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Partitioning
After a drive is physically installed and CMOS is setup to identify it (for IDE types only, not required for SCSI
drives), FDISK must be run to partition the drive even if you only want one large partition.
The FDISK utility allows you to:
1. Partition the disk into any number of logical drives for example, 40 GB drive may be partitioned into two 20
GB drives (C: and D:) and with specific cluster sizes (the larger the partition the bigger the cluster size if
not formatted with cluster size switch specified by the user).
2. Assign an ACTIVE partition to the boot drive (usually C:)
The drive partition containing the operating system must be made "ACTIVE" in order to load from it upon
boot-up.
Hard Disk Drive size is sometimes informed bigger by the manufacturers than the operating system scan disk verification
confirms; converting between binary gigabytes and binary megabytes. Decimal gigabytes and megabytes differ by a
factor of 1,000 but of course the binary measures differ by 1,024. So this same 30 GB hard disk is 30,000 MB in
decimal terms. But its 27.94 binary gigabytes are equal to 28,610 binary megabytes (27.94 times 1,024).
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1000 bytes = 1 KiloByte | 1000 KB =
1 MegaByte | 1000 MB = 1 GigaByte
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1024 bytes = 1 KiloByte | 1024 KB =
1 MegaByte | 1024 MB = 1 GigaByte
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There's potential good news regarding this whole binary/decimal
confusion. The IEEE has proposed a new naming convention for the binary numbers. Under this proposal, for binary
numbers the third and fourth letters in the prefix are changed to "bi", so "mega" becomes "mebi"
for example. Thus, one megabyte would be 10^6 bytes, but one mebibyte would be 2^20 bytes. The abbreviation would
become "1 MiB" instead of "1 MB". Summary table showing the decimal and binary measurements
and their abbreviations and values ("bytes" are shown as an example unit here, but the prefices could
apply to any unit of measure):
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Decimal Name
|
Decimal Abbr.
|
Decimal Power
|
Decimal Value
|
|
Kilobyte
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kB
|
10^3
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1,000
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Megabyte
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MB
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10^6
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1,000,000
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Gigabyte
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GB
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10^9
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1,000,000,000
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Terabyte
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TB
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10^12
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1,000,000,000,000
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Binary Name
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Binary Abbr.
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Binary Power
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Binary Value
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Kibibyte
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kiB
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2^10
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1,024
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Mebibyte
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MiB
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2^20
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1,048,576
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Gibibyte
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GiB
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2^30
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1,073,741,824
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Tebibyte
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TiB
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2^40
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1,099,511,627,776
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FAT-issues:
To quote the Microsoft Knowledge Base article referenced below:
"For most users, FAT32 will have a negligible performance impact. Some programs may see a slight performance
gain from FAT32. In other programs, particularly those heavily dependent on large sequential read or write operations,
FAT32 may result in a modest performance degradation."
FAT32 does NOT affect system performance.
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Partitioning Hard Disk
| OS Name: |
Microsoft Windows ME |
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Partitioning Plan:
2-equal partitions.
Active Disk:
Partition 1 - C: |
| Version: |
4.90.3000 Build 3000 |
| OS Manufacturer: |
Microsoft Corporation |
| Hard disk drive: |
30GB Maxtor 33073H3 |
| Number of Disks: |
2 (platters) |
| Firmware: |
YAH814Y0 |
| Hard disk drive size: |
3.5 in |
NOTE FOR HARD DISK HANDLING:
Never drop, jar, or bump the drive.
DO NOT connect/disconnect any drive cables when the power is on.
DO NOT force or rock the connectors into their sockets. Push them in straight until they are seated.
Allow the drive to reach room temperature before installing it in the computer.
To avoid electrostatic discharge(ESD) damage touch the metal case of your PC system or use a grounding strap
before handling. Connect your grounding strap to the system casing.
USE THE ORIGINAL RECOVERY CD-ROM WHEN
AVAILABLE WITH EITHER FULL OR
PARTIAL RECOVERY METHOD TO DO AN EASY AND COMPREHENSIVE SETUP.
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GOOD TO KNOW !
Does FAT32 affect system performance ?
To quote the Microsoft Knowledge Base article referenced below:
"For most users, FAT32 will have a negligible performance impact. Some programs may see a slight performance
gain from FAT32. In other programs, particularly those heavily dependent on large sequential read or write operations,
FAT32 may result in a modest performance degradation."
Basically, the more clusters on your hard drive, the slower the performance. This is true for any file system,
FAT16, FAT32, NTFS, HPFS, whatever. However, since FAT32 allows for many more clusters on a single partition than
FAT16, the effect may be noticable. Disk utilities are especially affected (slower) the more clusters in the partition.
For instance, the closer to 8GB your partition gets, the more 4K clusters, and the slower the performance. (However,
as your partition gets bigger, your slack vs. FAT16 improves.)
In preliminary benchmark testing, FAT32 and FAT16 benchmark roughly the same (within 2% either way) when partition
size and cluster size are the same. (Note that in order to create a FAT32 partition with the same cluster size
as FAT16, the /Z switch must be used when formatting.) However, when cluster sizes are made smaller and the number
of clusters increases (only possible with FAT32), disk performance degrades.
Thus there is a battle between slack and performance:
Small clusters mean less slack but worse performance.
Large clusters mean more slack but better performance.
Most users will notice slack differences much more than performance differences caused by varying cluster sizes.
Microsoft has decided for us (in making 4K the default cluster size for FAT32) that 4K clusters is the best balance
between slack and performance. However, with the /Z switch on the FORMAT command, the user has the ability to decide
what cluster size should be, based on the user's concerns about slack vs. performance.
I'm using 16 KB cluster size (16384 bytes on each allocation unit) on 40GB IBM HDD that is partitioned in two equal
partitions.
Read the table below for choosing the cluster size on basis of disk size for better performance
and limiting slack space.
Best recommended Cluster size for your drive
| Disk Size |
Cluster Size Recommended |
Format Command Option* |
| Less than 1 GB |
4 KB
|
Format x: |
| Less than 4 GB |
8 KB
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Format x: /z:16 |
| Less than 20 GB |
16 KB
|
Format x: /z:32 |
| More than 20 GB |
32 KB **
|
Format x: /z:64 |
*x: is the drive i.e. e.g. for c drive it is format
c:
**32 KB Cluster Size is best for performance, even faster than FAT16. Test drive runs on FAT32 with cluster
size of 32 KB and Sysinfo by Norton Utilities 3.0 gives the cached read/write benchmark of 75 MB and 5 MB physical
read/write speed compared to 57 MB and 5.1 MB on FAT16 (with 2GB partitions and cluster size of 32 KB) respectively
on Seagate Medallist 4.3 GB.
TIPS !
The APM (Advance Power Management) "feature" of OSR2, and which spins down the hard disk when
inactive, also results in slower performance. To turn off APM, go to Control Panel Power and uncheck the
"Allow Windows to manage power use on this computer" box.
Using Converter :
To convert an existing partition without any data loss you can use:
Partition Magic
‘CVT.EXE’ from Microsoft
Windows 98 graphical FAT32 conversion utility
-to convert partitions to FAT32 on-the-fly without data loss, this is probably the best method currently available,
it can also convert back to FAT16 if required. You may use this program only if You have existing FAT 16 partitions.
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USING MAXBLAST
AND RECOVERY CD
STEPS TO FOLLOW TO PARTITION HARD DISK:
USING MAXBLAST PLUS WITH EZ-BIOS 13.73M BOOT MANAGER
PROGRAM
1. CREATE WINDOWS MILLENNIUM EDITION STARTUP DISK !
2. CREATE RECOVERY BOOT DISC !
3. DOWNLOAD from the MAXTOR Web site > MAXBLAST PLUS !
http://www.maxtor.com/
Extract the files and create a bootable floppy disc.
You should have now 3 boot discs; Microsoft ME Startup, Recovery Boot Disc and MaxBlast Plus !
Shut down Your computer (wait at least 20 sec. before a new boot).
INSERT the Recovery Boot Disc in the floppy
drive and startup the computer.
LOW LEVEL FORMAT with the Maxtor Powermax or Recovery Boot Disc (PC-DOCTOR 2.0) by using UTILITY, Quick
Erase Hard Drive! After Low Level Format is completed, SHUT
DOWN THE COMPUTER.
INSERT the MAXBLAST PLUS Boot Disc in the floppy drive and startup the computer.
FOLLOW the instructions to PARTITION Your hard disk:
1. Select Your Language (English).
2. "ACCEPT" - to the 'MaxBlast Plus Software
License Agreement'.
3. "YES" - to 'Have you physically installed
your Maxtor hard drive?'.
4. Select "Partition and Format", 'Click'
on "CONTINUE".
5. LOW LEVEL FORMAT the hard disk (filling the
entire hard disk with 0 zeros that will also wipe out any 'bad sectors' and viruses from the disk).
6. FOLLOW ALL THE INSTRUCTIONS and use the HELP section
to learn all the necessary details for a successful partition. MaxBlast Plus is a VERY GOOD and quite easy to use
program and specially designed for Maxtor 33073H3 Hard Disk.
DO NOT use any other programs for the
partitioning!
You may use alternatively 'Microsoft Windows
Fdisk.exe',
but it is NOT very user friendly for the beginners!
MaxBlast Plus will use EZ-BIOS 13.73M boot manager program from StorageSoft Inc.
EZ-Drive: Windows Me supports EZ-Drive through the protected-mode IDE driver.
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USING RECOVERY
CD
When using Product Recovery CD that was included in the package, follow these basic steps:
1. SHUT DOWN Your Computer. (Make sure that any
discs are NOT in drives!)
2. START UP Your computer and HOLD DOWN the "Ctrl"
- key while computer starts.
3. You should see EZ-BIOS startup screen with text:
- 'Press A to boot from the A: drive'
- 'Press C to boot from the C: drive'
You may press key A but it is NOT necessary.
Just INSERT the Product Recovery CD and it should start automatically.
If You pressed key A, You will see a note:
- 'Insert disk, press a key'
Just INSERT the Product Recovery CD and press 'ENTER'.
Follow the instructions to install Windows ME.
NOTE:
Before shutting the computer down, just INSERT
the Product Recovery CD in and then SHUT DOWN
!
WAIT AT LEAST 20 seconds and then START UP
Your computer.
Follow the instructions given by Recovery
CD (TYPE in Yes in the prompts) and the program will take You through the full recovery of Windows Me and Pre-installed
programs.
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USING MICROSOFT FDISK.EXE
Discettes needed:
1. WIN98 / WIN98SE / WINDOWS ME STARTUP DISC
!
2. MAXBLAST PLUS DISC !
Low Level Format the hard disk by using the PowerMax utility. Shut down the computer and insert the WINDOWS
Startup Disc in the floppy drive before powering the computer. Then just follow these instructions...
This is the first window that is displayed when opening FDISK. However this screen will not be displayed
in Windows NT / Windows 95 OSR1 or lower operating systems. This screen is asking if you wish to enable the new
FAT which is FAT32.
Your computer has a disk larger than 512 MB. This version of Windows
includes improved support for large disks, resulting
in more efficient
use of disk space on large drives, and allowing disks
over 2 GB to be
formatted as a single drive.
IMPORTANT: If you enable large disk support
and create any new drives on this
disk, you will not be able to
access the new drive(s) using other operating
systems, including
some versions of Windows 95 and Windows NT, as well as
earlier versions of Windows
and MS-DOS. In addition, disk utilities that
were not designed explicitly
for the FAT32 file system will not be able
to work with this disk. If you
need to access this disk with other operating
systems or older disk utilities,
do not enable large drive support.
Do you wish
to enable large disk support (Y/N) . . . . . . . . . . . ?
[Y] |
In this screen you will have two options to choose from, either Y for Yes to enable FAT32 when creating
partitions. or N for No do not enable FAT32 and instead use FAT16.
This is the main screen used during the time running FDISK. This would also be the first screen if your
computer operating system does not support FAT32. From this window you will have the capability of setting up or
removing partitions from your hard drive(s).
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Microsoft
Windows 98
Fixed Disk Setup Program
(C) Copyright Microsoft Corp. 1983
- 1998
FDISK Options
Current Fixed disk drive: 1
Choose
one of the following:
1.
Create DOS partition or Logical DOS Drive
2. Set
active partition
3. Delete
partition or Logical DOS Drive
4. Display
partition information
5. Change
current fixed disk drive
Enter choice: [ 1 ]
Press
Esc to exit FDISK
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In this screen you will have the following options:
1. Creating DOS partition or Logical DOS Drive - Choose this option if you need to create a partition on
your computer hard drive. If you are planning to recreate your partition you will first need to choose 3 to delete
the partition.
2. Set active partition - If you have created multiple partitions on your hard drive choose this option
to specify which partition you want to be the active partition. This is used to specify which partition the computer
is going to look at to boot from. If this partition does not have an operating system however you will receive
"Non system disk when booting up your computer." When choosing option 2 to set active partition you will
see a listing of the current partitions choose the number representing the partition you wish to set active, the
default is one.
3. Delete partition or Logical DOS Drive - This option is used if you need to delete partition(s) from the
computers hard disk drive.
4. Display partition information - Use this option to look at the current Fixed disk drive partition information.
If you have multiple drives you will need to choose option 5 before being able to display the other hard drives
information.
5. Change current fixed disk drive - This option will only show if you have multiple drives within the computer.
Using this option you will be able to toggle from one fixed drive to another.
Using the options within this screen you will be able to create the various different partitions. These
options will only allow you to create FAT16 and FAT32 partitions if supported and you pressed Y for Yes to enable
large disk partitions. If you are attempting to create a NTFS partitions use Windows NT Disk Manager.
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Create DOS Partition or Logical DOS Drive
Current
fixed disk drive: 1
Choose
one of the following:
1.
Create Primary DOS Partition
2. Create
Extended DOS Partition
3. Create
Logical DOS Drive(s) in the Extended DOS Partition
Enter choice: [ 1 ]
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1. Create Primary DOS Partition - Choosing this option you will be prompted to use maximum space. If you
specify yes this will use up to 2 GB if creating FAT16 partitions or up to 32 GB if using FAT32. If you choose
no you will be able to specify how large you would like the partition to be. NOTE you will need to create a primary
partitions before being able to create an Extended or Logical DOS partitions.
2. Create Extended DOS Partition - If you are using FAT16 and have a 2 GB or higher hard drive or have only
specified a small portion of the hard drive as the Primary partition use this option to create the Extended DOS
partition(s) (other drive assignments). The Extended DOS partition will be used to hold the Logical DOS drives
therefore use the maximum space left on the hard drive.
3. Create Logical DOS Drive(s) in the Extended DOS Partition - This option is used after you have created
an Extended DOS partitions. Once the Extended DOS partition has been created you then can specify the sizes of
other partitions you wish to create.
Within this screen you will have the capability of deleting pre-existing DOS partitions. If you currently
have no disk space available on your hard drive and wish to create additional partitions you must first use this
screen to delete the partitions and then you will be able to create partitions. NOTE if you delete partitions any
information on those partitions will be erased and CANNOT be recovered.
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Delete DOS Partition or Logical DOS Drive
Current fixed disk drive: 1
Choose
one of the following:
1.
Delete Primary DOS partition
2.
Delete Extended DOS Partition
3.
Delete Logical DOS Drive(s) in the Extended DOS Partition
4.
Delete Non-DOS Partition
Enter Choice: [ ]
Press Esc to return
to FDISK Options
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1. Delete Primary DOS partition - Use this option to delete your main primary partition. However if you
currently have any Extended / Logical DOS partitions you must delete these partitions before you will be able to
delete the Primary DOS partition.
2. Delete Extended DOS partition - If you have your computer partitions into more then one drive, use this
option to delete the extended dos partition(s). You must delete the Logical DOS Drive(s) before you can delete
the Extended DOS partition.
3. Delete Logical DOS Drive(s) in the Extended DOS Partition - This option would be used first if you have
extended DOS partitions and wish to delete the extended partitions.
4. Delete Non-DOS Partition - This option is usually used for partitions that either have been created by
third party applications such as a DDO or other operating systems such as IBM Warp, Unix, as well as various other
operating systems.
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MY INSTALLATION
I partitioned my hard disk in 4-equal partitions for easy backup and maintenance routine. Also, this type of partition
speeds up the read/write performance since 30GB Maxtor 33073H3 drive has 2-platters for storage, making the partition
equal on 2 disks on a platter. Later, in the case of Operating System instability, it is easy to backup ALL important
files on any of the remaining partitions that don't include the operating system. Then it is just a matter of formatting
and re-installing the operating system on Your C: hard disk partition.
I formatted all the disks with format command:
format c:/z:16
This format command formats the disk for 8 kb clusters, instead of the Windows' standard 4 kb and will speed up
the hard disk performance. See the table !
I used Windows Me FDISK.EXE to partition the hard disk and FULL RECOVERY from the IBM Recovery CD. I HIGHLY RECOMMEND
to use the IBM FULL RECOVERY, unless You are familiar with tweaking and customizing the partitionings, operating
systems and device drivers all by Yourself !
Overall, very smooth ride and trouble-free recovery !
DRIVE C: CONTAINS the Windows ME Operating System!
FREE SPACE varies according to installed programs!
After partitioning Your hard disk into 4 equal parts, hard disk information is as follows:
| Drive |
A: |
Drive |
E: |
| Description |
3 1/2 Inch Floppy Drive |
Description |
Local Fixed Disk |
| Drive |
C: |
Compressed |
No |
| Description |
Local Fixed Disk |
Size |
6.99 GB (7,502,299,136 bytes) |
| Compressed |
No |
Free Space |
5.71 GB (6,132,207,616 bytes) |
| Size |
6.97 GB (7,486,779,392 bytes) |
Drive |
F: |
| Free Space |
3.74 GB (4,012,355,584 bytes) |
Description |
Local Fixed Disk |
| Drive |
D: |
Compressed |
No |
| Description |
Local Fixed Disk |
Size |
6.96 GB (7,477,649,408 bytes) |
| Compressed |
No |
Free Space |
5.71 GB (6,132,207,616 bytes) |
| Size |
6.76 GB (7,255,465,984 bytes) |
Drive |
G: |
| Free Space |
5.71 GB (6,132,207,616 bytes) |
Description |
CD-ROM Disc |
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Any questions or inquiries may be e-mailed to keppanet@hotmail.com.
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