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How to use a System Repair Disc to Format the C Drive

Create a System Repair Disc to format your Windows hard drive

By Tim Fisher Tim Fisher Senior Vice President & Group General Manager, Tech & Sustainability Emporia State University Tim Fisher has more than 30 years' of professional technology experience. He's been writing about tech for more than two decades and serves as the VP and General Manager of Lifewire. lifewire's editorial guidelines Updated on October 8, 2022 Tweet Share Email Tweet Share Email

In This Article

Expand Jump to a Section How to Format C From a System Repair Disc What Happens When You Format C With a System Repair Disc How to Format C Without a System Repair Disc

What to Know

Insert blank CD or DVD. Open command prompt and run recdisc. Select your CD drive > Create disc.When complete, insert the disk into the PC you want to format and boot from the disc drive.System Recovery Options > Troubleshoot > Advanced Options > Command Prompt. Enter format c: /fs:NTFS. This article explains how to use a System Repair Disc to format your C drive from the Command Prompt. It also covers how to format the C drive without a System Repair Disc. Information in this article applies to Windows 10, Windows 8, and Windows 7.

How to Format C From a System Repair Disc

You'll need access to a working Windows computer with an optical disc drive to create a System Repair Disc. Follow these steps to format your C drive: Insert a blank CD or DVD into your disc drive. Open the command prompt on a working Windows PC and run the command recdisc. Select your CD drive, then select Create disc. When the process is complete, insert the disk into the PC you want to format and boot from the disc drive. If you have a Windows installation DVD, you can use it instead of a System Repair Disc by following the same instructions. Select your keyboard language. Select Troubleshoot in the System Recovery Options menu.
In Windows 7, choose the first option you see and select Next, then skip to step 8. Select Advanced Options. Select Command Prompt. Enter format c: /fs:NTFS in the Command Prompt to format C with the NTFS file system. If you want to format C using a different file system, you can use a different format command. Enter the volume label of the drive you're formatting (in this case, C) if prompted. The volume label is not case sensitive. If you don't know the volume label, enter Ctrl + C to cancel the formatting, then use the command prompt to find the volume label of the drive. Type Y and then press Enter when prompted to ignore the warning that all data on the drive will be lost. After the drive is finished formatting, you'll be prompted to enter a volume label, or name, for the drive. You can skip this step by pressing Enter. When you're back at the Command Prompt, remove the System Repair Disc and turn off your computer by holding down the power button.

What Happens When You Format C With a System Repair Disc

The System Repair Disc does not reinstall Windows. When you format the hard drive, you remove the entire Windows operating system. This means that when you restart your computer and attempt to boot, it will not work because there's no longer anything there to load. What you'll get instead is a BOOTMGR is missing or an NTLDR is missing error message until you install a new operating system. You do not need a product key to use a System Repair Disc.

How to Format C Without a System Repair Disc

There are several other ways to format the C drive if you don't have a Windows System Repair Disc. For example, if you're giving away your computer, you can wipe the drive with a data destruction program to make sure that it's impossible for anyone to recover your personal files. Alternatively, you can search for an ISO image of the Windows Repair Disc online and burn the ISO file to a USB drive. You can then boot from the USB device and follow steps 5-11 above. Was this page helpful? Thanks for letting us know! Get the Latest Tech News Delivered Every Day Subscribe Tell us why! Other Not enough details Hard to understand Submit More from Lifewire How to Use the Format Command to Write Zeros to a Hard Drive How to Reset a Windows Vista Password [Easy, 15-20 Min] How to Format C From Recovery Console How to Create a Windows 7 System Repair Disc How to Format C From a Windows Disc [Easy, 15-20 Min] 35 Best Free Data Destruction Tools (October 2022) How to Use Bootsect /nt60 to Update the VBC to BOOTMGR Vol Command Examples and Options How to Restore Hal.dll From the Windows XP CD How to Format an SD Card to FAT32 How to Find a Drive's Volume Label or Serial Number How to Format a Hard Drive in Windows How to Boot From a CD, DVD, or BD Disc What Does "Format" Mean in Computing? 5 Free and Easy Ways to Format Your 'C' Drive What Is a Volume Label of a Drive? Newsletter Sign Up Newsletter Sign Up Newsletter Sign Up Newsletter Sign Up Newsletter Sign Up By clicking “Accept All Cookies”, you agree to the storing of cookies on your device to enhance site navigation, analyze site usage, and assist in our marketing efforts. Cookies Settings Accept All Cookies