format

format

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Formats a partition or volume.

Syntax

 format   Volume   /fs:{FAT  FAT32  NTFS} [/v:   Label   ] [/a:   UnitSize   ] [/q] [/c] [/x] 

Options

Volume

Drive letter, volume name , or mount point to format.

/fs:{FAT FAT32 NTFS}

Type of filesystem to create.

/v:Label

Label for volume.

/a:UnitSize

Size of allocation unit (if omitted, the command chooses the optimal allocation unit based on the size of the volume).

/q

Quick format (deletes file table and root directory but doesn't scan for bad sectors.

/c

Files created on an NTFS volume are compressed by default.

/x

Dismounts volume before formatting. All open file handles are closed.

Examples

Format F: drive using NTFS, assign it the label MYVOL , and compress the volume:

  format f: /fs:NTFS /v:MYVOL /c  The type of the file system is RAW. The new file system is NTFS.     WARNING, ALL DATA ON NON-REMOVABLE DISK DRIVE F: WILL BE LOST! Proceed with Format (Y/N)? y Verifying 502M Creating file system structures. Format complete.     514079 KB total disk space.     509129 KB are available. 

Format a mount point named newvol using FAT32:

  format newvol /fs:FAT32  The type of the file system is RAW. The new file system is FAT32.     WARNING, ALL DATA ON NON-REMOVABLE DISK DRIVE C:\newvol WILL BE LOST! Proceed with Format (Y/N)? y Verifying 502M Initializing the File Allocation Table (FAT)... Volume label (11 characters, ENTER for none)?  Budget  Format complete.       525,373,440 bytes total disk space.   525,369,344 bytes available on disk.             4,096 bytes in each allocation unit.       128,264 allocation units available on disk.                32 bits in each FAT entry.     Volume Serial Number is A83C-2E40 

Notes

When format is used with the Recovery Console, only the /fs and /q switches can be used.

See Also

chkdsk , chkntfs , convert , defrag , diskpart , Disks , label , mountvol