formating/cleaning/what ever

[redvette]

Hi Gang

I am going to ask some thing that probably has been asked at least a million times on here, I know I have read about half of them I think.

I don't have any formating programs, etc. I want to install a good version of XP Pro that I have. I want to make sure the HD is perfectly clean/formated, etc. I have seen some of these XP versions install fairly quick, and they don't seem to work right, then I have seen them take any where from 30min to 50 min, depending on the computer. And these seem to be right on. So is there a certain way to format and install XP so I know it will turn out to work the way it is supposed too. Have all the extra's in the Pro version, etc.

There seems to be so many different ways to install and format, every one seems to have their own way of doing this. Is the Windows formating ok to use.? Or should I invest in a program.? I don't plan on doing this every time I turn around, so buying a program might be a little over board. I guess I am looking for the good, better, and best way of doing this.

I appreciate your time and efforts>>>>>Thanks.......Gunny

[juppy]

I've just always let the formatting tool on the WinXP disk do it. Haven't had a bad install yet with the ones I've done. That's not to say it's perfect though either, coz it isn't, and I'm sure there's probably more thorough programs out there. I've just never had a problem with it and it's always been good enough.

Just set the bios to boot from the CD, have the XP CD in the drive, let it reboot from the CD and go through the usual formatting before install stuff.

[Cricket]

If you want to clean off your hard drive to prepare it for installation of Windows, use a zero-fill utility like Darik's Boot and Nuke or KillDisk.

Then follow the installation intructions for WinXP Pro found here.

Cricket

[glc]

If you want a PERFECTLY clean hard drive, use a zero fill tool. This wipes it totally and returns it to essentially the state it was in when it was shipped.

Each hard drive manufacturer offers one as part of their setup or diagnostic software, or you can use something like Active Killdisk or Darik's Boot & Nuke.

I normally just use the function in XP's setup to delete all partitions.