Can I use computer while formatting second hard drive

bcmerr01

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I'm fully formatting a second hard drive in my computer and it's a 3tb drive so it's going to take a while. I was wondering if I could watch videos I have on my other drive or if that would cause the process to run less efficiently or even skip sectors it was supposed to check.
 

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Windows 7 Ultimate x64
Welcome to Seven Forums bcmerr01.
I think you could watch video but it would likely not play well. If I was doing something as important as a drive format, I'd just wait till it was done. :)
 

My Computer

Computer type
PC/Desktop
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Home Built Desktop By DataTech
OS
Windows 7 Ultimate X64 SP1
CPU
Intel i5-2550K, Differing ~4.4-4.8GHz No built in GPU
Motherboard
ASUS P8Z68-V PRO/GEN3
Memory
16GB G.Skill Sniper 1866MHz @ 2133MHz 2x8GB
Graphics Card(s)
ASUS GTX650TIB-DC2OC-2GD5, (650TI Boost)
Sound Card
Onboard Realtek 5-1
Monitor(s) Displays
Samsung P2570HD
Screen Resolution
1920x1080
Hard Drives
Samsung 840 Pro 256GB SSD for OS, 500GB Seagate Constellation (Enterprise drive) for Data
PSU
Corsair HX650W
Case
Inwin Dragon Rider
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Hyper 212 EVO w/two Noctua fans, push-pull, @1300 RPM
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E-Z Eyes, bright yellow keys with large characters
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steelseries SENSEI Laser Pro Gaming
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48-51Mbs Mbs down, 11 Mbs up Xfinity Cable
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Norton Internet Security 2013
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IE 10, Opera, Pale Moon if needed
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4 case fans, LG BluRay-RE, ASUS DVD-RW, Mr. Fusion power supply, 1.21 gigawatts.
As long as you are not running with a single core CPU and have a decent amount of memory, you should be fine, imo.
 

My Computer

Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
self built
OS
Windows 7 Home Premium 64bit
CPU
Intel i5 - 760 (Quad)
Motherboard
Intel DP55KG Extreme Series
Memory
G.SKILL F3-10666CL9D-8GBRL Ripjaws (4x4Gb)
Graphics Card(s)
Gigabyte HD 4670
Sound Card
Creative Audigy 2 ZS
Monitor(s) Displays
Acer X223W
Screen Resolution
1680 x 1050
Hard Drives
1x Kingston 128G SSD (Boot Drive)
2x Western Digital Black 1Tb
1x Samsung 2Tb
1x Western Digital VelociRaptor 150G
1x Hitachi Deskstar 3TB
PSU
Seasonic S12D750 750W
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Fractal Design Define R3 Black
Cooling
Stock Intel i5 cooler over 4x120mm Fans and 1x140mm Fan
Keyboard
MS Razor
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MS Wireless Laser Mouse 7000
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25Mbps Down, 950Kbps Up
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All the hardware works perfectly with Win7. Index of 6.7 with Gigabyte HD 4670 graphics.
I'm fully formatting a second hard drive in my computer and it's a 3tb drive so it's going to take a while. I was wondering if I could watch videos I have on my other drive or if that would cause the process to run less efficiently or even skip sectors it was supposed to check.

bcmerr,

I'm very religious--I am a devout coward.

I would not do anything else and do not do anything else while formatting a drive. I also do not have weird problems and disasters.
 

My Computer

Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Toshiba Satellite S875D-S7239 laptop
OS
MS Windows 7 Ultimate SP1 64-bit
CPU
AMD A10-4600M
Motherboard
AMD Pumori (Socket FT1)
Memory
6.00 GB Dual-Channel DDR3 @ 798MHz (11-11-12-28)
Graphics Card(s)
AMD Radeon HD 7660G
Sound Card
High Definition Audio Device
Monitor(s) Displays
Generic PnP Monitor (1600x900@60Hz)
Screen Resolution
1600x900@60Hz
Hard Drives
SSD 119GB Corsair CSSD-V128GB2 ATA Device
Keyboard
Standard PS/2 Keyboard
Mouse
HP Wireless Optical Mobile Mouse Model FHA-3410
Internet Speed
What the local pub, local coffee shop offers.
Other Info
Optical Drive:MATSHITA BD-CMB UJ160B ATA Device


Also have an Asus ha1002xp netbook with Win 7 Ultimate installed.
You will have no problems using your machine while a drive formats. Done it bazillions of times... At least.... Maybe more. :)
 

My Computer

OS
Windows 7 Ultimate x64
CPU
AMD 1100T x6 9MB 3.3GHz
Motherboard
Foxconn A7DA-S 3.0 AM3
Memory
G.SKILL 8GB DDR3-1333 2048MB x 4
Graphics Card(s)
Zotac Nvidia GTX275 896MB @ 723/1603/1260
Sound Card
7.1 channel HDA, Realtek® ALC888-GR
Monitor(s) Displays
42" Viewsonic 1080p N4280p
Hard Drives
HD1 : Barracuda 750GB 32MB Cache (ST375033 0AS)
HD2 : WD Caviar Black 1TB 32MB Cache (WDC WD10 01FALS-00J7B1)
PSU
Corsair Tx750w
Case
Cooler Master Centurion 5
I wouldn't...
 

My Computer

Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Self-Built
OS
Vista Ultimate X64/ Windows 7 Dual-boot
CPU
Q6600
Motherboard
ASUS P5K
Memory
4G OCZ PC2 8500 Platinum
Graphics Card(s)
EVGA 8800GTS Vid Card
Hard Drives
500G Seagate SATA
200G Seagate SATA
100G WD Caviar SATA
80G WD Caviar IDE
PSU
OCZ Elite 800W PSU
Case
RaidMax Smilodon Case
It shouldn't take very long to format a drive, even one that large, so I'm thinking it would be a moot point.
 

My Computer

OS
Windows 7 Ultimate x64 SP1
CPU
Intel Core i7-2600
Motherboard
Gigabyte GA-P67A-UD3P-B3
Memory
12 GB Patriot Extreme DDR3-1333
Graphics Card(s)
Nvidia GTX 470
Monitor(s) Displays
Dell UltraSharp 2209WA
Hard Drives
OCZ Agility3 240 GB, WD5001AALS, WD7501AALS
PSU
OCZ ModStream 700W
Case
CoolerMaster HAF 912 Advanced
Cooling
CoolerMaster Hyper 212 Plus
Yes you can.
 
Last edited:

My Computer

Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Myself
OS
Windows 7 Ultimate 64Bit
CPU
C2D E8200
Motherboard
XFX 750i
Memory
8GB PNY PC2-6400
Graphics Card(s)
BFG 9600GT x 2
Sound Card
Stock XFX Optical
Monitor(s) Displays
Gateway 22" HD Display
Hard Drives
C: 1 TB G: 500 GB H: 500 GB
PSU
Ultra LSP 550 Pro Lifetime Series
Case
Xion2
Cooling
ThermalTake
There is no real problem in doing something else while you are formatting a drive. At worse, things will seem a little sluggish if you are on a computer with a slow or single processor as even SATA still hits the CPU a little. This will not cause problems with the formatting of the drive, you will just notice sluggishness of your system due to competing resources if you have a low end system.
 

My Computer

Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Alienware Area 51 Desktop and Dell Inspirion 17R (N7010)
OS
Windows 7 Ultimate x64 and Home Premium x64
CPU
Intel i7 960 (3.2 GHz Quad Core)
Motherboard
Alienware Intel based X58
Memory
12 Gigs (Triple Channel)
Graphics Card(s)
Alienware OEM nVidia GTX 560 Ti (1.25 Gig)
Sound Card
Creative Labs X-Fi Titanium
Monitor(s) Displays
Samsung PX2370 LED 23" Monitor
Screen Resolution
1920x1080
Hard Drives
2 320 Gig SATA in Raid 1 Configuration (System/App)
1 1 Tera SATA (Games)
1 1 Tera SATA (Data/Music/Videos)
PSU
750 Watt Power Supply
Case
Alienware Area 51 Desktop
Cooling
Liquid Cooled
Keyboard
Logitech G510
Mouse
Microsoft Trackball Explorer
Internet Speed
Cable
^^What Keiichi25 said is spot on. There's absolutely no worries to use your computer while a drive formats. Just don't go forgetting about it and restarting the machine. I work on all kinds of machines and do it all the time. Never had a problem.
 

My Computer

OS
Windows 7 Ultimate x64
CPU
AMD 1100T x6 9MB 3.3GHz
Motherboard
Foxconn A7DA-S 3.0 AM3
Memory
G.SKILL 8GB DDR3-1333 2048MB x 4
Graphics Card(s)
Zotac Nvidia GTX275 896MB @ 723/1603/1260
Sound Card
7.1 channel HDA, Realtek® ALC888-GR
Monitor(s) Displays
42" Viewsonic 1080p N4280p
Hard Drives
HD1 : Barracuda 750GB 32MB Cache (ST375033 0AS)
HD2 : WD Caviar Black 1TB 32MB Cache (WDC WD10 01FALS-00J7B1)
PSU
Corsair Tx750w
Case
Cooler Master Centurion 5
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