How to Erase and Format a Drive in Windows

Everybody likes to start off with a clean slate

Did you get a new external drive? Or are you looking to troubleshoot or sell an older drive? Then, it’s a good idea to erase and format it. Read on to learn how to do that in Microsoft Windows 10 and 11.

When you buy an external hard drive, SSD (solid-state drive), or flash stick, chances are that you can connect it to your Windows PC and use it right away. However, you may still want to erase and format the drive, so that you know you’re starting with a clean slate and an appropriate file system.

If you’ve already been using the drive for some time, formatting can help resolve persistent performance issues and other problems. You must also reformat the drive and securely erase its data if you plan to sell it.

How Erasing and Formatting a Drive in Windows Works

When you format an external HDD, SSD, or USB flash drive in Windows, the operating system frees up the disk space for use by other data. Additionally, it runs reliability checks on drive sectors and fixes severe errors (though there’s no guarantee).

But that’s just half the picture. Formatting also gives you the perfect opportunity to implement a suitable file system. That’s essential when you want toensure that a drive is compatible with other devices. Windows allows you to format external drives with one of the three file systems below.

NTFS: The default Windows file system. NTFS supports large file sizes and provides excellent security, but it doesn’t fully work on alternative operating systems besides Windows and Linux.

FAT32: A legacy Windows file system. Unlike NTFS, FAT32 features wider compatibility with most operating systems but imposes file size limits of 4GB or less, is less reliable, and is not as secure.

exFAT: An all-round file system that works well on both Windows and Apple macOS for Mac, exFAT strikes an excellent balance between compatibility, usability, and security.

You can format a drive via the Format utility, Disk Management console, and Command Prompt in Windows. However, only the Command Prompt lets you implement FAT32 as the file system on drives that exceed 32GB.

That said, formatting a drive in Windows doesn’t completely wipe your data. If you intend to sell the drive, you must use a third-party formatting tool such as Disk Wipe that can securely delete all data. If you’re troubleshooting for issues on a drive, you might want to considerrunning the Check Disk (CHKDSK) utilitybefore you start.

Warning: Erasing a drive or partition will permanently delete all files and folders. Take a backup of any data if you want to restore everything afterward.

Erase and Format a Drive in Windows Using Format Utility

The Format utility, which you can access via File Explorer, is the most convenient way to erase and format external drives in Windows. You can also decide if you want to speed things up by performing a quick format.

  1. Open File Explorer and switch to theThis PCtab on the sidebar. Then, right-click the external hard disk, SSD, or flash drive you want to format and selectFormaton the drop-down menu.

  2. Adjust the following settings on the Format dialog:

File system: Switch between the NTFS, FAT32, and exFAT file systems. FAT32 is not available for drives that exceed 32GB.

Allocation unit size: Define the minimum unit size of each data block on your drive. The default selection changes depending on the file system you select—e.g., 128 kilobytes for exFAT.Learn more about allocation unit size.

Volume label:Replace the default name if you want to have an easier time identifying the drive from other external media. A custom volume label will also appear on other devices and operating systems.

Quick Format: Leave the box checked if you want to erase and format the drive quickly. Clear it if you’re troubleshooting the drive.

Note: Select theRestore device defaultsbutton if you want to revert to the default selections for the drive.

  1. SelectStart>OK. You should be done in seconds if you choose theQuick Formatoption.

Erase and Format a Drive in Windows Using Disk Management

The Disk Management console is a versatile utility that allows you to manage drives, volumes, and partitions in Windows. It also allows you to format drives quickly. Use it if an external drive fails to appear in File Explorer.

  1. PressWindows Key+Rto open the Run box. Then, typediskmgmt.msc, and pressEnter.

  2. Right-click the drive under theVolumessection and selectFormat.

  3. Add a volume label, pick a file system, and specify the allocation unit size. Additionally, clear the box next toPerform a quick formatintact if you want Disk Management to perform a full format. Then, selectOK.

Note: If you’re formatting a drive with the NTFS file system, you can check the box next toEnable file and folder compressionto compress files and folders you add by default. However, that can adversely impact performance.

  1. SelectOKagain to confirm.

Erase and Format a Drive in Windows Using Command Prompt

Alternatively, you can use the Command Prompt and Windows PowerShell consoles to format a drive in Windows. It’s the best option if you want to format drives that exceed 32GB natively in FAT32.

  1. Open theStart menu, typecmd, and selectOpen as administratorto open the Command Prompt console. If you prefer Windows PowerShell, right-click theStartbutton and selectWindows PowerShell (Admin)orWindows Terminal (Admin).

  2. Run thediskpartcommand to load the DiskPart command-line tool.

  3. Run thelist diskcommand to load a list of drives on your computer.

  4. Typeselect disk [disk number], replacing[disk number]with the number of the drive you want to format. Use theSizecolumn to identify the correct number. PressEnterto select the drive.

  5. Run thecleancommand to erase all data on the drive.

  6. Typecreate partition primaryand pressEnterto partition the drive.

  7. Typeformat fs=fat32 label=[drive name]. Replacefat32with the file system you want and[drive name]with a drive label. Then, pressEnter.

  8. Typeassignand pressEnterto assign a drive letter for the drive.

  9. Typeexitand pressEnterto quit DiskPart.

Securely Erase and Format a Drive in Windows Using Disk Wipe

If you want to erase an external drive securely, you can use a free third-party formatting tool called Disk Wipe. It lets you run various erasing patterns to prevent file recovery tools from retrieving your data.

  1. Download and launchDisk Wipe. Then, choose the drive you want to format and select theWipe Diskbutton.

  2. Select a file system—NTFS,FAT, orFAT32. Then, selectNext.

  3. Select an erasing pattern. For example, you can overwrite the storage device’s contents with a single pass of zeros or use sophisticated data wiping techniques such as the Peter Guttman method. Note that using methods with multiple passes can take a long time to complete.

  4. TypeERASE ALLand selectFinish.

  5. SelectYesto confirm.

Disk Wipe aside, you can rely on various other formatting tools and apps such asDBan,KillDisk, andEraserto securely erase drives. Here’s a complete list offree programs that can completely wipe a drive in Windows.

Dilum Senevirathne is a freelance tech writer and blogger with three years of experience writing for online technology publications. He specializes in topics related to iOS, iPadOS, macOS, and Google web apps. When he isn’t hammering away at his Magic Keyboard, you can catch him binge-watching productivity hacks on YouTube.Read Dilum’s Full Bio

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