Format commands for windows xp

The above command may take several minutes depending on the size of the drive. This can be done later also by opening the properties of the disk drive. We can also configure the file system allocation unit size. For example, if you want to use bytes as one allocation unit, then you can run the below command. This command should be executed from elevated administrator command prompt. Otherwise, you would get the below error.

DOS is a non-graphical line-oriented command-driven computer operating system. It has a relatively simple--but not overly "friendly"--user interface. The earliest versions of the Microsoft Windows operating system were really just applications that ran on top of the MS-DOS operating system.

The command prompt allows Windows users to issue DOS commands to the system. The format command is used to erase information from a computer diskette or fixed drive. Although the information appears to be erased, it is still possible for software recovery programs to recover information from a formatted drive.

If you want to make sure no information can be recovered from a drive, use a software utility to ensure all data is erased and overwritten. See: How to make sure all data is erased on a computer hard drive. Format is an external command available for the following Microsoft operating systems as format.

When using the format command, remember all the information on the drive you want to format will be erased entirely. Would erase all the contents off a floppy disk. Commonly used on an unformatted diskette or one you want to erase. Quickly erases all the contents of a floppy diskette. Commonly used to erase all information on the diskette quickly. Erase the contents of your C: hard drive.

In other words, unless you want to erase all your computer's information, this command should not be executed unless you're planning on starting over. If you're in Windows or files on the hard drive are in use, this command will not work. If you want to format the primary hard drive, you'll need to boot from a bootable diskette , restore disc , or another bootable drive.