Community archive
by generalist
I'd stick with the scandisk and defrag unless you are having major problems with the system. Even then, make sure that you have very good backups of the operating system, your application software and your data. And be prepared to spend a long, long time getting things right.
I have heard of instances where organizations reformat drives and restore everything from backup. Of course those organizations are dealing with business systems, not PCs.
You might ask your 15 year old why they think reformatting is 'better' than other approaches. If it is because there are fewer interruptions caused by defrag, you may want to introduce them to the interruptions caused by reinstalling applications software or going through the backup and restore process.
by mtberjim
by ilya
If you don't have too much software installed on your system then it is not a bad Idea to reformat your system once in a while because it helps you to keep track of everything that you have on your system and how to reinstall the software that you have just incase. Also just because you do scandisk and defrag is not going to help you all the time because if your registry gets messy then you will have bigger problems then you would want. Also defrag sometimes gives it's own problems if you are using win95/98.
Good luck.
by bjp56
by bjp56
by greggen
I like the reformat approach. While it can be a slight pain to reinstall the software, it does seem to improve the operation of the PC. My family and I download lots of software, and the 6 month or 1 yearly reinstall gets rid of all the old crap cluttering up the harddrive and slowing down my PC.
I did get a little smart over the years. I have a 1 gig data partition, which I keep my permanent stuff on (mail files, bookmarks, documents, downloaded software for installs, ect) If I like something enough, I will copy the install file to the data partition. I also keep a text document in there which lists what programs I install, cd keys, ect.
I also have this burned to CD.
Gives me an easy to follow checklist to setup the new os.
by desk23
I guess if you want the chores done, you should follow his instructions. On the other hand, this 51 year old with no children left at home scans & defrags his on a monthly maintenance system. (scandisk, defagment, registry, clean inside the case etc..).
Virus scaning is another story, update regularily and always check manufacturer site for updates. There was an article on Tech R about maintenance not to long ago.
You should look for it and let your son read it. Then tell him the grass is to green, go cut it. (humor)
by jmbeauford
by justinf
Reformat definitely, do it twice a year.
On my home pcs I always have a second partition or second hard drive to back up onto. I use the second partition/disk for all the stuff I want to keep and just use the first partition for the os and any applications. This saves so much hassle when it comes to rebuilding.
by tzapf
by sirwar
If your 51 with no kids there, scandisk probably works fine, but family PCs are another story. All those downloadable browser plug-ins, multimedia drivers and apps, games, instant messaging services, viruses, etc, etc, etc...particularly if said family has broadband. oi.
I know when I was 15 I reformated every couple months because 15 year olds have a knack for messing with everything, but in the end I am more knowledgable for it.
As long as he backs everything up on another drive or removeable media, AND he knows about everything involved with reformating(dos commands, setup, drivers, etc.), I say let him do it.
But hey, what would I know, I'm only 17 ;)
by kevg
A friend of mine used to reformat his drive when it got to about 3/4 full.
The last time he did this,the stiffy disk for the cd-rom was corrupted with bad sectors. Panic, with no cd-rom software to install he couldn't access the cd to reinstall. Hewants win95 and not 98.
I ended up by connecting via serial cable to my computer and running of my cd, running good old dos interlnk/intersrv.
He no longer reformats, rather bringing it to me to sort out.
Moral of the story:
make sure that you basic disks are good before you start, and that inclueds your windows cd's.
by galamb
Provided that you have all your OS disks including a boot disk in case your computer does not boot from a CD, it would probably be a good thing if your having problems. You should also make sure you have all of your program disks so you can re-load them. If you've downloaded a lot of programs from the internet that you still wish to use you'll need them also. Backing up your data is also very important. I would highly recommend partitionig your hard drive and installing the OS on your C drive. Install your data on on your other partitions including your downloaded programs. This will make it easier to re-install your OS at a later date without losing everything like you would if it was all on one drive. The other techs who have responded to your question also have very good ideas and I would recommmend that you consider them as well. As you can see, starting over is quite involved but can be worthwhile especially if your now having problems. If you haven't already done it; get your family used to making their own personal folders to store data and downloads in in order to make it easier to find and back-up files. It would also be good for you when you try to trouble shoot.
Good Luck,
electrojolt
by ms5655
Unless your having major problems, I'd leave it alone. Reformatting and doing FDISK and retreving (backing up) all those programs is alot of work! If you do, make a new repair disk right before you format.
Good luck,
Mike
by dlongan
I have done both scenrios, but get the best results from a fresh reload of the OS. To make this very 6 month event go smoothly I have done the following:
1. Format / Install OS
2. Install all the latest hardware drivers
3. Latest IE version
4. Latest DirectX
5. Office Applications
6. Get everthing working correctly
7. Used Norton Ghost to create an image of the working system.
Now I can recreate my base system in under 5 minutes!!
by devin.ellis
by generalist
I have to agree that reformatting is a good way of ensuring a clean start. If your environment is such that you can to it on a regular basis, go for it, especially if it eliminates hassles. I've done it myself in the right conditions.
Unfortunately, if I tried reformatting certain family machines on a monthly basis, I'd have to spend far too long reinstalling everything the family considers to be 'essential'. We have far too many programs and far too many places to store data for me to safely, and effectively, consider that technique.
So, in the final analysis, it depends upon what you're doing and what you want. I can live with a lot of the background stuff and occasional glitch as long as rebooting appears to solve things.
Of course that could change if I found some sort of security leak on the systems. And if that leak send confidential information out, I'd consider adding reformatting to my virus protection measures.
Since you run scandisk and defrag on a regular basics, then I also suggest reclean from microsoft, search his web site to find it. Delete the *.tmp files and the temporary Internet files.
Search for files with the CHK extentions, these are filesthat scandisk fornd cross linked. When you start finding a lot of these your OS and applications will not work as effective as they should. Save your data and reformat, insure that you have a boot disk that can give you access to your CD-rom or use a secondary hard drive and copy the OS files to it. I use a second HD easier to yank out and use for other systems and make ghost images for fast recovery.
by admin
is so popular because many people don't bother to extensively learn how their systems work, and is seldom necessary.
Arguably it can be more cost effective, depending on the skills of the person maintaining the computer.
I wouldn't do it just because "It needs done every so often on a schedule" It doesn't. This is pure mythology based on a lack of understanding of the system.
by devin.ellis
by kermit
I'm not a computer professional yet. I'm 18 and I work as a computer repairman in my county. It's good business for getting ready to go to college. So my opinion might not matter much. But this is what I've found.
Regular maintance has it's place. I always run scandisk and defrag... But if there are registry problems, HDD problems, or other things like that I always favor backing up and starting over. I have two HDD. A system and data disk. The system disk a small 3G disk and the data disk is a larger 20G disk. This way I can reformat very easily. I used a CD-Burner and created a bootable CD with Windows and all my drivers on it. It's a CD-RW so when ever I get new drivers I can re-write the cd. I find that this, for me, is the best approach. I generaly have reformat about once every 6 to 8 months.
Just my experience.
Bruce Hudgins.
by reef2
by admin
Sorry it's taken a while to reply.
Basically, my answer is: "I don't know" I haven't installed a final build of XP and reformatted. Probably not a surprise, but I wanted to make it clear that I am speculating here.
You will very likely get another code the same way after every format. I doubt this will be hard, and is actually encouraging to people like me who enjoy building experimental systems that go up and down several times a day sometimes.
:>
by mmaysks
If you're not having any problems, no need to reformat.
I only reformat a PC if there is an indications of hard disk problem or major registry problem.
by lwt
Regular maintenance would do for lengthening times inbetween the reformats.
Get Norton Utilities and run WinDoctor often; also use Scanreg /fix to keep the registry fit. (this is if you have Win98, and there is a method in Win95 to export and compress the registry, but use Regclean first)
Run Disk Cleanup in Win98, or use a batch file for getting rid of stuff. (Fred Langa has a nice one called Cleanup.bat)at:
http://www.langa.com/cleanup_bat_novice.htm
Purge your browser caches often, check the download folder for unneedables and delete them. It wouldn't hurt to uninstall programs you barely use. Dump unessentials from the Startup section of msconfig, and if you have items in the taskbar that take up space, right-click them andsee if you can disable them in Options or Properties.
Organize your Start Menu, placing like apps in group folders.
Get rid of desk icons of programs that you can access by the Start Menu or command line.
It may take more time, but become familiar with your computer and discover where things are. Then you could be a better judge of what needs to go.
Don't use reformatting as a catch-all; save it for the true emergency (i.e. viruses and botched OS)
by wlowe
Reformatting a hard disk should be up there with changing the engine on your car when it is not running right.
As a consultant working on a lot of computers the ONLY times I have reformatted a drive were because of mixed operating systems/ versionsand hard disk errors. Reformatting does two things.
1. Blank the hard disk.
2. Lay down the structure for file access use. This part never (or should never) change from when it was formatted the last time.
The first item above is where the problems come in. It has been my experience that every time a system is reformatted something is lost that should not have been lost. It may be as simple as a dialer configuration/with password that was long forgotten or a spreadsheet that took a year tobuild. Now I know you all will say "backup" and everybody does right? Wrong. Either they were not backing up or they were backing up the wrong things.
Back to reformatting, your computer is a name brand it usually has a restore disk that reformats and reinstalls the system like it was when it left the factory. This does not include the dialer I mentioned above but it will be just like when you brought it in the door.
If it is a clone computer you will have much more trouble getting back to the beginning. You will have to find drivers for all of the components in your computer some of which may require removing and tracking down the manufacturer (no easy task).
My suggestion would be that if you are at a point of reformatting your harddrive you are at the same point as when you think you need your engine replaced in your car, seek professional help. I certainly hope the readers of this don't think I am trying to drum up more business. I am not, I have more than I can handle fixing reformatted drives.
by sirwar
by pxttocyob
Yes you must reformat to have a system that works. If you don't then windows will have garbage around to mess things up. It always messes things up by collecting too much junk.
You have to start over often if you expect it to work at all.
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