How To Format A PC Without Problems On Windows And MacOS

Formatting a hard drive means erasing all the information on the drive and creating a new data system, for the operating system. As complicated as it may seem, it is not difficult to format a hard drive and we will show you how to do it. Find out here how to format a PC without problems on Windows and MacOS.

All operating systems allow you to use this function and Windows also makes it easy. The time it takes to format a hard disk in Windows depends on the total size of the disk and, of course, the performance of your machine.

Formatting a Windows PC

There are two well-known and widely used options for formatting the PC and installing Windows 10:

• USB Drive (USB Pen): selecting this option will format the pen drive to a format that allows the system to be read, during boot.
• ISO Image (Physical Media - DVD): by choosing this method, you will have to "burn" the image to a blank DVD, so that it will be recognized during boot.

Once you have your system ready, on a DVD or USB stick with Windows 10, follow the procedure below.

• Insert the DVD or USB memory with the Windows 10 installation.
• You will have to boot from the DVD or USB memory (in case you do not know how to do it, you will have to consult the manual of your motherboard to change the boot order).
• After the boot you will see the Windows 10 installation options.
• You will have to select which keyboard, date and time format and language to install.
• After accepting all the procedures and terms, you have two options. Refresh or Custom, selecting the refresh option will not format the disk and all your data will be preserved. To format, select the Custom option.

• Before proceeding, make sure you are selecting the partition on which you want to format and install the system. You must choose the drive (usually C:). Select that partition and click delete partition. If there is a partition called "Reserved for system", delete it as well.

• Click on the unallocated partition and select New, then Format. Then click the Next button.
• The installation process will begin.

• At the end of the process, the system will automatically reboot. When the computer restarts, disconnect the USB flash drive containing the system, if you are using a DVD, do not press any keys.

When you have finished this process, the system will boot and you will need to perform the initial setup of your computer. After the initial setup, your machine will be formatted and ready to use.

Don't forget that security is important, so we recommend that you download all available updates as soon as possible.

Format Apple computer with macOS system

Disk Utility allows you to format your disks, add volumes, check your disk for errors and much more. When you format a disk or volume permanently, you delete all the files it contains.

• Open Disk Utility in the macOS "Utilities" window.

• Select View - Show All Devices from the menu bar.
• In the Disk Utility sidebar, select the disk you want to format.
• Click the Erase button or tab, and then you will need to fill in the requested data.
  • Name: name for the disk or volume, for example "Pc Mac".
  • Format: select APFS or expanded MacOS (Disk Utility will show a compatible format by default).
• Use the Erase button to start formatting the disk or drive.
• When the process is finished, you should close the Utility. Now you can install macOS, if you wish.

Reinstalling from macOS Recovery

To boot from macOS Recovery, when you turn on your Mac, press and hold one of the following keyboard combinations. In general, the recommended combination is Command (⌘) +R.

Command (⌘) + R: installs the latest version of macOS that has been installed on the Mac.

Option + ⌘ + R - Upgrades to the latest version of macOS.

Shift + Option + ⌘ + R - Installs the macOS included with the Mac.

You can release the keys when you see the Apple logo, or a prompt to enter a password. When the Utilities window appears, it means you have been able to boot from macOS Recovery.

Install macOS

After booting from macOS Recovery, follow these steps to install macOS:

• In the Utilities window, select Reinstall macOS (or Reinstall OS X).
• Click Continue and follow the on-screen instructions to choose your disk and start the installation.
  • If the installer prompts you to unlock the disk, enter the password you use to log in to your Mac. If the disk is not detected, you may have a problem or it may need to be formatted first.

• Allow the installation to complete without suspending your Mac or closing its lid. During the installation, your Mac may restart, show a progress bar and the screen may go blank for a few minutes.

If your goal is to sell or give your Mac to someone, press Command-Q to exit the wizard without completing the installation. Then shut down the machine.

The new owner, when they start their Mac, will be able to use your information to complete the setup.

Formatting erases data, but does not always erase data

When you format a drive in Windows, data may or may not actually be erased. Depending on the version of Windows and the type of formatting, the data may still be there, hidden from Windows and other operating systems, but accessible in certain situations.

For this reason, data recovery software is available. These applications usually cost money to run, in some cases a lot of money. With the free versions you can access the data, but not recover it. If you are willing to pay for this tool and find it extremely useful, we advise you to get it.

Do you have a slow computer? Know the best solution to get back to optimal performance and you can avoid formatting and installing the operating system.