How do I Re-format with Windows 95

Don. Probably a stupid question but are you using a start up floppy in DOS with the utility apps on it (including FORMAT and CHKDISK)? If not a Google search will get you all you need for the floppy and if it's any use I can dig one up and tell you what should be on it.

Sorry if that's not helpful.

Cheers

Harry

Don i think your best bet would be to get a copy of PARTITION MAGIC,mabye this program would do the trick.do a "google" search and you'll probably find out if it is compatible with Win95??!!.i have all my Windows cdrom's here including Win95 and some floppies with Dos3.1! good luck

dennis

Harry, Dennis,

My hard disk is already partitioned and I have already copied my essential settings onto the "d" part of the hard drive. I now need to wipe clean the "c" part so as to allow me to start from scratch.

Since posting above, I have realised that I will need to open the computer in DOS and re-format from DOS. Can anybody confirm this?

I still have my original Start-up floppy and all my accessory discs and hardware drivers. I am trying to capture later versions of drivers from various webb-sites at present ie before i wipe the slate clean.

I have copied most of the imoprtant settings and drivers on an Iomega 100Mb floppy as a back-up, just in case the "d" drive gets corrupted somehow.

I had intended to re-load Windows 95. However I have a (legal) copy of ME. Which would be the better one to load?

Any other advice?

Cheers

Don

There are a few variables here, compounded by the many different versions of windows floating around.

Personally I'd boot the computer into MS-DOS using either a standard DOS boot floppy or bootable CD-ROM. Once you're in MS-DOS you can FORMAT C: /S to wipe the drive clean then you can run the setup.exe from the Windows 95 CD.

I've only tried this with a retail windows 95 - the OEM "system restore" disks I've seen have a nasty habit of completely wiping the whole drive (all the partitions and all the data) in order to restore the system to a factory state.

*IMPORTANT* Before you format anything, make sure that when you're in DOS you can see the CD drive. It will either be d: or one of the previously unused drive letters, probably g: in your case. If you can't see the CD, you can't reinstall windows and then you're really in trouble...

Also, when you're in DOS just check that the C drive is the same volume as it is in Windows. It should be but sometimes the letters get shuffled around and you wouldn't want to be formatting the wrong partition!

So whatever you do, make sure you're got (multiple) backups of all your important data before you start!

That aside and assuming you've got the relavent disks for your applications it should be a fairly simple process.

Windows 98SE was probably the most stable OS of that generation IMO so if that's an option, use it. Otherwise I'd stick with what you have, I had nothing but problems when I ran ME.

Boot disks etc can be found here http://www.bootdisk.com

Good luck!

Marc.

Don I know this is not the answer you are looking for but in Maplins for instance a 40gig harddrive is about 309 quid.

Why not get a new one and put a whole new copy of 95 on it then reformat your other drive from there. That way you have around 5 times more storage for thirty quid and you r problem solved?

Don,
You are quite correct you have to format your "C" drive from DOS. You need to boot your PC into dos.
Your floppy start up Disk should be ok, make sure it contains "FDISK"

Dave

If you have a startup floppy, you boot off that, make sure it picks up your CD Rom drive, then from the DOS prompt check that your C drive definately is your C drive before running "format c:".

Once that's done, you change to the Windows CD and run setup.

That's the theory anyway.

I would go with ME over 95, ME never had the greatest reputation but when all is said and done it is newer than 95.

I would format the C drive, then create a "WinME" folder on it and copy the contents of the CD into this folder and run setup from there, it takes a bit more disk space but saves reaching for the CD every time you add anything that requires files off the CD.

Don't want to state the obvious, but make sure you have the necessary modem/broadband drivers, they're the main thing - usually you can sort anything out so long as you can get online to begin with.

regards,
Paul

quote:

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Originally posted by garyi:
Don I know this is not the answer you are looking for but in Maplins for instance a 40gig harddrive is about 309 quid.

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ahh, mac users. So used to paying over the odds for everything. Gary, if you can even find a drive as small as 40GB it will cost about £30 not £300. £300 will buy you almost 1TB.


Don, before reformatting anything try running chkdsk and then defragment your drive.

I wouldn't go to Me with less than 128 MB of RAM in the PC.

I wouldn't rely on a 7 year old PC, unless the HDD has been replaced. Even SCSI drives are designed witha 5-7 year life - yours was designed with a 5 year expected life.

Be very careful with FDISK - it can easily destroy the partitions you DO want to keep.

Search/find any TEMP* files. You may have lots and lots of space devoted to files in folders called TEMP, TEMPORARY, or TEMPORARY INTERNET FILES.

I've forgotten if W95 has a built in defragger. If it does, it probably won't wok well unless you turn off paging. Find out where virtual memory is specified and set it to 0 and run Defrag. Run defrag after you get rid of temp files.

Or, just buy a new PC....

Best of luck.
Phil

Slip of the hand sorry, they are about 30 quid in maplins, not 309 quid, doh.