Formatting the Hard Disk frequently, does it harm the Hard Disk ?

Question

Does it shortern the life of a Hard Disk?

Answer 1

no, not at all

Answer 2

Nothing really proves that formatting frequently will harm your hard disk. Basically a hard disk is a hardware that moves and hence has a life. So it depends on what kind of formatting that you are using:
a. Quick format - This is a very simple and quick option - this just deletes the entries of directories and files from the File Allocatio Table i.e. the list of files.
b. Normal format from DOS / Windows - It is something that physically deletes all data from the hard disk
c. Low Level Format from the BIOS - it is similar to Normal format; i think it recreates sectors in the hard disk..

Hey.. but dont format it too much. Its a good idea to do it before you install a new OS .. helps the overall speed of the machine..

Answer 3

hi ,
formatting the hard disk will never harm but formatting the hard disk frequently will decrease the life of 4 or 5 years into 2 or 3 years . But formatting is a must when your system hangs up or crash due to virus or any file corruption . so , instead of formatting you can use

Hiren's boot cd
(http://homepage.ntlworld.com/hiren.thanki/bootcd.html)


In this cd , you can find



NORTON GHOST its really a great software , if we use it we will have not need to format our hard disk . formatting a hard disk takes atleast 30 minutes or 1 hours . but norton ghost takes 2 minutes . , i have never formatted my pc . when u have Hiren's boot cd than there is no need for windows xp or any recovery cd .

yaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah really its great try it .
you can buy this cd online or in any retail shop .

http://homepage.ntlworld.com/hiren.thanki/bootcd.html

Answer 4

No it does not. Formating is not a destructive operation. It merely refers to the action of writing certain bytes to certain portions of the hard-disk to ensure that your PC can use it. Formatting also installs a file system which is necessary. Without a file system you cannot store any data on your hard-disk.

Also note that formatting does not wipe away all the info that is stored on it. It merely removes the old file system and puts a new one its place. This is especially the case with a quick format.

Answer 5

Formatting the hard disk has no more effect on it than other write operations, i.e. saving files. I would question as to why you would need to format the disk frequently as this is generally not necessary.

Answer 6

""I frequently format my hard disk, But one of my friends told me that the HD becomes weak on formatting."
Razib, Bangladesh

"I read somewhere that formatting a hard drive weakens the drive. Is that true? What is the maximum number of times that a hard drive can be formatted?"
Nimesh Shrestha, Kathmandu, Nepal

"Is it true that occasional formatting causes damage to the hard disk?"
Nayan Modi, Calcutta, India

I'm not sure where this myth came from, but what is happening to the drive when you format it is hardly any different from what's going on when you're saving or reading files from it. A hard disk drive will eventually wear out, it's turning round over 7-thousand times a minute after all, but formatting it won't shorten its life."

Answer 7

Abssolutely not. Formatting a hard disk writes a specific pattern of 1's and 0's throughout your hard drive which is what you do when you save files to your Hard Drive.

But, there is no reason to format your hard drive frequently. The defrag utility is the right tool to reorganize the files on your hard drive.

Answer 8

I have formatted 4 or 5 times but still I have no problem

Answer 9

tes.this shorten the life of hard disk.because it is used frequently.for example take your compact disk.use it 8 or 9 times.after it does'nt works properly,since it is used more times.always formatting gives the hard disk more work.so it gets tired because of working.

Answer 10

Uhm.. No.
At least i think it doesnt...

But i got my HDD Reformated to NTFS file system [something like that] and it kinda slowed down a bit. But when i got it reformatted again [back to FATS. Once again. unsure] It went back to its original performance.
Then i got it reformated again. right now its NTFS and its still doing great.
Soooo.. I dont think it will shorten or harm the HDD~

Hope this helps~ Happy Holidays~! ^^;

Answer 11

formatting the hard disk involves lot of rotation of the drive. this eventually causes your Hard Drive to weaken when done too often.