drive
and do a fresh install.
when all is up and running...just copy your data back to the drive

the alternative would be to use XP to upgrade your win98 installation...
but you still need to backup your data first incase the upgrade does not
work out well

Archived from groups: microsoft.public.windowsxp.help_and_support (More info?)

Tazzy wrote:
> How do I format my pc and the load windows XP on the PC. I have Windows 98 on
> my pc and want to keep some files and folders on the px when I format it.
>


That's simply not possible. By definition, formatting a hard drive
erases *everything*.


> I heard that you must format your PC if you want to install a new operating
> system.


Not necessarily (or even commonly) true. This would be the case only
if the old and new operating systems were completely dissimilar and
required different, incompatible file systems.


> I also heard that when you format yor pc, you can actually select
> what the pc should not delete.
>


If your physical hard drive has been partitioned into multiple logical
hard drives, it is possible to specify which of these partitions to
format, but one cannot pick and choose individual files and folders to
"exempt" from formatting.

Since you have files that you wish to preserve, why not perform an upgrade?

WinXP is designed to install and upgrade the existing operating system
while simultaneously preserving your applications and data, and
translating as many personalized settings as possible. The process is
designed to be, and normally is, quite painless. That said, things can
go wrong, in a small number of cases. If your data is at all important
to you, back it up before proceeding.

Have you made sure that your PC's hardware components are capable
of supporting WinXP? This information will be found at the PC's
manufacturer's web site, and on Microsoft's Windows Catalog:
(http://www.microsoft.com/whdc/hcl/default.mspx) Additionally, run
Microsoft WinXP Upgrade Advisor to see if you have any incompatible
hardware components or applications.

You should, before proceeding, take a few minutes to ensure that
there are WinXP device drivers available for all of the machine's
components. There may not be, if the PC was specifically designed for
Win98/Me. Also bear in mind that PCs designed for, sold and run fine
with Win9x/Me very often do not meet WinXP's much more stringent
hardware quality requirements. This is particularly true of many
models in Compaq's consumer-class Presario product line or HP's
consumer-class Pavilion product line. WinXP, like WinNT and Win2K
before it, is quite sensitive to borderline defective or substandard
hardware (particularly motherboards, RAM and hard drives) that will
still support Win9x.

HOW TO Prepare to Upgrade Win98 or WinMe
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;Q316639

Upgrading to Windows XP
http://aumha.org/win5/a/xpupgrad.htm


--

Bruce Chambers

Help us help you:
http://dts-l.org/goodpost.htm
http://www.catb.org/~esr/faqs/smart-questions.html

You can have peace. Or you can have freedom. Don't ever count on having
both at once. - RAH

Archived from groups: microsoft.public.windowsxp.help_and_support (More info?)

philo wrote:

>
>
> the best thing to do is *backup* all the data you want to keep
> ie: burn a cd and confirm that it's good
>

Always an important precaution to take when performing any major change
to a computer.


> then just bootup with your XP cd and format the drive
> and do a fresh install.


Why is this the "best" thing? It seems totally unnecessary to me.

Some people will recommend that you perform a clean installation,
rather than upgrade over an earlier OS. For the most part, I feel that
these people, while well-meaning, are living in the past, and are basing
their recommendation on their experiences with older operating systems.
The OP'd probably save a lot of time by upgrading his/her PC to WinXP,
rather than performing a clean installation, if there're no hardware or
software incompatibilities. Microsoft has greatly improved (over earlier
versions of Windows) WinXP's ability to smoothly upgrade an earlier OS.

WinXP is designed to install and upgrade the existing operating
system while simultaneously preserving one's applications and data, and
translating as many personalized settings as possible. The process is
designed to be, and normally is, quite painless. That said, things
can go wrong, in a small number of cases. If one's data is at all
important, it should be backed up before proceeding.




--

Bruce Chambers

Help us help you:
http://dts-l.org/goodpost.htm
http://www.catb.org/~esr/faqs/smart-questions.html

You can have peace. Or you can have freedom. Don't ever count on having
both at once. - RAH

Archived from groups: microsoft.public.windowsxp.help_and_support (More info?)

Take into account that when you format, what you format is a partition. So, if your hard disk is divided into two partitions, you can format one of them. If you want to keep some files, you have to put them into a partition which you don't want to format or to backup them. When you format a partition, you lose everything on it.

"Tazzy" <Tazzy@discussions.microsoft.com> escribió en el mensaje news 2EF7002-BAC7-4CB1-B8C8-72BF8D8BA887@microsoft.com...
> How do I format my pc and the load windows XP on the PC. I have Windows 98 on
> my pc and want to keep some files and folders on the px when I format it.
>
> I heard that you must format your PC if you want to install a new operating
> system. I also heard that when you format yor pc, you can actually select
> what the pc should not delete.
>
> Any help!!
>
> Thx
> Tazzy