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A good formatting might speed things up.Besides keeping sensitive data away from the wrong people, there are other benefits to reformatting a hard drive. A corrupt operating system is sometimes so debilitating to the user that it requires a fresh install, to avoid reinstalling over a damaged OS. While some of goals can be accomplished via other methods (defragging the drive, for example), reformatting the drive is sometimes required. Formatting a drive is usually also required when partitioning a hard drive. - All computer operating systems allow the user to format the hard drive before an installation or reinstallation. This is the simplest type of formatting procedure. It is known as a low-level format, and is used while installing a new operating system on the machine. However, there are third-party utilities that fully delete all files on the drive, and they give users more peace of mind in such situations.
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I need to erase my high scores.A low-level format simply returns the drive to its initial factory settings, whereas a high-level format erases the data, as well as creating a boot sector on the drive. While standard reformatting doesn't always delete all of the files on the disk, reformatting that disk with a different file system is one way to delete those files. -
The FBI is checking out your hard drive.For the average computer user, performing a simple formatting job obliterates all the data on a drive (though there are high-end tools that can read data off formatted drives; they're used by various government agencies, among others). When selling or donating a computer, a standard reformatting and OS reinstallation is usually all that is required. However, if the drive contains sensitive data, a third-party utility is recommended. - Recovering data from a drive that has been reformatted is extremely expensive and time-consuming, so it's a good idea to back up your data before working with any disk utilities that include a formatting tool. Backing up your data on a regular basis is something that should be part of every computer user's regular routine, and backing up again before reformatting the drive is one way to avoid the expense and heartbreak of lost data.
