Windows 7: Creating Primary Partition On Wiped HDD ?

Hi,

I have used a DOS utility called copywipe 1.14 to wipe a hard drive for a clean installation of windows 7. However, the utility has not only removed all data from the hard drive, it has also deleted the primary partition and master boot record as far as I am aware.

Can anyone please tell me how I can create a primary partition on the hard disk and get it active and ready to accept an installation of Windows 7. I have a bootable USB stick with the windows 7 installation files and prefer to use this for the install as the DVD drive is working inconsistently.

However, I think that I need a bootable USB stick with the FDISK and FORMAT programs on it before using the other USB stick with the windows installation, or at least that is my understanding? If my understanding is correct, how do I get a bootable USB stick with the FDISK and FORMAT programs onto it?



Thx for any help
Auld Bint

Auld, you shouldn't need that. Win 7 installation disks will format your hard drive accordingly.

If you created the USB installation drive correctly (USB Windows 7 Installation Key Drive - Create) you should not have a problem

wallyinnc,

Many thx for the advice, its working OK. I have created the USB stick and it now allows me to boot to the USB drive and install Windows 7.

I selected cutom install and let the install program create the partitions. At this point, I received a message box indicating that windows may create more than 1 partition with 1 reserved for system files. After proceeding, the install has created 2 partitions on the hard drive Disk0 Partition1 and Disk0 Partition2 with the 1st one being 100mb and reserved for system files.

Can I delete the this 1st partition and just proceed with the installation on the 2nd partition as I do not really wish to have 2 partitions on the disk or is the 1st partition reserved for system files mandatory for the installation?

Rgds
Auld Bint

You should leave that 100mb partition as it contains your boot files. If, for whatever reason, you really don't want it, follow this..System Reserved Partition - Delete

If you want to prevent Windows from creating this partition during installation, format and partition your drive before you install Windows.

How would I go about partitioning and formatting the drive before I install windows 7 from the bootable USB stick? After I wiped the drive with the copywipe 1.14 utility it deleted the partition and the drive itself was unbootable. This reverts back to one of my original questions where I asked if I needed a separate bootable USB stick with some partitioning and formatting utilities on it.

The bootable USB stick with the windows 7 installation on it goes directly into the installation routine without giving the option to do an independent partition and format.


Rgds
Auld Bint

I suggest GParted. Download the ISO, create a disc and boot up to it. Use it to format and partition your drive the way you want it and when finished just install Windows to the partition of your choice.

To deep clean and pre-partition your HD, boot the Windows 7 installer, Press Shift F10, type:
DISKPART
LIST DISK
SELECT DISK # (for Windows 7 disk)
clean all (writes zeroes, takes about an hour per 320gb, drop "all" for faster)
create partition primary
select partition 1
assign letter=c:
active
format
exit

gregrocker,

At what point do I press Shift-F10 when booting the windows installer?

My windows installation is on the bootable USB stick and it self boots to the point where I have to select the language. That is the 1st point of user intervention, is this when I press Shift-F10?

Assuming that pressing Shift-F10 when the language selection screen appears on the install, I managed to use "diskpart" to clear the old partition and create and format the new partition. When this completed, I exited the command prompt window and returned to the windows install language selection screen without a reboot and selected the language and continued with the install.

It all seems to have gone OK, many thanks to you all for helping with the install. My only question remaining is - should I have rebooted the PC using the bootable USB stick after using "diskpart" or was it OK to continue directly with the install after exiting the diskpart command prompt without a reboot?


Rgds
Auld Bint

Ault Bint -

You did fine. Shift F10 is a shortcut to the Command Line which is in the Recovery Tools list on Repair My Computer console accessed on second screen, right after language/keyboard.

With the "format" command in the process quoted above, what file system is created on the HDD, is it NTFS or FAT32 ?

Also, would the file system that is created using "format" alone as the command be dependent on a 32bit install or a 64 bit install? I assume that the file system can be forced to NTFS or FAT32 using "format fs=ntfs" or "format fs=fat32" ?

The reason I ask is that one of my machines would not read a Windows 7 64 bit install DVD but it would read a Windows 7 32 bit install DVD. This was not trying to read as a boot disk for an installation but to read in order to copy to a bootable USB stick. The machine in question has 64 bit windows installed on it with an NTFS file system.


Rgds
Auld Bint