Good day.

questions regarding work hard disk ( or as they say HDD) - always a lot (probably one of the most numerous directions). Often enough to solve this or that question - HDD needs to be formatted. And here, some questions are superimposed on others: “How? With what? This program does not see the disk, which one should I replace it with? etc.

In this article I will present the best (in my opinion) programs that help to cope with this task.

Important! Before formatting the HDD with one of the presented programs, save all important information With hard drive to other media. During the formatting process, all data from the media will be deleted and restoring something is sometimes extremely difficult (and sometimes even impossible!).

"Tools" for working with hard drives

Acronis Disk Manager

In my opinion, this is one of the best programs to work with the hard drive. Firstly, there is support for the Russian language (this is important for many users), secondly, support for all Windows OS: XP, 7, 8, 10, thirdly, the program has excellent compatibility and “sees” all disks (unlike from other utilities of this kind).

Judge for yourself, you can do “anything” with hard disk partitions:

• format (in fact, for this reason the program was included in the article);
• change file system without data loss (for example, from Fat 32 to Ntfs);
• resize partition: very convenient if Windows installation, you, say, have allocated too little space for the system disk, and now you need to increase it from 50 GB to 100 GB. You can format the disk again - but you will lose all the information, and with the help of this function - you can change the size and save all the data;
• merging hard disk partitions: for example, they divided the hard drive into 3 sections, and then thought, why? It is better to have two: one system under Windows, and the other under files - they took and combined and did not lose anything;
• Disk Defragmenter: useful if you have a Fat 32 file system (with Ntfs - it doesn't make much sense, at least you won't benefit in performance);
• change drive letter;
• deleting partitions;
• view files on disk: useful when you have a file on your disk that won't be deleted;
• ability to create bootable media: flash drives (the tool will simply save if Windows refuses to boot).

In general, it is probably unrealistic to describe all the functions in one article. The only disadvantage of the program is that it is paid, although there is time for a test ...

Paragon partition manager

This program is well known, I think that experienced users have known it for a long time. Includes all the most necessary tools to work with media. By the way, the program supports not only real physical disks but also virtual.

Key features:

• Using drives larger than 2 TB in Windows XP (using this software, you can use larger disks in the old OS);
• Ability to manage multiple OS boot Windows (very relevant when you want to install another one for your first Windows OS. For example, to test a new OS before finally switching to it);
• Easy and intuitive work with sections A: You can easily split or merge the required partition without data loss. The program in this sense fulfills without any complaints at all ( By the way, it is possible to convert the base MBR to a GPT disk. Regarding this task, especially many many questions lately );
• Support a large number file systems- this means that you can view and work with sections of almost any hard drives;
• Work with virtual disks : easily connects a disk to itself and allows you to work with it as with a real disk;
• Huge number of functions backup and restoration (also very relevant), etc.

EASEUS Partition Master Home Edition

An excellent free (by the way, there is also a paid version - it has several additional functions) tool for working with hard drives. Supported OS Windows: 7, 8, 10 (32/64 bits), there is support for the Russian language.

The number of functions is simply amazing, I will list some of them:

• support different types storage media: HDD, SSD, USB flash drives, memory cards, etc.;
• changing hard disk partitions: formatting, resizing, merging, deleting, etc.;
• support for MBR and GPT disks, support for RAID arrays;
• support for drives up to 8 TB;
• the ability to migrate from HDD to SSD (however, not all versions of the program support);
• the ability to create bootable media, etc.

Generally, good alternative paid products listed above. even features free version enough for most users.

aomei Partition Assistant

Another worthy alternative to paid products. The standard version (and it is free) has a bunch of functions for working with hard drives, supports Windows 7, 8, 10, there is a Russian language (although it is not set by default). By the way, according to the assurances of the developers, they use special algorithms to work with “problem” disks - so that there is a possibility that your “invisible” disk in any software will suddenly be seen by Aomei Partition Assistant ...

Key features:

• One of the lowest system requirements(among this type of software): 500 MHz processor, 400 MB hard disk space;
• Supports traditional HDDs as well as newfangled SSDs and SSHDs;
• Full support for RAID arrays;
• Full support for working with HDD partitions: merging, splitting, formatting, changing the file system, etc.;
• Support for MBR and GPT disks up to 16 TB;
• Support for up to 128 disks in the system;
• Support for flash drives, memory cards, etc.;
• Support for virtual disks (for example, from programs such as VMware, Virtual Box, etc.);
• Full support for all the most popular file systems: NTFS, FAT32/FAT16/FAT12, exFAT/ReFS, Ext2/Ext3/Ext4.

MiniTool Partition Wizard

MiniTool Partition Wizard is a free software for working with hard drives. By the way, and not bad at all, which only indicates that over 16 million users use this utility in the world!

Peculiarities:

• Full support for the following operating systems: Windows 10, Windows 8.1/7/Vista/XP 32-bit and 64-bit;
• Ability to resize a partition, create new partitions, format them, clone them, etc.;
• Convert between MBR and GPT disks(no data loss);
• Support for converting from one file system to another: we are talking about FAT / FAT32 and NTFS (without data loss);
• Backup and recovery of information on the disk;
• Windows optimization for optimal performance and migration to SSD drive(relevant for those who change their old disk HDD on newfangled and fast SSD) etc.;

HDD Low Level Format Tool

This utility does not do much of what the programs listed above can do. Yes, in general, she can do only one thing - format the media (disk or flash drive). But it was impossible not to include it in this review ...

The fact is that the utility performs low-level formatting of the disk. In some cases, restore hard working disk without this operation - almost impossible! Therefore, if no program sees your disk, try HDD Low Level Format Tool. It also helps to delete ALL information from the disk without the possibility of recovery (for example, you do not want someone to be able to restore your files on a sold computer).

In general, I have a separate article about this utility on my blog (in which all these “subtleties” are described):

PS

About 10 years ago, by the way, one program was very popular - Partition Magic (it allowed you to format the HDD, partition the disk, etc.). In principle, you can use it today - only now the developers have stopped supporting it and it is not suitable for Windows XP, Vista and higher. On the one hand, it’s a pity when they stop supporting such convenient software…

That's all, good choice!

It is usually recommended to format the hard drive before direct use of any computer technology. This procedure must be performed by every PC owner. Due to the special quality and volume inherent in the current hard drives, they can be freely used throughout the entire period of use, without resorting to additional reformatting.

Why formatting is required

AT individual cases and over certain period time to format the hard drive (hard drive) is necessary, as this makes it easy to update it. Due to the fact that the Windows operating system sometimes becomes clogged, that is, it contains irrelevant, old and not used by current programs files on the disk, formatting will be very useful. It will help you get rid of such files that take up some amount of memory space and can have a negative effect on the productivity of the system.

For their convenience, PC owners periodically install and remove the applications they need from the computer. As a result, a file dump arises and grows intensively, provoking serious problems: each application, becoming part of the OS, affects the configuration of the entire environment. To effectively solve this problem in the most optimal way, the decision to format the HDD (hard disk) after certain time periods and reinstall the operating system will help.

Despite the radical nature of this method, it is the most effective, because not only useless files are destroyed, but also malware, viruses. For this reason, it is recommended that before formatting the hard disk, overwrite the main data on some other media so as not to lose it.

It should be noted that when formatting, service marks are created on the hard disk sectors, which are necessary for data search and correct work with them (reading, writing, deleting). In addition to this procedure, formatting creates service information intended for the file system. Since unpartitioned disks are useless for use, formatting is the first step in preparing a new "unbroken" disk for successful operation.

Thus, to reduce the risk of losing important data in the indefinite future, formatting will help achieve:

• guaranteed quick cleaning of the hard drive;
• effective detection of the presence of bad blocks (damaged disk sectors);
• high-quality monitoring of various defective zones.

Quick or Regular Formatting: Process Analysis

The user has two types of formatting according to the capabilities of Windows OS - quick (Quick Format) or normal (Format). An uninitiated user will see a difference in them only in the time spent on each of these processes. But besides the visible factor, there is a more significant difference.

Quick formatting is a special method of cleaning a disk that allows you to create a table of files without overwriting it, as well as deleting information on a hard drive. In terms of time, quick formatting is faster than regular formatting. As such, a quick format simply resets the file table: important data can be recovered - it is not destroyed. This method is appropriate when the user is sure that there are no damaged segments and the hard drive has not been formatted before.

Resorting to conventional formatting, the PC owner always completely empties the disk of files and checks it for the possibility of incorrect, damaged segments. That's just the check time and stretches, affecting the total duration of the entire process.

High-level formatting was discussed above, but practice shows that understanding the term low-level formatting is no less popular. When performing such an operation, a special marking is applied to the disk plane, which is necessary for the standard operation of the drive. It also allows not only to save data and have open access to them, but also to ensure the correct operation of the internal circuits of the drive, in addition to hiding the existing mechanical surface flaws.

Can data be recovered after formatting is completed?

Low-level formatting does not provide for the possibility of restoring the previous information.

High-level formatting, in turn, gives significant chances to partially restore the erased data. This is explained by the fact that at the time of formatting, new logical structures arise with selective overwriting of data.

Formatting Options: A Practical Guide

It will be better to format a hard drive yourself if you move from theory to practice. Let's look at a few methods, moving from the simplest and most understandable to the more complex.

Formatting options:

1. The simplest formatting technique: by opening "My Computer" by clicking right click mouse on the desired type of formatting, in the menu that appears, select "Format" and the "Start" button.
   
2. Special path in Windows: Open "Start" and follow the "Control Panel" to the file "Administrative Tools", select "Computer Management", and then "Disk Management". We find the required disk and for formatting we perform the operations presented in a simple trick.
   

   Important: there may be slight differences in the path depending on the version of Windows.

3. Command line: by pressing "WIN + R" and in the pop-up window, writing CMD followed by pressing ENTER, open command line.
   
   
4. We write there: format d: or format c: to start the process relative to the D:\ or C:\ drive. After entering, by pressing ENTER you will see on the display: “ATTENTION, ALL DATA ON NON-REMOVABLE DISK C: WILL BE ERASED! Start formatting?
   
   When ready to delete the data, select Y and press ENTER.
5. When available removable media with the operating system installation file. Those who have an installation disc and are familiar with installing Windows will probably know when is the best time to format drives. Perhaps this approach is rarely used only for formatting. However, it is very convenient if the user is going to reinstall Windows after the procedure.

Without a doubt, today's computer users are much more advanced in terms of technology than they were a decade ago. Much has already become familiar. People are constantly installing some programs, games and updates. With all this, a huge number enters the system as useful software, and garbage. Users greedily download music and movies that take up all the space on local drives. Therefore, sooner or later, each user faces the question of how to format the computer and free up space.

Warning

For inexperienced users, this action can be a very serious problem. Therefore, the following will tell you what to do. Users must be warned in advance that the formatting process will destroy all information on the media. That is why it is necessary to perform the operation consciously and extremely carefully.

Formatting a disk in the Windows operating system

Perhaps we should start with the tools that are built into the OS. Some people complain that the system does not allow you to clean up one of the partitions. How to format the computer if this happens? Really these people are trying to erase system partition systems from under the same system. Of course, this cannot be done. How can the system allow itself to be removed on its own? This implies that the OS can only help format additional partitions on hard drives, as well as external drives and flash cards. There are three ways in total.

First: from the operating system explorer

How to properly format a computer in this way? To do this, right-click on the mouse and in the opened context menu select "Format". The system should display the appropriate window. Here you can select the file system. The best option is NTFS, as this system is more reliable and has no file size limits. can be left unchanged. If you need to clean the disk quickly, you need to tick this box. After clicking the "Start" button, the cleaning process will begin. In some cases it takes enough for a long time because the disk can contain a lot of data.

Second: using the system console

This console is called "Disk Management". In it, you can also see all the media installed on the computer, their division into logical parts. On the desired disk, right-click and select "Format". A window will open that is different from the previous one, but all the items here are the same. Therefore, there should be no difficulty.

Third: using the command line

How to format a computer with it? A command prompt with administrator rights is launched. Next, a command is written that includes formatting. It looks like this: format X. Instead of “X”, the label of the logical disk is written. To specify the required file system, an argument of the form /FS:(NTFS) is added to the command. Then simply press the Enter key and confirm the action with the Y key.

System Disk Cleanup

How to completely format a computer? To do this, you need an installation disk with the operating system. If there is one, then in the BIOS you need to set the boot from this carrier. Some people ask about how to format a computer via a USB flash drive. If there is no installation disk, then the flash card can be made bootable and perform exactly the same steps.

1. Cleaning using the built-in tools of the installer. Everything is very simple here. You need to go through the steps of installing the OS and reach the choice system disk. Next, the disk with the system is selected and the icon with the settings is pressed. A panel with available actions will open. There is also formatting. After cleaning is complete, OS installation will continue.
2. Cleaning with third party applications. Many builds contain additional software to work with. There are also utilities for working with hard drives. After loading one of these programs in the main menu, you need to select the system disk and format it. Typically, such utilities perform the operation much faster than the OS itself. Now you can restart your computer. All information will be deleted.

As you can see, all of the above operations should not cause any particular difficulties. How to format a computer? Very simple. First, all media are cleared from under the OS, except for the system one. Then the system partition is already cleared during OS reinstallation or with the help of third-party handy utilities. Now the computer is completely blank.

You need to carefully monitor what is downloaded to the disks. After all, most often these files are not used, but simply lie dead weight. Better manage well free space on disks rather than resorting to formatting that can destroy valuable user files. And it is not always possible to restore them.

Question from user

Hello.

I want to completely delete all the contents on the disk, and then reinstall the system. I have two drives ("C:" and "D:") - I was able to format one, but there is a problem with the "C:" drive. Do not tell me how you can format the system hard drive (on which Windows 8 is installed)?

Good day!

In general, today modern system start formatting the disk - the operation is not complicated, I would even say simple (not what it was 20 years ago). Perhaps, questions arise only in cases where Windows does not see the disk, errors appear during formatting, or when trying to format the system disk (as in your case).

In the article below I will analyze several formatting methods - depending on your tasks and the specific problem, select the one you need. So...

Important: after formatting the drive, all information on it will be deleted! Make a copy in advance desired files from disk to third-party media.

From under Windows

Via my computer

Probably the classic and easiest way to format a disk is to go to "My Computer" (or "This Computer", depending on your OS version), find the desired disk partition in it. Then select this section, right-click on it - and select the required one in the context menu (i.e. formatting, see screenshot below).

Note: if there is no "My Computer" icon on the desktop, and you do not know how to open it, press the button combination WIN+E- Explorer will open: on the left in the menu, select the link to "My Computer / This Computer".

Format drive // ​​This PC // Windows 10

1. file system: FAT 32, NTFS, exFAT, etc. In most cases, the best option for a hard drive is to use NTFS;
2. allocation unit size: 4096 bytes (optimal);
3. volume label: disk name, you can enter any (I recommend using the Latin alphabet, because some programs do not read the Russian font correctly).

In general, the default settings will usually suit most users - you can immediately click the "Start" button. In a few minutes you will have a "blank" disk...

Through Disk Management

In those cases when you went to "My Computer" - and your connected disk is simply not visible in it (this often happens with new disks that have not been formatted) - then you must use either special utilities, or use the Disk Management tool built into Windows.

To open Disk Management, you need:

1. press a combination of buttons WIN+R to open the Run window;
2. enter command diskmgmt.msc and press Enter. The Disk Management application should open.

Next, you will see not only all connected drives, flash drives, memory cards, etc., but also what partitions were created on them - i.e. the whole structure. Select the desired section, and right-click on it - in the context menu, click on the item "Format..." (see red arrows on the screen below).

Through the command line

In cases where the explorer freezes (for example), also in case of various kinds of errors, you can try to format the disk via the command line.

First you need to open it as an administrator. For this:

format G: /FS:NTFS /q

G: - letter of the disk being formatted (specify carefully!);

/FS:NTFS - select file system;

/q - quick format.

Basically, the drive must be formatted.

In Windows 10, by the way, a small "error" may appear - the system will ask you to specify the volume label for the disk, and then it will write that "Invalid disk label is specified" (although you seem to have indicated everything correctly, see the example below).

In this case, do the following...

First, open the command line on the drive you want to format, for example, the drive G: (see screenshot below).

Team VOL- look at the volume label

Next, enter the format command again, and in the disk label field - the label that we learned in the previous step (in my case, Windows 8). Next, you will be warned that all data will be destroyed during formatting (agree by entering y and pressing Enter ).

In the next step, you will be prompted to enter a volume label - now you can specify any name (32 characters). You can simply leave the field blank by pressing Enter. Actually, that's it - the disk will be formatted (screen below).

With the help of special utilities

The best programs and utilities for working with a hard drive:

Now there are hundreds of different programs and utilities for working with hard drives. Operations such as formatting, splitting, defragmenting, and so on can be done in more convenient programs than those built into Windows. The link to the article with the best of them is given above.

In my opinion, one of those that deserves attention is AOMEI Partition assistant.

AOMEI Partition Assistant

It allows you to quickly, safely, and easily carry out the most desired operations with disk drives:

1. resize their partitions (including without formatting);
2. move sections;
3. merge sections;
4. format drives;
5. change labels and much more!

What else captivates is that the program has many different step-by-step wizards - they will help solve the problem even for those users who have only recently met with a PC. Well, for example, you can convert the FAT 32 file system to NTFS without losing data, transfer Windows from a hard drive to a newfangled SSD, etc.

Via BIOS

(for formatting system partitions, for example, on which Windows is installed)

If you want to format the partition on which Windows is installed, then it just won't work. The bottom line is that you need to boot from another medium - for example, from another hard drive (on which Windows is installed) or from bootable flash drive, and then format your drive.

Naturally, you need to prepare such media in advance (for example, an installation USB flash drive with Windows) - since after formatting the system partition of the drive, Windows will no longer boot from it (don't install it again yet. I explained it chaotically, but in general terms, I think it's clear ☻).

Using a Windows installation flash drive

The easiest way to format the system partition of a disk is to use a Windows installation flash drive. You can learn how to create and prepare it (if you don’t have it), from my previous articles (I provide links below).

Utilities for creating bootable flash drives with Windows -

Create a bootable Windows 10 USB flash drive -

Creating a bootable USB flash drive for installing Windows XP, 7, 8, 10 (UEFI and Legacy) -

The easiest way to boot from a USB flash drive is to use a special boot menu- BOOT MENU, which can be called immediately after turning on the computer / laptop (or by changing the boot priority in the BIOS). In order not to repeat myself here, I will give a couple of links to detailed articles about this.

Hotkeys for entering the BIOS menu, Boot Menu, recovery from a hidden partition -

How to configure the BIOS to boot from a USB flash drive or disk (CD / DVD / USB) -

Next, boot from installation flash drive, you need to get to the selection of the partition for installing Windows. In this step, you can format both the entire disk (delete all partitions and create them again as well), and its individual partitions.

If there are difficulties, and you do not know how to get to this step when installing Windows, I recommend that you read this article:

With the help of special programs

Take the same AOMEI Partition Assistant that I recommended using when working from under Windows, a little higher in the article. She has an excellent tool in her arsenal for creating a special emergency flash drive that you can boot from when your system has crashed (or it is not installed on the disk at all).

About programs for working with hard drives, I have an article on my blog:(including the AOMEI Partition Assistant).

To create such a flash drive, you need to run on a working PC in the program "Wizard/Make Bootable CD Master".

To boot from such a flash drive, use also boot menu, links to instructions were given above in the article, in the previous step. When you boot from the emergency flash drive, the menu and the program will be similar to the one that works under Windows. Also click on desired disk and perform the necessary operation (screenshot below).

AOMEI Partition Assistant - partition formatting

That's all, for additions a separate merci.

In this article, I would like to touch on some of the most commonly used ways to format a hard drive. First, a little preface about what formatting is, and what file systems are the most popular today.

A bit of theory

Generally formatting means the process of partitioning a hard disk, during which a certain file system (table) is created. With the help of this logical table, in the future, all the information with which it will work will be written to and read from the disk surface.

These tables can be different, which is quite logical, because information can be ordered perfectly different ways. What kind of table you will have will depend on file system.

When formatting a disk, you will have to specify the file system (mandatory). Today, the most popular file systems are FAT 32 and NTFS. They each have their own characteristics. For the user, perhaps the main one is that FAT 32 does not support files larger than 4 GB. For modern movies and games - this is not enough if you install Windows 7, Vista, 8 - format the disk in NTFS.

Most Frequently Asked Questions

1) Quick vs Full Format... what's the difference?

With quick formatting, everything is extremely simple: the computer considers that the disk is clean and creates a new table. Those. physically, the data has not gone anywhere, it’s just that the parts of the disk on which they were written are no longer perceived by the system as occupied ... By the way, many software programs are based on this.

At full formatting hard disk are checked for bad blocks. Such formatting can take a long time, especially if the size of the hard drive is not small. Physically, data from the hard drive is also not deleted.

2) Is formatting often harmful to the HDD?

No, it's not harmful. With the same success, one can say about sabotage about writing and reading files.

3) How to physically delete files from the hard drive?

Trite - write down other information. There is also special software that deletes all information so that it cannot be restored by any utilities.

Formatting HDD in PartitionMagic

PartitionMagic is a great program for working with disks and partitions. It will be able to cope even with those tasks that many other utilities cannot cope with. For example, it can without formatting and data loss!

Using the program is very simple. Once it boots up, just select the drive you want, click on it and select the Format command. Next, the program will ask you to specify the file system, disk name, volume label, in general, nothing complicated. Even if some terms are not familiar, they can be left by default, choosing only the required file system - NTFS.

Formatting a hard drive using Windows

AT operating system A WIndows hard drive can be formatted in three ways, at least they are the most common.

Via my computer

This is the easiest and most famous way. First, go to "my computer". Next click on desired section hard drive or flash drive or any other device, right-click and select "format".

Through the Disk Control Panel

Let's use the example of Windows 7, 8. We go to the "control panel" and enter the word "disk" in the search menu (on the right, at the top of the line). We are looking for the heading "Administration" and select the item "Create and format hard disk partitions."

Using the command line

For starters, logically, run this command line. The easiest way to do this is through the start menu. For Windows users 8 (with "intricate start") we will show by example.

Partitioning and Formatting a Drive When Installing Windows

When installing Windows, it is very convenient to immediately "split" the hard drive into partitions, immediately formatting them along the way. In addition, for example, the system partition of the disk on which you have the system installed is different and cannot be formatted, only with the help of boot disks and flash drives.

Useful installation materials:

Article on how to record boot disk with Windows.

This article describes how you can burn an image to a USB flash drive, including an installation one.

The article will help you set the boot from a CD or USB flash drive in Bios. In general, change the priority when loading.

In general, when installing Windows, when you get to the disk partitioning step, you will have the following picture:

OS Windows installation.

Instead of "next", click on the inscription "disc setup". Next, you will see buttons for editing the HDD. You can partition the disk into 2-3 partitions, format them to the desired file system, and then select the partition where you install Windows.

Afterword

Despite the many formatting methods, be aware that the disc may contain valuable information. Much easier before any "serious HDD procedures" all to other media. Often, many users only after, realizing themselves in a day or two, begin to scold themselves for careless and hasty actions ...

In any case, until you have written new data to disk, in most cases, and the sooner you start the recovery procedure, the higher the chance of success.