Will formatting my c: drive delete everything on it?

Question

I ask this question because someone answered my questions regarding uninstalling Win2000 and re-installing Win98. They suggested that I boot up my computer with the Win98 boot disk or CD - then use CD-ROM Support and then it should take me to the A: prompt - after that I type in format c: and continue with installing Win98.

Just wondering if I format would it erase everything on my C: Drive. The reason I want to go back to Win98 is because of old programs that were working but now they are not because of incompatibility with Win2000.

In addition, I have a FAT32 drive and not that other one that starts with an N.

Thanking you in advance.

Answer 1

>Yes...formatting the drive will erase everything on it...back up all the files you need to keep before you format the drive.

After you install Win98 you will have to re-install all your applications, then copy your data files back to the hard drive.<

Answer 2

Yes, formatting your c drive will erase everything on it, so make sure you back up any important documents, music, or pictures that you want to keep.

If you're having trouble running programs in win2000, you can try running them in compatibility mode. Do do this, right click on the file, select properties, and go to the compatibility tab, there you'll have the option to run the program for an earlier operating system.

Also, your hard drive can be formatted to support either FAT32 or NTFS. For windows 98, your hard drive will be formatted in FAT32. With win2000 or winXP, you have a choice of either FAT32 or NTFS.

Answer 3

yes.

STEP ONE
You first need to decide what operating system you intend to load after formatting the hard drive. It is best and easiest to use a boot disk for that Operating System, such as MS Dos6.2 or Windows95b or Windows98SE. You will need the proper Windows95/98 boot disk in order to load the these operating systems on the computer, else it will reject loading due to the wrong Operating System on the computer.

STEP TWO
Insert your boot disk in the floppy drive and start the computer. Once the system has completed booting and an A: prompt appears we are ready to start.

Type: format C: /s [press Enter]

This statement tells the system to format your "C" drive and when it is finished to copy the system files to the drive, (the /s switch for 'System'). You can format a different drive this way by using a different drive letter.

Format should display: WARNING, ALL DATA ON
NON-REMOVABLE DISK DRIVE C: WILL BE LOST!
Proceed with Format (Y/N)? Type [Y] [Press ENTER]

Your screen should display the size of your drive and a countdown in percentage of formatting completed. Depending on your computer's speed and the size of the drive it can take from a few minutes to over 15minutes.

STEP THREE
When it reaches 100% complete, you will see a new message:
FORMAT COMPLETE. SYSTEM TRANSFERRED.

This indicates that the files required to boot your computer from the hard drive have been copied from the floppy to the hard drive. The computer can now boot from the hard drive without a boot disk in the floppy drive.

You will see one last message:
Volume label (11 characters, ENTER for none)?
Type anything you like or leave it blank - [Press ENTER]

You can now begin to load your Operating System.

Answer 4

Yes, when you type in format c:, everything on the c partition will be erased. If you have other partitions on the drive, those partitions will NOT be erased. My suggestion: instead of removing Windows 2000 (which is a superior o/s), assuming your hard drive is large enough - is to install Win 98 on another primary partition. Then you will be able to boot to either Win 98 or Win 2k.

To make another primary partition, you may need to install partitioning software such as Partition Magic. If you don't want to spend the money on this particular software, search on partitioning software for a free or try before buy program.

Answer 5

Formatting your c: will ABSOLUTELY delete everything from you hard drive. But you can not go from 2000 back to 98 without formating the drive. Windows 2000 uses NTFS and 98 is only FAT32, so you can not install 98 without formatting the drive.

Answer 6

yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes vyes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes vyes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes vyes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes vyes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes vyes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes vyes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes vyes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes vyes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes vyes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes vyes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes vyes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes vyes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes vyes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes