Re: Formatting a hard drive
- From: Loorah <Loorah@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Fri, 19 May 2006 17:36:02 -0700
Thanks for the advice.
There are lots of problems with the computer, dll files keep going missing,
or can't be found even if they are still there. This means that some programs
just don't run. The ethernet drivers just deleted themselves so I can;t
network with my laptop, though I can use the internet. The DVDRW drive
doesn't really work, I put a new blank DVD in and it tells me its full or
right protected. I want to swap the hardrives over anyway so that the smaller
one has the operating system on it so I thought a clean start would be the
best option. Ideally I would love to pay a technician to look at it but I am
a poor student and can't really afford it. I think it picked up a worm on my
college network ages ago, I think I got rid of it but my computer hasn't
really been the same since then. I try to keep things running smoothly, but I
guess I don't really know what I'm doing. I virus/adware/spware scan
regularly and run a disk check. I tried to keep an eye on startup and running
programs but I'm a bit worried I'll make things worse or delete something I
shouldn't.
"Wolf Kirchmeir" wrote:
Loorah wrote:.
I have two hard drives in my computer. Initially I had a 40GB as the master
drive but after a while it had problems with library files and other things
not working.
If you describe the troubles, there are several people on this forum
that can help you fix the problems so that a reformat and reinstall will
not be necessary.
Not being very good with troubleshooting I decided to cut my
losses and start again. I bought the 2nd drive (120GB) and installed Windows
there, using the 40GB for storage. I'm now having problems with the 2nd
drive and would like to format both drives completely (I was told I need to
delete the master boot record?) because I don't think I can troubleshoot it
myself.
You're underestimating yourself.
I was wondering:
1) It's been ages since I installed windows and can't remember if I need to
install mother board drivers?
No, you need to do this only when building a machine from scratch, in
which case you use the utilities disk that came with the motherboard.
2) Can I format the slave drive by right clicking on the drive in My
Computer, then install windows on it and then format the other drive (now the
slave) with the now master drive?
Yes, you can format D: from C:, where C: is the system drive.
Sorry this is long and a bit confusing!
It seems you want to do a "clean install." To do a clean install, you
have to boot from the install CD (or DVD). Reformat both drives. I
advise you to install Windows on the smaller drive, and use the larger
one for data and backup.
I would set up three partitions on the 120GB drive (they will show up as
drives D:, E:, F:). You can do this through the Computer Management
tools. Do this before you store anything on the 120GB drive. Use one of
the partitions to back up the C: drive. The other two I would use for
data storage. Backup C: immediately: do not do any work with your
machine until you have done so. Then backup C: at regular intervals,
after have first cleaning out any viruses etc.
I urge you to learn how to keep your system clean and running trouble
free. Your computer should not be in such a state that you think the
only way to solve your problems is to start over. Windows has its flaws,
but with reasonable care, it will work very nicely for many years. If
you don't want to do it yourself, then I advise you to get it serviced
regularly by a reliable technician. You get your car serviced regularly,
don't you? Why not your computer?
HTH
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- From: Wolf Kirchmeir
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