SOLVED - THANX !!! Boot CD for formatting

[TheMud]

Is there a Boot CD for pc's where you can format the harddrive directly after booting ? ... Shall be formated into NTFS ... Any free progs out there ?

[odin]

The G-Parted LiveCD might be what you're after.

[InTheSand]

Or SystemRescueCD will probably be of use. It contains GParted, NTFSTools and a whole heap of other useful bits and pieces.

No FFS support though!  :-)

 - Ali

[TheMud]

This is not what I am looking for. I just want a boot program so that I can format my Harddrive into NTFS, and install Windows afterwords...

[DBAlex]

The Ultimate Boot CD can do this too... plus it has a load of other useful tools too (memory tests etc). It can also "nuke" a hard drive, filling it was 1's and zeros, which completely wipes a HD, even removing the MBR...

Alex.  :-D

[TheMud]

Thanx again People - Found a copy in the Office of Powersuite Pro 2008 - That helped :-)

[jj]

All versions of windows after 98se allow you to boot from the cd and will format the drive, so I dont get why you dont just use the windows cd.

[alexh]

Erm, surely you just boot off the Windows CD/DVD which allows you to format and partition prior to OS install?

Edit: Note to self : Read to end of thread before posting.

[TheMud]

The Problem is... I Formated the Harddrive with Ubuntu. Since then the Window Install cd says - Can't find any harddrive ... Even after I have formated it with Powersuite 2008, it doesnt help...

The window cd boots... And after a while it says it cant find the harddrive. Ubuntu can still find it though :-O ... Im sooooo lost :-(

[Thomas]

Connect the HDD to an Amiga and use HDToolbox to install it. By that all data on the HDD will be wiped out and the Windows CD should see the HDD as completely empty.

Bye,
Thomas

[odin]

*shrug* GParted shouldn't have any problems wiping that HD, but whatever.

You have only the one HD in the PC? You want both the Ubuntu install and any other OS'es completely gone?

[TheMud]

I installed Ubuntu on The Whole Harddrive ... Now I want Windows back :-S ... But Ubuntu has formated the complete drive into something that the Windows Install cd doesnt Recognize.

I tried formatting with Powersuite into NSTF and it said ok and saw the HD...

But still the windows install cd doesnt find it :-( ...

[Flashlab]

Do you happen to have a SATA harddisk? XP doesn't see those by default as it has no drivers for it.

If that's the case then search in your BIOS for IDE compatability mode for your SATA settings and XP will see the drive.

[TheMud]

It is SATA ... Have tried finding this in BIOS but didnt succesed... Guess im dumb :-D ...

I'll try again

[cantido]

TheMud wrote:
The Problem is... I Formated the Harddrive with Ubuntu.

Problems with terminology; Ubuntu hasn't formated the drive, it has created or modified the existing MBR and partition table and created a filesystem(s) on a partition(s).
It doesn't matter what filesystem Ubuntu has formatted the partition(s) with, the Windows installer should still be able to read the partition table and see the sizes and locations of the partitions on the drive. IIRC it will say the partition is of an unknown type if it doesn't recognise the partion's magic number... if the drive doesn't have a partition table it recognises the installer will offer the whole drive up as unpartitioned space.

Most likely the Windows installer needs extra drivers for your chipset, you need to turn on some emulation option in the BIOS, or you have a knackered drive.