i want to clean my HDD, b4 i do a clean install... so do u ppl think a low level format will be better that a regular 1? it slow though and which low level format tool do u use? i used DBAN (Darik's Boot and Nuke (Hard Drive Disk Wipe)) b4. any better/safer ones? this one has a warning that if any probs ... etc. and Norton Partition Magic's "Secure Erase" is not a low level? and Windows non-"quick" format ... whats the diff actually?
a low level format not longer exists, if any software claims to do a low level format, is just blanking the entire contents of the drive, similar to setting the device label in linux (all partitions removed) presumably you mean. What is the difference between a quick format & a full format: well a full format actually fully re- formats the partition & a quick format removes the data & restores the original format of the partition when it was last full formatted, a full format is better than a quick format hope this answers your question, does it ? Edit: about Darik's Boot and Nuke, personally i've never used it, but, apparently its quite good BTW: PM hated on HWF (by me too) personally i prefer Acronis products
A low-level format is only needed when the drive needs to have its sectors redone. This readies the drive for formatting that is required for an OS to utilize the drive, which is what you need to do. A long format will format the drive, where as a quick format gives amnesia to the MBR.
