Need help formating lap top drive

[PtBetsie]

Another old donation which we could put to use if I can get it cleaned up. It is an old Dell (400 mHz) but it does have 512 RAM and 40G hard drive. The problem is that there are two OS on the hard drive and neither of them is one we have a legal right to use. (98SE plus 2000) It does not have a floppy drive but I changed the BIOS to boot from the CD ROM. How do I go about formatting this thing? :confused:

[Rick]

The fast way is to boot from the CD using a utility disk
And then use a partition program to remove it's partitions
Then make a new partition
It will require the drive to be formatted

Then boot what ever O/S you want to install from the CD-rom and tell it to install on the new partition

Any one of the Linux live cd's or other disk image from Bootdisk.com or better yet http://www.ultimatebootcd.com/ should work

Just download the ISO you want and burn it to a cd.
then use it to boot the Lpatop and away you go

[Sylvander]

My favourite is the FREE Emergency Boot CD [EBCD] Pro 0.6.1 (http://www.simtel.net/product.download.mirrors.php?id=80024).
It includes MANY useful programs on its 2 menus, only one of which is a DOS 7.10 Command Prompt where you can run any of 32 programs including:
msfdisk.exe [partition the HDD]
format.com [format partitions]
The above FREE disk isn't made to work with NTFS file systems.
See some info HERE (http://ebcd.pcministry.com/).

This shareware version DOES work with NTFS. (http://www.prime-expert.com/ebcd/)
I've just downloaded this and made the disk and will give it a try.
Some time later...
Couldn't get the new demo version to load on my hardware. :(

[PtBetsie]

I don't seem to be able to download the emergency boot cd. Whatever the choices I make, I end up at a page to download Registry Mechanic which is not what I am look for, correct?.

[PtBetsie]

I "think" I was able to download the UBCD but haven't tried to use it as of yet. The links recommended by Rick are also interesting. In looking for the downloads, I noticed there are two versions. Should I automatically choose the latest? Is only the ISO bootable?

Thanks for the help. With these forums I feel like I have all those extra volunteers that I've always wanted.:)

[Rick]

You can get each program and make your own boot disk.
But the ISO is easiest and it is bootable

Yes the latest version is most often the best way to go

[Paul Komski]

BiNG (in my sig) is a small download and an extremely versatile partition manager as is GParted (http://gparted.sourceforge.net/livecd.php), a Linux-based Partition Magic clone.

[Sylvander]

1. "I don't seem to be able to download the emergency boot cd. Whatever the choices I make, I end up at a page to download Registry Mechanic which is not what I am look for"
(a) Click here to download the Simtel downloading exe file (http://www.simtel.net/product.download.php?id=80024&url=DR:687576733a303166646f3076696e76686c2f7068743 072786230756c6d75676f6e6676326d74667273306478736a7 068737431686264663030603862312e72756f2e7569782f677 b65&itn=1&SiteID=simtel.net&mirrorsite=Worldwide%20Content%20Distribution%20Ne twork&fname=download-ebcd-0_6_1-pro-sfx.exe.exe&pname=Emergency%20Boot%20CD-ROM%20Pro).
Once that's downloaded to a folder of your choosing, run the exe file and the program will download the file-set for making the EBCD iso file.
To make the iso file, go into the ebcd-0.6.1-pro folder and run the makeebcd.exe file.
A window will run and display the making of the iso file that is saved inside that same folder.
You use that ISO file to make the CD [I normally burn to a CD-RW disk].

(b) Or else you can download the EBCD061P.ISO file from here (http://www.woofiles.com/dl-157049-gWD1UXA6-EBCD061P.ISO).
This is the basic unmodified FREE 60MB version I have in store on my PC.
I also have a 145MB modified versions including MaxBlast4, PowerMax4.21 and a USB4DOS driver.
If you are going to download the ISO file you need a fast connection.

[PtBetsie]

I finally succeeded in getting a bootable cd (UBCD). Using BurnCD instead of Nero seemed to get me a working image file. Now I have it booted up, I have several choices and I don't like choices. In wiping tools, Darik's Boot and Nuke, CopyWipe, Active KillDisk, Pc Inspector, or HDD Erase. I'd like to use something that will erase and format.

[mjc]

Darik's is the one I've used the most...

Most, if not all of them, the wipe/format will be a two step process. You use the 'wiper' to remove everything that is currently on the disk and then format the old fashioned way with a boot disk or OS install disk.

The drive manufacturer's diagnostics usually can do it in one step...or at least with the same program.

[Paul Komski]

To be pedantic its a three step process. Wipe (write zeros) then partition and then format. The wiping sort of restores a drive to the condition it would be as if new. After that you do what you would to any new drive. BiNG can wipe individual partitions so if there is or if you create one large partition and then wipe it you have (track0, which is only metadata, excepted) to all intents and purposes a sanitised drive. Just clear the MBR, also from BiNG and the cleanup should be effectively complete. Then partition, etc, etc. Personally I always use windows to do any formatting.

[Relztrah]

From your posts should I assume that fdisk is not available when booting from a Windows CD? So does that mean that PtBetsie (or anybody else who wants to partition a HDD on a machine without a floppy drive) is required to use a third-party partitioning tool?

I confess that my reluctance to use BiNG or an EBCD, both of which I have attempted to use, is mainly due to unfamiliarity. I love my old, familiar fdisk but as floppy drives become less and less common maybe I should learn to use another tool to partition or unpartition.

Relztrah

[Paul Komski]

You can convert any boot floppy to a boot CD (http://paulski.com/zpages.php?id=1814) and it will work unless the utilities/programs involved, themselves, need to write to that floppy. One needs an image file of the relevant floppy and then embed it into an ISO file used to later burn the CD. If you cannot obtain/download a floppy image file (http://paulski.com/zpages.php?id=1712) for your purposes then you need to make one for yourself. A win98 startup diskette image would certainly have Fdisk on it.

Installation Windows CDs differ. Fdisk is available from DOS and Win9x/ME boot CDs. Partitioning is done by disk management inherent in the setup routine of setup for the NT OSes from Win2K upwards. Fdisk has its limitations, particularly with the larger drives that commonly abound these days.

[Sylvander]

"I confess that my reluctance to use BiNG or an EBCD, both of which I have attempted to use, is mainly due to unfamiliarity"
It doesn't take too much to become familiar with the EBCD, you just need to begin doing things with it [as with Windows or whatever].
e.g.
Assuming you have the Pro version of the EBCD disk made.
To run DOS command programs like msfdisk.exe or format.com:
1. Just boot the disk.
2. At the [white text on black background of the] 1st menu hit [Enter] to go to the 2nd menu.
2. Choose and hit enter at each option to OK [or not] things like the mouse & CD-ROM drivers [there are 4 choices if I remember right].
I usually OK all the default choices except the USB driver [unless I intend to use USB (I have a USB4DOS driver included on my disk)].
3. At the colourful display of the 2nd menu use the up/down keys or the mouse cursor to choose the DOS 7.10 Command Prompt item.
4. At the command prompt presented type the command and hit [Enter].
COMMANDS AVAILABLE [32]
Extract.exe|Expand.exe|Keyb.com|chkdsk.exe|choice. com|fc.exe|edit.com|diskcomp.com|find.exe|Scandisk .exe|diskcopy.com|mem.exe
scandisk.ini|doskey.com|sort.exe|sys.com|xdel.exe| exezbin.exe|attrib.exe|more.com|recover.exe
format.com|subst.exe|tree.com|msfdisk.exe|deltree. exe|cvt.exe|debug.exe|xcopy.exe|xcopy32.exe|mode.c om|label.exe

[Paul Komski]

Done one for you. Hope it has a familiar feel.

98SE Startup Diskette ISO (http://www.paulski.com/bootcds/98seflop.iso)
md5=18cb94b1eadaf6e72445bfd94d853458
size=1.75 MB


It contains:

http://www.paulski.com/bootcds/flopfiles.jpg