Formatting a hard drive...

[MarkAnderson]

Can someone offer some advice on how to do this on a machine with Vista? Apparently this machine is very sick.

 

[skippy_ps]

Boot from the Vista disc and the option to format will pop up - never tried in on Vista but it should be there like XP.

Murray

 

[whoaru99]

Can someone offer some advice on how to do this on a machine with Vista? Apparently this machine is very sick.

Safe to assume you have the restore disk(s)?

Some machines have restore partition that can be inadvertently wiped out. Don't want to do that if that's your means to restore the system.

 

[MarkAnderson]

I have the disc, but I'm kinda dumb. This may take some hand-holding...figuratively speaking, I mean.

 

[skippy_ps]

What who_99 said. Most newer machines have a copy of the operating system on a second partition of the hd, usually set up as drive D. If you can get a dos prompt, just type in D: and it should switch to that drive. Or, if you can get to My Computer it should show up.

Don't know how that works (how to install from there) so you'll have to dig up whatever docs came with the computer or go to the manufacturer's web site. The restore partition will probably have all the drivers for network, video and so on so that might be the way to go.

Murray

 

[skippy_ps]

Reboot. As soon as it gets going, start punching the F8 key until you get a text screen. Should have "Repair Your Computer" at the top. See if you can access the restore function from there. I ain't trying it on this box to see what happens.

Murray

 

[whoaru99]

I'd imagine the key to press may be different depending on brand...dunno for sure.

However, if you have the restore disk then I think all you'd have to do is to put the disk in and reboot the computer. Should come up with instructions from there. If the computer continues to boot from the hard drive even with the CD in the machine, then you may have to do something like F12 during boot or go into the BIOS to change the boot order and put the CD drive before the HDD.

Also, not sure on how the restore works as I'd imagine this could vary by brand too, just depends on how they set it up. You may be presented with a repair type of situation or a complete/clean install. If you choose the latter it may very well wipe out all your files/data. In any case, probably a good idea to save what you can before you start if you have anything worth saving.

 

[jimfet]

Boot on CD, It will ask for your reg key #. Hit next and it will walk you through it. Formatting and all.

 

[spaceman]

When you reboot, press whichever key gets you into the BIOS (usually Del or F1 or F2), and look for the boot options or boot order. Just make sure it's set to boot from CD or DVD first, then HDD second, & the rest is easy. If you're SURE you want to delete the old OS completely, & start from scratch, just delete that partition, when it asks you where you want to install. Vista & 7 are pretty good about things running smoothly from there, as far as cluster size & all that good stuff. It'll always have a small partition marked "reserved", that's just what Windows needs for elbow room, during the install.

 

[voltcontrol]

IF your master boot record is infected by something you want to erase the dics + overwrite it woth random data. DON'T do this if you're not an advanced IT user, but if it's necessary wipe & overwrite the disc; use DBAN.

 

[CougarXR7]

"Boot and Nuke" worked well for me when wiping a HD clean (I mean, really clean).

 

[mackinthebox]

before you go erasing all your data and possibly losing stuff you never intended to, what is the real problem with the computer?

 

[bryblob]

if you do have the recovery partition (usually the D drive) you may be able to burn a disk from that drive and boot with it to reformat

 

[MarkAnderson]

before you go erasing all your data and possibly losing stuff you never intended to, what is the real problem with the computer?

Not concerned about losing any data. This machine used for internet surfing and not much else. Our assumption is that it's got a nasty virus, but that's a fairly uneducated diagnosis. We've tried repeatedly to boot from the CD and reload Windows, but keep getting all manner of error messages and the installation consistently gets aborted. When I can spend some more time with it, I'll walk through this once again and note error messages and such and report back. Thanks so far, guys.

 

[jimfet]

If you are getting error messages while Windows is loading, then your CD/DVD rom is going bad or needs cleaning. The disc could also be slipping. If you have an old rom you can use, use it. If not, get a new one and put it in. You can have one shipped to your door for less than $30 from Newegg. I work on PC's almost everyday and I keep spare roms just for this. See it all the time. But try blowing it out first, could just be a dirty laser. If not, time for a new one. It really is a common thing to go bad.

 

[spaceman]

It sounds like a hardware issue now, if you can't get it to re-install Windows. The first thing you do is, clean all the fans & heatsinks, especially the one on the processor. A small "clean" paint brush works well. You also might need to apply fresh TIM (thermal interface material) between the processor & heatsink, cleaning off the old with q-tips & isopropyl alcohol. These things are normal maintenance, and if not done when needed, can definitely make your 'puter slow down & act weird. After doing that, let us know how things work (or don't), and we can try finding out what component is failing, if any.