Reformatting Windows XP

When your computer is infected with viruses or full of redundant software, it is better to reformat your Windows XP OS. It is also a good idea of reformatting Windows XP, before you sell off your computer to someone else. However, reformatting will cause all the data on your hard drive to be erased. You will lose all your music files, videos, documents, information, etc. Therefore, before you think about reformatting Windows XP, make sure you create a backup of all your documents. But, I'm sure you must be wondering how to reformat Windows XP? You will find all the answers related to the question how to reformat Windows XP in the following paragraphs.

How Do You Reformat Windows XP

There are three steps that you need to complete. These three steps are very important to complete a reformatting process. This includes the following:

• Reformatting Windows XP OS with the help of CD
• Reinstalling the drivers on the computer
• Reinstalling security updates and patches with the help of Windows update

How to Reformat Windows XP

Reformatting Windows XP can be done using a Windows XP disc. You will get the disc after you have purchased an original Windows XP OS. This disc is called 'Recovery Disc' or 'Operating System Disc'. You should keep in mind, if you find the words 'Utilities' or 'Drivers' written in the end, it is does not contain the operating system software.

Reformatting can be done only if you insert the disc before the operating system loads up. When this happens, you will get a message that says, 'Press any key to boot from disc'. If not, you will have to configure the BIOS using a removable media drive. Let us see how to reformat Windows XP.

• Insert a Windows OS CD in your hard drive and restart your computer.
• When the computer restarts, it will automatically boot to the Windows Setup Main Menu.
• You will get a Welcome screen and you need to press Enter to reach Set Up page
• Now, press F8 on your keyboard and accept the Windows XP licensing agreement.
• You will be prompted to repair Windows XP, if the system detects any existing OS. Press ESC to skip this part.
• You can select partition or unpartitioned space to create a new partition. Press D key to delete any existing partition and C to create a new partition.
• You need to press Enter to create a partition or type in the megabyte for a partition size.
• You will be prompted to select an option regarding the use of partition. You need to select NTFS and press Enter. If you choose 'FAT' or 'FAT32', it will make your Windows XP compatible with older versions of the OS.
• When the partition is being formatted, installation of Windows XP will be begin. This will lead to computer reboot. Do not press any keys while the computer reboots.
• You will have to enter the product key once reboot is complete. The key is present at the back of the CD sleeve. You can even find the key on a sticker on the computer, if the CD came along with the computer.
• Select Typical Settings when prompted for Network Settings.
• Once reformatting is complete, you need to reinstall the drivers. You will need to insert a 'Driver Installation CD' that most of the PC companies give you along with the PC.
• Insert the CD and reinstall the drivers.
• Connect to the Internet and run Windows Update. You can do this by clicking on Tools -> Windows Update.
• Restart Windows XP.

You need the original Operating System (OS) disc and the product key for reformatting Windows XP. If you don't have this, you cannot reformat Windows XP. Hope the above information on how do you reformat Windows XP is useful.