When you format a drive, you have 2 options, "quick" format and "full" format. (Not including the type of file system to choose, such as FAT32, NTFS and so on).

So what's the differene between the two?

They are identical with the exception of one thing, a Full format also checks your hard disk (or usb disk, etc.) for any errors. Essentially the same as doing a check disk (chkdsk). The reason a full format takes so long is due largely in part to the amount of time the disk checking takes.

Generally, if you already know that there is nothing wrong with the disk, or drive, a quick format is all you'll need.

Doing a "Full" format doesn't erase any more than a quick format does. In fact, when doing a format nothing actually gets erased other than the file system. The files are all still there, but formatting lets the operating system know that the space is now free to be written on. If you're worried about security, you'll want to do an 'overwrite'. There are tons of programs on the net available to do this in a variety of ways: some write 0's over and over on the drive making it impossible or near impossible to retrieve any old data, while some use other Government strength, similar methods.

Here's a good one that uses Department of Defense methods to securely wipe a drive clean. The demo version is free and should do all that is needed.

If you have any other good software recomendations, or other useful info, feel free to add!

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Looking to format a drive to FAT32 in Windows 7? Have a look at our article.

In Windows 7 and only seeing the EXFAT and NTFS options? Take a look at this article.