Quincy Center for Technical Education
Computer Technology Department

Format

Formats the disk in the specified volume to accept Windows 2000 files. You must be a member of the Administrators group to format a hard drive.

format volume [/fs:file-system] [/v:label] [/q] [/a:unitsize] [/f:size] [/t:tracks /n:sectors] [/c] [/x] [/1] [/4] [/8]

Parameters

volume:

Specifies the mount point, volume name, or drive letter of the drive you want to format. If you do not specify any of the following switches, format uses the volume type to determine the default format for the disk.

/fs:file-system

Specifies the file system to use, FAT, FAT32, or NTFS. Floppy disks can use only the FAT file system.

/v:label

Specifies the volume label. If you omit the /v switch, or use it without specifying a volume label, Windows 2000 prompts you for the volume label after the formatting is completed. Use the syntax /v: to prevent the prompt for a volume label. If you format more than one disk by using one format command, all of the disks will be given the same volume label. The /v switch is not compatible with the /8 switch. For more information about disk volume labels, click Dir, Label, and Vol in the Related Topics list.

/a:unitsize

Specifies the allocation unit size to use on FAT, FAT32, or NTFS volumes. Use one of the following values for unitsize. If unitsize is not specified, it will be chosen based on volume size.

512 

Creates 512 bytes per cluster.

1024 

Creates 1024 bytes per cluster.

2048 

Creates 2048 bytes per cluster.

4096 

Creates 4096 bytes per cluster.

8192 

Creates 8192 bytes per cluster.

16K 

Creates 16 kilobytes per cluster.

32K 

Creates 32 kilobytes per cluster.

64K 

Creates 64 kilobytes per cluster.

/q

Deletes the file table and the root directory of a previously formatted volume, but does not scan for bad areas. You should use the /q switch to format only previously formatted volumes that you know are in good condition.

/f:size

Specifies the size of the floppy disk to format. When possible, use this switch instead of the /t and /n switches. Use one of the following values for size:

160 or 160k or 160kb
160KB, single-sided, double-density, 5.25-inch disk

180 or 180k or 180kb
180KB, single-sided, double-density, 5.25-inch disk

320 or 320k or 320kb
320KB, double-sided, double-density, 5.25-inch disk

360 or 360k or 360kb
360KB, double-sided, double-density, 5.25-inch disk

720 or 720k or 720kb
720KB, double-sided, double-density, 3.5-inch disk

1200 or 1200k or 1200kb or 1.2 or 1.2m or 1.2mb
1.2-MB, double-sided, quadruple-density, 5.25-inch disk

1440 or 1440k or 1440kb or 1.44 or 1.44m or 1.44mb
1.44-MB, double-sided, quadruple-density, 3.5-inch disk

2880 or 2880k or 2880kb or 2.88 or 2.88m or 2.88mb
2.88-MB, double-sided, 3.5-inch disk

20.8 or 20.8m or 20.8mb
20.8-MB, 3.5-inch floptical (magneto-optical) disk

/t:tracks

Specifies the number of tracks on the disk. When possible, use the /f switch instead of this switch. If you use the /t switch, you must also use the /n switch. These two switches provide an alternative method of specifying the size of the disk being formatted. You cannot use the /f switch with the /t switch.

/n:sectors

Specifies the number of sectors per track. When possible, use the /f switch instead of this switch. If you use the /n switch, you must also use the /t switch. These two switches provide an alternative method of specifying the size of the disk being formatted. You cannot use the /f switch with the /n switch.

/c

Files created on the new volume will be compressed by default.

/x

Causes the volume to dismount, if necessary, before it is formatted. Any open handles to the volume will no longer be valid.

/1

Formats a single side of a floppy disk.

/4

Formats a 5.25-inch, 360KB, double-sided, double-density floppy disk on a 1.2-MB disk drive. Some 360KB drives cannot reliably read disks formatted with this switch. When used with the /1 switch, this switch formats a 5.25-inch, 180KB, single-sided floppy disk.

/8

Formats a 5.25-inch disk with 8 sectors per track. This switch formats a floppy disk to be compatible with MS-DOS versions prior to 2.0.