Topic: How to Format a Harddrive with Ubuntu?

[mistybear]

Michael is trying to format the harddrive on a friends laptop that has Ubuntu installed on it.

I actually don't know anymore than that, only that he's having trouble with it.

So, Sam, is there a particular way that it needs to be done. 

Oh, and he will be installing XP.

[mistybear]

At the moment they are following this advice from another forum.

How To: Uninstall Ubuntu
Well, not many of you would want to do this but about a week ago I was reading a forum post that had someone ask how do you uninstall Ubuntu? I was left wondering because so few people would want to do it. But, I found an easier way than deleting partitions blindly and rewriting a windows mbr which is no fun at all. To do this you need to be in windows (its an exe) download this file http://www.terabyteunlimited.com/bootitng.html You do not need to buy it. Just scroll to the bottom to download from their link. When downloaded run the exe in there. You then may make a bootable floppy or cd your choice. This puts the program on you choice of media so your ready to go. (the cd option makes a cd .iso so you will need a program to burn it.) Both the floppy and cd contain the same program. Next you will restart your computer with the cd or floppy in the drive. Once you boot into the program do not install it to your HDD. Just click cancel to just run it off the cd or floppy. Then go to partion work. Click the oval on the left side of the window (yes you can use your mouse!) to go to your primary hdd. Select and delete every partition except for your standard windows partition. Now you should have a formatless partion that says free space after it. Then select your windows partion and click resize. It will run an error check which may take a while depending on your partion size. Once that finishes type in the largest size in the prompt unless you have other plans for some of that space . Once you do that it will allocate all that space back to your primary partion. Next, if you installed grub the bootloader you will need to reset you mbr or else you can't boot up because grub will crash. To do this select you windows partion go to view mbr on the left. When in there select your windows partion and click std mbr. This will take grub off and set your mbr back to the way it was before. Click apply and the changes will be made. Then eject your media and use the file option at the top left to reboot. Your computer should restart normally into windows . You just uninstalled Ubuntu. This saved you so much pain. You would have had to rewrite the mbr by hand to do this the other way and then have had to figure out a way to delete the linux partions. It is not a bad idea to back your stuff up before doing this because stuff happens and you don;t wanna lose everything. Hope this helps you.

[Sandra]

No need to format it before installing XP on it MB. Just set it to boot from the CD, put the XP CD in the drive and when it asks for where to install XP you can delete any partitions that are there by highlighting one partiotion and pressing L. It will ask iof yo are sure and you need to press D to delete it. Repeat the process for any more partitions until you have a single line showing the size of the hard drive in mbs. Then you press C to create a partition, if you just want a single one leave the size as the maximum it says but if you want to split the drive into a boot partition and one for everything else then select the size remembering that 40gb goes in as 40,000mb. Click next and it will ask you to format the partition. Normally most people would use the format in NTFS (quick) option. After its formatted it continue to install XP as usual and just select what you want when it asks for the various options.

[mistybear]

Great, thanks Sandra.

So there's no need to uninstall Ubuntu? (Mind you I think they are still trying.)

[Sandra]

No point doing it as once you delete any existing partitions, as I described, you have to re create a partition, even if using only one the whole size of the drive. Any new partition has to be formatted before it can have anything done with it 

[mistybear]

They tried booting from our Medion XP CD and it didn't work. 

Oops, sorry I mean installing the CD. 

[Sandra]

Did they set the bios to boot from CD as the first bootable device ?
Not sure if the Medion CD will install XP on it as its probably only a recovery CD but it should still boot off it and ask where to find the files it would expect to see, but as they arent there thats as far as it will go, I think.

[sam]

the other problems with the medion cd (well most recover cds) is that they have most of the files they need on a partition of the hard drive... probably a segmented part of the main disk. The recovery CD just runs script to mirror the main disk back to the original place. So you could have problems if you repartitioned the disks deleting the stuff.

If you want to repartition in Ubuntu (assuming you still have it) - go to System -> Preferences -> Disk Utilis (or something like that) - you want to run the task gparted.

[Sandra]

I dont think they want to repartition it Sam, they just want to remove Unbuntu and install XP on it.

[mistybear]

I think that's it in a nut shell, Sandra.

Michael has lost the internet over there, so I'm waiting for him to get back on MSN. I do have a XP on my desktop, after spending the last 10 minutes trying to find the CD, I was given it as a replacement for when Michael upgraded his motherboard and cpu, just in case he lost the Medion XP. But he didn't use it.

How do I burn to CD, I've forgotten. It's a ISO.

[mistybear]

Oh, sorry, Sam. I'm not sure how far they got trying to uninstall it. But if what Sandra says is right (not that I would doubt her) they won't need to now.

[Sandra]

Open Nero or whichever burning program you use, and select the Burn from Image or Saved Project option. Either drag the ISO onto the window that opens or click Add file and browse for where the ISO is on your pc then click burn 

[mistybear]

The harddrive is only 14GB and has only one partition with Ubuntu on it. They did try another XP CD which didn't work.

He's on MSN now Sandra.

[sam]

hmm, should be quite simple once you have the XP cd then - it should be able to do the whole thing for you.

[mistybear]

I'm not sure why it won't, Sam.         But they are formatting the harddrive now, so I'll leave them to it.

Maybe 14Gb harddrive isn't big enough for Windows XP.