bblackwood wrote on Mon, 22 October 2007 13:24 |
Why not just format the drive and reinstall? |
bblackwood wrote on Mon, 22 October 2007 17:14 |
Mac or PC? With the PC, you can do it as part of the installation process (at least on XP - I'm not going anywhere near Vista) - it's been so long since I reinstalled an OS on one of my Macs I don't recall if it's an option there or not. If you have two macs, you can always boot one into Firewire Target Mode and then do what you wish from the other machine (including installing the new OS). |
Barry Hufker wrote on Mon, 22 October 2007 06:07 |
If you have a Mac, and REALLY want your hard drive erased -- I mean to the point where the government would have a hard time rescuing anything from it, open "Disk Utility" and see "Erase Drive". Barry |
PP wrote on Tue, 23 October 2007 16:41 |
“Anyone know of any good (pref free) software that will completey erase a hardrive. I've already tried just doing reinstall with the system disks but I'm not convinced it works all that well.” Hi Alex. The details are thin on the problems you are actually experiencing which have led you to come to this point. But I will take a big guess, and share what’s worked for me, and hopefully you will gain a few options and find one that will work for you. I trust so and good luck with it. I too am convinced that it can happen sometimes that the drive doesn’t seem as clear as one might imagine. (Of course the information is in reality still there under the surface, this is how data recovery can work). Forgive the analogy. It’s a bit like paint that hasn’t properly cured. When you apply an additional layer, the thinners in the overcoat ‘reawaken’ the still curing thinner in the coat beneath, and you have a reaction and thus a problem. I’m sure sometimes something similar can at times happen with Software and Hard Drives during reinstallations, especially if you have had repeated O/S re installation attempts that have been not quite successful. It doesn’t normally, but it can happen. The DOS word DELTREE used in the Command Prompt wipes absolutely everything from the drive but is pretty drastic altogether and I would keep it as a last resort if needed. Although I normally install an O/S doing all my deleting, partitioning and formatting, using the O/S Disc. (This is the easiest and neatest way). Always choose a complete reinstall. And always pick the Entire Format rather than the Quick Format option whilst doing so (The latter just wipes the main sector points). You can choose a Repair Option and overwrite the O/S should you wish to. The Recovery Console can be useful. There has been the odd time in the past when I’ve found it necessary to use a Floppy Start Up Disc, and thus still include a Floppy Drive in some important New Computer Builds because of this. (I have built or completely rebuilt during major upgrading 8 Computers this Year, and several are Vista or XP/ Vista Dual Boots for future proofing purposes). If you use a 98SE, ME or XP/ME Floppy, you can let the Oak technology Drivers load, then at the Command Prompt Type.... FDISK This should allow you to Delete and Reformat the entire Hard Drive at your leisure. What’s more you can do it with FAT 32 and I have found that switching from NTFS (if you are on XP) to FAT and back again, at times help’s reoccurring problems disappear altogether that seem to stubbornly reappear. As best I recall you can create a Boot Up Floppy in Add Remove Programs. Or you can download it if you search the net. The other thing is, sometimes I have had MB Drivers give the type of problem, I described above, and I have found that changing the order in which you actually install the Driver (or whatever) Software to the O/S can also clear a problem up that keep reoccurring when it shouldn’t do so. Often this simple solution works well I have found because the new software is laying over an entirely different area of the Hard Drive. For additional partitioning and Hard drive management on XP I have found Partition Magic very good but costs money. http://www.symantec.com/norton/products/overview.jsp?pcid=sp &pvid=pm80 However I prefer to plan my partitioning thinking in advance planning mode, and if you do this, then you shouldn’t ever need an additional application. And of course, they are not always, successful I have found. How to partition and format a hard disk in Windows XP http://support.microsoft.com/kb/313348 Have a look at these because you can often find free versions with some of the Computer magazines. Paragon Hard Disk Manager 8.0 is also good. http://www.paragon-software.com/hdm/corporate/professional/ Moreover, I have a lite version of this free software below with the recent PC Utilities issue 91 East-Tec Eraser 2007 http://www.5star-shareware.com/Windows/Internet/IntPriv/east tec-eraser.html http://www.tucows.com/preview/195486 Although I don't use it myself. Maybe its worth having a look in WH Smiths because these, and many other types of Hard Disk Utilities, are often freely available, and of course, very handy, ready to install from a Disc. Also in the above links you may find free downloads that you can use to fix the problem without needing to purchase anything. But you should be able to fix things with a Clean Reinstall of Windows from your O/S System Disc. Remember this, use the Delete (D Enter L) Create New Partition (C) and Full NTSF Format of the Hard Drive. Can you see? Don’t just reinstall, but delete the drive partition, create it anew, and reformat it. This is normally enough to fix anything troublesome. But in a few instances, the additional solutions above have worked for me when nothing else seemed to. You may laugh at this, but the last time I performed in Manchester. The Halle Orchestra was at the Free Trade Hall and we had a Concert there. It's a Massive Hotel now isn't it? Best Wishes and Good Luck. P |