Formatting C:

Message

Rex · #1 Post by **Rex** » Thu Dec 07, 2006 4:09 pm

Hi there,

I want to restore an image of my os to C: but for reasons that are too long to go into here, I want to reformat C: before restoring the image.

Am using W2k/NTFS, the image is on G: and I will be using Acronis True Image. I have no doubt that it will all work.

But how to format C:. I have booted from the W2k disk, but get to the message that gives me three options but none of them are formatting. I don't want to install W2k (again.)

So my question is, how do I reformat C:?

Really grateful for any advice.

Rex

#2 Post by **Kyocera** » Thu Dec 07, 2006 5:33 pm

Isn't there an option somewhere on the Acronis CD to format?

I thought Win2000 had a option in disk mgmt to format just Right click on the partition you want to format. Our 2000 server does, but i'm not sure about just 2K.

Stargate199 · #3 Post by **Stargate199** » Thu Dec 07, 2006 6:20 pm

If you can boot the computer with that drive working (as in Windows detects it as another hard drive), all you need to do is right click on my computer and click on manage. Note: if the drive is not formated, it will not show up in "My Computer", but as long as windows installed the driver for that hard drive, the hard drive is working. Using the tree on the left side of the window, under storage, click disk management. From there you should be able to see every storage drive on you computer. Right click on the drive you want to format and click format. Follow the on screen instructions and enter the information and then Windows 2000 will start formating the drive. This same procedure also applys on Windows XP.

#4 Post by **carbon_unit** » Thu Dec 07, 2006 7:18 pm

There is no need to format C: when using Acronis to image the drive. Acronis will destroy any formatting or any previous data on the C:\ drive when it applies the image. Whatever is on there that you don't want will be gone. the C:\ drive will be what is in the image, no more and no less.

Rex · #5 Post by **Rex** » Fri Dec 08, 2006 3:13 am

Gentlemen,

Many thanks for all the suggestions.

C: is working well, just that sometimes, some programs are flaky and the best way (that I can see) to eradicate the flakiness is to go back to a clean time.

Don't think I can format C: from Drive Management when I am already in C: Likewise, using Partition Magic.

But I did not know that Acronis deleted the format as it went. Perhaps that is the simplest way to do it.

What happened was this. On another drive (NTFS) the MFT is at the beginning of the drive. I put the current image of my current os (W2k/NTFS) onto C: that previously was FAT32. Now the MFT is in the middle of the drive. Read lots on the MS Knowledge Base and it seems that with NTFS, the MFT should be at the beginning, but is one converts from FAT32, the MFT can be in the middle. Read one article that said that when the MFT is in the middle, reading the hd is slowed because that is not where it should be.

So thought that if I reformat as NTFS, and then restore the image, perhaps everything will revert to how it should be.

Hope that is clear? Probably as clear as mud!

Rex

leoblob · #6 Post by **leoblob** » Fri Dec 08, 2006 11:51 am

Acronis takes care of formatting, etc. It doesn't matter what's already on the drive.

You can also format from a WIN98 boot floppy.

Rex · #7 Post by **Rex** » Fri Dec 08, 2006 2:39 pm

OK, I'll go the Acronis route.

"You can also format from a WIN98 boot floppy." Yes, but will it format NTFS?

Rex

#8 Post by **bill bolton** » Fri Dec 08, 2006 4:31 pm

Rex wrote:What happened was this. On another drive (NTFS) the MFT is at the beginning of the drive. I put the current image of my current os (W2k/NTFS) onto C: that previously was FAT32. Now the MFT is in the middle of the drive. Read lots on the MS Knowledge Base and it seems that with NTFS, the MFT should be at the beginning, but is one converts from FAT32, the MFT can be in the middle. Read one article that said that when the MFT is in the middle, reading the hd is slowed because that is not where it should be.

"In Windows 2000 and earlier versions of Windows NT, the MFT was typically placed at the start of the disk space available to the file system. In Windows XP, the NTFS format utilities place the MFT 3 GB further into the disk space, which has been found to improve system performance by 5 to 10 percent." http://www.microsoft.com/whdc/system/wi ... stall.mspx

Cheers,

Bill

Nolonemo · #9 Post by **Nolonemo** » Fri Dec 08, 2006 7:27 pm

Rex wrote: So thought that if I reformat as NTFS, and then restore the image, perhaps everything will revert to how it should be.

Well Rex, you got my curiosity piqued. Anyone know if you restore an NTFS image that has the MFT in to the drive as Rex days, if the restoration will move the MFT?

Rex · #10 Post by **Rex** » Sat Dec 09, 2006 11:47 am

Bill,

Thanks for the link. Very interesting.

Let me give an update/overview of what I am seeking. This may seem rather convoluted.

I have a T22, 512 RAM and 20gb hd, running W2k/FAT32. Five partitions (OS;Docs;TempInternetFiles; Spare; and Image.) Too many programs, most of which are useful utilities, Office 2000, PhotoShop CS, FireFox v1.0pr and ZoneAlarm. Most unecessary Services are turned off.

From power on to when the hd activity light stops flashing is about 1 min 35 seconds. I run FireFox via a program called BatchRun. This starts ZoneAlarm, then FireFox and when I close FF, so does ZA. Click the FF icon and I am on the net in about 30 seconds. There is then very little hd activity.

PhotoShop runs well, can scroll around the image at 200% without any problem. Clone anything with no problems. I do quite a lot of image editing with 100mb x 16 bit files and save them to an external 250gb hd.

Closing the computer (Shutdown) happens within what seem a few seconds.

So far, so good.

To make things easier for myself, I now have a 60gb hd, formatted as NTFS. Virtually everything is as the above paragraph. Same programs (although now upgraded to FireFox 1.5.0.

and updated various programs (Zone Alarm, AVG, etc)

I figured that everything would be about the same as before, certainly not worse! After all, everything I read about NTFS is positive.

Now booting takes close to 3 minutes before the hd activity light stops. FireFox and ZoneAlarm (via Batch Run) takes almost 2 minutes before the hd activity light stops and then there is a lot of disk thrashing. PhotoShop is almost unusable. Lots of disk activity, during which time, the program freezes. Scrolling at even 100% involves a lot of disk activity and the program is frozen. Let alone any editing work. OE6 takes about 30 seconds before I can use it. Shutdown from the Desktop seems to take forever with a lot of disk activity. Probably about 20/30 seconds but I usually walk away so I don't have hard information.

All my postings recently are around this question, is this how W2k/NTFS should be/is? Or have I gone wrong somewhere?

It seems to me that W2k/NTFS is so SLOW that it is not worth the effort. Perhaps it is the larger hd that is causing the problem? If so, why? Suggestion on how to correct it grafefully received.

I put my W2k/FAT32 (from the 20gb hd) image onto the larger hd and the same problems seem to exist, so perhaps my problem is the hd? Does a larger hd cause everything to slow donw? Have run the manufacturers hd test utility on the 60gb and it comes through with flying colours. Have reverted to my original W2k/NTFS os and now the MFT is in the middle of the partition, rather than at the beginning, which is where it seems to go when doing a clean W2k install.

Basically, I'm just trying to understand if this is how it is.

That is why I started this new thread, regarding formatting C: to reinstate an image onto a shiney, clean partition. But I don't want to delete C:, just reformat it.

The above is probably about as clear as nuclear physics, in which case, sorry.

However, I am really grateful of any suggestions. or advice on NTFS experience.

Rex

Formatting C:

Formatting C:

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