How to Make a Floppy to Format a Hard Drive

Though outdated long ago, floppy disks are still valuable in the formatting and installation of a hard drive. Floppies are cheap, not as durable as other mediums (like jump drives and CDs), and they hold just enough data for system files. But floppy disks are extremely efficient in loading system files. Use the tips in this guide create a bootable floppy disk capable of formatting any size hard drive.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Floppy disk

1. Insert a formatted floppy disk into the disk drive of a computer with Internet access. If you need to format the floppy, go to "My Computer" and right click on the floppy drive icon. Select "Format" from the pop-up list that appears.

2. Download a copy of a hard drive utility application. Programs like MaxBlast, by Maxtor, will work with any hard drive. Save the file to desktop and then copy it to your floppy---you'll have a backup copy in case of read errors.

3. Wait for the busy light on the front the floppy drive to go off. If the light is still on or flashing when your remove the floppy disk, you risk damaging the disk or creating read errors.

4. Insert the floppy into the drive of the computer you wish to format and then power it on. Your system will read the disk upon booting, initialize your CD/DVD-ROM drive and copy necessary setup files to your system's RAM.

5. Launch the utility from the floppy. After booting up, you will be asked from where you'd like to run the utility. You'll be given the option of CD-ROM or floppy. Choose floppy.

6. Read and except any applicable terms and conditions presented to you by the program. In the main menu, click the heading labeled "Utilities." You'll be given the option for a quick format, or a complete wipe.

7. Choose the option that works best for you. The quick format merely hides files and makes the hard drive appear empty while a complete wipe sets every sector of the drive to zeros and the data is permanently erased.

Tips & Warnings

• Remember to back up all of your files before formatting---if possible.
• Remember, in the right hands, files can still be retrieved from your hard drive if you do a quick format. After writing the drive to zeros, your data will be permanently erased.

Resources

• MaxBlast Download